Malala praises Pakistani film for education message

London, Sep 19: Malala Yousafzai today called on everyone to watch a newly-released Pakistani film, made in collaboration with Bollywood musicians, for its strong message about girls' education.

The youngest-ever Nobel Peace Prize winner attended a special screening of 'Janaan' last week in Birmingham, where she is now based with her family.

"I'm really excited that I saw this beautiful film, 'Janaan', and I ask all of you to see this film; it has a huge message about girls' education, about women's rights, about our Pashtun culture and I'm really proud of it, and it is amazing," said the 19-year-old Pakistani teenage activist, who had been airlifted to the UK for life-saving surgery after being shot in the head by the Taliban four years ago for campaigning for girls' education.

'Janaan', which means beloved in Pashto, is set in Malala's home territory of Swat Valley and stars new Pakistani actors Bilal Ashraf, Armeena Rana Khan and Ali Rehman Khan.

Bollywood composers Salim Sulaiman and singers Armaan Malik and Shreya Ghosal have added an Indian collaborative theme to the film. 'Janaan', directed by Azfar Jafri, has also set a new precedent by becoming the first Pakistani film to make it into the UK Box Office Top 10 at No. 8 after its opening weekend.

PTI