Several movies made on both sides of the India-Pakistan border sometimes with hilarious plots – came up for discussion at a seminar on "Films as a tool of propaganda" in Rawalpindi, where almost all critics were in agreement that such films hardly have the desired impact.

The critics also agreed that seldom have such films set the cash registers ringing at the box office.

One of the first such patriotic films Bollywood had to offer, the Raj Kumar-starrer Hindustan ki Kasam came up for discussion along with Pakistan's Maujaza (Urdu) and Parohna (Punjabi).

Hindustan ki Kasam revolved around the Indian Air Force's (IAF) mission of destroying a Pakistan Air Force (PAF) radar, which blocked IAF pilots' radios in combat. The Indian intelligence plants a woman (Tahira), who is the fiancé of a PAF pilot. Tahira goes to Pakistan and starts working as a singer in a PTV studio (where the radar which jams the radio frequency of IAF jets is also kept)!

"PAF's counter intelligence finds out about her and in the dogfight with Pak Sabers, Raj Kumar's jet is destroyed and he crashes. He radioes for help and the IAF fighters destroy the pursuing Pakistan soldiers and their vehicles. Lo and behold! the pilot and Tahira are evacuated," pointed out Kamran Rehmat, a Pakistani columnist.

Film critic Aijaz Gul talked about the art of propaganda on reel and how the medium has been used down the ages to justify war actions.

However, with the relations between the two countries beginning to look up, many filmmakers are promoting Indo-Pak ventures and some actors too are turning down roles where they have to badmouth the neighbour.

Rehmat said the mood change was epitomised by Indian actor Naseeruddin Shah, who revealed that he had refused to play the villain in the Shah Rukh Khan-blockbuster Main Hoon Na as the role required him to badmouth Pakistan.

Except for the 1997 hit Border most of the propaganda films by Bollywood have flopped.

"The film's plot revolved around the Battle of Longewala in Rajasthan and is inspired by Director J P Dutta's own feelings for a brother he lost in 1987 when his MiG crashed. The movie shows many soldiers being killed. However, in real life, the defenders at Longewala lost only two soldiers," wrote Rehmat in his weekly column for the Dawn newspaper.

"To give the devil its due, one song in the movie Ghar kab aao ge (when will you return home?) continues to melt audiences on either side of the border, perhaps, thanks to its universal appeal," he wrote.

Kargil provided enough fodder for wanna-be propagandists and in 2003 LoC Kargil, directed by J P Dutta again, followed. It focused on the impact a war has on soldiers and their families.

A year later, the Hrithik Roshan-starrer Lakshya was premised in a fictional account of events of the Kargil conflict.

On the Pakistani side, the speakers said given the vast gulf in resources and marketing ability, Lollywood could never ever make a dent with its patriotic films. Yet patriotic songs sung by melody queen Noor Jehan - Meriah dhol sipahiyah and Mera mahi chail chabeela have assumed legendary status.

These patriotic songs during the 1965 war with India struck an emotional chord among the masses.

In the recent past mushy stories about cross-border romance have replaced propaganda war films. "There is a general consensus that this is down to growing Indo-Pak amity," wrote Rehmat.