Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) supremo Raj Thackeray has strongly warned Maharashtra theatre owners against screening the Pakistani blockbuster film, The Legend Of Maula Jatt, in the state. He has also threatened them with dire consequences if they choose to screen the film in the state.
The Legend Of Maula Jatt, starring Fawad Khan and Mahira Khan, became the highest grossing Pakistani film after its release in 2022, and it will now be the first Pakistani film to release in India after almost a decade. The film is set to premiere in Indian theatres on October 2.
Thackeray took to his X handle on Sunday and asked, “Pakistani actor Fawad Khan’s movie titled ‘Legend of Maula Jatt’ is going to release in India soon. Maharashtra Navnirman Sena will not allow the movie to be released in Maharashtra under any circumstances. Why are films of Pakistani actors allowed to be released in India?”
He further wrote, “Art knows no national boundaries, that’s fine in other cases, but in case of Pakistan it won’t work at all. Why are we getting artists from a country that propagates hatred for India, to dance here and screen their films? Governments should not allow this film to be released in any state of the country, let alone Maharashtra.”
Thackeray mentioned that people might remember the blow by MNS the last time such incidents happened in the state, and the party won’t shy away from teaching naysayers a lesson or two.
“If theatre owners who are reluctant to screen Marathi films allow Pakistani cinema to enter this land, it will cost them big time. I do not want any conflict in the state during Navratri, and I am sure the government does not want it too,” he stated.
On Saturday, President of the MNS Cinema Wing, Ameya Khopkar, had said, “There have been attacks till last week and we will watch movies of Pakistan actors? How can one even think something like this? We will not let them land their feet here, we will break it.”
A ban on Pakistani artists working in India was put into effect after the Uri terror attack in 2016. In November 2023, the Supreme Court dismissed a plea seeking a complete ban on artists from Pakistan to perform or work in India.
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