Pakistani actor Fawad Khan's Bollywood comeback gets release date - except in India

Aabeer Gulaal, also starring Vaani Kapoor, was initially set to release in May this year

Bollywood actress Vaani Kapoor and Pakistani actor Fawad Khan promoting their film Aabeer Gulaal in Dubai. Photo: Global Village

A long-delayed Indian film, which was meant to mark the Bollywood comeback for Pakistani actor Fawad Khan, will now be released worldwide – except in India.

Aabeer Gulaal, which was earlier titled Abir Gulaal, is a romantic comedy with Khan and Bollywood actress Vaani Kapoor in the lead roles. Kapoor plays Gulaal, who escapes an arrange marriage and goes to London, where she meets Khan's Aabeer, a restaurateur with a complicated past. Despite their differences, the two are drawn to each other and romance blossoms, but fate has other plans for them.

Originally scheduled to be released on May 9, the film was delayed following the April 22 killing of 26 people when militants opened fire in the resort area of Pahalgam in Indian-administered Kashmir.

India accused Pakistan of being involved in the attack, which Pakistan denied, leading to armed skirmishes between the two countries lasting over two weeks.

As a result of the tension, India's broadcasting ministry said it would not allow Aabeer Gulaal to be released in the country. Pakistani distributors responded with a similar decision, effectively putting the film's future in doubt.

On Monday, distributor Indian Stories Limited announced the film would release globally on August 29, except in India.

Pakistani actors and musicians were once thriving in Bollywood. However, following the 2019 Pulwama attack, which killed 40 Indian security personnel and brought the two countries to the brink of war, a boycott on all Pakistani artists was instituted by an organisation representing Indian film workers.

Khan, a massive star in Pakistan, was a rising star in Bollywood with roles in acclaimed films such as Khoobsurat (2014) and Kapoor & Sons (2016).

In 2023, the Mumbai High Court ruled against a petition seeking to ban Pakistani artists from working in India. “Arts, music, sports, culture, dance and so on are the activities which rise above nationalities, cultures and nations, and truly bring about peace, tranquillity, unity and harmony in nation and between nations,” the court said in its ruling.

Aabeer Gulaal would mark a comeback of sorts for Khan, who still enjoys immense popularity in India.