Amid India- Pakistan Tensions- Pakistani Actors Removed from Bollywood Song Posters

Pakistani Actors -Fawad Khan and Mahira Khan Removed from Bollywood Song Posters Amid Rising Tensions

The ripples from the spills over in the frictions between India and Pakistan are being witnessed in the entertainment world with the detachment of the Pakistani actors Fawad Khan and Mahira Khan from song posters of their respective Bollywood films from various music streaming sites. This seemingly linear effect of the tensed diplomatic relations and prevailing concerns over security, brings into sharp focus the sensitivity and at times, the politically charged nature of cross border artistic collaborations.

The first report of the removal came up on Monday when album art for the song “Buddhu Sa Mann” from the film “Kapoor & Sons” (featuring Fawad Khan) was edited to remove the Pakistani actor. Similarly, the poster of the popular song “Zaalima” of the movie “Raees” starring Mahira Khan in duo with Shah Rukh Khan, now only holds the latter. The digital oblivion has spread to such services as Spotify and YouTube Music with the updated visuals loudly presented there.
On these same music applications, actress Mawra Hocane has also been eliminated from the covers of her 2016 Bollywood film “Sanam Teri Kasam” as well. Both Hocane and her Indian co-star Harshvardhan Rane were on the poster of the original, but now only the latter remains.

These moves seem to be the direct consequence of creeping tensions between the two neighboring countries. India’s latest military operation Sindoor, the retaliatory measure taken after a terror attack in the Indian town of Pahalgam has only worsened an already tense relationship between the two nuclear neighbors. After the events, there is an Indian domestic feeling to disassociate itself from any Pakistan connotations even when it comes to the country’s artists in Bollywood.

There has been no formal statement by the music labels or by the Indian government about these removals, but the timing and the pattern do indicate a determined attempt to exclude Pakistani actors from Indian media.

Interestingly, the film poster for Khoobsurat, which was Fawad Khan’s Bollywood debut and starred Sonam Kapoor remains the same untouched. The song with Fawad from Kapoor & Sons (1992) is now said, “Video unavailable”, in India on YouTube.

When asked what it was like for Mawra Hocane to have her poster removed, the producer of Sanam Teri Kasam, Deepak Mukut said he didn’t know what had happened or why it was taken down and was probably somebody above him who made the decision. He said, “Whatever our government says, all you have to follow” which suggests the pressure he and others feel and indicates the willingness in the Indian entertainment industry to comply with government declarations in conflicts.

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The removal of these actors from song posters is a symbolic gesture. It certainly has larger implications. It not only portrays how political relations affect cultural exchange but also underscores the fragility of these artistic collaborations in times of conflict. For the Pakistani actors who had already established significant popularity in India, this is undoubtedly unfortunate. It raises questions about the stopped, stalled or other states of border-crossing cultural production with Indian adaptions in the future and how far these productions would have to comply with political terms to continue their narratives.

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