Islamabad: Pakistanis, who are crazy about Indian films, may soon have good news as the Government was on the verge of lifting the nearly four-decade-old ban on screening Bollywood movies in the country's cinema halls.

The lifting of the ban was in the air, especially after the initiation of the Indo-Pak peace process early this year, but the most positive hint in this regard came from chairman of Pakistan Film Censor Board Ziauddi Khan, who said that a summary for allowing screening of Indian films was shortly being sent to the Federal Cabinet for approval.

A recommendation was being made to permit screening of Indian films in Pakistani theatres to give a boost to the cinema house owners, who have been facing huge losses, and to help improve the standard of Pakistani films; Khan was quoted by the 'Ausaf' daily as saying.

Federal Minister of State for Culture, Tourism and Sports, Rais Munir Ahmed, too said that Government is considering allowing screening of the Indian movies in Pakistan theatres. "We have taken the matter under consideration on the request of Pakistan cinema owners and sought comments from Ministries of Interior, Foreign Affairs, Finance and other relevant organizations," he was quoted as saying by another newspaper 'The Nation'.

Pakistan banned screening of Indian films after the 1965 war and since then its film industry had a sole run but failed to flourish. It has been declining for the past two decades as most of film theatres, unable to bear the losses, began closing down at a rapid pace.