A section of media may have termed his film as anti-India. However,31 year old debutant director Bilal Lashari believes that a lot is being read between the lines without much ado. Though he confesses that there is a subtle hint of select Indian characters causing trouble in Pakistan, Bilal re-emphasises that his is not a propaganda film and has to be looked as a 'high quality' entertainer.
"Even I was amazed when I came across an entire 15 minute long video feature that insinuated that Waar was anti-India. That is not the case. It is a patriotic film and that's about it. As a matter of fact a few amongst those who have seen the film wondered why the Indian angle was so subtle. They felt that I should have been a lot more vocal. However that's not the way I wanted to narrate the story of Waar. If you run an agenda like this for a film, it won't necessarily form connect with the audience. There is a lot more that needs to go in a story than throw in pointers that are provocative," says Bilal from Pakistan.
Though the promo of Waar never once calls out India as the 'dushmanmulk', the fact that Indian intelligence RAW features prominently in Bilal's film has made a few suspicious around the eventual content. Ironically, the film has been released only in Pakistan so far and hence the only possible source of anyone forming an opinion of any sorts was via pirated copies or online download of illegal software.
"We are now looking at the film being released internationally so that it reached out to a larger set of audience and its true worth is seen," says Bilal whose film is enjoying an IMDB rating of over 9 and after beating the opening day record of Chennai Express, is also the highest Pakistani film grosser ever.
When questioned about the probability of film making it to the Indian theatres despite its volatile content, Bilal says, "I am hopeful that happens. I don't see any reason why that should be a problem. We are in talks with distributors internationally."
It is also expected though that Waar may be chopped heavily, if at all it makes it to India, with Censors coming tough on it.
Bilal continues in a soft spoken tone, "As I said earlier, the film has a lot to tell on it's own than focus on any agenda or propaganda. I am willing to make adjustments to the copy that reaches India."
Considering the fact that at least two Pakistani films in last few years, Bol and Khuda Kay Liye, have made a terrific impact with Indian audience, Waar could well be a welcome addition.
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