Mah-e-Mir director Anjum Shahzad on why Pakistani films should not be compared to Bollywood.
When the Lux Style Awards, celebrating 15 years and hailed for being Pakistan’s most consistent independent award ceremony, announced their annual list of nominees for the past year - who had made the cut in the fields of fashion, cinema, television or music earlier this month - the process came attached with a star-studded unveiling ceremony. Attended by a heavy and diverse contingent of artists from several fields, it was a sparkling evening; a recognition of talent as well as a triumphant celebration for surviving against intimidating odds.
Representing the new age of Pakistani cinema were notable names like Yasir Hussain, the star of last year’s Karachi Se Lahore and Mah-e-Mir director Anjum Shahzad, who spoke to Instep on the sidelines of the nominee reveal event about his liberal and honest views on cinema.
Before taking the stage alongside Mahira Khan at the unveiling of the nominees, Yasir Hussain, known for his quick, almost sly wit, spoke about the sequel to his claim-to-fame film and the near future.
“I’ve written the sequel and I’m playing the lead role in it,” Hussain said. “The cast features Saba Qamar, Bushra Ansari, Behroze Subzwari and many others. There are some fun guest appearances that people will get to see. The film is crisp; it’s funnier than its predecessor. The direction is slicker. We’ve shot it in the mountains, Swat. Since the film is called Lahore Sey Agay, it had to go beyond in terms of the landscape. We’ve finished shooting it and it should release by November.”
Joined by the auteur Anjum Shahzad, Hussain noted albeit jokingly that he hoped to work with Shahzad and that he enjoyed watching Mah-e-Mir.
Director Anjum Shahzad, actor Yasir Hussain and LSA producer Frieha Altaf strike a pose at the LSA nominee reveal event in Karachi. (Below) Mahira Khan and Yasir Hussain bring the funny while co-hosting a segment at the glittering LSA event, held earlier this month.
Anjum Shahzad, meanwhile, currently hailed by critics for his rich, intoxicating poetry-infused Mah-e-Mir that stands tall as a distinct expression of art in times of overt commercialization, also spoke to Instep about the evolving nature of Pakistani cinema.
Shahzad noted that Mah-e-Mir had performed better than he had hoped. “If we hold onto fear, good work will not happen. The scale of cinema should be broader and different subjects should be explored. Cinema will become rich as a result.”
Unlike some filmmakers who want to see a ban enforced on Indian films, Shahzad is of that mind that the rules of open market dictate that Indian films should continue to play at Pakistani cinemas across the country. However, Shahzad also feels that Pakistani films should never be compared to Indian films.
“It’s an established market; it has the stars, the superstars who pull audiences to cinema, often ignoring the subject and the storyline in entirety. For the love of Shah Rukh or Salman Khan, the audience will endure the entire film. Our industry, on the other hand, is newly born. In the past year or so, we’ve seen some shoddy work or average or experimental or entertaining. It’s a good thing. People need encouragement to make films.”
Reflecting on the diversity seen in local cinematic offerings last year, Shehzad told Instep, “2015 played host to two kinds of films: entertaining films like Jawani Phir Nahi Ani, Wrong No, Karachi Se Lahore and distinctive pictures like Shah, Moor, Manto. In between, there was some terrible film which people simply avoided and ignored. The good thing therefore is that people appreciated good content, mostly.”
Dismissing the view that Pakistan is completely technically inferior, Shehzad noted that the technical growth will come with time. Noting that equipment needed for films is slowly coming here. “The real difficulty comes in the post-process because we lack facilities and well-trained experts,” Shehzad noted. “With time, it will develop.”