Despite abundant love from the Pakistani audiences, this year’s Eid in Pakistan will be a Bolly-less affair. Two of the year’s biggest releases, Shah Rukh Khan’s Chennai Express and Akshay Kumar’s Once Upon A Time in Mumbaai 2 will not release in Pakistan this year. Distributors officially confirmed this news and emphasized that this is important for indigenous films to get more noticed. Four of Pakistan’s biggest releases of 2013 namely War, Josh, Mera Naam Afridi and Ishq Khuda are scheduled for the 8th August premiere.
Film theatres in important towns of Pakistan earn heavily due to Indian releases. Film makers of the local films insisted that this should be done to ease out situations for them, which a Shah Rukh Khan or an Akshay Kumar starrer will majorly jeopardize.
Shah Rukh Khan and Akshay Kumar
Analysts confirm that this move will result in an approximate loss of Rs 20 crore for the films. Both UTV and Balaji tried their luck at nailing down sense and stop the blackout, but the film makers refused to budge from their point. It is essential to safeguard the interests and needs of the Pakistani Film Fraternity. The option that was left open to UTV and Balaji was to schedule the films for a later release, on 15th August but the option would not help generate revenue because pirated prints of the film will already be doing rounds by then.
The decision is a loss-loss one for the screen owners and distributors who would earn more from SRK-Akshay releases than from local ones but the Government decisions on such issues are too strict to be challenged.
