Shamoon Abbasi’s Durj has been in news for quite some time now, on account of its unusual choice of genre.
The teaser for this Shamoon Abbasi’s directorial debut came out, back in May 2018. It showed a bald Sherry Shah who is said to have put on 40 pounds for this role and a hardy recognizable Shamoon, interspersed with intense feels of a psychological thriller. We were intrigued, to say the least. The film’s first trailer then finally came out on in November 2018 and it, beyond any doubt, had us all captivated. It definitely looked intriguing and dark; something that has not really been tried or played in our cinemas before. The trailer had us on our toes throughout the entirety of its duration.
Durj to release on October 11 but wait, not in Pakistan?
Earlier today, Shamoon Abbasi revealed that the film is all set to release worldwide in a number of countries including the US, the UK, Oman, Qatar, Kuwait, UAE, etc., on the 11th of October this year. However, we couldn’t help but notice that Pakistan was not mentioned anywhere. We were intrigued once again, to say the least.
In order to unravel this mystery, we reached out to Shamoon Abbasi himself and here is what he had to say:
“The reason we are not releasing Durj in Pakistan is because I want to challenge our film distributors. Here, all they care about is the commercial content that will bring them money. Nobody appreciates if something isn’t according to the [stereotypical] norm. I want to break this pattern, [manifested by our film distributors], by releasing it everywhere in the world, except Pakistan,” revealed Shamoon.
Shamoon then went on to talk about how he loves the Pakistani audience. He has absolutely nothing against them and this step that he is taking, is just to challenge the film distributors. He wants to make things easier for the upcoming film-makers and film students who want to deviate from the norm, and who want to create content that’s different than the stereotypical films and dramas that we usually see on our screens.
“I have worked so hard on this film, Sherry had to put on 40 pounds for the role, she had to go bald, but all our distributors care about is whether or not it is something that will sell. Once it’s released and appreciated in the world, I will screen it for free for our students in universities and for my fellow countrymen even if I have to do it on roads,” continued Shamoon.
In all honesty, we agree with Shamoon and admire the stand that he is taking for what he believes in.
Here’s to wishing Shamoon Abbasi and the entire team of Durj the best of luck! We cannot for the movie to come out. Fingers crossed!
