Pakistani distributors cannot afford SRK's 'Rab ne...'

Islamabad, Dec 14 (PTI) Pakistanis will perhaps have to
watch the much-awaited Shahrukh Khan-starrer 'Rab Ne Bana Di
Jodi' on the small screen as local distributors do not have
enough funds to buy the film's rights.


The film, which was to hit Pakistani cinema halls on the
same day as India, was reportedly postponed following the
souring of relations between India and Pakistan after last
month's Mumbai attacks.


'Rab ne...' – a Yash Raj Film – was released last Friday
in over 30 countries simultaneously. The movie is a comeback
film of sorts for director Aditya Chopra and stars newcomer
Anushka Sharma.


"Shahrukh Khan is a big star with a great market value,
but no exhibitor is willing to take the risk to obtain the
rights of the movie at such a high cost," Pakistan Cinema
Management Association Chairman Qaiser Sanaullah Khan told the
Daily Times.


According to reports, an Indian movie usually goes for Rs
7 million on this side of the border – an amount which is
recovered in the first week itself. However, for 'Rab Ne...'
the Indian distributors want at least Rs 20 million.

Pakistanis, including their Prime Minister Yousaf Raza
Gilani, are huge Bollywood fans. Gilani, an ardent fan of
Aishwarya Rai and Shahrukh Khan, was presented a box-full of
DVDs of Rai's films by the Indian External Affairs Minister
Pranab Mukherjee in May.

The screening of Indian films has been banned in Pakistan
since the 1965 war though Islamabad has allowed a small number
of Bollywood movies to be imported over the past two years.
Compared to India's production of over 1,000 movies in a year,
Pakistan's film industry makes just about 50 movies a year.

In the recent past 'Singh is King', 'Race', 'Awarapan'
and 'Jannat' have all done well in Pakistan. In a year, only
12 to 15 Indian movies are allowed to be screened in Pakistan.
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