'Kabul Express' banned in Afghanistan

KABUL: Afghanistan has banned the Bollywood film 'Kabul Express' about journalists in the war-ravaged country because parts of it were deemed offensive to one of Afghanistan's ethnic minorities, a government official said on Saturday.   

'Kabul Express' charts a 48-hour journey by three journalists in post-Taliban Afghanistan. It opened to mixed reviews in India last month.   

"The film has some sentences which were very offensive towards one of Afghanistan's ethnicities, namely the Hazara," said Minister of Culture adviser Najib Manalai.   

"For this reason it has been banned."   

Hazara people are believed to make up about 10 per cent of the Afghan population. A Shi'ite Muslim minority, Hazaras are thought to be descended from remnants of Genghis Khan's invading army and have at times faced persecution.   

'Kabul Express' was filmed on location in 45 days under heavy security provided by the Afghan government. It was inspired by director Kabir Khan's numerous trips to the country after the Taliban regime was toppled in 2001.   

Some Indian critics called it a muddled political documentary while others welcomed its insights into post-Taliban Afghan society.   

Afghans involved in the film including the actors who uttered the sentences deemed offensive would be questioned by a prosecutor, Manalai said.   

The prosecutor would decide if further action would be taken. The producers of the film had apologised, he said.   

"Even if it's fiction, some phrases are hurtful to some people. It's playing with people's feelings and pride," he said.   

Very few people in Afghanistan have seen the film. Bootleg film sellers in the Afghan capital said authorities had confiscated their copies.