Film industry in shock over Mumbai terror strikes

Mumbai, Nov 27 (PTI) The Bollywood on Thursday reacted with shock and disbelief to the terror strikes here overnight and appealed to the people to stick together.

As the grim situation prevailed, shooting of various
films and TV serials was also cancelled. Among them was Ajay
Devgan's animation film 'Toonpur Ka Superhero'.

"Terrible! terrible situation!," a shaken Amitabh
Bachchan wrote in his blog.

"Mumbai under terrorist attack!! Several locations
bombed and terrorist firing all over the city. Major hotels
under siege. Taj hotel battle going on inside the hotel," says
Bachachan, whose post reads like a doomsday account.

In one of the most audacious terror attacks in Indian
history, at least 101 people have been killed and nearly 300
injured.

Two five star hotels, hospitals and the city's CST
Railway station were among the key targets of the terrorists,
who entered the city through boats at Gateway of India, just
opposite the heritage Taj hotel.

"I am scared! shocked! I don't have words to describe
my feelings. It seems unreal to me, almost like a film. I
don't know who are they and why they have resorted to such
ruthlessness," film director Anurag Kashyap, who is in Goa to
attend the IFFI told PTI over phone.

"They just enter the city like that and hold it
hostage. It is unbelievable. Obviously Mumbai will bounce back
but it has been hurt badly and it will take time to heal,"
says Kashyap, who has directed films like 'Black Friday'
based on the 1993 terror strike and the ensuing riots.

Lyricist Javed Akhtar appealed for unity,"I am completely
shocked and surprised. It is an unprecedented attack that the
country has ever witnessed. It has turned out to be one of the
most horrific terror strikes.

"...but there is no time to blame any system or any
organisation. It is time to stand unitedly behind our security
forces and flush out these culprits," Akhtar added.

Similar sentiments were echoed by national award
winning director Rahul Dholakia, "It is insane! We need to sit
down as a society and understand how to prevent this."

The director of 'Parzania' also appealed for everyone
to stick together in time of such crisis.

"Politicians should put aside their differences and
agendas and think about India for a change. It is the time to
show our grit and character ...to stand together and be one,"
Dholakia added.

"I have no words. How do you describe something like
that. India is such a huge country, obviously some people like
to shift the blame to the security but so many of them have
already been killed.

"There is no end to such things unless we find the
root cause of the problem," said actor Irfan Khan of 'Mumbai
Meri Jaan', a film based on the blasts in Mumbai local trains.

The terror strikes also cast their shadow on the
shooting schedule of films and serials, with many of them
being called off as a curfew like situation prevailed in the
city.

With a holiday declared in Mumbai today, heads of
television channels have asked employees to stay indoors.

"Television shootings are going slow. Many of them are
not happening today," they added. PTI BK/KNO