Meera urges India, Pak to lift ban on each other’s films 20th Aug 2005
12.00 IST
By Agencies
Pakistani actress Meera , whose Bollywood debut in Nazar saw protests back home over a kissing scene, has asked the governments of India and Pakistan to lift the ban on screening of each other’s films and encourage “free exchange of talent”.
“Despite improving relations, the two governments are still thinking in this regard,” she said.
Film stars from the two countries had recently met Pakistan President Pervez Musharraf and Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz and requested them to allow ‘free exchange of talent’ between Pakistan and India and screening of their films in the theatres of the two countries, Meera said.
At present, Pakistani films are not screened in India nor are Indian films shown in theatres there.
The 23-year-old Ritiza Rubab, who chose Meera as her screen name, made her Bollywood debut in Mahesh Bhatt’s Nazar but found herself mired in a controversy over a kissing scene in the film.
She later rubbished allegations that the controversy had hurt her public image in Pakistan, saying some people just wanted to ‘tarnish her image’.
She, who is doing another film ‘The Killer’ with Bhatt, said the producer-director had contacted her before approaching Pakistan pace bowler Shoaib Akhtar with a film offer about a gangster on the run.
“Mahesh Bhatt contacted me as he wanted to sign Shoaib for a role in his film Gangster, but his love for cricket prevailed in the end and he did not do the film despite liking the script very much,” she said.
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Meera urges India, Pak to lift ban on each other’s films
