New Delhi - A Pakistani movie on the dilemma faced by liberal Muslims became the first film to be commercially released across theatres in India on Friday after more than four decades, media reports said. Khuda Kay Liye (In the Name of God) which stars Pakistani actors Shan, model Iman Ali and India's Naseeruddin Shah, ended the ban imposed by the countries on each others' films after they went to war in 1965.
The film's premiere was held in the entertainment capital of Mumbai on Thursday night, the NDTV network reported.
"It is a historic day and the first time a Pakistani film has been released in Indian multiplexes," Indian producer Mukesh Bhatt told the NDTV. Actress Meeta Vashisht said it was a "good exchange" between the people of both countries.
"The gulf between us (people of India and Pakistan) should be bridged. We would have been closer to each other had these distances not existed," a Pakistani actor was quoted by the news channel as saying.
The film depicts the dilemma, well-educated and liberal Pakistanis face after the attacks on the World Trade Center in 2001. While western countries look at them as potential terrorists, fundamentalists also frown on them.
Made at a budget of 60 million Pakistani rupees (100,000 dollars), the film was at the centre of a controversy when extremists and Pakistani clerics opposed it. But it became a huge hit in Pakistan soon after its release.
Director Shoaib Mansoor told the IANS news agency about the two reasons why he made this film.
"There are two reasons behind any action - one is history and the other is present. So, there are two reasons behind my reaction. Since I was young, I saw that priests used to interpret religion in a very difficult manner and sometimes they are wrong also. It happens in other religions too."
"Then 9/11 happened and new problems cropped up - Muslims were treated badly. Every person with a Muslim name was stamped a terrorist and being a Muslim became a crime. Muslims were singled out everywhere," said Mansoor who is not happy with the way the western countries are trying to tackle the issue.
With the recent lifting of the ban of films between the two countries, the Pakistan government has allowed it on condition that films will be strictly "exchanged" between the two countries. For each Hindi title released in Pakistan, an Urdu film will have to be exhibited in India.
Bollywood hits such as Taare Zameen Par (Stars On The Ground) and Welcome have already been released in Pakistan.
The move came amidst improving relations between the nuclear-armed neighbours which have gone to war thrice since their independence from British rule in 1947.
In 2004, India and Pakistan began a dialogue to resolve differences on a host of issues, including disputed stretches of their border and the Himalayan region of Kashmir.
Efforts so far have mainly focused on confidence-building measures such as opening new transport links, improving people-to-people contacts and releasing prisoners, but not much headway has been made on the issue of Kashmir.
