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Indian filmmakers vow not to work with Pakistani artistes

Xinhua, October 22, 2016 Adjust font size:

India's Film and Television Producers Guild said on Saturday that it will not work with Pakistani artistes in the future over tensions in India-controlled Kashmir.

The assurance was given by the guild president Mukesh Bhatt seeking a smooth release of the Hindi film - "Ae Dil Hai Mushkil" during a meeting with Maharashtra Chief Minister Devendra Fadnavis and Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) Chief Raj Thackeray.

"I assured Fadnavis that the producer's guild has decided that it will not work with Pakistani artistes in the future," Bhatt told reporters after the meeting.

The film's release scheduled on Oct. 28, ahead of Diwali (an Indian festival) came under fire for having featured Pakistani actor Fawad Khan.

MNS, a Mumbai-based nationalist group had earlier threatened to block release of movie featuring Pakistani artistes in cinemas across India. The group had threatened to vandalise cinemas halls and multiplexes against screening the movie.

The reaction came following the killing of 19 Indian troopers during a militant attack on their camp in frontier Uri town of Indian-controlled Kashmir last month.

Saturday's meeting to end the impasse between film's producer Karan Johar and Thackeray was called by Fadnavis at his residence.

Bhatt said a meeting of producers will be called and a resolution will be passed to ban Pakistani actors in India.

Meanwhile, Thackeray has claimed victory over his agitation to ban Pakistani artistes and said filmmakers who have featured them has to pay 747,000 U.S. dollars (50 million INR) to army welfare fund as penance.

With this, the animosity between two arch rivals and nuclear neighbours - India and Pakistan has reached from borders to field of entertainment.

Pakistan on Wednesday imposed a blanket ban on Indian shows on its television networks and radio stations in reciprocation to the declaration of Indian cinema group's that it would not screen films with Pakistani casts.

Tensions between India and Pakistan escalated because of the ongoing civilian protests in Indian-controlled Kashmir that saw around 90 civilians dead and over 12,000 others injured.

Pakistan, however, rejected Indian claims about "surgical strikes." The past several weeks have seen a surge in skirmishes on Line of Control (LoC) and border between the two countries.

LoC is a de facto border that divides Kashmir into India and Pakistan controlled parts.

Kashmir, the Himalayan region divided between India and Pakistan, is claimed by both in full. Since their independence from Britain, the two countries have fought three wars, two exclusively over Kashmir. Endit