As film buffs looked forward to Anushka Sharma’s film ‘Pari’ for breathing new life into the horror genre in Bollywood and censors lauded the star for making a brave choice as a producer and an actor, the Islamabad Board banned it in Pakistan (as per a report by Dawn).
According to Dawn’s sources, the initial clearance by the Sindh and Punjab censor boards with an adult certificate was revoked. The Express Tribune reported that the film was banned in the neighbouring country for "promoting black magic, some non-Islamic values and anti-Muslim sentiments."
“The film not only mixed Quranic verses with Hindu chants but also portrayed Muslims in a negative light as they were shown using Quranic verses to do black magic,”A source at Pakistan’s censor board to Geo
The Times of India reported that The Pakistan Film Distributors Association’s chairman agreed with the censor board's decision.
The supernatural thriller is Anushka Sharma’s third production venture and was released on 2 March with an adult certificate. Last month Pakistan also banned the Akshay Kumar starrer PadMan for dealing with the taboo subject of ‘menstrual hygiene.’
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