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Mawra Hocane has hit back at her Sanam Teri Kasam costar Harshvardhan Rane for saying he will not act in a sequel to their movie if the original cast — meaning her — was in it. In a statement posted to her Instagram story, Hocane told Rane that there were far more important things going on and to stop “using war for personal benefit”.

In two Instagram stories posted earlier on Saturday, Rane expressed disapproval over what he called “direct comments made about my country,” referencing Hocane’s condemnation of India’s strikes on Pakistani territory.

“While I am grateful for the experience, however as things stand, and after reading the direct comments made about my country, I have decided to respectfully decline to be a part of Sanam Teri Kasam Part 2 if there is any possibility of the previous cast being repeated,” he wrote.

Responding to the news, Hocane said, “I don’t know whether to call this unfortunate, sad or comical…someone I expected to have basic common sense has risen from deep slumber with a PR strategy”.

“Look around you, look at what’s going on! We could all hear explosions..children in my country died due to an unjustified cowardly attack, innocent lives are lost and after multiple attempts to still maintain grace and peace, a befitting response by my armed forces have caused a frenzy in your country last night. While our nations are at war, this is what you come up with, a PR statement to get attention? What a pity!” she wrote.

“I’ve always shown respect, love and gratitude for everyone I’ve worked with and I’ll continue to do so. I was offered to collaborate and I did. I’ll never spew hate like you just did,” said the actor. She also called out Rane for the timing of his posts.

“Making such announcements at this volatile time, it’s both shameful and bizarre to see you so hungry and desperate. Our countries have been at WAR… two nuclear countries have been at war, this is not the time to discuss films, to mock one another, to bring each other down. Only goes to show your ignorance in such a sensitive situation, I guess it’s not just your news media that’s gone bonkers.

“If throwing all the respect away and using my name after nine years is getting you the headlines… you might be surrounded by the wrong team. You just DO NOT use war for your personal benefit. So many lives lost… it’s a grave situation, you’ve fallen from grace for nothing!”

Hocane ended her statement by saying she was praying for civilians on both sides and Pakistan’s soldiers, not “immersed in the thoughts of what my next FILM should be!”

“My country above everything else! Pakistan Zindabad,” she wrote.

The 2016 film Sanam Teri Kasam saw a resurgence in popularity after being re-released in February and surpassing box office expectations. Rumours of a potential sequel began to swirl after its success, with both stars initially expressing interest in reprising their roles if they were offered a sequel.