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Friday, July 12, 2013
Main Hoon Shahid Afridi is no ‘shaadi biyaah’ story
Pakistani cinema has fresh and entertaining movies to offer in 2013. With a handful of upcoming movies being the talk of the town, the country’s first sports film titled Main Hoon Shahid Afridi is all set for release on Eid. A press conference held on Sunday at Atrium mall highlighted the film and the cast.
The film’s writer and host of the night Vasay Chaudhry elaborated on the kind of cinema actor-producer Humayun Saeed and his team support. “Song, dance and drama is the style of cinema that we believe in,” said Chaudhry. “From 1947 to 2001, more than 4,300 films were released in Pakistan with dances, songs and drama. This is as much our style of cinema as it is our neighbour’s.”
After Chaudhry’s brief on the film, film distributor Nadeem Mandviwalla shared his views. “On all such jubilant occasions, we should never forget to pay tribute to and thank people like Nadeem Baig and Javed Sheikh who have seen the industry go through thick-and-thin and have been resilient,” said Mandviwalla. According to Mandviwalla, Main Hoon Shahid Afridi is expected to do a great job at the local box office.
Like every cricket-loving citizen of Pakistan, Saeed also expressed his love for Shahid Afridi and how this film is a tribute to him. “I would have easily made a shaadi biyaah type of a film, but I always wanted to pay tribute to one of our own Pakistani stars in their life time,” said Saeed.
“Whether he performs or not, Shahid Afridi will continue to be Shahid Afridi for us,” said Saeed. He then thanked all the cast and crew for their continuous support and hard work but failed to mention Mathira, who performed an item number in the film. She walked out of the conference in protest. Main Hoon Shahid Afridi also features Javed Sheikh, Nadeem Baig, Shafqat Cheema, Humayun Saeed, Mahnoor Baloch and Noman Habib, who plays the lead role.
Saeed, who invested $1 million into the film, initially had asked the legendary cricketer himself to act in the lead role. “They offered me the role but my elders didn’t let me act, but I happily gave them permission to use my name as this film will bring a positive message,” Shahid Afridi later told AFP.
Veteran actor Javed Sheikh talked about his experience in contributing to the new age of Pakistani cinema. “I must assure you that Humayun Saaed and his team will bring you a pleasant surprise on the first day of Eid,” said Sheikh, who also believes that if Pakistani dramas can beat Indian dramas, then Pakistani films can also beat Indian films. “The new wave of Pakistani cinema will come from Karachi and the new film-makers will make better films than India in much more limited circumstances,” he added.
Senior actor Shafqat Cheema, in his signature aggressive style, explained his character, which is significantly different from the one in Bol. Being one of the most senior cast members, Nadeem Baig said he is hopeful of the new Pakistani cinema, while he grieved over artists going to Bollywood. “There is nothing bad about going to Bollywood, but not at the cost of your own cinema,” said Baig. “Respect your soil and culture because it’s a part of you and you are a part of it.”
Director Syed Ali Raza had a more proactive approach towards the new wave of Pakistani cinema. “We are not here to compete but to walk hand-in-hand with our neighbours, for the cause of entertainment,” he said. “Whether you win or lose doesn’t matter, but play with such a spirit that you can look into each other’s eyes after the game,” said Raza, using one of the lines from the film.
The evening ended with the unveiling of some very catchy songs from the film after which we can easily say that the audience is definitely in for some good surprises.
Finally, some jazba: Josh to hit theatres after a long wait for distributor
After years of being stuck in a pit of Jatt-inspired stories, young Pakistani film-makers are finally on the road towards revival of cinema with some substantial subjects. However, with the industry still suffering from heavy losses, it is not easy for newbies to find takers. Such has been the case for the internationally acclaimed film Josh. After a seemingly endless struggle to find a distributor, the film Josh is all set to release on Eid. Directed and produced by Iram Parveen Bilal, the movie is a social drama centered on the prevalence of feudal culture, one of Pakistan’s major challenges. For Bilal, Josh’s premier in Pakistan is a fulfillment of her original dream.
“Since the script phase, we had a lot of issues finding a distributor for our film. It is very difficult to find someone to release a film whose director is not from a film family or doesn’t have that backing,” says Bilal. “This is what it has always been about from the very beginning — getting the film to release in Pakistan.”
Bilal, whose reputation as a film-maker has grown rather subtly, is known to be a globetrotter — residing in the United States but being brought up in Nigeria and Pakistan. Before switching to film-making, Bilal was an engineer. She recalls the initial stages of shooting and how challenging it was for her to put together the movie amidst the lack of a support structure and funds. She eventually partnered with Saad Bin Mujeeb of 29-1 Productions and co-produced the film, which took four years to see a release date.
“The support system for the film was very limited at the time — finding the right equipment and a trained crew [was not easy],” says Bilal. “For example, it was a rather new concept for a lot of people to shoot using natural sound.”
Even though Josh has managed to grab attention at film festivals in Melbourne, Mumbai and Calgary, Bilal feels that it was not as challenging as it was to find a distributor in Pakistan. “The film festivals come easier. Ours is considered a small film with an unknown audience and generally distributors tend to look towards Bollywood and escapist films,” claims Bilal.
The influx of new films in Pakistan that has followed since Josh was premiered abroad has really shown how quickly change can take place. Local importers and distributors like Nadeem Mandviwalla have started taking interest in the fresh style of local films. The Platform, which was launched this year with the intent of giving space to emerging film-makers, has provided Josh with a chance to reach cinemas. “There are a lot of films being made now, but it’s important to ensure that they are not limited to a typical Lollywood genre. Rather, they should cater to a variety of sensibilities,” stresses Bilal.
Bilal is currently focusing on a new project, tentatively titled Forbidden Steps. The film will probably require a larger budget than Josh and the script has been written keeping Shahrukh Khan in mind for the lead role. “Currently, the script is under-construction and I am hoping to have a heavier budget for it,” adds Bilal. As for Josh, the dates for the premier have yet to be confirmed. The film is slated to release on Eid, which will probably be one of the most prolific days for the Pakistani film industry in recent times, as some major films will make their debut on the silver screen.
'911am' A Short Film Written & Directed by Faraz Waqar
'9:11am' A Short Film Written & Directed by Faraz Waqar,
Film '9:11 am' was one of the only two films selected in the year 2012 from Pakistan for its world premiere at the Cannes Film Festival 2012 and received some good publicity in the media.
The film then went on to Toronto at the MOSAIC FILM Festival in Canada plus the Gandhara Film Festival in Paksitan and received some great reviews.
'911am' Cannes Film Festival 2012 - Short Film Corner. Written & Directed by Faraz Waqar
Tuesday, July 9, 2013
Mud House & The Golden Doll (2012) - Watch Online
A story of an ordinary town, an ordinary family, an ordinary young girl.......and an extraordinary bond! Sometimes your life is changed for the better in very unexpected ways. The film is set in a beautiful town in the outskirts of Islamabad, Pakistan and tells the story of a little girl who is destined for an adventure that she will never forget for the rest of her life.
Cast
Tajwar Raza
Mehwish Hayat
Fauziah Mahmood
Ottoman Ali Khan
Hassan Brunn Akhtar
Shahrukh Sohail
Hamza Akhtar
Saad Anwar
Atif Siddiqui
Hamza Ali Abbasi
Mud House and The Golden Doll (Part 1/2)
Mud House and The Golden Doll (Part 2/2)
Monday, July 8, 2013
The Lux Style Awards ‘googly’
LAHORE:
The city of Lahore hosted its very first Lux Style Awards on Thursday, a night full of razzmatazz, glamour, shocks, disappointments and high voltage. In typical Lahori fashion, the red carpet, which was supposed to start at 5pm, kicked off no earlier than 7pm at the Expo Centre.
Media management
While the awards were high on glitter and bling, media and press handling was at its worse. Many publications left at the gate after the PR teams failed to accommodate them. It is times like these that one missed the very efficient Team Lotus that treats media personalities like royalty.
The performances
With time delays and unnecessarily long speeches, the event moved at a painfully slow pace, making it tedious. The final version for television airing, however, will be much crisper and well-edited. As for the dance performances, Sahiba and Noor were forgettable, Mathira failed to leave a mark, Meera was visibly making an effort but it was Sana who outshone everyone with her moves. Her moves were eclectic yet composed and she seemed to be having fun. Atif Aslam, who paid a tribute to Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan, along with Humaima Mallick and Amina Sheikh, was the star of the show.
Hosting
As for the hosting, Ahmed Ali Butt was a far cry from his last year’s work. Mathira was trying too hard and was a bit too much at times but then that’s Mathira for you. At one time during the event, Mathira and Ahmed came down from the stage and made a few guests dance with them on popular Bollywood hits which turned out to be quite fun. While Nomi Ansari was reluctant, Ayesha Omar showed some serious moves.
The awards
As for the fashion nominations, Ammar Belal finally won the Best Menswear Brand Award despite the fact that he moved to New York last summer for further studies and hasn’t shown much on local platforms. Khaadi and Sana Safinaz retained their Best High Street and Achievement in Fashion Design — Lawn awards respectively. Other deserving winners included Mehreen Syed, who after countless nominations in previous years, walked away with Model of the Year. The talking point of the night was the results of the remaining fashion categories, which took everyone by surprise. Imaan Ahmed of Body Focus, who has been MIA from the fashion frontier for a while and hasn’t shown a collection since forever, went away with both Achievement in Fashion Design Pret and Luxury Pret, awards much to everyone’s dismay. Most of the editors, journalists and bloggers were rooting for Sania Maskatiya for pret and Shehla Chatoor or Elan for the luxury pret categories respectively, but the announcement for the winner came as quite a shock. Another surprise of the night came when Saima Azhar won the Emerging Talent in Fashion Award ahead of more deserving nominees like Abdullah Haris and Misha Lakhani.
But it wouldn’t be Lux Style Awards without a few shockers and surprises. As Salim Chatoor (Shehla Chatoor’s husband) very aptly put it, LSA is a googly. One couldn’t agree more!
Despite the negatives, there are countless positives to take home. Bringing LSA to Lahore, the city of Lollywood was always a great idea and apart from all the controversies, LSA still remains one of the most respected and respectively impartial award shows. That does not mean that there aren’t lots of ifs and buts that need to be sorted out. Some of the awards leave too many questions to be asked. The process of nominations and jury needs to be cleared up — it’s mind boggling that some of the same nominees keep winning the award each year (like Nabila, Sana Safinaz). The performances, too, need some serious boosting. Same goes for time management and the management of guests and media, which was quite a mess this year. But as long as the platform continues to show, grow and evolve, one can hope for the show to get better each year.
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