Pakistan distributors have refused to release the Bollywood Star Salman Khan’s Tubelight. Apparently, Salman’s extraordinary popularity among Pakistani audiences has proved to be a deterrent.
According to the President of the Indian Film Exporters Association, Hirachand Dand, local distributors in Pakistan are hesitant to acquire the film, since there are two big local films scheduled for an Id release and the makers do not want any competition, especially in the form of a Salman starrer.
“Salman has millions of fans in Pakistan and the filmmakers are in no mood to pitch their films against his. They are determined to protect the interests of their films instead.”
According to Dand, there was initial speculation that Tubelight would have a delayed release after two weeks in Pakistan but that possibility is now likely to be ruled out due to the price factor. A Salman Khan film in the Pakistan market is said to be $5 lakh, and Dand reveals that the price has become a major point of contention.
“The distributors are in no mood to pay the asking price for a Salman film even if it is released two weeks later, since it would have released all over the world by then. The business will also have reduced by 30 percent. And these days, pirated versions of films invariably get leaked online within a week of their release,” he says, adding that a majority of Salman-starrers had released on the same day in Pakistan.
Veteran Pakistan distributor Amjad Rashi, who last released Baahubali and Hindi Medium in Pakistan, confirmed that no distributor including the regular local distributor of Yashraj, Geo Films, had come forward to acquire the film. However, he attributed it to completely different reasons. “I am not the right person to comment but I doubt whether the film will get clearance considering the Indo-China war subject. Salman is no doubt a big star in Pakistan but the film could also face other hurdles as it reflects anti-China sentiments,” he said. A spokesperson for Geo refused to comment, stating that there was no confirmation on whether or not the film would release in Pakistan.