Other Topics : Art Culture - Fashion - Tourism

Latest & Hot Bollywood Film News : * hourly updation

Back to Bollywood Current News Section

Ben Kingsley to help Pakistan quake-relief efforts
DPA

Islamabad, Feb 22 (DPA) Academy award winning actor Sir Ben Kingsley, currently touring Pakistan, will appear in a documentary focusing on the devastation caused by last year's earthquake and the needs of thousands of survivors.

                          Advertisement

"Wounds run very deep [in the aftermath of the quake]...This is the crux of our message to be conveyed through the documentary production, which we plan to air all over the world on leading television channels," Kingsley told a press conference here Wednesday.

A production of Duncan entertainment, the documentary features the international relief efforts to date and the need for continued international reconstruction assistance. 

Kingsley and film director Chip Duncan plan to raise more funds and create awareness, particularly in the West, about the magnitude of the tragedy.

In a massive response to the quake in Pakistan, the international community pledged over $6 billion at last November's donors' conference for reconstruction and rehabilitation of the areas ravaged by the killer quake which killed an estimated 75,000 people.

While making the documentary, the production crew met President Pervez Musharraf, Prime Minister Shaukat Aziz, officials in the federal relief commission and victims in some of the most remote villages.

"All I have witnessed during my visits tells me that in the face of unimaginable catastrophe, the people's faith and confidence runs deep," Kingsley said. 

Kingsley is acclaimed for his performance in the lead role in "Gandhi", a movie about Mohandas Karamchand Gandhi, who led India's struggle for independence.