Shah Rukh's Pathaan gearing up for Bangladesh release

Superstar Shah Rukh Khan's Pathaan is set to be released in Bangladesh theatres on May 12, production banner Yash Raj Films announced on Friday.

Fronted by Shah Rukh Khan, the Siddharth Anand directorial released in theatres on January 25 and has raised over £100 million worldwide at the box office.

Produced by YRF, Pathaan also stars John Abraham, Deepika Padukone, Dimple Kapadia, and Ashutosh Rana.

According to Nelson D’Souza, Vice President, International Distribution at YRF, Pathaan will be the "first Hindi film" to release in Bangladesh since the country attained freedom in 1971.

"We have learnt over the years that Shah Rukh Khan has tremendous fan following in Bangladesh and we feel Pathaan, our latest offering from YRF’s Spy Universe, is the perfect first film of SRK and Hindi cinema to release in the country and represent Indian culture and cinema in its full glory," he added.

Indian films were banned from playing in Bangladesh cinemas since its independence in a bid to protect the local movie industry.

The authorities had lifted the ban in 2010 as the country's film industry witnessed an unprecedented slide and the number of active movie halls shrank. But after a protest by the local industry, the ban was reimposed.

The government approved the import of films from the Indian sub-continent with certain conditions earlier this year, paving the way for the release of Pathaan, local media reports said.

D'Souza said cinema has always been a unifying force between nations, races, and cultures.

"It transcends borders, galvanises people, and plays a significant hand in bringing people together. We are incredibly thrilled that Pathaan, which has done historic business worldwide, will now get a chance to entertain audiences in Bangladesh," he added.

Pathaan follows the titular spy (Shah Rukh) who comes out of exile to stop terrorist group Outfit X from launching a debilitating attack on India.

It is the fourth film in producer Aditya Chopra's spy universe, following Salman Khan's Ek Tha Tiger and Tiger Zinda Hai, and War, featuring Hrithik Roshan.