A renowned international aid charity Medicins Sans Frontieres has begun legal proceedings against Saif Ali khan – Katrina Kaif starter Phantom calling it ‘dangerous, misleading and wrong’.
Phantom, which was released yesterday, is the story of an aid worker helping a disgraced Indian soldier to assassinate Pakistani extremists accused of orchestrating the 2008 bombings in Mumbai.
According to a report on Sky news, Katrina Kaif in an interview is said to have revealed that her character worked for Medicins Sans Frontieres – even though the charity was completely unaware of the Hindi film.
Kaif’s character in the movie is shown firing pistols and rifles – and MSF has claimed this is “incredibly worrying” for its organisation, as none of its staff carry guns.
Although MSF is never mentioned by name in Phantom, “many aspects” of the fictitious agency in the film – called Medicine International – are “confusingly similar” to the humanitarian organisation, including the logo.
( Also Read:Director Kabir Khan slams journalist at Phantom’s promo launch )
An MSF spokesperson added, “Such a blurring of the lines between fact and fiction can have real consequences for our ability to work in difficult places where our access depends on people trusting that we are a neutral, impartial and independent organisation.”
MSF insists it has a “strict no guns policy” in all clinics, and does not hire armed guards.
The charity has expressed concern that its ability to work safely in places such as Syria, Afghanistan and Yemen, where there is active fighting, could have been jeopardised by the film, which would “undermine its reputation”.
(Also Read: Official trailer of Saif Ali Khan starrer ‘Phantom’ is out now!)
The humanitarian agency has a network of thousands of medical professionals in more than 70 countries – including doctors, surgeons, nurses and psychiatrists in various conflict ridden and war-torn locations in the World.