Karan Johar had come forth in support of his Ae Dil Hai Mushkil actor Fawad Khan and other Pakistani artists.
MNS party has cautioned Johar that if any Pakistani artist works in his films, he will get MNS style answer.
MNS leader Khopkar said,
We dare Karan. Let him take a Pakistan artist, see what we will do then.
On the other hand, senior leader Shalini Thackeray said,
We won’t allow films to release which has Pakistan actors in it. Also this Bollywood fraternity too has to understand that this is for our country and not politics. These Pakistan people are killing so many of our Indian soldiers.
MNS has also given 48-hour deadline to all the Pakistani artists to leave from India.
Amey Khopkar MNS senior leader said,
Deadline is over and I can assure you that there is no Pakistan artist right now in Mumbai. Everyone left after our ultimatum. However if we find any Pakistan artist in Mumbai, we will throw them out.
In the meantime, the Mumbai police assured that security will be given to Pakistan nationals in Mumbai who have valid documents.
Deputy Commissioner of Police (DCP) Ashwini Sanap said,
We are taking this matter seriously. Proper security will be given to all the artists in Mumbai. They need not worry.
Later, filmmaker Karan Johar poured his heart out-
I understand the anger and the anguish that surround us and I empathise, my heart bleeds for the lost lives. There is nothing that can justify this terrible feeling of terror. Then you are faced in a situation such as this (asking for ban on Pak artistes). If this was truly a solution, one would take it,
He continued-
But this is not a solution. I don’t believe it is. The larger forces have to come together and sort the situation and this cannot be banning talent or art.
Furthermore, the 44-year-old filmmaker added,
I feel vulnerable and scared while even saying this. I completely feel the pain and anger. If my film is targeted because of this, it will make me exceptionally sad because my intent was to put out a product out of love and nothing else.
When quizzed how he will deal with these intimidation, Johar said,
I don’t know… I beseech everyone to look at it holistically and understand the situation, that there is a larger situation here and it has nothing to do with banning talent. Let’s look at it from a larger perspective and find the answer.
He added,
I am not somebody who can find the answer. I am nobody in that scheme of things. I am just a filmmaker, telling a love story. Today I feel, I am a vulnerable soft target. I have faced it, felt the repercussions of it in the past and I have constantly combated that.
Karan also pointed out on “creativity,”
Sometimes, you just want to fold your hands and say, ‘We are creative industry. Please leave us alone. We make movies, we spread love. There are millions in the world, in our country who are happy with the work we do, allow us that…’ I think we should not be those soft targets anymore. We don’t matter in the scheme of things but we can make things happier and better.