Sanam Saeed says India’s ban on Pakistani artistes after 2016 Uri attack was a rude awakening – Times of India

The official trailer of Sidharth Malhotra’s upcoming film ‘Mission Majnu’ irked a portion of social media, especially fans in Pakistan, as many criticized the way Muslims are being portrayed in Indian cinema. Now, during a recent interview with a media outlet, actress Sanam Saeed who hails from Pakistan spoke about how Bollywood stereotypes Muslim characters and it leads to confusion among artists from both the countries.
In the interview, the actress revealed that in Pakistan people often make fun of how Muslims are shown in Indian films with the Kajal and namaz cap, and the green in the background. She feels that this becomes too political with larger socio-political effects.

When asked about Mahira Khan’s hesitation to feature again in Indian films, the ‘Zindagi Gulzar Hai’ actor explained how difficult the ban in India was for artists like Fawad Khan and Mahira Khan as they got the brunt of it. She feels Pakistani artists were nervous and scared because of the way they were treated since the ban was a tough exit for them.
The ‘Qatil Haseenaon Ke Naam’ star also added that she hasn’t seen too many projects where the two nations have been shown as friends and collaborating together, but in reality collaborations are actually happening at every level.

Sanam said that she was disappointed when Pakistani artists were banned in India after the Uri attack of 2016. She admitted that artists in Pakistan were baffled and was in shock. Earlier when the cross-border cultural exchange was happening frequently it felt really exhilarating and liberating to see these two hubs of culture and creativity were collaborating for greater good. But the sudden ban happened was like a rude awakening.”

Sanam Saheed became a household name after her powerful acting in the hit TV show ‘Zindagi Gulzar Hai’, alongside Fawad Khan.