New Delhi, India

It's not just the India-Pakistan borders that are simmering amid the escalating tension between the two countries. One of the world's most diverse film industries, Bollywood, has also suffered drastically.

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The Uri attack has left Bollywood divided over the issue of Pakistani actors living in India. However, the issue was first fueled by Raj Thackery of Central India's Maharashtra Navnirman Sena, but later actors and artists jumped into the fray with their opinions on the issue. 

While some Bollywood actors and artists have actually backed the proposal to send Pakistani actors living in India to Pakistan, others have sided with their fellow actors from Pakistan.

The recent one being veteran Indian actor Om Puri, commenting that forms of art across the border should not suffer because of military tension between the two countries. And that actors from Pakistan do not come to the country illegally, they come here on valid Visas.

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Other Bollywood artists to have opposed the ban on Pakistani artists were Salman Khan, Karan Johar, Mahesh Bhatt, Ranbir Kapoor, Varun Dhawan, Saif Ali khan, Rahul Agarwal, they all have reiterated that forms of art should work to ensure that peace prevails, and there is a need to draw a line of demarcation between what is happening at the border and that between people of the two countries, including Bollywood. However, all of them have expressed their resentment against the attack carried out by Pakistan-sponsored militants in Uri.

On the other hand, actors and artists like controversial singer Abhijeet , Nana Patekar, Madhur Bhandarkar, Randeep Hooda have asserted that nothing comes above the security of the country, and that all steps should be taken to isolate Pakistan at the international level. Seeking a ban on Pakistan-based artists in India is a step towards in that direction. 

Amid all this, it is important to note that it is not just artists from Pakistan who have worked in India, but also vice versa. Among several Indian artists, a few of them who have worked in Pakistani dramas and movies are: Kirron Kher, Naseeruddin Shah, Ally Khan, Shewta Tiwari, Deepti Gupta, Kim Sharma, Preeti Jhangiani and others. 

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(WION)