Two things that never fail to grab attention and make headlines in India are undoubtedly Cricket and Bollywood.
In the wake of the recent terrorist attacks in Indian Army encampments and several other parts of Kashmir which were carried out by Pakistani terrorists, the cricketing and Bollywood fraternity has stood united against cross-border terrorists.
Veteran Indian left hand opening batsman Gautam Gambhir, who is known for his aggression both on and off the field, have clearly stated that there India must not have any ties with Pakistan until the neighbouring country stops sending terrorists from the other side of the line of control (LoC).
Speaking to a private news channel, the cricketer said that before people say that there is no connection between cricket and Terrorism and cricket or terrorism and artist, they must put themselves in the shoes of the family members of the soldier who lost their lives due to the attacks that were backed by Pakistan.
In this context, the president of the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI), Anurag Thakur, affirmed that there is no scope of having any sort of bilateral cricketing ties with Pakistan. But India will have to take on Pakistan in Champions Trophy on June 4th next year as it is an ICC event.
Meanwhile, Bollywoodhave shown solidarity against terrorism. Several actors such as Ajay Devgn, Akshay Kumar, Nawazudin Siddique, Anupam Kher and Randeep Hooda have shown clear rejection for artists of the neighbouring country.
Although Karan Johar, a renowned director and produce of Bollywood, batted for allowing Pakistani artists to work in India earlier, changed his stance and have declared that he will not work with any Pakistani artist from now on. Blanking on a patriotic plank, Johar mentioned that for him, his country comes first. Johar’s upcoming movie “Ae Dil Hai Muskhil” stars a Pakistani actor, Fawad Khan.
One section believes that Johar has changed his stance because he had succeeded to pressure of the Maharastra Navnirman Sena (MNS). Being a right winged political party, the MNS threatened to disrupt the screening of the film as it starred Fawad Khan.
