In the wake of the deadly Uri attack in Kashmir last month, reportedly by militants who had crossed over from the Pakistani side, a ban has been imposed by Indian producers on artistes from the neighbouring country from working in the Indian film industry.
Last week, Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) led by Raj Thackeray issued a 48-hour ultimatum to Pakistani artistes to leave the country. Fawad Khan, an actor who enjoys huge popularity in India, was the main target of many on social media. He is currently not in the country.
The issue has polarized Bollywood, an industry that has employed Pakistani artistes since the beginning of its existence. Salman Khan sparked controversy on Friday when he said, "They are artists, not terrorists. It is the Indian government who gives them permits and visas," at a Being Human event.
Read more: Salman Khan Should Go Work In Pakistan If He Loves Their Artistes So Much, Says Raj Thackeray
However, on Sunday, when journalists asked veteran actor Nana Patekar what he thought about the ban, the actor said, "Pakistani actors and others come later, first comes my country. I don't know anyone other than my country and would never like to know. Actors are like khatmal (bed bugs) in front of the country, we have no worth."
"Don't concentrate on what we say, you know who I'm talking about, right," Patekar added while taking a dig at Salman Khan.
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