Almost six years after his work in the Karan Johar directorial Ae Dil Hai Mushkil sparked controversy and political unrest, Pakistani actor Fawad Khan is making a comeback on Indian screens with his new film this Friday. Called The Legend of Maula Jatt, the upcoming movie also stars Mahira Khan from Raees.
Multiplex network PVR Cinemas issued a release announcement on its own Instagram page before quickly taking it down. The post read, "Presenting the official poster of #TheLegendofMaulaJatt! Coming to PVR this Friday." On the other hand, INOX Leisure Ltd chief programming officer Ltd Rajender Singh Jyala told a media source, "It will be played in Punjab and a few theatres in Delhi in INOX where there are Punjabi-speaking people."
The action drama will be Pakistan's first theatrical release in India in more than ten years. The film has amassed $10 million to become the highest-grossing Pakistani film of all time. It premiered in Pakistan on October 13 this year. Producers have stated that the film, which is Bilal Lashari's version of the 1979 cult hit Maula Jatt, is neither a remake nor a sequel.
Thanks to their work on the popular television serial Humsafar, both Fawad Khan and Mahira Khan have sizable fan bases in India. The most recent film starring Mahira to be released in theatres in India was Bol in 2011.