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Is the upcoming Film ‘Baaji’ based on Meera’s life?

By
Ozair Majeed
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Breaking out as a star is no easy task. What’s even harder is maintaining that star status. We have all come across instances where a celebrity we were so in love with or followed religiously suddenly disappeared off our screens leaving us to question their whereabouts, incessantly. How would you feel if they were to suddenly reappear on your screens? We, for one, would be over the moon. Turns out one of our favorites, Meera, is all set to make a silver screen comeback with her upcoming film ‘Baaji’. Cherry on top, there have been speculations that the film may loosely be based on Meera’s life.

Before delving into if and how the film is based on Meera’s life, let’s first talk a little bit about this larger than life figure. Irtiza Rubab aka Meera has had a long and glorious career. She has always stood tall with her style, earnest performances, distinctive personality and of course, her box office success. Across a span of more than 75 films, Meera has undertaken diverse roles and has done justice to all of them.

It is true that not all her films did justice to her talent or versatility as some of them were mere potboilers focusing solely on entertainment. There are, however, notable exceptions like Khilona, Guns And Roses, Inteha, Khoey Ho Tum Kahan and Salakhain.

Meera’s last prominent film ‘Hotal’ was a complete washout at the box office. However, Meera is now all set to grace the silver screen with her comeback film ‘Baaji’ which revolves around the life of a once successful film actress whose career is now on the decline. The film features Meera as the protagonist along with names like Osman Khalid Butt, Ali Kazmi, Mohsin Abbas Haider and Amna Ilyas. Additionally, the project also stars veteran actors such as Nisho and Nayyar Ejaz.

While talking to Galaxy Lollywood, Meera revealed that when the makers of the film approached her for the role, she instantly agreed.

“I was surprised when I was offered the film because the story and the character are exciting for me. I have a very powerful yet dramatic role of a filmstar. Audiences will see me in a never seen avatar before. I have always wanted to redefine myself and that has always been my endeavor. Whenever you see me, I want you to see me in a different way. Keeping that aside, we have so many wonderful co-actors in the film, the story has an intrigue value… so after a long time, I am doing a film and this is the perfect one,” told Meera.

“It was a dream to work with Saqib Malik. I am very happy to work with him. I think no matter how you get a chance to work with him, you should just take it. He has his own great style and sophistication. He is that amazing,” she further added.

Upon being inquired if the film is based on her life, Meera vaguely answered the question by saying that some parts of it may be real and that she doesn’t have the heart to accept that. I guess we’ll just have to wait for the movie to come out to see if it’s actually based on her life. Here’s wishing Meera and entire ‘Baaji‘ team the best of luck!

Is television the new cinema?

By
Momina Mindeel
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With the advent of streaming giants like Netflix, Iflix and Hulu, the way audience engages with entertainment has undertaken a paradigm shift, lately. We would rather pay a mere Rs. 1000 every month and access unlimited TV shows and movies in the comfort of our homes than actually make an effort to go to a theater. Unless of course the movie provides a cinematic experience that has no alternative whatsoever. This debate around television being the new cinema is indeed a recent one but it is imperative to indulge in it, given the changing audience consumption patterns, worldwide.

Assessing the need to have this conversation, School of Tomorrow – a conference series initiated by Beaconhouse – organized a talk titled ‘Television: The New Cinema’ this past weekend in Karachi, at their annual SOT conference. The panel comprised of 8 people including Galaxy Lollywood’s co-founder Momin Ali Munshi, Nadeem Baig, Nabeel Qureshi, , Irfan Malik, Sanam Saeed, Aly Khan, Bee Gul and Khalid Ahmed while the discussion was moderated by the incredibly talented Sarmad Khoosat.

The discussion primarily revolved around the panelists’ perceptions on the future of both cinema and television. Our own Momin Ali Munshi argued that even though films like Cake, that provide no cinematic experience whatsoever, are exceptionally well made, they’re not suited for our nascent film industry. In times when people hardly come out of their houses to go to the cinemas, commercial films are required more than ever to keep the cinemas running. India, on the other hand, can afford to screen such movies in their cinemas because they’ve a colossal amount of films coming out of Bollywood every year. They have a gigantic number of cinema screens all across their country and the ‘going-to-the-theaters’ culture has taken years to evolve. Pakistan, quite frankly, is not there yet.

Currently, we only have abut 135 screen in total across the entire country and if we don’t give our audience the cinematic experience they want, we might be running out of business. Well made drama films like Cake are indeed what we should be churning out but if we are being pragmatic, our film industry does not have the bandwidth to support them, currently.

The panel discussion was interspersed with other sub-topics such as the future of our web shows and the maturity of their content, who is and who is not a star and to what extent the commercial films can and should go when it comes to theatrics.

At the end of discussion, however, everyone agreed that content is king, at the end of the day. Even if we are to focus more on commercial films, at this point in time, it is important to put thought into their content. Audiences, in the current day, are getting more and more self aware with what they want to see on their screens and not paying heed to their preferences is something the film industry should not risk.

 

 

Cover Image Via: SOT Events/Facebook

The legendary PTV drama Alif Noon gets a remake with Shehzad Roy and Faisal Qureshi

By
Momina Mindeel
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Almost all of us have heard our parents rave about iconic PTV dramas like Dhoop Kinaray, Ankahi, Aangan Tehra etc. at least once in our lives. One such iconic television series – Alif Noon – that originally featured brilliant names like Kamal Ahmed Rizvi and Rafi Khawar is all set to get its cinematic remake with Shehzad Roy and Faisal Qureshi as the legendary duo of Allan and Nanha.

To get you all acquainted with the TV drama a little bit, the drama series was first aired in the 1960s. It primarily revolved around two contrasting characters; Allan and Nanha. All Allan ever thought was making fast money by whatever means necessary while Nanha was the most gullible of them all who believed in earning honestly. Given his innocence, Nanha was almost always used by Allan as a front man for his tricks but he would always end up exposing Allan’s plans to the world unintentionally.

The film version of Alif Noon is expected to follow the same story-line, adapted according to today’s society. Shehzad Roy will play Allan while Faisal Qureshi is expected to play Nanha. The former aka Shehzad Roy himself broke the news through his official Twitter account.

The film will be directed by Faisal Qureshi and will be his first film as a director for the big screen. Shehzad Roy’s tweet was followed by a number of encouraging messages from various media personalities including Ali Zafar, Malala’s father Ziauddin Yousafzai, Jibran Nasir, Hamid Mir and Nabeel Qureshi.

According to Faisal Qureshi, “ALIF NOON is a revival of a classic comedy and famous characters but with a modern twist. The characters will not be from 80’s. ALIF NOON is infact a new modern version of them belonging to today’s era, so whoever has seen the old classic and even the new generation who didn’t will be able to enjoy.” 

Here’s hoping that Shehzad Roy and Faisal Qureshi succeed in meeting the expectations set for them or else we’ll have to listen to our parents rant about how our generation is ruining the classics of their times, our whole lives.

More details regarding cast, crew and release date will be released in 2019.

Wow: Sami Khan apparently has four films in the pipeline for next year

By
Momina Mindeel
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Sami Khan has been associated with Pakistani cinema and television industry for almost 14 years now. He made his Lollywood debut in 2004 with the film Salakhain and then moved to the television industry and stayed there for the most part. We all recognize him from dramas such as Tere Pehlu Main, Dil Se Dil Tak, Ghar ki Khatir etc. mainly because of their interminable plots. In the film department, on the other hand, Sami Khan has just one more film – titled Devar Bhabhi – to his name up until now.

However, it seems like things in Sami Khan’s life are taking a turn for he has been signed for not one, not two, not three (wait for it) but four films that are all set to release in 2019. Yes, I know, we are equally as surprised as you are.

The first of these four films (I still cannot get over the fact that he has been signed for four films all at once. What is this mysterious love potion that Sami Khan has made the directors drink? Guess it’s a mystery we will never be able to solve) is a romantic-comedy titled Wrong Number 2. The female actress against Sami Khan will be Neelum Muneer while the film will be directed by Yasir Nawaz.

The second film Sami Khan has been roped in for is Friday Film Studio’s Lufangay. The female actress opposite him is reported to be the incredibly talented Sonya Hussain and the film is all set to release next year.

Moving on to the third film – Kaaf Kangna – the film is being directed and produced by Kahlil Ur Rehman Qamar (who has recently been all over the news for bashing Urwa Hocane rather unnecessarily). It has been reported that Kaaf Kangna is being produced in collaboration with ISPR and will feature a cross border love story. 70 percent of the film has already been shot.

The fourth and the last film for Sami Khan (who knows there are more given he has got his hands on the mysterious love potion) is called Gumm: In the Middle of Nowhere. The film has already been shot and has made it to a number of international film festivals. It has also been nominated for two international film festivals; AAB Film Festival, India and CKF International Film Festival, UK. The film will have its cinema release in 2019, in Pakistan.

It is indeed a little surprising to see Sami Khan being signed for four films all at once especially after his prolonged absence from Pakistani cinema. We, however, wish him the very best and hope with all our hearts that his upcoming films will provide our cinema the much needed support.

Cover Image Via: veryfilmi.com

Why do we use the term ‘Kanjar’ for celebrities?

By
Momina Mindeel
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Throughout our lives, we have all come across instances where things as trivial as nose rings are frowned upon, due to the negative cultural connotations attached with them that have nothing to do whatsoever with the original history of the thing itself. Phrases like ‘nath’ni tou bus kanjri’an pehanti hain‘ are thrown around often, rather irresponsibly and consequently, the thing loses its significance forever. The story does not end here.

Words like Mirasi and Kanjar have been going through similar treatment in Pakistan, for the longest time. Today, anyone who is a little loud and outgoing is termed as a Mirasi or a Kanjar. Cheery on top, the context is almost always derogatory. The problem becomes rather prominent when our celebrities, who by the way have worked hard (well, most of them) to get where they are today, are addressed as ‘Kanjars‘ mainly because they belong to the entertainment industry and what they do does not conform to our traditional ideas of  an ‘izzat dar‘ profession.

Here the question arises; why is it that we use the term ‘Kanjar‘ for our celebrities? What is it that the term actually entails and why is it always viewed in such a negative light?

Historically, Kanjar were an endogamous group of artisans and entertainers who were nomads and were spread throughout Southwest Asia. Amidst them were singers, musicians, those who operated carnival or mela rides, dancers and yes, prostitutes too. They were mostly known for the terra cotta toys that they made themselves and then went door to door to sell them. So you see, none of these roles were or are derogatory, in their true essence. However today, in Pakistan, the term is associated only with pimping and prostitution which is understandable because nomenclature evolves, like every other thing in the universe. But can we justify us using it loosely for our celebrities and film artists, knowing fully well the negative cultural connotations attached with them?

The answer is: we cannot and should not.

21st century is here in it full glory, medicine, engineering and teaching are no longer the only respectable professions. People are venturing into all sorts of things and it is rather regressive to call people, who bring us laughter and joy through their performances, something that has now evolved into something even more regressive with time. This lose usage of the term ‘Kanjar‘ comes with a plethora of problems. Why is it that desi parents and desi families in general still frown up their kids wanting to be actors, musicians and filmmakers? It is because, in their heads, anyone who is associated with anything remotely fun and entertaining is looked down upon as someone who sleeps around or sells their body to move up the social ladder. The idea that you have to be subdued and not entertaining to have a respectable standing in the society is problematic, to begin with and unfortunately, we are all responsible for perpetuating this idea.

My problem is not with the word itself. Its significance, connotations, and the associated meanings have changed over time which is nothing unnatural. My problem is with the way we have always been way too casual with its usage, without realizing the consequences of it.

In Focus: Pakistani cinema’s first global box office star Humayun Saeed

By
Momin Ali Munshi
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The revival of the Pakistani Film Industry which began a few years back finally seems to be picking up the momentum. Yes, the situation is far from ideal, as we only have a handful of films coming out with cluttered released dates and poor success ratios, but things aren’t completely bleak either. Our industry has finally produced a few reliable names who have been consistently churning out good content which the audiences seem to be accepting whole-heartedly. One such individual who has proved to be quite an asset for the industry is Humayun Saeed: Pakistan’s first global box office star.

Humayun Saeed is currently the numero uno star of Pakistani Cinema and has been delivering one hit after the other at the box office. This series of hits began in 2013 with Main Hoon Shahid Afridi, which marked the beginning of his third innings at the box office after having made his debut in 1999 and making a brief comeback in 2007. However, what is more interesting is that over the years Humayun has amassed quite a following not only locally but also at the international front as his films have recorded excellent numbers at the global box office whereby making him a global star, the first global star!

Historically, Pakistani films have never really had an international market because Urdu films rarely got a release whereas Punjabi and Pashto films had a very limited release. There were a few releases but what really changed the game was the release of Bin Roye, which truly opened the international gates for Pakistani films recording more than 31 crores globally out of which 20 cores from the international front and 10 crores locally. Then came Jawani Phir Nahi Ani which made 45 crores globally followed by Punjab Nahi Jaungi which recorded 52 crores. Recent release Jawani Phir Nahi Ani 2, which is still playing in cinemas, has almost touched 70 crores globally and whats the common thread between all these films? No points for guessing- Humayun Saeed.

“There are very few actors in the subcontinent who have a pull with the audience globally. Pakistan has started producing films after a gap of nearly fifteen/twenty years and in just a decade it is a proud moment to endorse the fact that Humayun Saeed has proven to be established as a global star from Pakistan given that all his films have been a success not only in the domestic market but also internationally” said cinema owner and film distributor Nadeem Mandviwalla in conversation with Galaxy Lollywood.

Agreeing with the statement is Sunil Shah, Head of Film Division at the London based B4U Movies which has distributed Bin Roye, Punjab Nahi Jaungi and recent release Jawani Phir Nahi Ani 2, who feels Humayun is a big success story. Talking to Galaxy Lollywood via a phone call he said ” Humayun Saeed is Pakistan’s Shahrukh Khan! Over the years he has established himself a star, he has a face value, people trust him and are eager to see more of his films.”

So why is it that Humayun’s films do well at the box office? “It is the content and his dedication as an artist! Films work because of good content and right promotion, there has to be an awareness in the audiences and Humayun makes sure that he leaves no stone unturned with the promotions. He is a hard-working actor who has no attitude problems and trusts others and co-operates with the distributor” adds Sunil Shah.

“Moreover, Humayun has an idea as to what the people want to see. Punjab Nahi Jaungi is one of the finest films to have come out of Pakistan. The dialogues, the scenes, the characters have all been so brilliantly depicted. When Bin Roye released it was the first time a Pakistani film got a wide release. Pakistani dramas were already popular, and now with a desi film where people could relate to the characters and the situations a new era for Pakistani films began”.

Humayun has been a part of six films in this new wave of cinema and his films have made more than 210+ crores at the global box office which is a feat that no other actor has been able to achieve. With the kind of numbers Jawani Phir Nahi Ani 2 has recorded, one thing has been established that Pakistan finally has one bankable star whose name can guarantee a good return at the box office. Here’s congratulating Humayun and celebrating  Pakistan’s first global phenomenon while also hoping that the coming years bring more growth for the industry and produce more such bankable superstars.

Exclusive: Here’s everything you need to know about Wajahat Rauf’s new web series

By
Momina Mindeel
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With digital media rapidly making its way into our lives, there is little to no math required to project that the way entertainment works will soon see a complete overhaul. Digital entertainment mediums are cropping up every day, the number of digital talk shows are on constant rise and now Pakistani TV industry is all set to venture further into the digital world with the announcement of a new web series, about which we informed you exclusively just last week.

The series is yet to have a name and we cannot divulge anything officially but Galaxy Lollywood has learned from inside sources that written and directed by Wajahat Rauf the series is tentatively supposed to come out in January 2019. It will be distributed through a prominent platform; the name of which we cannot reveal as of yet. We do have information on pretty much everything else too.

Let’s begin with the cast. The cast includes some remarkably prominent names including Mehwish Hayat, Azfar Rehman, Asad Siddiqui, Rabab Hashim, Faryal Mehmood, and Waqar Ali Godhra. The senior cast members will include names like Saifee Hassan and Gul-e-Rana.

The web series revolves around the story of five friends who are part of a college band so we can definitely expect a lot of young love and emotions.

According to our sources, the web series may have some mature (read: explicit) content that we generally don’t see on Pakistani television and truth be told, we cannot wait to find out.

We are super excited about the series. Here’s hoping that it becomes a pioneer in the yet-to-explore world of Pakistani web series so we can see more of open and free content, without the restraints of electronic media. We wish Wajaht Rauf the best of luck!

Exclusive: Urwa Hocane’s response to Khalil-ur-Rehman is dignity personified

By
Momin Ali Munshi
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Ace writer turned director Khalil-ur-Rehman Qamar made headlines when he blasted Urwa Hocane in an interview saying that working with the actress was an extremely difficult experience and that he vows to never work with her again. The internet had a field day with all kinds of articles and reactions being posted on Khalil sahab’s comments, which to be honest did seem a bit extreme, and kind of uncalled for.

We contacted Urwa for her comment and initially, she wanted to sweep the topic under the rug, rightfully so, but on probing she had only nice things to say about the writer and this made us wonder why can’t everyone be so dignified and mature with their words? Here is what she said when we asked her about the remarks made by Khalil sahab:

“He is a fatherly figure to me, I respect him a lot. Woh mujh say barhay hain aur woh mujhay dant saktay hain, yeh un ka haq hay. He was probably upset and angry, which is why he said what he said but I have absolutely nothing against him.”

But why would he call the entire experience scary, was our next question.

“See, I have never worked with Khalil sahab as a director. He is a wonderful writer and wrote a beautiful character for me in Punjab Nahi Jaungi, but I haven’t really had a chance to actually work with him since the director was Nadeem Baig. When I met Khalil sahab to discuss his debut film as a director is when I realized that we are on different wavelengths and that we are not compatible as a director-actor do. It was a mutual decision to part ways, and we are both upset about the situation. He still calls me beta and there is no animosity between us. I wish him the best of luck with his project.”

Here’s hoping Khalil sahab reacts positively to Urwa’s message and makes peace with the actress. We cannot wait to see these two talented individuals work together.

Here is a complete timeline of the Ko Ko Korina Kontroversy!

By
Galaxy Lollywood
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Pakistani Twitter aka the hub of all things phada witnessed one of its ugliest showdowns in the history of showdowns when Coke Studio dropped its mega bomb: Ko Ko Korina. A lot has been said and written about the song and here we give you a detailed rundown of who said what at what time about whom using what medium. Time to grab your popcorn folks, because we are about to delve right into the ko ko madness:

October 19, 6:00 pm: The world is blessed with the arrival of Ko Ko Korina.

October 19, 10:30 pm: Sajal in an attempt of scoring brownie points from Mama Mir posts an elaborate note on her Instagram praising husband to be Ahad.

October 20, 6:02 pm: In Ahad’s head people have liked the song so he also comes up with an elaborate thank you note on his Twitter account.

October 21, 8:18 pm: Shireen Mazari becomes the voice of reason and speaks for the entire nation.

October 22, 5:40 pm: Momina replies using words like #FreedomOfExpression and #HumanRights because why not?

October 22, 6:34 pm: Shireen once again talks sense and explains her personal opinion has nothing to do whatsoever with her position.

October 22, 6:50 pm: Momina thinks the entire world is out to get her and that everyone is a ‘bully’, so she plays the card she knows how to play best.

October 22, 7:06 pm: Shireen has had it and ends the discussion!

October 23, 12:57 am: HSY tweets in support of the song because obviously, he needs people for the next season of Koffee with, oops Tonite with HSY!

October 23, 8:53 am: Sajal pulls a page out of a tearjerker script and tweets her anger!

October 23, 12 pm: Ahad realizes that people aren’t really ‘loving’ the song so he FINALLY addresses the elephant in the room via a series of preachy tweets which honestly get repetitive and boring after a point.

October 23, 2:58 pm: Realising her beau just threw her under the bus, Sajal redeems herself with a meetha tweet accompanied with butterflies and hearts. Aww Saj, you such a jaan!

That’s all, for now, we will keep you posted if someone else jumps into the madness that is the Ko Ko Korina fiasco.

Box Office: ‘The Donkey King’ has emerged as a real Box Office king

By
Momina Mindeel
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2018 has seen not one but two successful animated Pakistani movies; Allahyar and the Legend of Markhor and The Donkey King, with another (3 Bahadur: The Rise of Warriors) in the pipelines, all set to hit cinemas towards the end of 2018. Both Allahyar and 3 Bahadur 2 have done well on the Box Office which is a manifestation of the fact that Pakistanis are open to watching movies that are not just item numbers and glamour, thereby reaffirming my faith in our audience.

The Donkey King, a Pakistani animated comedy film, was released 11 days ago on October 12, 2018, under the banner of GEO films. The film is directed by Aziz Jindani and features the voices of some of the most versatile actors in the industry including Hina Dilpazeer, Ghulam Mohyuddin, Javed Sheikh, Ismail Tara, and Jan Rambo. The film opened to jam-packed cinemas (that might be an exaggeration but I am talking in relative terms here) and recorded the biggest opening in Pakistan for any animated film, till date.

The Donkey King had already hit 1 crore mark by the end of the second day of its release which is, beyond any doubt, quite an achievement for a Pakistani film, that too animated.

Here is the complete breakdown of the film, according to the latest records:

Week One: 4cr

Second Friday: 85lacs

Second Saturday: 1.3cr

Second Sunday: 1.6cr

Second Weekend Total: 3.75cr

Grand Ten Day Total: 7.75cr  

The number is just a little less than what 3 Bahadur 2: The Revenge of Baba Balaam had earned in 2016; 8 plus crores. However, the latest records are from yesterday and according to a few news outlets such as The News, The Donkey King has already crossed 8 crores and has become the biggest animated grosser in Pakistan by beating 3 Bahadur 2.

Either way, if The Donkey King can achieve within a week what 3 Bahadur 2 did in over 4 weeks, there is little to no math required to project that it will definitely emerge as the highest animated grosser if it hasn’t already.

Here’s congratulating the makers on this feat.

We cannot vouch for the authenticity of these box office numbers given by independent box office tracking site EPK Pakistan However, until we have some official box-office tracking system in Pakistan this is all we have got. The numbers are also revised at times and hence you may observe fluctuations.

 

Cover Image Via: YouTube/Stars Gallery 

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