ISLAMABAD: Pakistani top actor Mahira Khan has spoken out against India’s ban on Pakistani celebrities and social media accounts, calling it a “political game” and emphasizing the role of artists in building cross-border connections.
India banned the social media accounts of Pakistani celebrities and influencers in early May, days before the two nuclear-armed countries took part in their worst military confrontation in decades, trading artillery fire, missile strikes and drone attacks for four days before the US brokered a ceasefire on May 10.
New Delhi’s measures to ban Pakistan accounts came in response to India’s allegations that Islamabad was involved in an April 22 attack in Indian-administered Kashmir in which 26 were killed. Pakistan denies involvement and has repeatedly called for an international probe.
When asked what she thought about India’s ban, Khan said she had “zero reaction” to it and still loved her fans in India.
“Fans are fans. People are people, they are the public. What does it [have to do] with politics?” the actress told Independent Urdu in an interview.
“Anyway, it [politics] eventually connects obviously but this is a political game that ‘Okay, we will close this, we will ban this, we will do that.’ I don’t believe in that.”
Khan said she did not believe in banning art, wondering why artists were the first to bear the brunt of “political problems” between nations.
“It is strange, isn’t it, that a war erupts or there is a political problem, then the first attack, why do we do it on artists? This is something to think about,” the actor asked.
“Because artists are the people, and art is the thing that connects people. So the first thing is you ban this, that this [art] dies, love, that there is no love.”
Pakistan’s telecommunication authority responded with measures of its own on May 7, announcing it had blocked 16 YouTube channels and 32 websites from India for spreading “anti-Pakistan propaganda” and disseminating false information.
Khan is one of the most popular and highest paid actors from Pakistan and the recipient of several accolades, including seven Lux Style Awards and seven Hum Awards. She has also made a mark in international cinema, most notably in the Bollywood flick ‘Raees’ in which she stared alongside Indian superstar Shah Rukh Khan in 2017.
In addition to acting, Khan promotes social causes such as women’s rights and the refugee crisis and is vocal about issues such as child abuse and sexual harassment. Khan has been a national and global UNICEF Goodwill Ambassador for Afghan refugees in Pakistan in 2019.
While the ceasefire between India and Pakistan persists, tensions continue to simmer as New Delhi says it will continue to hold in abeyance a decades-old water-sharing treaty with Pakistan. The treaty guarantees water access for 80 percent of Pakistan’s farms through three rivers originating in India.
