Iranian TV Channel No 5 aired Mehwish Hayat’s Pakistani film ‘Actor in Law’ in Persian dubbing on 29 May, 2020

Iranian TV Channel 5 has a long history of airing Indian Bollywood films in Persian dubbing creating a audience of Bollywood. These films also helped the Indian tourism industry as hundreds of thousands of Iranians visit India every year via organized tours by thousands of Indian tour operators all over the Iran.

Pakistani cinema industry was once among the top of the world but had a very bad decline in 1990s and 2000s. In the past few years (2010s), local Pakistani films have gained a lot of momentum taking the national cinema industry to newer heights.

 

While Pakistan has a large audience for Bollywood, its usually our films that fail to release across the border due to the constant tensions between both the countries and this could be the reason that even Pakistani films failed to be screened or aired on other neighboring countries.

However, in 2016, late veteran actor Om Puri played his part in bringing the two nations closer when he became a part of Actor in Law.

Directed by Nabeel Qureshi and produced by Fizza Ali Meerza, the film starred Fahad Mustafa and Mehwish Hayat as well. Om Puri, the famous Bollywood actor played a crucial role as well before he passed away in early 2017. According to Times of India, Actor in Law was one of Puri’s last films and it was screened in Mumbai.

Actor in Law was loved by audiences all across Pakistan encouraging Meerza and Qureshi’s next venture called Load Wedding staring Hayat and Mustafa which was premiered in 2018.

Airing of ‘Actor in Law’ in Persian dubbing on Iranian TV Channel 5 (29 May, 2020) has seen a big joy among Pakistan loving Iranians and several NGOs working for the development of Iran-Pakistan relations.

 

 

Government of Pakistan, should work on this issue and should establish a committee to communicate with the neighboring countries to air or screen Pakistani films and Dramas so that both countries could come closer at public level.

Recently airing of Turkish dramas on Pakistan’s PTV has acted as a bridge of communications between Turkish and Pakistani actors and actress and Turkish peoples are getting popularity in Pakistan which could also be expected on reciprocal basis for Pakistani films and dramas in other countries.