Mumbai: The shooting of megastar Amitabh Bachchan’s next project and a commercial, featuring cricketers Virendra Sehwag, Harbhajan Singh and Suresh Raina, was voluntarily stopped for two hours here, Sunday due to a protest against the Pulwama terror attack.
Twenty four film associations, including the Federation of Western India Cine Employees (FWICE) and Indian Film & Television Directors’ Association (IFTDA), staged a protest at ‘Filmcity’ in Goregaon.
Sehwag, Singh, Raina and VVS Laxman, among others, were shooting for a commercial in ‘Filmcity’ but they joined the protest to show their solidarity.
“Whatever we say or do will perhaps be less for the soldiers and their daily. We can only thank them and should do whatever can to help them. We are pained but are hopeful for a better time for all of us in the future,” Sehwag said.
Harbhajan said he hopes the sacrifice of the martyred soldiers does not go in vain. “These are tough times but let’s stay united so that they aren’t able to break us. I’m grateful to all the soldiers who protect us around the clock. Cricketers, actors aren’t heroes. The real hero of the nation is our soldier,” Harbhajan said.
The protest saw participation from major film bodies and the association of cinematographers, make up men, costumes, junior artists, editors, fighters and dancers.
Casting director-filmmaker Mukesh Chabra, actor Nia Sharma, Isha Kopikar and others were also present at the protest to show their solidarity.
According to sources, Bachchan was shooting for ‘Brahmastra’ at the venue but the megastar could not come outside for the protest as he was in his get up for the film.
BN Tiwari, president of Federation of Western India Cine Employees (FWICE), told this agency that all the film bodies have decided to ‘completely boycott’ any Pakistani artiste working in Hindi films.
“We won’t let any film release which has even a song by any Pakistani singer, forget about actors. We will take strong action if we come to know anything,” stated Tiwari.
The president of IFTDA, Ashoke Pandit, echoed a similar sentiment and said the film bodies have decided to boycott Navjot Singh Siddhu.
“We won’t let Pakistan-lover Navjot Singh Sidhu, and others like him, to work in the country. As a federation, we won’t let any anti-national work here, we are clear about it,” Pandit said.
PTI