LAHORE: The Punjab government on Thursday halted the release of Yasir Hussain and Ayesha Omar’s crime thriller – a biopic on a notorious serial killer, Javed Iqbal – a day before its theatrical release.
The movie, which is a biopic of Javed Iqbal – a serial killer who murdered 100 boys in Lahore and provided authorities evidence of his crimes in 1999, was slated to hit theatres nationwide on January 28. The film has been directed by Abu Aleeha who has written the screenplay of the film as well.
The Punjab government issued a notice about the film’s release being halted. Following the provincial government’s orders, CBFC (Central Board of Film Censors) has also ordered the film to not be released.
“The latest news is that Chief Minister Sardar Usman Buzdar’s government has stopped the showing of Javed Iqbal,” Abu Aleeha wrote on Twitter. “This unwarranted action comes after the censor board approved the film, which is why we will be taking the matter to the high court,” he concluded.
تازہ سماچار یہ ہے کہ بزدار گورنامنٹ نے جاوید اقبال کی نمائش روک دی ہے۔ ایک بار فلم سنسر بورڈ سے پاس کردینے کے بعد یہ سراسر شرارت ہے تو ہم کل ہائی کورٹ جارہے ہیں۔ باقی لاہور کا موسم سپرسیکسی ہوا پڑا ہے۔ pic.twitter.com/dPbQMcxYb5
— ابوعلیحہ (@abualeeha) January 26, 2022
Javed Iqbal was originally supposed to be released in October, but the premiere was pushed to December 24 because it was still being cleared by the censor boards. The film’s release experienced yet another delay due to a rise in Covid-19 cases. The release date was rescheduled to January 28.
December proved to be unlucky as well — the film’s release experienced yet another delay due to a rise in Covid-19 cases, according to Omar. The release date was rescheduled to January 28.
