A terror attack on the soil of India. A Fawad Khan film on the horizon. Blame it on the timing or the irony of the situation, there will not be a Fawad Khan film in India now. A film which would have brought back the global heartthrob in Bollywood almost after a decade.
In the aftermath of the April 22 Pahalgam terror attack in Jammu and Kashmir, the deadliest in recent time, the Centre's Information and Broadcasting Ministry has decided to stall the release of Fawad Khan and Vaani Kapoor's Abir Gulaal in India, as per internal sources.
The anti-Fawad Khan sentiment was gaining force on social media even before Tuesday (the day of attack), but it reached a tipping point after the Pahalgam attack. #BoycottFawadKhan took over social media. The call for a ban on Pakistani artistes working in India was waiting for an official confirmation.
On Wednesday (April 23), the Federation of Western India Cine Employees, an organisation of movie artists, asked for the movie's boycott. It's the same organisation that called for boycotting Pakistani artists, singers and technicians in the Indian film industry after the 2019 Pulwama terror attack, which claimed the lives of 35 paramilitary personnel.
Following the Pahalgam attack, this organisation renewed its directive. "Despite the ongoing directive, we've been made aware of the recent collaboration with Pakistani actor Fawad Khan for the Hindi film, 'Abir Gulaal'. In light of the recent attack in Pahalgam, FWICE is once again compelled to issue a blanket boycott on all Pakistani artists, singers and technicians participating in any Indian film or entertainment projects. This includes performances or collaborations occurring anywhere in the world," the organisation said in a statement.
The Federation of Western India Cine Employees is an umbrella organisation of 32 different bodies of workers and technicians in the Indian film industry, with more than five lakh members.
"We would like to emphasise that any member of our organisation or it's affiliate associations, such as the actors, directors, other technicians and producers or the production houses found cooperating with Pakistani personnel will be subject to disciplinary action. Further, we will take all necessary steps to ensure that 'Abir Gulaal' is not released in India," the note said.
On Thursday (April 24) afternoon, the ministry echoed the same verdict.
Fawad Khan's Abir Gulaal won't release in India.
India Hits Back
Amid the nationwide outrage over the killing of innocents in Pahalgam, India announced some stern diplomatic measures, including the abeyance of the Indus Waters Treaty. It also shut down its High Commission in Pakistan and ordered Pakistani diplomats to vacate the Pakistan High Commission in Delhi.
In addition to India's diplomatic measures, it's also soft power and pop culture that matters. Cricket and cinema are two of the biggest platforms that see Indian and Pakistani stars collaborate and work together regularly.
The Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) vice-president Rajeev Shukla reinforced that India will not play any bilateral cricket against Pakistan in the aftermath of the terrorist attack in Kashmir's Pahalgam.
BCCI has fired its shots and said that India won't be playing Pakistan in cricket.
In the world of cinema, Fawad Khan's film won't see the light in India.
Yet, for all the aman-ki-asha talk between India and Pakistan, perhaps it is time to pay Pakistan back in its own coin, as far as cinema is concerned.
Pakistan's Ban On Hindi Films
Pakistan loves Bollywood. They adore Indian stars. But love changes its colour when a real-life Pakistani villain shows up in a Hindi film. Or even the mere mention of ISI, Pakistan's intelligence agency, gets Pakistan in a twist.
Headlined by Saif Ali Khan and Katrina Kaif and directed by Kabir Khan, the 2015 film Phantom is one such example. It was banned in Pakistan by the Lahore High Court after a petition was filed by 26/11 mastermind Hafiz Saeed.
Saif Ali Khan and Katrina Kaif in Phantom (2015)
The Pakistani court banned the film after Jamaat-ud-Dawa chief and 26/11 Mumbai attack mastermind Hafiz Saeed alleged in his petition that it contained "filthy propaganda" against him and his outfit.
In the petition filed in the Lahore High Court on August 8, Hafiz Saeed's advocate AK Dogar alleged that "there is a direct threat to the life of the petitioner (Saeed) and his associates emanating from the content of the trailer of the film."
Reacting to Pakistan's decision to ban the film, Saif Ali Khan told NDTV, "They've loved our films. People will see our movie in Pakistan more now. Thanks for added publicity."
The same year, Akshay Kumar's Baby was banned in Pakistan by the Censor Board, for allegedly portraying Muslims in a negative light.
"Censor boards in Islamabad and Karachi have decided to ban the film because it portrays a negative image of Muslims and the negative characters in the film also have Muslim names," the Dawn newspaper said.
Baby had Akshay Kumar's character capturing and bringing to India a character heavily inspired from Maulana Masood Azhar. Azhar is the co-founder of the terrorist outfit, Jaish-e-Mohammad.
The film featured Pakistani TV drama actor Mikaal Zulfiqar as well as Rasheed Naz, who played the villainous cleric in Shoaib Mansoor's Khuda Ke Liye.
Akshay Kumar in Baby
Both the films had a common theme - hunting down the mastermind of the 26/11 terror attack and pushing them to (poetic) justice on screen.
Fawad Khan's Abir Gulaal is an apparently "innocent" love story. However, when emotions like love, trust and idealism are enduring the test of time, it's best to relish the love story in some other time, some other timeline. And perhaps, with some other actor.
Asked If Bollywood Saw Him As A Threat, Fawad Khan Said...
Fawad Khan made his debut in a supporting role in the social drama, Khuda Kay Liye (2007), one of Pakistan's highest-grossing films. His Bollywood debut was expected around the same time but it got delayed after the 26/11 2008 Mumbai terror attack.
A few years later, Fawad Khan finally made his Bollywood debut with Sonam Kapoor in Shashanka Ghosh's 2014 comedy-drama, Khoobsurat. In 2016, he played a homosexual character in Shakun Batra's Kapoor & Sons - a role which was rejected by many A-listers in Bollywood.
Fawad Khan's cameo in the Karan Johar-directed Ae Dil Hai Mushkil was talked about a lot more than the lead pair featuring Ranbir Kapoor and Anushka Sharma.
Within a very short span, Fawad Khan made a niche of his own in the Hindi film industry.
In an earlier interview, Pakistani actor and comedian Ahmad Ali Butt had asked Fawad if his presence in the Hindi film industry was seen as a threat.
"You've made a lot of friends in India, but it came to the point where you were being compared to the big names. Did it ​p**s off a lot of the big dogs? Ali Zafar, Mahira Khan and you were being offered lead roles in one of the biggest industries in the world. Do you think it happened too soon for you in order to become a threat?" the host asked.
Fawad Khan said, "That's such a heavy question. I got a lot of love from India, but look, every industry has its politics. In Pakistan as well. But it's easier to combat in your industry. I'm not saying it's unheard of, I'm sure it happens everywhere."
Talking about his equation with his representatives, Fawad said, "There was one thing, I had PRs, and they used to get angry at this... I was like, 'I need you to take out my name, not put it in there'. I would ask my PR to remove me from places, not put me. My manager would say, 'You don't know how the world works'."
The Future Is Far From Gulzar
Time and again, Fawad Khan's Indian films have been in the eye of the storm. Call it timing, politics, or sheer emotions of a nation hurt by Pakistan's repeated terror attacks, Khan's films are enmeshed in the cross-political powerplay. He is mostly perceived as a romantic hero; but his films have become the battleground of conflicting interests.
The changing political discourse between India and Pakistan will determine the fate of Pakistani films. But for now, Fawad Khan's fate in India seems sealed in abir, gulaal, and the blood spilled in Pahalgam.