The mother of all legal battles that was blocking the release of Pakistan’s most expensive production to date has finally been resolved. Yes, you read that right, the whole courtroom brouhaha which created headlines ever since Sarwar Bhatti of Bahoo films launched litigation against the producers of the Bilal Lashari film has finally come to an end. This latest development would pave the way for the much-anticipated The Legend Of Maula Jatt to finally hit the theaters on Eid-ul-Fitr, after a delay of almost a year.
The makers sort it out, finally
Speaking to Galaxy Lollywood, Amara Hikmat, the producer of The Legend of Maula Jatt confirmed the development and said: “With the intervention of few elders, Mr. Bhatti resolved his differences with us and extended his support in the larger interest of the film industry, and we are grateful to them.”
Meanwhile, Sarwar Bhatti, CEO of Bahoo Films and producer of the original Maula Jatt stated in an interview with EPK: “Ammara Hikmat and Bilal Lashari are like my children. Someone misguided them however all kids tend to make mistakes and therefore I am willing to put everything behind me. I am doing this for their welfare, for the revival of cinema and for giving the much-needed boost to the Pakistan film industry.”
Bhatti initiated legal proceedings in 2017 against Bilal Lashari and Amara Hikmat, makers of The Legend of Maula Jatt for alleged copyright infringement in relation to the original Maula Jatt that came out in 1979. While the modern reboot’s first look trailers have been out since late 2018, and an Eid-ul-Fitr rollout in 2019 was almost certain, Bhatti upped his litigation challenge by filing a petition last April which effectively blocked the planned release of the film. More pronouncements from the courts followed in the subsequent months, with each side claiming victory despite the film remaining stuck in the cans.
That the never-ending, heated court battle over the film has finally been concluded is music to our ears, although after years of endless anticipation, we can’t help but feel that the whole development rings a bit too good to be true. Till this Hamza Ali Abbasi, Fawad Khan, and Mahira Khan starrer finally hits the theaters, all bets are off given that this is the fickle world of showbiz that we are dealing with.
Final word
With more details about this story beyond the official public announcements still pouring in, we would like to congratulate the makers of both the 1979 original as well as TLMJ on this welcome development. The next hurdle for Amara Hikmat and Bilal Lashari will be to re-energize the publicity blitz for the film to ensure it takes the thunderous, earth-shaking opening it deserves this Eid-ul-Fitr. Interestingly though, its release window also opens the possibility of Fawad Khan facing off with another Fawad Khan venture, Money Back Guarantee. Stay tuned for more on that, and a lot more on Galaxy Lollywood!
