Pak Artistes ‘Ban’: Ali Zafar Not Being Replaced in ‘Dear Zindagi’
After the Pakistani artistes ban, rumour mills were abuzz with news of Ali Zafar being replaced in ‘Dear Zindagi’.
advertisement
Pakistani actor and singer Ali Zafar does not feature in a promotional song of upcoming film Dear Zindagi but is part of the movie's cast, sources close to its producers said. There was speculation that amid the row over the working of Pakistani artistes in Bollywood, 36-year-old Zafar was replaced by Tahir Raj Bhasin in the movie.
The shooting of the mentioned track with the film's lead actress Alia Bhatt and Bhasin further fuelled the rumour mills. A source close to film's production house Dharma Productions, however, refuted these replacement reports and said that Tahir has only only for the promotional song.
Tahir is best known for his negative role in the Rani Mukerji-starrer Mardaani. Sources close to the 29-year-old actor maintain a "no- comments" stand.
Director Gauri Shinde’s venture Dear Zindagi also features Shah Rukh Khan, Angad Bedi, Aditya Roy Kapur, Kunal Kapoor.
Recently, Karan Johar's Ae Dil Hai Mushkil had to bear the brunt of protests from a few groups as it starred Pakistani actor Fawad Khan.
Many groups, including the Maharashtra Navnirman Sena, had asked for a boycott of Pakistani artistes from the Indian film industry post the Uri attack.
(At The Quint, we question everything. Play an active role in shaping our journalism by becoming a member today.)