While TV plays continue to bring women to the spotlight by offering a plethora of female centric drama serials, it is a common belief that men dominate the big screen.
awards
While TV plays continue to bring women to the spotlight by offering a plethora of female centric drama serials, it is a common belief that men dominate the big screen. This may be true worldwide but most films that have come out ever since the revival of Pakistani cinema have managed to maintain a balance. There is a considerable chunk of films including ‘Actor In Law’, ‘Lahore Se Aagey’, ‘Dobara Phir Se’ and the most recent ‘Balu Mahi’ that have introduced viewers to some progressive female characters on the big screen. Therefore it doesn’t come as a surprise that the recently announced nominations for the 47th Nigar Film Awards, taking place after a gap of 12 years, have significant female representation.
Women have been taking up concrete roles in bringing the industry forward. It is interesting to note that the list of female artists who have made the cut is not just limited to that of Best Actress or Best Singer categories, it extends beyond that. Nominated in almost all of the 19 categories, including that of Best Film and Best Director, the ceremony aims to honour women for their valuable contribution to Pakistan’s budding film industry.
The category for Best Film includes names like Fizza Ali Meerza for ‘Actor In Law’, Mehreen Jabbar for ‘Dobara Phir Se’ and Reham Khan and Hareem Farooq for ‘Janaan’. A slew of actresses, who are shining in the new-age cinema, have also been recognized for their performances on the big screen. Contenders for the Best Actress trophy include Mahira Khan (Ho Mann Jahaan), Mehwish Hayat (Actor in Law), Saba Qamar (Lahore Se Aagey) and Armeena Khan (Janaan).
Besides, actresses who made their cinematic debuts last year and have bagged nominations include names like Sajal Aly for ‘Zindagi Kitni Haseen Hay’ and Sanam Saeed for ‘Bachaana’, among others.
As far as nominees for Best Female Singer are concerned, some of the most talented individuals have made the cut. Aima Baig for ‘Befikrian’ (Lahore Se Aagey), Mai Dhai for ‘Sarak Sarak’ (Ho Mann Jahaan), Masooma Anwar for ‘Naina Roye’ (Maalik), Zeb Bangash for ‘Dil Pagla’ (Ho Mann Jahaan) and Natasha Baig for ‘Jhoom Le’ (Janaan) are all set to compete for the trophy at the award ceremony which is scheduled to take place next month (March 16).
No matter who wins the award, these leading women are sure to take local cinema forward in the coming days.
