Karan Johar finally breaks his silence

on Oct 19, 2016

Filmmaker Karan Johar in an emotional video statement not only pledged to stop working with Pakistani artistes but also pleaded the cause of his soon-to-be-released film "Ae Dil Hai Mushkil". This follows the opposition from Raj Thackeray-led MNS and some other political parties against the release of films with actors from Pakistan after the Uri terror attack, putting a question mark on the fate of Johar’s movie, which is slated for a pre-Diwali release on October 28. The Cinema Owners Exhibitors Association of India too decided not to screen films with Pakistani actors in four states – Maharashtra, Gujarat, Karnataka and Goa. In a video statement, Johar said that he understood the sentiment of the people, but stopping the release of the film will impact the lives of 300 other Indians who have worked on the film, and stalling its release will not be fair to them. The 44-year-old said he had been silent for weeks because of a "deep sense of hurt and pain" that people believed he is anti-national. "When I shot my film in September-December last year, the climate was completely different, circumstances were different. There were efforts made by our government for peaceful relationships with the neighbouring country and I respected those efforts then, and I respect the sentiment today...because I feel the same," he said.