New Delhi: In the aftermath of the 2016 infamous Uri terror attack, all Pakistani artists including singers, actors, and musicians were banned from working in India after the Indian Motion Picture Producers Association (IMPPA) issued a resolution on not working with them in its 87th annual general meeting.
However, on Tuesday, while entertaining a cine worker’s petition seeking a permanent ban on Pakistani artists, a Bench of Bombay high court judges permitted ace artists from Pakistan including Mahira Khan and Fawad Khan to work in Indian movies as well as web series by dismissing the said petition. The court’s decision is now being seen as a big relief for the fans of these artists hailing from the other side of the border.
Bombay High Court rejects petition seeking ban on Pakistani artists
As per a post shared by Live Law, the High Court of Bombay junked the plea demanding to restrain Indian filmmakers from working or collaborating with Pakistani artists in any manner. Dismissing the petition, the bench, comprised of Justice Sunil B Shukre and Justice Firdosh P Pooniwalla, said, “A true patriot is one who selflessly devotes himself to the cause of his nation. One needs not to have enmity for a particular country in order to be a patriot.”
The court further observed that the concerned petition lacked merit and praised the Indian government’s efforts by putting forward the recent example of the Pakistani team’s participation in the ongoing ICC Cricket World Cup 2023 which is being held in India.
The bench said “The cricket World Cup is being held in India, Pakistan Cricket Team is taking part. This is only because of appreciable positive steps taken by Govt in the interest of overall peace & harmony in consonance with Article 51 of the Constitution.”
#CricketWorldCup being held in India, #PakistanCricketTeam taking part. This is only because of appreciable positive steps taken by Govt in interest of overall peace & harmony in consonance with Article 51 of Constitution (promotion of international peace, security): Bombay HC
— Live Law (@LiveLawIndia) October 19, 2023
During the hearing, the Bombay High Court called the concerned petition a retrograde step in promoting cultural harmony, unity, and peace, which has no merit in it.
As per a report published by News 18, the Bombay High Court even stated that activities like sports, arts, music, culture, and dance go beyond national boundaries and promote peace, unity, and harmony within as well as between different countries.
Pakistani artists in India
The Court’s recent decision has come as a big relief for all the Pakistani artists like Mahira Khan Fawad Khan Saba Qamar Sajal Ali etc who were on their way to establishing themselves in the Indian film industry but were unfortunately banned from working in the country post the Uri Terror attack.
While Mahira earned herself a decent fanbase in India with her exceptional work as Shah Rukh’s lead actress in Rahul Dholakia’s Raees (2013), Fawad impressed the Indian crowd with his unmatched charm in Shashanka Gosh’s Khoobsurat (2014) and Shakun Batra’s Kapoor & Sons (2016).
Apart from these, Young Pakistani actresses Saba Qamar and Sajal also garnered praise in Bollywood for their iconic acting in Hindi Medium (2017) and Mom (20170 respectively.
Speaking of Pakistani Singers and Musicians, a number of talented music artists from the neighboring country like Ali Zafar, Atif Aslam, Rahat Fateh Ali Khan, etc have worked in India in collaboration with Indian directors, producers, and musicians and given us a variety of soulful and soothing super hit timeless tracks.
