While Bollywood has been trying to remove all traces of Pakistani existence from their cinema because of the political scenario, thankfully the 62nd Jio Filmfare Awards have taken a different route.
Unlike the recently aired Stardust Awards, the 62nd Filmfare Awards nominate
Pakistani artists for their outstanding work in hit Bollywood films.
While Bollywood has been trying to remove all traces of Pakistani existence from their cinema because of the political scenario, thankfully the 62nd Jio Filmfare Awards have taken a different route.
Bollywood, post September, put an unofficial ban on working with Pakistani artists in India. To pledge their loyalty to their country, many Bollywood actors had to renounce Pakistani artists on social media, SRK had to promise the MNS that he would never work with Pakistani artists again as long as they allowed the smooth release of Raees, and then when the awards season came around, the recently aired Sansui Colours Stardust Awards turned a completely blind eye towards Pakistani artists that had worked on films in 2016. Not only were Pakistani artists omitted from the list of nominations, but Abhishek Bachchan and Riteish Deshmukh also performed a little skit where they joked about not being able to even mention the names of Ali Zafar, Fawad Khan or Atif Aslam.
Thankfully, The Filmfare Awards did not succumb to political pressure and decided to nominate four deserving Pakistani artists. Pakistan’s heartthrob, who set everyone’s heart ablaze with his flawless acting and undeniable good looks, Fawad Khan has secured a nomination for Best Supporting Actor (Male) for his strong performance in Kapoor and Sons. Singing sensations Atif Aslam and Rahat Fateh Ali Khan both have been nominated in the Best Playback Singer (Male) category for their songs ‘Tere Sang Yara’ (Rustom) and ‘Jag Ghoomeya’ (Sultan). Of course, our ladies aren’t far behind in the quest for international recognition; Qurat-ul-Ain Balouch has also received a nomination for Best Playback Singer (Female) for her song ‘Kari Kari’ in the Amitabh Bachchan starrer, Pink.
Fawad Khan was the first Pakistani artist to win a Filmfare Award for Best Debut (Khoobsurat) and while the Filmfare Awards have continued to show impartiality despite the political odds, we cannot say what the outcome of these nominations will be. The Filmfare Awards will be held in Mumbai on January 14, so we’ll have to wait and see.
