Jammu, June 9 (UNI) Hailing from the picturesque Bhaderwah town in Doda district, Bollywood actress Sadia Khateeb has advocated for investment in theatres and regional film industry to showcase the rich culture of Jammu and Kashmir worldwide on big screen.

Sadia made debut in Vidhu Vinod Chopra directed film ‘Shikara’ in 2020 and later appeared in Akshay Kumar starrer Rakshabandhan.

She also received Filmfare Award for Best Female Debut nomination.

This year, the actress was seen in ‘The Diplomat’ with John Abraham.

Speaking exclusively to UNI in a telephonic interview, Sadia says that Jammu and Kashmir has a lot to offer in films.

Other than politics and violence, Jammu and Kashmir has a rich culture, traditions, love stories, success stories, educational and empowerment stories, that needs to be shown to the audience at the global platform, says Sadia.

“Local artists from Jammu and Kashmir must come forward, write good scripts and stories, make films on such subjects,” suggests Sadia, adding, “the government must invest in regional film industry and theatres to showcase the untold side of Jammu and Kashmir.”

“Traditional cinema needs exposure,” says the actress.

Film industries like Punjabi, Telugu, Malayalam and Bhojpuri have scaled heights over a period of time, so it is not a big deal for Jammu and Kashmir as well to woo the audience through cinema as it has no dearth of talent, she said.

Born and brought up in Jammu, Sadia asserted, “It is my dream that J&K should have its own film industry. Our youth should write good stories, and talented actors should be there on the silver screen.”

“It is high time now, we have to see the other side of the coin to work on our economy, social development and the regional film industry can be a good option for that,” the actress said.

Sadia says that being a resident of Jammu and Kashmir, she has always been respected in the Bollywood and praised for her talent.

Sadia, who is currently busy with her upcoming project, also desired to perform in a “period drama.”

“I want to perform “maharani” (queen) type role in a “period drama” by wearing an ethnic dress, jewellery and all that,” she expressed.

“The movies so far I have done, all had different characters and I loved all of them because all were entirely different,” she said adding that a role of “Kashmiri Hindu” girl in ‘Shikara’ was totally different from that of playing a sister of Akshay Kumar in ‘Rakshabandhan’.

“And, in ‘The Diplomat’, the character was challenging but I gave my 100 percent and thanks to the audience that they loved it,” she said.

She also had words of appreciation for her co-star John Abraham in the film terming him as a beautiful actor, humble and supportive.



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