'Mausam' withdrawn from Toronto film fest

Veteran Indian actor Pankaj Kapur's eagerly awaited directorial debut "Mausam" was pulled from the Toronto film festival line-up on Tuesday, one day before it was to premiere.

Organisers said in a statement they were informed by the studio that the film had not received regulatory approvals in India in time to screen the film this week in Toronto.

"We ran into a delay getting approvals from the Indian Air Force and the Board of Film Certification in India," producer Sheetal Talwar said.

The studio Eros International Media Limited had granted the Indian Air Force final approval on the film prior to clearing the Indian censor board in exchange for using its image.

Three screenings on Wednesday, Thursday and Friday in Toronto as well as a press conference with world media were canceled at the last minute.

In the film, Kapur's son Shahid plays an Indian Air Force pilot from the Punjab whose love for a woman from Kashmir (Sonam A. Kapoor) is thwarted by their differences -- he is Hindi, she is Muslim.