Bollywood veteran actor Naseeruddin Shah was present at the prestigious Cannes Film Festival held in France where he praised the Pakistani film ‘Khuda Kay Liye’, calling it an important film that discussed social issues in the country,
Speaking to the press, the veteran actor said courageous films should be made about religion “which seems to be on all our minds and which to my mind is one of the most harmful things that has happened to humanity,” said ‘Masoom’ actor said.
Speaking on Khuda Kay Liye, the ‘Manto’ actor said it was a film that held a lot of importance for him the same way ‘Manhatten’ did.
‘Khuda Kay Liye’ released in 2007 and starred Fawad Khan, Shaan Shahid and the model Iman Ali. It revolves around the lives of two brothers Mansoor (played by Shaan) and Shaan (played by Fawad), who were both succesful singers but the later’s life changes when he decides to focus on religion and gives up his career. In this film, Naseeruddin Shah plays a maulana who speaks about how religion has turned into a tool to oppress and dominate over others rather than bring peace and harmony.
In 2020, the ‘A Wednesday’ actor spoke to the Hindustan Times about why he choose to do the film. saying he believed the message it was trying to give to the audience was important.
“Coming from a very orthodox Muslim family, as a child, I was told that Islam is the greatest religion and all non-Muslims are kaafirs. But those thoughts used to disturb me as a growing adult. We do not choose our parents and the religion we are born into. And why should music be banned?”
