Mahira Khan on her Ranbir Kapoor picture controversy: You feel violated

Mahira KhanPakistani actress Mahira Khan says she felt violated when images of her sharing a cigarette with Indian actor Ranbir Kapoor emerged in the media Mahira also cited that it was the first time that she was embroiled in a controversy The Humsafar actress spoke at length about working in Bollywood the impact of the tensions between India and Pakistan on the countries film industries and the controversy on HARDtalk on BBC World NewsMahiras photograph with Ranbir Kapoor emerged from New York in September last year months after the actress Bollywood debut Raees hit the screens Recounting how it became a national topic and debate she said That was the first time in my entire career that I was caught up in a socalled controversy and it was strange because there were so many things in that One obviously you feel violated you are in a personal downtime moment and someone has just photographed youTwo obviously there was an uproar because here I was someone who is extremely loved in Pakistan and they sort of keep me up on this pedestal you know they treat me with a lot of love and a lot of respect And there are certain things I didnt realise that they dont want to see me do At that point yes it was crazy honestly because it lasted for a while It was crazy it was ridiculousHer film Raees starring Bollywood badshah Shah Rukh Khan did not get a chance to release in Pakistan Mahira said she was excited for the film to release in her nation I was more excited about Raees being released in Pakistan than anywhere else because all I wanted was to sit there with my best friends and my child Azlaan and the audience and watch this and I couldntThe Pakistani censorship board had deemed Raees as an ugly horrible unacceptable depiction of Muslims at the time Mahira feels had the movie released at any other time it would not have been banned I think their decisions sometimes are based on things that dont even concern the film sometimes So you know I dont think that was the reason They said it but I dont know I dont know if Raees was released today would it be released said the 33yearold actressThe movie released in January 2017 came just months after bilateral tensions intensified between India and Pakistan over the September 18 2016 Uri attack that left 19 Indian soldiers dead and the September 28 surgical strikes by India on Pakistan terror camps After the incident Indias Maharashtra Navnirman Sena gave an ultimatum to Pakistani artistes to leave India Zindagi channel withdrew telecast of Pakistani shows And even the Indian Motion Pictures Producers Association IMPPA desisted from allowing Pakistani artistes to work in IndiaAs a result Mahira couldnt even promote the movie in India She reflected It was a twoway thing We got stuck under the political fire really nothing else But by the way Pakistan is still showing Indian films we havent banned Indian films at all Mahira is currently filming for Saat Din Mohabbat In and Maula Jatt 2 The episode with Mahira will be aired on March 26Catch up on all the latest entertainment news and gossip here Also download the new midday Android and iOS apps to get latest updatesThis story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed agencies Midday accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability trustworthiness reliability and data of the text Midday managementmiddaycom reserves the sole right to alter delete or remove without notice the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever