If you’ve lived in the Indian sub continent for a while now, the issue of Kashmir has been the bone of contention between the interests of India and Pakistan for almost forever now. But that’s politics for you… However, in the world of music, this political stalemate means (and has meant) little or nothing. Why I say this is because Bollywood which is based in Mumbai and Lollywood which is based in Lahore, continue this cultural exchange that has been in existence for almost half a decade. The difference, however, is that Bollywood had its beginnings around the early 20th century, and Lollywood during the post-Partition phase of Indian independence. Yet Bollywood songs and the movies remain a common area of interest to both these countries regardless of the volatile political scenario that we’ve seen over half a century now. So, of the two movie industries, Bollywood enjoys a popular following in Pakistan. Pakistani actors and musicians also have found work in Mumbai. Some of them have found mainstream popularity because of their ability in Bollywood. Notable artists that have been a part of Bollywood cinema (either by acting or in composing music) from Pakistan are Zeba Bakhtiar, Somy Ali and Adnan Sami to name a few. Here’s a song from the movie ‘Heena’ that Zeba Bakhtiar starred in not so long ago: With the influx of actors into Bollywood, it would be obvious to assume (which is a good thing) that their Pakistani fans would also follow their movies in Bollywood apart from an already burgeoning interest in the strikingly similar movies that are from Lollywood as well. And therein lies the seed of dissention, where most movies produced by Pakistani film-maker are apparently scoffed at by most Indian film-makers, as most productions have been identified as distinctly copying Indian movies to the point where even the common man who enjoys Indian cinema, is able to observe the similarities. If you go back in time, this love-hate relationship with Indian cinema and Bollywood songs has been influenced strongly by politics, where during the partition of India most artists left for India to make their living. The total ban on Indian cinema in the 1960s paved paved the way for a revival in Pakistani cinema but the Islamasization of the country by Zia-Ul-Haq did not let that dream be realized. It is also said that most Pakistani artists would rather make the shift to Bollywood cinema as Pakistani cinema does not necessarily guarantee a decent living in exchange for their talents. To quote a screenwriter also known as Javed Siddiqui who says, "The Pakistani film industry is in shambles. Their studios don’t even have proper tripods. A good Pakistani film is made on a budget of Rs one crore or thereabouts. My friends were stunned when I told them that in Hindi films, that kind of money would hardly suffice to sign a big star." To sum it up, it seems that the only thing that Pakistanis and Indians agree on when it comes to cinema, is their preference of Bollywood songs and their movies.