Meaningful: Shafqat Amanat defends silence on Uri attack

Pakistani singer says artists are always against acts of terrorism

NEW DELHI: Pakistani singer Shafqat Amanat Ali has come to the defence of his fellow artists who, he feels, have been wrongly blamed for keeping quiet about the recent Uri attack. According to him, artists anywhere in the world are always against terrorism.

“It all started with the blame going on Pakistan, which put them on the back foot. No artist will be okay with hearing things against their country, which is why they went quiet,” explained the Lahore-based singer, who has sung for Bollywood films featuring superstars like Shah Rukh Khan and Akshay Kumar. “But of course, they all condemn the attack in Uri, or any other terror attack, anywhere. Artists in India, Pakistan and anywhere are against terrorism. They were made to feel defensive the moment this unfortunate incident happened, which is why they went quiet,” added Ali.



Following the attack, the Maharashtra Navnirman Sena (MNS) gave an “ultimatum” to Pakistani artists to leave India within 24 hours. Shafqat’s concert, which was scheduled to take place on September 30 in Bengaluru, thereby got cancelled. “It was absolutely expected. I was mentally prepared that in such a tense atmosphere, a concert would not make sense and my show would be postponed. But once the bashing of Pakistani artists started, I knew it would remain cancelled for the time being at least,” said the singer.

In the wake of the ongoing political turmoil, even Atif Aslam’s concert in Gurgaon was called off. To make matters worse, the Indian Motion Picture Producers Association (IMPPA) passed a resolution to ban Pakistani artists from working in Bollywood.

But Ali still believes art and culture don’t have boundaries. “It did start with extremist groups banning artists, which spiralled downwards. But I would still say that art and culture don’t have boundaries,” claimed the Mitwa hit-maker.  “I am still hopeful that peace will prevail and the exchange of culture will resume.”

Asked if he is still willing to perform in India, Ali responded, “I want peace between both countries. Once that happens and we have all moved on, I would love to perform in India because I have always received a lot of love from there.”

Ali also urged Indian and Pakistani people to spread “as much positivity as they can and pray for peace together.” Other Pakistani artists have remained mum on the topic, barring Salman Ahmad of rock band Junoon fame, who recently took a strong stance on the situation as well. According to him, banning exchange of artists and culture in the wake of recent events is akin to letting terrorists and extremists win.

Published in The Express Tribune, October 10^th, 2016.

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