Taj Mahal premieres in Karachi

Indian and Pakistani cine stars were present at the premiere of Akbar Khan's love saga.

A galaxy of Bollyood stars attended the premiere of Akbar Khan's Taj Mahal in the southern Pakistani city of Karachi, two days after the film was released in Lahore.

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Besides producer-director Akbar Khan, hero of the film Zulfiqar Sayed, heroin Sonia Jehan and actors like Manisha Koirala, Sanjay Khan and Kabir Bedi were present during the premiere on Thursday as Karachi was hit by one of the worst traffic jams because of tight security.

All the approaches of the city's biggest MA Jinnah Road remained choked for more than four hours as the local administration, as part of security, put barriers and beefed up security.

Capri Cinema, where the premiere was held, is in the heart of the city and less than three kilometres away from where 57 people were killed and dozens injured in a bomb blast earlier this month at a religious congregation.

Besides the Indian actors, more than 885 Pakistan films stars and showbiz personalities graced one of the rare occasions in the city when the red carpet rolled out for the cast and dignitaries of an foreign film.

The hosts of the event Everady Pictures created a special ambience to greet the guests at the cinema where the premiere started an hour late.