The enigma behind WAAR

I think we first heard the name of Waar long time back. It was somewhere in 2010 that the media picked up a news story regarding the making of a Lollywood movie with international standards. At that time its claim to fame for was that it was the first Pakistani movie being made under the banner of Warner Brothers. This truly excited me and just like everyone I also started anticipating its release with bated breath.

As time went by there was a trickle of information regarding the project and slowly and gradually the movie became bigger and bigger. The Likes of Meesha Shafi, Ali Azmat among others only added fire to the excitement. Expectations were very high for the movie since it was being directed by a guy who had worked on the mega-hit Khuda Ke Liye with Shoaib Mansoor himself i.e. Bilal Lashari. 

By this time we had entered into the late 2011 and Bol had been declared a hit at the local Box Office. In November of the same year the first teaser of the film was launched with much fanfare on Youtube and it went onto cross more than 1 million views within a week. Media hype again picked up for the movie and it was expected that within a month or two the movie would be released all over cinemas. 

Sadly, the viewers still had a long time to wait. As 2012 began reports started pouring in that the director was not happy with the Final cut of the movie and wanted to re-shoot major portions all over again. This being Pakistan people simply thought the movie had been shelved and will not see the light of the day. By this time my fervor and enthusiasm for the movie had pretty much dissipated. 

A movie starring Shaan in the lead role and that too in a role that was being touted as one of the best getting delayed every few months was not a good sign. 2012 was an extremely bad year for the local film industry as no Urdu film was released in the entire year. Had Waar been released at that opportune time its makers would have reaped maximum benefits? 

2013 started on a positive note for the industry with ARY stepping in as a major film distributor. Waar is now all over the news again. Its trailer can be seen on several channels and cinemas across Pakistan with a "Coming Soon" subtitle. After 4 long years it seems that the movie may finally see the light of day but nothing is guaranteed as yet. Just a few days back Mr. Lashari himself posted that after watching the Final cut during a screening all he wanted to do was to re-shoot the movie all over again. This attitude of a film maker tells me that he is making films either to pass time or just to prove a point. Cinema is not perfect and no single movie can be declared perfect. It should be the responsibility of a film maker to do best under the circumstances and then leave the final verdict to the audience.

Here is hoping Waar actually manages to get released this year because I distinctly fear that if this does not happen it will be a final nail in the coffin. Cine-goers all across Pakistan are super excited and they should be given a chance to enjoy this magnum opus before its expiry date. 

Zinda Bhaag: A Tale of 1 city and 3 boys

4 years. Whew. That is a long time since I last wrote here. Now you might be thinking what prompted me to venture into the "precarious" world of blogging all over again. Simply put cinema and that too Pakistani Cinema. The year 2013 has seen a significant number of quality films being produced locally and this brings me to the task at hand. 

When I first heard the name of Zinda Bhaag (and this was way back I think late 2011 or early 2012) I felt excited. Not only was the title an instant hook but it also raised humongous number of questions. The first one being "Pakistan se Zinda Bhaag?" Having seen the movie just two days back I started thinking how apt the title really is. Yes, the story does revolve around three very normal, average looking guys who are essentially trying to run away from their native homeland but then as Mr. Naseeruddin Shah rightly points out "Qismat se Ziada nahi aur Waqt se pehle nahi." Now the focal word here is "Bhaag or Qismat." This I felt was why the movie was captioned to perfection.

But I am digressing. Let me now start officially with my review of the movie. The movie as everyone in Pakistan knows stars Naseeruddin Shah, Amna Ilyas and three newcomers Khurram Patras, Salman Ahmad Khan and Zohaib in pivotal roles. The story revolves around the three guys and their day to day trials. Circumstances compel them to keep finding legal and in most cases illegal means to escape from Pakistan. In the meantime they find some moments to relish new love, get thrashed by parents and be munchkins to the Mafia.

The film celebrates many things but the thing it celebrates the best is LAHORE. It is truly a movie that showcases the real Lahore to everyone. You can see the old station, the dhabbas, the winding roads and of course the language. Even though I can speak only Urdu and English I was able to comprehend almost all of the film's Punjabi or should I say Lahori content. That maybe due to the fact that the filmmakers have intentionally made the language viewer friendly and this certainly deserves an applause. The overall mood of the film gels in wonderfully with the mood of the city. For instance a scene depicting the rise and fall of a young man who was a genius at playing "flash" showcases a dark alley with just the right amount of lighting. I must say the Cinematography and the Editing of the overall film is superb. The scenes flow flawlessly and are intertwined within the narrative in such a way that the audience never confuses the past with the present. One more Lahori thing that the movie celebrates is Lollywood. And this it does with pure elegance. The return to Paani Ka Bulbula, song and dance sequences, the witty one liners are all there. And the best bit about it all is that this being an independent film has actually told modern Pakistani filmmakers (who love to blame Lollywood for all their woes) that one can use the heritage and mould it to suit the narrative so justifiably.

That does not mean the film is flawless. To be very frank the two characters who feel being pushed over and above their usage were those played by Amna Ilyas and Naseeruddin Shah. Amna is definitely a looker but her character was secondary to the storyline and even though she sure has acting chops but one feels that had the marketing of the film been less centered around her there would have been lower expectations. Mr. Shah is great to watch but his scenes are too similar and too many. After watching the film one friend of mine said that had the role been given to someone less popular like Firdous Jamal the number of scenes would have been way low. Moreover, the finale comes as a surprise and maybe too subtle for local cine-goers to appreciate.    

Best part of the entire movie are the 3 newcomers. Khurram, Salman and Zohaib are so good that after a while you forget they are complete novices. The filmmakers' decision to have 3 ordinary people play these roles was truly a brave one and it seems to have paid off in spades. Out of the 3 I feel Zohaib has the most charismatic screen presence but the other two have far higher acting capabilities. I truly hope all of them have successful careers in media.

A review of Pakistani film cannot be written if one does not mention the music and Zinda Bhaag's music truly deserves an appreciative listening. There are seven tracks in the album and music composer Sahir Ali Bagga has done a tremendous job. Noteworthy mentions are Rahat Fatheh Ali Khan's Qawwali "Pata Yaar Da" and Arif Lofar & Saleem Jawad's "Paar Chana." The best part about the music is that baring a song or two all the remaining ones have been wonderfully woven into the script.  

If Pakistani cinema is really going to try and rise then Zinda Bhaag is a movie that can teach the filmmakers some very fine lessons. The movie is built on a sensible budget and I feel its a given that it will prove a massive success at the Box Office. Sadly the same cannot be said for another recently released local movie "Main Hoon Shahid Afridi." 

If "Saving Faces" had to win an Oscar just to pave the way for "Zinda Bhaag" then I completely accept its win. Now lets bring a true Lahori Oscar home.