Filmmaker wants due respect to artistes

LAHORE: “Artistes and filmmakers are the best ambassadors of a country. However, our embassies don’t give them the respect they deserve,” said award winning director of internationally acclaimed films such as “Jinnah”, “Blood of Hussain” and “Immaculate Conception”.

He was talking to playwright Professor Shahid Nadeem at the Institute for Art and Culture. He said “At my retrospect at the British Film Institute was a rare honour. I invited the Pakistani High Commissioner to attend the event. The high commission did not even acknowledge receipt”.

Replying a question by a student about his film, “Blood of Hussain”, Dehlvi said, “The film is about tyranny and resistance, but I did not promote any ideology through the film. I faced persecution as a result and had to spend 10 years in exile.” During the conversation, which was a part of IAC’s Cultural Talks programme, Dehlvi disclosed that when he was busy making the film “Jinnah”, then government suddenly withdrew the funds it had committed to provide and he had to fish the film from his own resources. He had now acquired exclusive rights of the film and planned to re-release it along with other films on blue-ray technology.

The audience at the conversation included Vice-Chancellor Mrs Sajid Vandal, Pro-Vice- Chancellor Pervez Vandal, Dean of Arts Professor Zafar Iqbal, Professor Shahnawaz Zaidi and students from AC and other institutions.

Before the conversation, a compilation of extracts from his films was shown. Jamil Dehlvi was in Lahore on the invitation of the IAC vice-chancellor. During his three-day stay he met the IAC faculty and students and discussed possibilities of his collaboration with the IAC School of Digital and Cinematic Arts.