An Indian court has halted the highly anticipated release of Pakistani blockbuster The Legend of Maula Jatt in India. The film’s distributor, Nadeem Mandviwalla, confirmed on Thursday that a stay order had been issued, suspending the movie’s release, originally scheduled for October 2.
Directed by Bilal Lashari and starring top Pakistani actors Fawad Khan, Mahira Khan, and Hamza Ali Abbasi, The Legend of Maula Jatt is a reboot of a 1979 cult classic. It became the highest-grossing film in Pakistani cinema history following its October 2022 release, earning widespread critical and commercial success internationally.
Excitement built when Lashari announced that the film would hit theatres in India, marking a rare cultural exchange between the two countries. However, the film’s release has now been blocked by a court in the Indian state of Punjab. According to Mandviwalla, the stay order was filed by India’s Ministry of Information and Broadcasting, though the exact reasons remain unclear.
Earlier, Indian politician Raj Shrikant Thackeray of the right-wing Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) party had voiced opposition to the film’s screening in Maharashtra, citing his party's strong stance against allowing Pakistani films.
The halt in release comes amidst long-standing political tensions between India and Pakistan, which have heavily affected cultural exchanges since 2016 when India banned Pakistani artists and Pakistan imposed a blanket ban on Indian films.
