Can Bollywood bring India and Pakistan closer? – DW – December 28, 2023

Pakistani films must obtain permission from a state board that censors those deemed to violate the country’s social and cultural values.

And since 2019, films produced by India’s Hindi film industry, commonly known as Bollywood, based in India’s financial capital, Mumbai, have been banned from screening in Pakistani cinemas.

When the blockbuster film “Pattern,” starring actor Shah Rukh Khan, was screened publicly in the wealthy DHA area of ​​Karachi in January 2023, the censor board in Pakistan’s southern Sindh province, where Karachi is located, stopped the screening.

Pakistan’s relations with neighboring India are rarely cordial, especially because of the disputed territory of Kashmir.

Nevertheless, many Pakistani movie fans are ardent followers of Bollywood and its stars.

Apart from Shah Rukh Khan, known as the ‘King of Bollywood’, whose latest comedy-drama ‘Dhanki’ was released in theaters earlier this month, other Bollywood actors like Aamir Khan, Deepika Padukone and Ranbir Kapoor also participated. It has gained a lot of support in Pakistan. .

In recent years, films made in southern India or directed by directors from the south have become popular in Pakistan due to their action-oriented and technology-driven storylines.

What makes Bollywood even more appealing on the other side of the geographical divide is its film language, Hindi.

Hindi is similar to Urdu, a language widely spoken in Muslim-majority Pakistan. Also, some of the artists and technicians working in Bollywood are from Muslim backgrounds.

Bollywood: Marketing or Content?

Despite national tensions between India and Pakistan, similar cultural aspects remain between the two countries, particularly when it comes to film and music.

“The other day I heard a TV presenter talking about this subject. He was of the view that before 1947, in undivided India, we were making similar films. ”actor Mohib Mirza told DW.

“Our heroes also sang songs in the valleys and around the trees. But I think influence is a different story.Bollywood itself is not original, it draws huge influences from many other countries. We are receiving a lot of support,” Mirza said.

“The reason why audiences watch Indian films is because of the way they ‘market’ their films,” Mirza added. “No matter what, we will get news about what is happening in India.”

But journalist Ghazi Salahuddin disagrees.

“Bollywood has a huge influence in Pakistan, mainly because its movies are widely watched in the country for their quality and content, which we lack,” Salahuddin said. told DW.

“They have also adapted to advances in technology,” he says. “They have a big international market, which allows them to experiment and spend a lot of money on film projects. India’s economic success also plays a role here.”

Film director Shoaib Sultan, whose directorial debut “Gunjal” was released in theaters on December 15, said that Indian and Pakistani films have song and dance scenes, adding, “This is a huge industry. The reason audiences watch it is because it’s funny and larger than life.”

Without a major film industry of its own, Pakistan’s film distributors and movie theater owners currently rely heavily on releases from major Hollywood studios to stay afloat.

Pakistani films lack box office revenue

“Until we start making films (in Pakistan), people will continue to watch Bollywood,” said Nadeem Mandviwala, a film distributor and promoter.

“These are the only two countries in the world that make films the same way, including song and dance sequences, costumes and language,” he said. “They call it Hindi and we call it Urdu. They use 80 percent of Urdu in Hindi.”

“Peace activists on both sides continue to try to lower the temperature in the political arena,” Salahuddin said. “Indians and Pakistanis travel frequently and have a large diaspora, so they meet outside of South Asia.”

Mr. Mandviwala emphasized the importance of Indian films in Pakistan.

A film distributor said, “People in our country know a lot about India because they are exposed to Indian movies.” “For the past 40 years, Pakistanis have been watching Indian content,” he added.

However, ever since Pakistan banned Indian films in 2019, the country’s box office and distributors have been struggling.

Mandviwala said, “We (exhibitors) have told the government that there are only two options: either allow Indian content or produce at least 100-150 films a year. “The film industry will become self-sustaining.”

As government leaders work to resolve major differences between neighboring countries, the public can continue to focus on cultural similarities.

Editor: Keith Walker