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Sonam Kapoor says she's disheartened that Neerja isn't releasing in Pakistan

Sonam Kapoor says she's disheartened that Neerja isn't releasing in Pakistan

The movie is about the life of slain flight attendant Neerja Bhanot, who sacrificed her life to save over 300 passengers
19 Feb, 2016

It's a shame that Ram Madhvani's Neerja, which released in India today will not be seeing the light of day in Pakistan.

And that's led to it's leading lady, Sonam Kapoor being "extremely disheartened".

The movie is about the life of slain flight attendant Neerja Bhanot, who sacrificed her life to save over 300 passengers from terrorists who hijacked Pan Am Flight 73 in Karachi, Pakistan.

Sonam seemed confident in the fact that the movie might get released in Pakistan once it was released worldwide.

Sonam's co-star, veteran actress Shabana Azmi had also expressed similar sentiments earlier, sharing, "There is no way that we will tell a story in which a woman was awarded a medal by the Pakistani government and show the country in poor light. I’m really confident that when they'll [censor board] watch the movie, they will realize their apprehensions were completely misfounded.”

Since we can't watch the movie just yet, here's the trailer:

Comments

Ameer Hamza Feb 19, 2016 02:16pm
Come on Sonam! Don't you worry. Your efforts will get applause. I'll download it via torrent and observe a moment silence in your honor.
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Zak Feb 19, 2016 02:24pm
Sorry we don't buy your story.
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nurul huda Feb 19, 2016 02:51pm
All the critics praised the movie and this is happened after so many time, NEERJA get average 4/5. Positive reviews insist me to go to watch tonight.
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Muhammad Anees Feb 19, 2016 02:55pm
Neerja is a fictitious story of PAN AM plane hijacking where Soonam with her lanky hand killed lots of bully hijackers without firing gun shots, and these bully hijackers have lot of ammo which may tear down city and finally she fly plane to safe heaven
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SMALL TWEET Feb 19, 2016 02:59pm
@Muhammad Anees you dont know anything!
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anil sahu Feb 19, 2016 03:23pm
@Muhammad Anees looks like u borned in justin bieber era. unaware of past events
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Indian_Wolfie Feb 19, 2016 03:36pm
I would not blame Pakistani people for banning the movie because lets face it soonam kapoor cant act. If it was Tabu or Priyanka Chopra it would have been a different story because these ladies can act and have natural talent.
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Mrs. Phannay Khan Feb 19, 2016 03:38pm
@Muhammad Anees I am sure you weren't even born when this happened. Haven't watched the movie but Nerrja was a hero. Whilst the pilots abandoned the plane she stayed on-board trying to ensure that as many lives are saved - and in the process lost her life. Its mind boggling why the film is not released in Pakistan. She is someone who should be decorated with highest civilian award of bravery by Pakistan government
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Satt Feb 19, 2016 03:45pm
This little girl doesn't know the world when she will grow up slowly she will understand everything.
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Sandeep Feb 19, 2016 03:46pm
@Muhammad Anees : i think you're definitely gone made.
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Raja Ragu Raman Feb 19, 2016 04:25pm
@Ameer Hamza Are you not ashamed of watching an art via Illegal download?
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Namo Feb 19, 2016 04:34pm
@Indian_Wolfie totally agree with you.
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GS Feb 19, 2016 05:13pm
@Mrs. Phannay Khan Two corrections, pilots did not abandon, they followed protocol so that plane cannot be forced to takeoff and Pakistan did honor Neerja.
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Sanjeev Feb 19, 2016 05:41pm
@Raja Ragu Raman Well, how do you expect him to watch then, if the movie is not on screens in Pakistan? And, don't act like we Indians don't download anything from torrent and are very honest!
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Jag Feb 19, 2016 05:53pm
@GS ...then why are they not letting people see the movie?
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Nitin Feb 19, 2016 06:08pm
Do not be dishearten Sonam,
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Nitin Feb 19, 2016 06:10pm
@Zak But you will definitely download pirated version as usual.
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ibrahim Feb 19, 2016 06:21pm
Dear Sonam we wouldn't have an issue only if you guys have made it evident that the hijackers were not Pakistani nationals rather they were Libyans. Crocodile tears wouldn`t address the issue of blaming Pakistan for each and everything.
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Zak Feb 19, 2016 06:30pm
@Nitin I stopped watching bollywood long time ago
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VR Feb 19, 2016 06:34pm
@GS It is abandoning the plane. The captain should be the last one to get off.
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Manoj Feb 19, 2016 06:50pm
@VR This is not a ship !!!
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Golden Sharma Feb 19, 2016 07:55pm
@Muhammad Anees Neerja died in the film too. She is not killing anyone in the film. This is not fictional story. its somewhat biography.
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Rishabh Feb 19, 2016 08:42pm
@ibrahim They were Palestinians - neither Libyans nor Pakistani.
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Abhijeet Feb 19, 2016 09:07pm
Clearly some people do not want their masses to know the truth.
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Abhijeet Feb 19, 2016 09:20pm
@Satt, "This little girl doesn't know the world when she will grow up slowly she will understand everything." You have grown old and yet don't know anything.
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Indian Feb 19, 2016 10:30pm
I just watched it today. Amazing movie. I don't understand why it's banned in pakistan. It doesn't show pakistan in any negative light!
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CALCUTTA MAN Feb 19, 2016 10:52pm
@Muhammad Anees From a total of 41 American passengers, only 2 were killed during firing (Neera ja managed to save the others by hiding their passports). She took a hail of bullets shielding there children. One of the kids, then aged 7, is now a captain for a major airline and has stated that Neerja Bhanot has been his inspiration and he owes every day of his life to her. This FYI.
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fact Feb 19, 2016 11:20pm
@Zak but man, how could you ever watch a Bollywood movie in ur life? Didn't you know Bollywood movies were Indian? Ahh, you got to know "long time ago" & you stopped!
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Ghaznavi Feb 20, 2016 12:02am
@Mrs. Phannay Khan I witnessed this event on TV and leaned about it through news papers. Here is the short summary. The hijackers entered Karachi airport in ASF uniforms and got saluted all the way to the plane. Here they slapped the guard on duty and advanced into the plane. Later on the actual ASF forces arrived and encircled the plane. On a distant end of the airport the special forces held a mock rescue drill whereas the provincial martial law administrator ordered army snipers to take out the hijackers in the cockpit. Unfortunately this attempt was not successful as the bullets failed to penetrate the cockpit screen. At this point the hijackers starting killing the passengers and the operation was launched right away. This air hostess held the door open for the passengers and sacrificed her life in doing so. One of the hijackers slipped out with passengers and was captured by a traffic policemen outside in the parking lot of the Airport.
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Changez_Khan Feb 20, 2016 02:39am
Indian film makers MUST stop producing hate against the Muslims or Pakistan in films, once they do that there is no reason to ban the Indian films. Pakistani people love you Sonam so don't feel bad.
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Javed Feb 20, 2016 04:54am
@Zak Yes tolerant Zak.
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Furqan Khan Feb 20, 2016 06:34am
First of all I told you the truth, we used to live at that time in Model Colony close to airport and Malir Cantt. When this PAN - AM aircraft was hijacked and later rescued by our brave and courageous Special Service Group (Pakistan Army) under one of our most respected Army officer Brig TM Shaheed. Can anyone imagine that air hostess will fight and rescued passengers against terrorist. May be she had done some nice things to the passengers but it was Pakistan Army who was the hero of that operation. I would request to Pakistani Government and Pakistani Media that please answer this propaganda because it is our national responsibility .Our new generation has to know the facts. We should ban this kind of movies that distort our sacrifices and credit to some one else.
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Iffti Feb 20, 2016 08:12am
Nice movie. Felt pretty ignorant that I did not know about this incident and Ms. Neerja bravery. In my defence I was 6 in 86 :)
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Kamran Asdar Ali Feb 20, 2016 08:14am
It was a very sad day.We were final year medical students at Dow Medical College and the emergency room received the injured and also the hospital received the dead. Pakistanis, Indian and other nationalities died that day at the hand of the hijackers, they were not Pakistanis (if that is depicted, it is incorrect), the consensus is that they were from the Abu Nidal Group. I personally lost a dear family friend's husband who taught sociology in the US and was returning to his family, he was from Pakistan. The pilots left the plane early on and that stranded the plane on the tarmac. The remaining flight crew was heroic in all respects. Whether the film is released in Pakistan or not is a mute point for us,we who witnessed the deaths and cared for the injured, we remember the human suffering. Karachi soon after witnessed two more catastrophes; the Orangi riots and then the Bohri Bazaar bomb blast.
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Amit Feb 20, 2016 08:38am
She was a bravo. She didn't thought she is an indian saving pakistani. She only thought she is saving humanity. I really wish if India and Pakistan can work together peacefully and can develop and go ahead of china and usa. But neither USA and China would let that happen nor India and Pakistan will forget the hatred. But I wish so.
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Tihar Feb 20, 2016 08:44am
OmG!!!It was pakistani forces who saved the passengers from terrorists in karachi pan am 73 flight. India come on!!!
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Zohaib Feb 20, 2016 09:52am
no worries..Pakistanis will still watch it...piracy zindabad
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raj Feb 20, 2016 10:05am
@Zak but, u comment upon bolly movies without even watchin them......
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hanif Feb 20, 2016 10:07am
@Indian_Wolfie my dear friend this is sonam kapoor and not pakistani acress....sonam is a natural actress.....
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Surya Kant Feb 20, 2016 10:46am
Neeraja was a hero for Pakistan as much as for India, USA and world over. It is said that Pakistan will miss to watch this biopic of their hero
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SK Feb 20, 2016 12:39pm
Pakistan, you are a beautiful country, don't shy away from going in front of the mirror!
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kranti Feb 20, 2016 12:40pm
that's what you get when you launch Pakistani actors as your co-stars...shows the true apprehensions about it's programme...
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Samad Chaudhry London Feb 20, 2016 01:10pm
Sonam is a great actress Her film should be released if not politically motivated. I am going to see it on Tuesday at Cineworld Wandsworth.
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k k tiwari Feb 20, 2016 02:31pm
why not released in Pakistan? any justifiable reason
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adnan Feb 20, 2016 03:53pm
so whats the big deal ? PEMRA and other related entire set up is sleeping.. addiction of dangerous basant was stopped due to lawmaking and effetive implementation , so this indian movie addiction should also be stopped! put high taxes. all society has gone down drain due to DISH introduction by NS and SS in 1990's. there is no big deal. India doesn't show much about pakistan.
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ramesh NG Feb 20, 2016 04:10pm
There is nothing against Pak in this Movie. Handling of the situation by Pak security force is shown in a positive way. In fact I appreciate the way Pakistan security force acted. By releasing this movie in Pakistan people In Pak will only love it.
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Mehmood khan Feb 20, 2016 05:16pm
If this is based on a real documentary then must be shown in pakistan..
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prince Feb 20, 2016 07:03pm
this is double standard..... once upon a time pakistan awarded Neerja Bhanot........
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Jawad Feb 20, 2016 07:51pm
Sonam. You need not to get involved in things you have no idea about and that is politics. Your country men do not let an opportunity slip by to hurt or malign Pakistan. Whether it is F-16 sales to counter terrorism or blocking of cotton sales to EU countries. Heck, you even tried to kill our blind cricketers with acid, left our women cricket team members to sleep on roads of Bombay. Heck, your Bollywood even stole the story of little Hindu girl stranded in Pakistan as if it was other way around and portray to the world how good you people are.
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Syrus India Feb 21, 2016 05:23am
@Mrs. Phannay Khan Neerja already got the highest bravery award by India, Pakistan & America
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Rohit Singh Feb 21, 2016 04:20pm
There was nothing against Pakistan in this movie, in fact you feel good about pakistan, so why?
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Sandip Bhatia Feb 22, 2016 10:52am
I saw the movie yesterday, and believe me the Pakistani officials were shown bravely trying to negotiate and fight the terrorists. I am surprised to how the biopic can be banned despite the Pakistani Govt conferring a gallantry medal to Neerja.
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sri1 Feb 22, 2016 01:27pm
Wow, just read her entire life story, she saved the lives of so many - irrespective of nationality, Indians, Americans , Pakistanis. No wonder Neerja Bhanot was posthumously awarded the Tamgha-e-Insaniyat, awarded by the Pakistan government for showing incredible kindness and the Ashok Chakra, India’s highest peacetime military decoration for the “most conspicuous bravery or some daring or pre-eminent valour or self-sacrifice”. Unfortunately, even the nation of the eighties is surprisingly different from the nation of today.
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JAY Feb 24, 2016 02:37pm
Its really sad , Neerja sacrificed her life to save around 300 people of which 40 were Pakistani , yet Pakistan bans it .
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UA Feb 25, 2016 12:15pm
@Muhammad Anees Please tell me this was a joke. A sick joke even but not something you actually think is true.
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UA Feb 25, 2016 12:28pm
@Furqan Khan Credit was rightfully given to Neerja. Pakistan even awarded her tamgha-e-insanyat. There were 41 Americans on board. By hiding their passports, she was able to save all but 2 of them. Even when she could have slid down to safety, she chose to make sure that everyone got out. Ultimately, she died to a hail of bullets while shielding three children. She could have saved herself that day. She chose to put the lives of others before hers. She may have been only the purser but she had the heart of a lion. I'm Pakistani, but her act transcends nationality.
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