Actress Vaani Kapoor was set to star opposite Pakistani actor Fawad Khan in his Bollywood comeback film Abir Gulaal. However, following the terror attack in Pahalgam in April, the film faced backlash. 

Government sources told PTI that the movie would not be allowed to release in India.

Soon after the attack, all posts related to Abir Gulaal disappeared from Vaani Kapoor’s Instagram account. This included posters, teasers, photos with Fawad Khan and behind-the-scenes content. 

According to a report by Times Now, Vaani did not delete the posts herself. As per the report, the content was originally shared as Instagram collabs, and the deletion was done by the film’s production team. As a result, the posts were automatically removed from her profile.

This followed restrictions placed on the Instagram accounts of several Pakistani artists, including Fawad Khan, Hania Aamir, Mahira Khan, and Atif Aslam. Their profiles are no longer accessible from India. 

Users trying to view them see a message saying, “Account not available in India. This is because we complied with a legal request to restrict this content.”

Abir Gulaal, a romantic drama directed by Aarti S. Bagdi and produced by Vivek Agrawal, was scheduled to release in India on 9 May. But after the Pahalgam attack and rising political tensions between India and Pakistan, the government said the film would not be allowed to be released.

The attack in Pahalgam on 22 April claimed 26 lives, mostly civilians. It has been described as the deadliest attack in the Valley since Pulwama in 2019. Several Bollywood actors, including Shah Rukh Khan, Salman Khan, Alia Bhatt and Priyanka Chopra, condemned the violence. Pakistani actors Hania Aamir and Mahira Khan also expressed condolences.

Meanwhile, Vaani Kapoor was last seen in Raid 2, where she played the role of Ajay Devgn’s wife. The film also featured Saurabh Shukla, Riteish Deshmukh, Rajat Kapoor, and Supriya Pathak. 

Vaani will next be seen in Badtameez Gill, alongside Aparshakti Khurana, Paresh Rawal, Sheeba Chaddha, Richard Bhakti Klein, and Monica Chaudhary. The release date has not been announced yet.