According to reports, Akshay Kumar’s latest film Pad Man, which releases on 9th February in 50 countries across the globe, will not release in Pakistan as it has been denied a No-Objection Certificate (NOC) due to its subject.
Reportedly, the R Balki film was initially bought by Amjad Rashid of IMGC but after he was shown the trailer, he was advised not to import the film. “Later HKC bought it and applied for NOC which was denied.”
A senior executive from Pakistan, when asked about her personal opinion on denial of NOC, said, “Well, you know how the mentality is in our Asian men towards periods and they don’t want to discuss this as it’s a taboo. Sadly.”
The makers are not really upset about this. A trade insider said, “Pakistan as a territory is not a big one so even if Pad Man does not release there, it will not have any effect on the business of the film."
Meanwhile, Pad Man has opened to extremely positive reviews at home turf. It has witnessed a decent occupancy across the country and trade pundits expect that it will have a double-digit opening.
Pad Man is based on Arunachalam Murugunatham who invented affordable sanitary napkins for rural women in India. He was awarded the Padma Shri in India for his revolutionary work.
Sagar Arya
Irvine Iqbal
