Manipuri director Paban Kumar Haobam on Thursday said the people of his state feel "confused" amid the ongoing ethnic violence. The Northeastern state has been witnessing ethnic violence between the majority community Meitei and the minority Kuki people since May 3. More than 160 people have lost their lives in the clashes. Tension mounted in the hills of Manipur after a May 4 video of two women being paraded naked in the state surfaced last month. When the filmmaker was asked if he plans to make a feature film or documentary on the current situation in his home state, Haobam said as someone who belonged to the Meitei community, he was not the right person to do so given the current situation. Manipur Violence: CM N Biren Singh Speaks Over Phone to Mizoram Counterpart Zoramthanga, Assures Security of Meitei Community in His State.

"Being from the majority community Meitei, I might not be (the right person to talk about this). "Everybody is confused in Manipur. We don't know what is exactly happening. This subject is very serious and I don't think I'm the right person to make (a film on it)," the director said during a session on the first day of the Jagran Film Festival (JFF) 2023 here. Haobam, who received National Award for best film on environment conservation/preservation for Lady of the Lake, said he tries to address contemporary issues, which affect him as a person, through his filmography. "I've made two feature films on the ethnic divide in Manipur, which was kind of disturbing me for the last so many years. I made the 2021 film Nine Hills, One Valley on it. My recent film, Joseph's Son also talks about the fear of living in a place like Manipur, where there is insurgency and ethnic divide," he said. Manipur Horror: Freedom Fighter’s 80-Year-Old Wife Burnt Alive By Armed Group in Kakching Amid Attack.

"When this thing (violence in Manipur) started, I mean, a lot of people said that maybe Joseph's Son premiering at the Shanghai International Film Festival, it was planned. (But) I was seriously thinking about the topic," he added.

Meiteis account for about 53 per cent of Manipur's population and live mostly in the Imphal Valley. Tribals -- Nagas and Kukis -- constitute little over 40 per cent and reside in the hill districts. After four days in New Delhi, the 11th edition of JFF will move to 17 other cities, including Mumbai, Kanpur, Lucknow, Prayagraj, Varanasi, Gorakhpur, Bareilly, Dehradun, Hisar, and Gurgaon.