Veteran actress Mumtaz has said that ban on Pakistani artists should be lifted, days after meeting Fawad Khan, Ghulam Ali, Rahat Fateh Ali Khan and other Pakistani artists. A couple of days back, Mumtaz visited Pakistan and shared several photos and videos from her time there on her Instagram account.
In one of the pictures, she is seen chatting with Ae Dil Hai Mushkil actor Fawad. Another video shows renowned singer Ghulam Ali playing the harmonium and singing a ghazal, while Mumtaz and others watched him in admiration. Mumtaz had also shared videos of Rahat Fateh Ali Khan's performance.
Now, in one of her interviews, Mumtaz praised Pakistani artists and also called them 'talented'. Sharing her experience of attending a house party in Pakistan, the veteran actress told Times Now, "Itna pyar itni mohabbat , itne saare lunches aur dinners. Aur itne saare gifts! My God!! I was overwhelmed. I never knew that people there loved me as much as people here. Log mujhe sadak pe pehchaante the. That’s because I’ve maintained myself. Main abhi bhi wohi Mumtaz lagti hoon. I haven’t changed that much. I get recognised wherever I go. This is God’s blessing, nothing else."
The 76-year-old actress also revealed how Fawad made her feel special. "He reserved an entire restaurant for me. It was just Fawad, his wife and child with me at the restaurant. Woh log humlogon se bilkul alag nahin hain. Everywhere that I went, people came forward to shower me and my sister with love and gifts. Ek kalaakar iss se zyada our kya chahta hai? They knew all my films, all my songs."
She added, "They should be allowed to come and work here. They are talented. I agree we have no dearth of talent in the Mumbai film industry. Lekin unhe bhi mauqa milna chahiye."
Pakistani artists have been banned from working in India. However, a couple of days back, the Bombay High Court declined a request to prohibit Pakistani artists from engaging in work within India.
The last Pakistani film to get a theatrical release in India was Bol, starring Mahira Khan in 2011. For those unversed, Pakistani actors stopped being cast in Indian productions following the 2016 terror attack in Uri in which 19 Indian Army personnel were killed.
The decision came amid demands by various political outfits to ban Pakistani artistes from Indian films and from performing here.
