Pakistan actress sues over nude magazine photo

NEW DELHI: Pakistani actress Veena Malik is suing a popular Indian men's magazine for millions of dollars, accusing it of publishing photos she says were doctored to make her appear nude, her lawyer said Monday.

Malik's racy photo shoot in the December issue of FHM India has triggered a fury across her conservative Islamic country, where a nude photo shoot is nearly unthinkable.

In a photo posted on the FHM Web site, Malik is shown wearing no clothing, but with her arms and legs discreetly positioned to keep her covered.

Her lawyer, Ayaz Bilawala, denied the photo was authentic. He sent notice to the magazine and was filing papers in the Mumbai High Court demanding all copies of the magazine be removed from newsstands, he said. The suit was also seeking 100 million rupees ($2 million) in damages.

"She has been cheated, and there has been tampering, and the photographs have been morphed," he said. "She has not posed in the manner in which she has been shown."

He also disputed the magazine's assertion that it possessed a video of the shoot that would prove the photos were real.

FHM India editor Kabeer Sharma insisted the photos were authentic and said he had just come out of a meeting with the magazines lawyers where they watched the video of the photo session proving his case.

"It's a considered decision on our part not to make that video public because of the nature of the video," he said.