First Pathaan and Tiger 3, now Fighter trailer – Pakistanis question Bollywood’s ‘obsession’ with them. The recent release of the trailer of Siddhartha Anand’s highly anticipated action film fighter trailer starring Deepika Padukone, Anil Kapoor and Hrithik Roshan is set to boost national pride and patriotism in India. But in Pakistan, people are not amused by this “false aggression” and everyone from celebrities to Bollywood fans are calling out the film’s agenda.
Fighter trailer
You can make a patriotic film without dissing another country. You don’t have to hate Pakistan, America or any other country just to make patriotic films,” Pakistani actor Zara Noor Abbas said in a series of Instagram stories.
Even before fighter trailer, film critics, writers and commentators questioned why Pakistan features so prominently in Bollywood films. Meghna Gulzar’s Raazi (2018) stars Alia Bhatt as an Indian spy stationed in Pakistan. The following year it was Uri: The Surgical Strike, a fictionalized account of the events following the 2016 Uri attack.
There was a time when Bollywood movies had a loyal following across borders. They demonstrated, as Bhutto emphasized, “the incredible power of culture done right.” But over the past few years “incidents” between India and Pakistan have been on the rise and fighter trailer reflects that. Set to release on January 25 ahead of Republic Day, the film is based on the 2019 Balakot airstrike, the 2019 Pulwama incident and the 2019 India-Pakistan border skirmishes.
India Veer-Zaara vs Fighter
With statements like India ‘owning’ Kashmir and ‘India occupied by Pakistan’, Fighter’s stance is very clear. For Pakistani makeup artist Natasha Ali Lakhani, it’s a disaster.
She wrote a long post on Instagram about her last visit to India for the premiere of the Sonya Jehan starrer Taj Mahal (2005). “Sanjay Khan was the director and we were invited there for Zayed Khan’s wedding celebrations. Hrithik was such a superstar at this time but seeing him with his family/friends was so down to earth and humble,” she wrote.
Lakhani finds it difficult to reconcile this new aggression with the “love and warmth” she received from Indians in the past.
“Why can’t patriotic films be made about the rapprochement of our countries? Why not make stories about Indian patriotism without condemning Pakistan? Why not show friendship…?” she asks.
While many agreed with her, some also recalled another era when director Yash Chopra made Shah Rukh Khan and Preity Zinta starrer Veer-Zaara, which was considered a “gift to Pakistan”.
“The film was all about peace and love. They are kind of obsessed with Pakistan these days and unfortunately, even though Indians are very nice to you, it sells in India,” read a comment under Lakhani’s post.
First Pathaan and Tiger 3, now Fighter trailer – Pakistanis question Bollywood’s ‘obsession’ with them. The recent release of the trailer of Siddhartha Anand’s highly anticipated action film fighter trailer starring Deepika Padukone, Anil Kapoor and Hrithik Roshan is set to boost national pride and patriotism in India. But in Pakistan, people are not amused by this “false aggression” and everyone from celebrities to Bollywood fans are calling out the film’s agenda.
Fighter trailer
You can make a patriotic film without dissing another country. You don’t have to hate Pakistan, America or any other country just to make patriotic films,” Pakistani actor Zara Noor Abbas said in a series of Instagram stories.
Even before fighter trailer, film critics, writers and commentators questioned why Pakistan features so prominently in Bollywood films. Meghna Gulzar’s Raazi (2018) stars Alia Bhatt as an Indian spy stationed in Pakistan. The following year it was Uri: The Surgical Strike, a fictionalized account of the events following the 2016 Uri attack.
There was a time when Bollywood movies had a loyal following across borders. They demonstrated, as Bhutto emphasized, “the incredible power of culture done right.” But over the past few years “incidents” between India and Pakistan have been on the rise and fighter trailer reflects that. Set to release on January 25 ahead of Republic Day, the film is based on the 2019 Balakot airstrike, the 2019 Pulwama incident and the 2019 India-Pakistan border skirmishes.
India Veer-Zaara vs Fighter
With statements like India ‘owning’ Kashmir and ‘India occupied by Pakistan’, Fighter’s stance is very clear. For Pakistani makeup artist Natasha Ali Lakhani, it’s a disaster.
She wrote a long post on Instagram about her last visit to India for the premiere of the Sonya Jehan starrer Taj Mahal (2005). “Sanjay Khan was the director and we were invited there for Zayed Khan’s wedding celebrations. Hrithik was such a superstar at this time but seeing him with his family/friends was so down to earth and humble,” she wrote.
Lakhani finds it difficult to reconcile this new aggression with the “love and warmth” she received from Indians in the past.
“Why can’t patriotic films be made about the rapprochement of our countries? Why not make stories about Indian patriotism without condemning Pakistan? Why not show friendship…?” she asks.
While many agreed with her, some also recalled another era when director Yash Chopra made Shah Rukh Khan and Preity Zinta starrer Veer-Zaara, which was considered a “gift to Pakistan”.
“The film was all about pe
