Uri attack Issues: Pakistan cinemas ban Indian films

In what they call an act of solidarity with their nation’s armed forces major cinemas in Pakistan have prohibited Indian films.

The movie boycotts have been denoted in Lahore, Karachi and Islamabad.

A group of Indian film-makers, the Indian Motion Picture Producers Association, banned Pakistani celebrities from working in Bollywood.

At least one rightwing nationalist politician has ordered Pakistani celebrities to move out of India.

Our correspondent says that Bollywood films are exceptionally popular in Pakistan, whose own movie industry, although have a revival, is much slimmer.

Displays and enormous Pakistani film chains say they’ve taken an impulsive decision to not show Indian movies for at least a number of weeks, or until what they call normality returns in relations between both states.

They declare their films may suffer financially because of the popularity of Bollywood films in Pakistan.

Challenged Kashmir has been a flashpoint for decades and has started two wars.

Before on Friday, Indian villagers living close to the border fled their homes, the day after India said it had launched strikes targeting militants in Kashmir.

India said it ran “surgical strikes” along the de facto border. Pakistan denied that, saying two of its soldiers perished in cross border shelling.

Individuals from a number of villages in Punjab state were leaving amid worries the confrontation might escalate.

An 18 September assault triggered the present bout of violence on the army base in Uri in Indian-administered Kashmir where 18 soldiers died. It was the deadliest of its type for years.

Narendra Modi’s BJP government, which came to power promising a tough line on Pakistan, has been been under great pressure to retaliate for what many in India consider is state- terrorism.