In the course of a press conference at the Indian Film Festival of Melbourne, Pakistani actor Fawad Khan was asked by a journalist to give his views on how there are cultural differences between India and Pakistan and the way Bollywood is showcasing romance on the screen almost like the West.
Though the question was aimed at Fawad, it was instantaneously answered by his Indian counterpart Richa Chadha. She proceeded with replying to the question on behalf of Fawad Khan.
And the question was, "You’re representing a country which is much different from your own. In all senses, especially Bollywood, the on screen romance or the kissing scenes show the way India has adopted Western influences. "The journalist further stated that Pakistani friends shared that the two countries are different and in particular Pakistan is a lot different from India.”
The response given by Richa was that it is important to let go of grounded stereotypes. And her exact reply was “I would like to answer that. I am sorry if I am offending anybody here, but if you look at world history, every time the British left an empire, they divided it. I think we should avoid stereotyping in questions because the art does not really have any borders." In the same breath Richa also said that she and Fawad share many values. She added more to her reply by explaining that “I will have far more in common with Fawad because I am from the north of India, than I will have with somebody who is from the north east.”
And in the later part of the press conference Fawad expressed his gratitude to Richa for standing up for him. “Thank you Richa. That’s really sweet of you.” Giving his reply on the question, he said, “In Indian films you will see the on screen intimacy is very different from what it is on Indian television because they don’t cater to all the same audiences. ”As for the Pakistani cinema, Fawad explained , “Even Pakistani TV has always been on the forefront and has something that is available to all Pakistanis. But to cater to the sensibilities that you want to bring to cinema, you have to accept a little curve for them. We may be different but we are the same too.”
Before Fawad Khan could begin, Richa Chadha decided to answer the question on the actor's behalf.
