A review on Pakistani feature length film, ‘Actor in Law’ (2016). The Production House is Filmwala Pictures while its Distribution is done by Urdu 1 Pictures.
+ Crew
- Written & Directed by Nabeel Qureshi
- Co-Written & Produced by Fizza Ali Meerza
- Cinematography by Rana Kamran
- Edited by Asif Mumtaz
- Co-Produced by Medhi Ali
+ Note
Actor in Law is based on struggling young actor who is unable to find a lead source for a role in a film but due fortunate event, his luck changes. Its trailer already created great hype among public and media. Prior to this, Nabeel Qureshi’s debut film ‘Na Maloom Afraad’ (2014) was a super hit. Thus, everyone had great expectations with this film.
Its music is composed by Shani Arshad. Songs such as ‘Khudaya’ and ‘Dil Dancer’ are sung by Rahat Fateh Ali Khan and Atif Aslam.
Most of the film is shot at Karachi, Pakistan. In 2017, Actor in Law received the Best Film award at the 16th Lux Style Awards.
+ Main Cast
- Fahad Mustafa as Shan Mirza
- Mehwish Hayat as Meena Screwala
- Om Puri as Rafaqat Mirza
- Alyy Khan as Muddasir Sultan
- Saife Hassan as Irfan Motiwala
- Saboor Ali as Shabana / Annie Mirza
- Nayyar Ejaz as Lawyer
- Talat Hussain as Judge
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+ Supporting Cast
- Lubna Aslam as Shan’s mother
- Kaizer Behram Irani as Meenu’s Mother
- Ahson Talish as a Politician
- Anoushay Abbasi as Meenu’s Friend
- Saleem Mairaj as Mehboob Bhai
- Irfan Motiwala as Fridge Man
- Rehan Sheikh as Opposition Lawyer
- Rashid Khawaja as Judge
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+ Minor Cast (Playing as themselves)
- Mahira Khan
- Humayun Saeed
- Ayeza Khan
- Annas Kashif
- Atif Aslam
- Ali Zafar
- Imran Abbas
- Nabeel Qureshi
- Nazar Ul Hassan
- Kaleem Ghouri
+ Plot
A young man, Shan who dreams to be a super star in film industry but his father Rafaqat disapproves it. Instead he wants his son to be lawyer, just like Rafaqat is. One day Shan happens to be at his father’s office (Court House) and people in desperation think he is an actual lawyer who might fight case for them. Now it depends on Shan whether he tells them truth and walks away or uses his theatrical expertise in bringing justice to ‘Aam Awam’ (General Public)?
+ High Points
i – I was so focused in the film, that I didn’t even notice how easily time passed by.
ii – Fahad Mustafa’s performance as Shan is a must watch!
iii – The dance sequences are entertaining to feast your eyes on.
iv – Several references are made on either celebrities, politicians or mediums which were very humorous.
v – Thank God, there is no item song, but rather good songs to enjoy yourself.
vi – The script was written splendidly and had many moments of laughter.
vii – Like always, Mehwish Hayat looked stunning and performed well.
viii – Humanyun Saeed’s minor role is really laughable as he played the role as himself.
ix – I thoroughly enjoyed the film which was for almost two hours. Not even once, I had to look at my watch for time. If these kinds of films kept coming from our film industry, then I believe in just few years we would leave Bollywood behind. Thoroughly enjoyed this director’s previous film ‘Na Maloom Afraad’ as well and now this!
+ Low Points
i – The story was new for the viewers, yet mostly people had already predicted the end.
ii – A very handful of songs, I should say. A couple of more, would have been sufficient.
iii – Om Puri character was ‘Empty’. He did not have much screen time, nor saw strong performance from his side.
iv – There were some movie mistakes, such as in one scene Fahad Mustafa is totally wet due to rain but in the next scene of court room he is completely dried up.
+ Overall
Ladies and Gentlemen, I am proud to announce that Pakistani film industry has a rising star director on our hands. And his name is Nabeel Qureshi!
Rate: 4.25 out of 5 stars
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