BOMBAY TIMES, THE TIMES OF INDIA DTP WEDNESDAY 8 MARCH 2017

VARIETY

There is no official ban on

travelling to India and will be recording
in Pakistan.”
Shafqat adds that small steps taken by
both countries indicate a positive

Pak artistes: Bhatt on

change. “The ban on Indian films has
been lifted in Pakistan and people here
watched Kaabil, Raees and a couple of
other movies very enthusiastically. My

Shafqat singing for his play

Divya.Kaushik@timesgroup.com
IT’S A PROJECT ON
PEACE. THERE ARE
DIFFERENCES BETWEEN THE
TWO COUNTRIES, WHICH
HAVE CAUSED A RIFT AND
THAT NEEDS TO BE IRONED
OUT. THIS PROJECT IS A STEP
IN THAT DIRECTION
– Shafqat Amanat Ali
play is on “cross border peace and is an
initiative to revive the cultural ties that
song for Bhatt saab’s project is anoth-
er step in the direction of bringing
things back to normal. I have also got
offers for shows and movies from In-
dia,” says Shafqat, who is still not sure
if the time is right for artistes to trav-
el between the two countries.
“Artistes are affected by political con-
ditions. We also have to keep in mind the
security of not just our teams, but also
of our fans who come to watch our shows.
One irresponsible act by those who don’t
want the cultural exchange to happen
can jeopardize the safety of thousands
of people. I believe that breaking the cul-
tural bond will only cause more harm,
as these exchanges are much needed for
people to move forward towards peace.
So I am open to performing in India, as
long as it’s in the positive spirit,” adds
the singer.
INDIAN GOVERNMENT NEVER
BANNED PAKISTANI ARTISTES,
WHY SHOULD WE?: MAHESH
BHATT
Bhatt, who has always been against the
ban on Pakistani artistes in India, says
it is high time efforts are made to revive
cultural ties. “The Indian government
never outlawed Pakistani nationals, so
there is no official ban on them. After
the Uri attack, the relationship between
the two countries took an extreme turn.
As storytellers, we should bring people
together and create empathy, and that
is what we are trying to do with this
play. Iranian filmmaker Asghar Farha-
di, who recently won an Oscar, said a
very important and brave thing —
‘Dividing the world into the ‘us’ and ‘our
enemies’ creates fear, a deceitful
justification for aggression and war’,”
he says.
YOU CAN’T HAVE PAKISTAN

A
fter last year’s Uri attack, the
MNS had asked all Pakistani
artistes to leave India. Since
then, no artiste from Pakistan has per-
formed in India. Now, Mahesh Bhatt has
approached singer Shafqat Amanat Ali
to sing for his upcoming play Milne Do,
which will be staged in Mumbai in June.
Sources say that Ali Zafar was also ap-
proached by Bhatt for the play. Though
Shafqat won’t come to India for the play,
and will be recording in Pakistan, this
is the first instance since the ban when
a Pakistani artiste will be a part of an
Indian project. To be staged in Mumbai
and Delhi in June, Bhatt says that the
were completely eroded after the ex-
treme positions, decisions taken by both
countries post the Uri attack.”
THERE HAVE BEEN OFFERS FOR
VARIOUS SHOWS AND MOVIE
SONGS FROM INDIA: SHAFQAT
Shafqat, who will sing a song for the play,
tells us from Pakistan, “Bhatt saab got in
touch with me two weeks ago. The rea-
son for saying yes to it is very simple. It’s
a project on peace. There are differences
between the two countries which have
caused a rift and that needs to be ironed
out. This project is a step in that direc-
tion. Due to my tight schedule, I won’t be
EXPORTING TERROR AND INDIA
IMPORTING THEIR TALENT: BJP
SPOKESPERSON SHAINA NC
Bhatt’s decision of roping in Shafqat
has already invited criticism. BJP
spokesperson Shaina NC says, “Peace
initiatives are a good idea, but when
cross-border terrorism continues to ex-
ist, we can’t have Pakistan exporting
terror and India importing their talent.
There can’t be selective isolation — cul-
tural ties can’t be viewed in isolation
while ignoring the rest.”
– With inputs from Ranjit.Kumar
@timesgroup.com

THERE IS NO OFFICIAL BAN

ON PAKISTANI NATIONALS. AS
STORYTELLERS, WE SHOULD BRING
PEOPLE TOGETHER AND CREATE
EMPATHY, AND THAT IS WHAT WE
ARE TRYING TO DO WITH THIS PLAY
– Mahesh Bhatt

Most Indian women

prefer men to
make first move

A
a matrimonial site has
conducted a survey of
single women to un-
derstand their view on mak-
ing the first move in rela-
tionship.
The online poll received
over 8,600 responses from
single/unmarried Indians
aged between 25 and 32.
To a question, ‘Would you
ever make the first move in
a relationship?’, 70.2 per
cent unmarried women said
‘No’, 19.3 per cent said ‘Yes’
and 10.5 per cent said
‘Maybe’. The reasons for
this were: ‘Fear of being
labelled’ (50.3 per cent),
‘Fear of rejection’ (15.7 per
cent) and ‘Want men to ask
first’ (34 per cent).
Says Gourav Rakshit,
CEO of the site, “While
women stand shoulder-to-
shoulder in all fields, in
relationships they still wait
for the man to make the first
move. We have tried to
change the mindset with
our new campaign.” —IANS