Pak producers ask for major cut in Indian films` screening

Lahore: The Pakistan Film Producers Association has asked the federal government to make a 90 per cent cut in the screening of Indian movies to give a boost to the domestic film industry.

The Association`s chairman, actor and producer Syed Noor, warned the government of consequences if the group`s demand is not met. "We will take out rallies and organise hunger strike camps if the government does not take any action to save the local industry," he said. Pakistan`s film distribution and exhibition sector was in tatters before the government allowed the screening of Indian films, which had been banned for over four decades in the aftermath of the 1965 war. Multiplexes screening the latest Indian movies attract huge crowds while there are usually few takers for the films made by Lollywood, the movie industry based in Lahore. Lollywood films, which are usually in Punjabi, have been criticised for their shoddy production values and poor scripts. PTI