Khel Khel Mein – co-starring Akshay Kumar, Taapsee Pannu and Vaani Kapoor – marks Fardeen Khan’s return to the big screen after a 14-year hiatus. In a new interview with Mid-day, director Mudassar Aziz was asked about a scene featuring Fardeen – whose character arc hinges on his sexuality – being snipped in the UAE, as per local restrictions. 

‘It’s heartbreaking'

He said it was 'heartbreaking to see that something so relevant, and done with so much dignity, found its way out of the UAE release'. The filmmaker told the portal, "I’m a filmmaker. To write all sorts of characters and raise topics of conversation is my professional and moral duty! Khel Khel Mein does that. While it’s heartbreaking to see that something so relevant, and done with so much dignity, found its way out of the UAE release, I’m thrilled at the applause that [the rest] of the world is sending my way for those very scenes.”

‘I stand by the message’s importance’

He added, “Through this (Fardeen's) role, I hoped to contribute to a conversation that is necessary and relevant. While edits may have been made, the intention behind the role — that of acceptance — remains unchanged, and I stand by the message’s importance.”

Per the report, a fan from Dubai said that the 'edit changes the narrative of Fardeen’s character'. They added it was disheartening to see 'such an important moment erased'. They told the portal that they ‘felt cheated when they found out from Indian cine-goers about this’ as censorship denies audiences the full experience of the film’s ‘powerful message’. Another fan was also quoted as saying that they were looking forward to seeing this film 'because of its progressive storyline'.

Multi-starrer Khel Khel Mein, which hit theatres on August 15, also features Ammy Virak, Aditya Seal and Pragya Jaiswal in the lead roles. Chitrangda Singh has a cameo in the Mudassar Aziz-directorial.

Produced by Bhushan Kumar, Krishan Kumar, Vipul D Shah, Ashwin Varde, Rajesh Bahl, Shashikant Sinha and Ajay Rai, Khel Khel Mein 'aims to redefine the comedy-drama genre', per the makers.

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