Bajrangi Bhaijaan
Strained diplomatic ties between India and Pakistan are back in focus only days after leaders of both the nations discussed how to defuse tension. But the unanimous success of Eid release 'Bajrangi Bhaijaan' - a Salman Khan starrer that propagates a positive message of peace, unity and brotherhood - on both sides of the border is proving there's a strong force in the soft power of Bollywood.
Alam - the same person who banned Akshay Kumar's 'Baby' in his nation for being "a poor propaganda film basically saying all muslims are terrorists and Pakistan harbors them" - however, went on record on social media to convey "'Bajrangi Bhaijaan' is the most positive film for Pakistan that Bollywood has produced in a long time".
The Kabir Khan directorial sees Salman in the role of a god-fearing Hindu simpleton named Pavan aka Bajrangi taking it upon himself to unite an accidentally-lost six-year-old mute Pakistani girl in India with her parents in Pakistan. It's not just Salman's holier-than-thou portrayal sans his trademark mannerisms that has tugged at the audience's heartstrings, but the angelic smile of talented little girl Harshaali Gupta; the quirky dialogues of Nawazuddin Siddiqui and the deftness with which the director has handled a subject as sensitive as Indo-Pak ties. Pakistan had banned Indian movies in 1968 but lifted this later.
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