Category: Feature Length Films

A review on Pakistani comedy feature length film, Chupan Chupai (2017). The Production House is Huzu Productions while its Distributor is Hum Films.

 

 

+ Crew

• Written & Directed by Mohsin Ali
• Co-Written by Zeeshan Haider
• Cinematography by Jeffery Fountain
• Edited by Ehtesham Khan, Waqas Ali Khan, Faheem Ahmed & Salman Tehzeeb
• Produced by Ray Khan & Zayed Sheikh

 

 

 

+ Note

Chupan Chupai is the debut movie of stars such as Faizan Khwaja, Neelam Muneer and Sakina Samo. This movie is a Pakistani remake of 2013 Indian Tamil language movie Soodhu Kavvum (2013). It has been remade in Telugu as Gaddam Gang (2015). The Production Designers are Jari Khushnood Naqwi & Bazey Khan while its Makeup & Hairstylists are Hasan Shabbir & Alam Hakim’s. The Music is composed by Asrar.

There is a huge cast of cameos which are mostly performed by NAPA actors and faculty members. Such as Inzamam Jalal (an Actor, Director, DOP and Editor), Maaz Ahmed (very Skillful Cinematographer), Zain Ahmed and Khalid Ahmed (Faculty Members, TV artist, Writer and Director), Saad Zameer and Erum Bashir (one of the leading performers of NAPA), Akber, Hammad, Ahmer, Muneeb, Najma, Roohi and Kaleem are good performers of NAPA. Arisha is a TV artist and Zeeshan Haider (an Actor, Faculty Member, Writer, Director and a Mentor).

 

 

 

 

+ Main Cast

1. Ahsan Khan as Babu
2. Neelam Munir as Pari
3. Faizan Khawaja as Bobby
4. Vajdaan Shah as Teli
5. Zayad Sheikh as Feddy
6. Ali Rizvi as Koki
7. Talat Hussain as Aijaz Durrani

 

 

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+ Supportive Cast

1. Adnan Jaffar as Chaudhry
2. Rehan Sheikh as Khan
3. Sakina Samo as Bobby’s Mother
4. Javed Sheikh as Chief Minister
5. Saife Hassan as Kidnapped Girl’s Father
6. Nazar-ul-Hassan as Police Constable
7. Arshad Mehmud as DIG

 

 

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+ Cameo

1. Zeeshan Haider as Drone Controller
2. Arisha Razi as Kidnap Girl
3. Kaleem Ghouri as Guy with Bizarre Haircut
4. Khalid Ahmed as Kidnap Girl’s Father
5. Inzamam Jalal as Minister’s Attendant
6. Erum Bashir as Lady with Veges
7. Saad Zameer Fareedi as Lawyer
8. Zain Ahmed as Interviewer
9. Akber Ladhani as Stranger #1
10. Ahmer Hussain as Stranger #2
11. Muneeb Baig as Stranger #3
12. Roohi Ahmed as Minister’s Wife Attendant
13. Maaz Ahmed as Thug
14. Najma Kifayat as Girl with fast food
15. Hammad Siddiq as Thug in Hospital

 

 

 

+ Plot

A group of three friends Feddy, Koki and Teli who happens to meet Babu by chance and decides to team up with him & his girlfriend Pari to earn big in much easier (riskier) way.

 

 

 

+ High Points

i – Ali Rizvi as Koki has performed as a memorable character. He greatly reminded me of the fame comic relief characters in the 70s were mostly performed by John Belushi (deceased). Ali has able to bring many people attention towards him of not just because his character was most interestingly written but very well performed as well. Other Honorable Mentions: Ahsan Khan and Faizan Khawaja.

ii – The comedy of Chupan Chupai is good on some occasions although mostly, light humor is provided (which by the way worked out quite sound for the film). The key comic relief character of Koki is mainly responsible for this.

iii – Makeup & hair styling did a good job; glamorous looks by Neelum Muneer, Ahsan Khan and Faizan Khawaja.

 

 

 

 

+ Low Points

i – This film has more (plot) holes than a Swiss cheese has. There is no / proper explanation given to anything. Such as why Chaudhry decides to change his gun at the last minute, no Pari’s backstory is provided, why and how the bizarre haircut guy is teamed up with Babu, how Koki ends up with the same woman in the film? At some places, one may be able to defend themselves but not on all. I am sorry to say but this is a Novice level of writing and I am very shocked to see talented name in the writing dept. No seriously, what went wrong?  Is this a case of creative differences?

ii – Forgettable songs! The audience can take a serious snore nap here.

iii – Still not satisfied to see a petty role given to such a great actor, Nazar-ul-Hassan. You have no idea, what this guy can do if a good, interesting role is given to him.

iv – It is shameful to say that most of these cameos were given to perform useless, unmemorable roles. Only one or two roles have some importance to remember them by otherwise almost all of them are those roles which are given to extras. Only thing these actors could say is that ‘Yes, I … am in Chupan Chupai’.

v – No proper / good message is given to the audience to learn in the end. So basically, we should take the easier way out? We should not struggle and work on righteous path but do exactly what they did in the film? Nice.

 

 

 

 

+ Overall

It’s hard to say Chupan Chupai is a good comedy film but its constant humor and sparkling performances especially by Ali Rizvi, did their best to uplift the film’s second half from its mixture of farce spaghetti from becoming any other ‘Cat and Mouse’ chase. Yet, their best was not good enough to save the film from being a misfire.

 

 

 

Rate: 1.50 out of 5 stars

A review on Pakistani Rom-Com feature length film, Na Band, Na Baraati (2018). The Production House is Zashko Entertainment while its Distributor is Hum Films.

 

 

 

 

+ Crew

• Directed by Mahmood Akhtar
• Written by Harish Kumar Patel
• Cinematography by Shezad Pasha
• Edited by David Van
• Produced by Zain Farooqui

 

 

 

 

+ Note

Na Band, Na Baraati is Mikaal Zulfiqar first film with Shayan Khan Anzhelika Tahir and Komal Farooqui. It is also the directorial debut of veteran TV actor Mahmood Akhtar who is also playing an important role. The music is composed by Sahir Ali Bagga.

It revolves around two brothers and the struggle of a desi family settled abroad.

Na Band, Na Baraati’s shooting was completed in 2016. Almost the whole movie has been shot in Canada and was released on Eid-ul-Fitr.

 

 

 

 

+ Main Cast

1. Mikaal Zulfiqar as Shahid
2. Shayan Khan as Zahid
3. Nayab Khan as Zoya
4. Anzhelika Rublevska Tahir as Ayesha
5. Ali Kazmi as Ustad the Mechanic

 

 

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+ Supporting Cast

1. Qavi Khan as Shahid’s & Zahid’s Father
2. Mahmood Akthar as Ayesha’s Father
3. Azra Mohiuddin as Shahid’s & Zahid’s Mother
4. Atiqa Odho as Zoya’s Mother
5. Komal Farooqi as Shahid’s & Zahid’s sister

 

 

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+ Minor Cast

1. Saram Jaffery as Super Mario / Bholu
2. Kashif Ahmed as Co-mechanic
3. Zuhair Jaffery as Guru

 

 

 

 

+ Plot

A typical Pakistani family living in Toronto, are dropped a bomb when they are told that one of their sons had a runaway marriage.

 

 

 

 

+ High Points

i – Mikaal Zulfiqar as Shahid was the real star of this film and gave a terrific performance with other few selective co-stars to bring in the interest level, to watch the film till the end.

ii – Surprisingly, Qavi Khan as Shahid’s & Zahid’s Father turned out to be very hilarious comic relief character. His repeated comic dialogue throughout the film was ‘Cheeni Khao! Jaan Banao!’ fun to listen to. I don’t remember that I ever enjoyed his performance so much (including of TV projects) as in this film. Other Honorable Mentions: Komal Farooqui, Saram Jaffery, Zuhair Jaffery and Kashif Ahmed.

iii – There were some few good laughs in the film such as Zahid tries to pick his glasses from the pavement and running into a gay with crashing sound of bowling pins.

iv – Beautiful costume designing, suited really well with the cast.

v – Fantastic job on the makeup & hair styling; made the stars look very glamour, beautiful on-screen.

vi – A couple of songs were nice with such singers Rahat Fateh Ali Khan, Shafqat Amanat Ali, Sahir Ali Bagga and Aima Baig.

 

 

 

 

+ Low Points

i – The new lead star, Shayan Khan needs to work really hard on his voice to sound like a mature person on-screen. I’m afraid that he sounded more like child, which gave a very bad impression to the audience and critics alike. To be in the ranks of ‘A’ graded stars, one has to his best efforts to be standing with them. There’s already fierce competition in the market and thus it is advised to work on your voice and acting classes.

Having good looks with a great muscular physique does not make one a great performer. These are secondary features which can be focused later, rather work on your primary features i.e. improvement in your acting and voice. Try to listen to yourself first by performing in front of the camera, see why people are criticizing your voice for.

Even today, if we bring Bollywood Super Star Shahrukh Khan in his place and change his voice as his, he (Shahrukh) too would be rejected by the market. Good voice does make a great difference, though being a great performer would come with practice and experience. By chance, only yesterday I randomly chose to watch a Bollywood film ‘Shamitabth’ (2015) where a homeless guy (Amitabh) lends his voice to new comer actor (Dhanush) to make a name for himself.

ii – The film editing needs great improvement. There were many scenes in the film where there should have been cut while the technique of using montage in a motion frame is really an old fashioned. It didn’t look good for the songs.

iii – Anzhelika Rublevska Tahir gave a wooden performance while Ali Kazmi’s performance was highly over acting. He tried very hard to make people laugh on his endless (boring) punch lines. Don’t get me wrong, I like Ali Kazmi’s acting in his TV and film projects previously but here he was misused.

As soon as Ayesha gets married, Ali’s character becomes useless for the audience to watch and bear him on-screen. The writer should have come up with new conflict in his story, to make his scenes interesting but were not so.

iv – The cinematography is below average and needs a lot of improvement.

v – The directorial debut by Mahmood Akthar was very weak indeed; the film would have been executed much differently and effectively if it was given to a well-known director.

vi – Most of the time, the actors would say their punch lines in such a way thinking perhaps the audience would surely laugh now. But all we would do is just stare at the screen for few more seconds before confirming “I’m sorry. Was that a punch line? Is he trying to make us laugh”?

vii – Need a good professional dance choreographer for their songs.

viii – The film dragged unnecessarily on and on. The two sons could have told everything to their parents regardless of their father’s warning as we all knew that he would eventually accept them but no! That didn’t happen and had to watch more than 2 hours of film.

ix – The BTS team should had work out on which scenes to keep, which ones to delete and how to make the film interesting in the phase of three acts.

x – Lips sync of Shayan Khan’s songs in comparison to his actual voice in the film didn’t suit at all.

xi – Poor acting by smaller role performers. They hardly had any expressions during their performance or scene sharing.

 

 

 

+ Overall

Na Band, Na Baraati fails to make its mark in the hearts of audience or critics alike with weak performances, lackluster of wittiness and many technical issues.

 

 

 

 

Rate: 1.75 out of 5 stars

 

A review on Pakistani Drama feature length film, Bin Roye (2015) aka Without Crying. The Production House is MD Films while its Distributors are Hum Films (Pakistan Release) and B4U Films (International Release).

 

 

 

+ Crew

• Directed by Shahzad Kashmiri & Momina Duraid (Produced)
• Cinematography by Farhan Alam
• Written by Farhat Ishtiaq
• Edited by Syed Tanveer Alam
• Music by Mazhar Cheema, Shani Arshad & Waqar Ali

 

 

 

 

+ Note

Bin Roye’s two songs in the film have been directed by Sarmad Sultan Khoosat, Asim Raza and Haissam Hussain.

This film is based on the original novel Bin Roye Ansoo by Farhat Ishtiaq. It is the 3rd highest-grossing Pakistani film of all time behind Waar and Jawani Phir Nahi Ani.

Bin Roye was later adapted into a television series with the same name, that premiered on Hum TV on 2^nd Oct 2016.

 

 

 

+ Main Cast

1. Mahira Khan as Saba Shafiq
2. Humayun Saeed as Irtaza
3. Armeena Khan as Saman Shafiq
4. Adnan Malik as Shehzad
5. Zeba Bakhtiar as Saba & Saman’s mother
6. Javed Sheikh as Saba & Saman’s father

 

 

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+ Supportive Cast

1. Azra Mansoor as Dadi
2. Junaid Khan as Safir / Saba’s husband
3. Adeel Hussain as N/A (Cameo)
4. Mujtaba Khan as Irtaza (Child)
5. Mehreen Bari as Saba (Child)
6. Jahanzeb Khan as Zafar / Saba’s brother

 

 

 

 

+ Plot

A young woman is conflicted when she falls in love with a man who courts her friend.

 

 

 

 

+ High Points

i – Mahira Khan performance like always is the best. Her character was of an immature young girl who is head over heels in love with her cousin, Irtaza. Later on she has guilt ridden madness over the close one death.

ii – I have watched last three to four projects of Humayun Saeed where he has performed very decently and sensibly. I am confident enough to say that he is truly a great actor where he has able to play this mature, caring character of Irtaza greatly on-screen. Other Honorable Mentions: Armeena Khan and Azra Mansoor.

iii – The action sequences are very admirable and of high standards in the ranks of our film industry.

iv – The production design did a creditable work while its locations are very well chosen.

v – The costumes designing dept. did an impressive job.

vi – Good work guys responsible for makeup and hair-styling.

vii – The third act is shown in great detail where Irtaza handles traumatic Saba due to the enigmatic reason. This act was the most important one of the three and was very professionally handled.

 

 

 

 

+ Low Points

i – The film editing is so bad that if I was the producer of this project, I would had made sure that this person would get lifetime ban to work as film editor ever again. It ruined the film beat completely.

ii – A couple of the supporting cast members were wasted due to less or namesake screen time such as Junaid Khan and Jahanzeb Khan while the inclusion of Adeel Hussain in a song is the first example in a Pakistani film (or that I am aware of that) that it’s a first male star item song.

iii – The director decided to give no importance whatsoever to the second act, where everything just rushed to the last act of the film.

 

 

  

+ Overall

Even though the performances are unforgettable, particularly by Mahira Khan, still Bin Roye lost its magic in the mid and made us realize that the supporting cast or sub plot does not carry any value.

 

 

 

Rate: 2.50 out of 5 stars

 

A review on Pakistani Suspense – Action feature length film, The Killer (2017). The Production House is Haji Ali Sher Productions.

 

 

 

+ Crew

• Directed by M. Shahzad Haider
• Photography by Rizwan Ahmed and Jamshaid Iqbal (Still)
• Written by Saleem Murad
• Edited by Kawish Javaid
• Produced by Haji Abdul Majeed and Haji Abdul Gafoor

 

 

 

 

+ Note

The Killer’s fight choreographer is Sher Khan. Its songs are sung by Naseebo Lal, Saima Jahan, Shafaq Ali, Kiran Taranum & Asad Islam. The music is designed by Imran Farooqi and Lyrics by Khalid Malik & Altaf Bajwa. Other crew members are the production head is Khadim Hussain, asst. directed by Gullam Hussain & Asif Rahman and make-up & hair styling by Asif Shah.

Shafqat Cheema is the lead hero who can be seen in different disguises throughout the film.

The Killer happens to be the worst film I have ever watched.

 

 

 

+ Main Cast

1. Shafqat Cheema as Kabeer
2. N/A as Haider
3. Nayyar Ejaz as Micheal
4. N/A as Nawab

 

 

 

+ Plot

It is about a find an unknown serial killer who has already murdered many victims. The police is given 72 hours to track him down.

 

 

 

 

+ High Points

i – Two known faces that is Shafqat Cheema and Nayyar Ejaz are in the film.

 

 

 

+ Low Points

i – This film is the ugliest sight of ‘C’ grade Lollywood film making.

ii – I managed to watch this film properly till 30 minutes… in three days on a friend’s request/dare. The rest of the film was watched by skipping the scenes, especially the songs.

iii – Let’s say that The Killer is a clear sign that humanity’s doomsday is nigh.

iv – The film editing, the songs, the action scenes are just out of this world. Somewhere like in a ‘Black hole’.

v – If Shafqat Cheema is in a lead role, you know well where this film is heading to.

vi – After watching one-fourth of this film, I started to have suicidal thoughts.

 

 

 

+ Overall

The Killer is the worst of the worst… it’s horrible and unwatchable!

 

 

 

Rate: 0 out of 5 stars

 

A review on Pakistani drama feature length film, Verna (2017). The Production House is Shoman Productions while its Distributor is Hum Films.

 

 

+ Crew

• Music, Written, Directed & Produced by Shoaib Mansoor
• Cinematography by Salman Razzaq and Khizer Idrees
• Edited by Zohaib Mansoor
• Production Design by Faiza Shah
• Co-Music by Zebunnisa Bangash and Haroon Shahid

 

 

 

+ Note

Verna is a rape-revenge film. This is Shoaib Mansoor’s 3^rd feature film as director. The costumes designing is been done by Zayan and makeup & hair styling by Maram Abroo.

A similar case occurred in real life here in Karachi last year where someone posted on Facebook regarding an unfortunate family who were forced to choose between their daughter and daughter-in-law to give up to two dark Pajero’s men. Whether or not, this incident was true but the film’s dark tone made me recall it immediately.

It is very unfortunate to tell you that I as audience was listening to continuous laughter and giggles by some men sitting in the same cinema hall while watching the abduction and rape scene. The tension how the family faces in her absence was shocking and dismay to most but really hilarious and amusing to people like these men in the hall. Their non-serious attitude made me realize how much illiterate and shameless we people are how easily we believe that rapes do not occur or rarely committed in our nation. These men were laughing as though it was a black comedy that we were watching. I am sorry but I didn’t see the joke between the lines. It is really disgraceful that we have these kinds of people in our society. How ignorant that they are.

For those who view rape as real and understands well that it does happens in our nation too, then only you would watch Verna as horror film rather than just a drama.

 

 

 

+ Main Cast

1. Mahira Khan as Sara
2. Haroon Shahid as Aami
3. Zarrar Khan as Sultan
4. Naimal Khawar as Mahgul
5. Rasheed Naz as Khanzada

 

  

 

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+ Supportive Cast

1. Salman Shaukat as Jamil
2. Malik Ata Muhammad Khan as Raees
3. Shahid Mir as Judge
4. Iram Rehman as Jamil
5. MNA Khawaja as Shehzad Mir
6. Shahnaz Aftab as N/A

 

 

 

  

+ Plot

A happy life is shattered apart after the abduction and rape of Sara.

 

 

 

 

+ High Points

i – The tension and discomfort to watch through rape films had always been a tough task for me. ‘Dil pr pathr dekhnay wali baat hai’ but I have always appreciated and encouraged our film directors to come up with sensitive topics and portray them with a realistic solution/s than just showing up the issue. In this film too, the way they showed the tense, fear for the life of your missing loved one to ever see them again especially how to cope up with this issue and live a ‘Normal’ life again was depicted nicely. For addition, the royal spoiled family behavior with people, servants were ‘Cherry on Top’.

ii – The film is well directed by Shoaib Mansoor. Although cannot say that it’s his best work but really good job. Yes, I enjoyed the film.

iii – Mahira Khan’s performance as Sara has been superb. Naturally this is the main reason why she is often given a lead role. Someone who could pull the role as the script demands it to be. Her performance, plus her reactions to the accusations her husband makes at her are … praise worthy.

iv – Zarrar Khan played the main antagonist as Sultan, has performed strongly indeed. He is one of the few actors in this film who have performed next to best to Mahira’s performance. I would look forward to his upcoming work. Other Honorable Mentions: Rasheed Naz and Malik Ata Muhammad Khan.

v – I love how the court scenes were handled, some nice twists, turns here and there.

vi – The signature move of Shoaib Mansoor’s films, the voice towards the injustice of females, how our law, religion and religious clerics view them as is shown Khuda K Liye, Bol and now this film, all three films have in them.

vii – The production design was very pleasantly handled and represented. Good job!

viii – The real face is shown of our society, our police, our government, our system … everywhere corruption and injustice exist very openly in our nation. It is shameful to say but it’s true. Just because we do not talk about it, it doesn’t mean that it doesn’t happen.

 

 

 

 

+ Low Points

i – The film was a bit lengthy than I was perceived it to be. It was around 2 hours and 35 minutes long. I believe 2 hours would have been enough.

ii – Songs didn’t do justice with the film. Well as a matter of fact, I believe they should not be part for these kinds of films in the first place. Though I do understand that it is our public demand to see them in the films

iii – Lack of star power and average performances by most of the cast is huge negative point here. Although I would not support commercial actors for such sensitive topic films but I would support strong performances. Yes, the lead actress Mahira Khan did an excellent job but what about others? They should have picked a solid performer for the Husband’s role.

 

 

 

 

+ Overall

Verna is a difficult film to watch and digest. Not because it is poorly shot but due to its horrifying experience to imagine in their place. This may not be Shoaib Mansoor’s best work but it is surely a work where some years from now public, film makers alike would cherish it as one of the most important films to be produced regarding injustice towards females.

 

 

 

Rate: 3.50 out of 5 stars

 

A review on Pakistani Drama feature length film, Moor (2015) aka Mother. The Production Houses are Azad Film Company & Mandviwalla Entertainment while its Distributor is Geo Films.

 

 

+ Crew

• Written, Directed & Produced by Jami Mahmood
• Cinematography Farhan Hafeez
• Edited by Rizwan AQ
• Music by Strings
• Co-Produced by Nazira Ali and Nadeem Mandviwalla

 

 

 

+ Note

Moor, is a Pashto word meaning “Mother”. Moor was previously named as Morqaye. Film’s story depicts the railway system of Balochistan, especially the closure of Zhob valley railways in 1984. Partially the shooting took place in an area of Pakistan’s Balochistan province that was under the control of the Taliban militia. Despite their reputation for hard line fundamentalism, the local Taliban even allowed the crew to shoot in their own headquarters.

The soundtrack of this film is composed by the Pakistani band, Strings. Kothbiro by Ayub Ogada is featured in the trailer. The film bought the copyrights.

Moor took eight years from conception to release. Work on the script began in 2007, and the first teaser trailer appeared in 2013, two years before the film’s premiere.

It was selected to premiere at 20th Busan International Film Festival. The film was selected as the Pakistani entry for the Best Foreign Language Film at the 88th Academy Awards but it was not nominated.

 

 

+ Main Cast

1. Hameed Sheikh as Wahid
2. Shaz Khan as Ehsaanullah Khan
3. Samiya Mumtaz as Palwasha
4. Abdul Qadir as Baggoo Baba
5. Shabbir Rana as Zahir
6. Sultan Hussain as Lalu
7. Ayaz Samoo as Imtisal

 

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+ Supportive Cast

1. Nayyar Ejaz as Talat
2. Soniya Hussain as Amber
3. Eshita Mehboob Syed as Arzo
4. Joshinder Chaggar as Sarah
5. Omar as Asghar
6. Zainullah as Dilawar

 

 

+ Plot

After the death of the family’s matriarch, her husband and son must confront not only the corruption in society around them but the corruption within themselves.

 

 

+ High Points

i – Sir Hameed Sheikh’s performance in a husband / father role is played out very well. His confusion and desperation of the funds for his family is shown brilliantly. His long lost love for his motherland is well put.

ii – Although Samiya Mumtaz has a small role in the film but one of the best in executing it. She is a wonderful actress and usually plays rural area righteous mother roles. Other Honorable Mentions: Shaz Khan, Abdul Qadir and Ayaz Samoo.

iii – A valuable story is shared through the medium of film making. A strong message is left for the audience.

iv – Farhan Hafeez did an amazing work in cinematography. This is a trademark of Jami’s films.

v – The locations of Balochistan are carefully chosen for great visual story telling.

 

 

+ Low Points

i – The film is at quite a slow pace. People may have hard time watching it.

ii – There is not much to watch or enjoy the film. Most of the critics get it confused to say that perhaps ‘I the film carries a strong message, it means it is a good film to watch’ which is not necessary! These two are completely different from each other.

 

 

 

+ Overall

In sum, Moor is a beautiful shot film — and one that gives viewers the momentum to choose their destiny in front of their honor and beliefs.

 

 

Rate: 3.0 out of 5 stars

 

A review on Pakistani Drama feature length film, Bol (2011) aka Speak. The Production House is Shoman productions while its Distributors are Geo Films and Eros International Ltd.

 

 

+ Crew

• Directed, Written, Music & Produced by Shoaib Mansoor
• Cinematography by Salman Razzaq
• Production Design & Wardrobe by Fatima Jilani
• Edited by Armughan Hassan
• Makeup & Hair styling by Ather Shezad

 

 

 

+Note

Bol’s OST by Baqir Abbas while its music contributions by Atif Aslam, Sajjad Ali, Ahmed Jahanzeb and Hadiqa Kiyani. It is a debut film of Mahira Khan.

This film was a critical and commercial success, and became one of the highest-grossing Pakistani films of all time. Bol concerns a religious Muslim family facing financial difficulties caused by too many children and changing times, with a major plot involving the father’s desire to have a son and his rejection of his existing transgender male-assigned-at-birth daughter. The objective of the project was to advocate for women’s rights by bringing the focus of media and the elite of Pakistan to family planning and gender issues.

Bol is set in Lahore and many students from National College of Arts’ (NCA) film making department assisted Shoaib Mansoor on it. It was awarded the best Hindi film award in IRDS Film awards 2011 by the Institute for Research and Documentation in Social Sciences (IRDS), a Lucknow-based civil society organization for raising many social issues including the regressive attitude of a male-dominated society.

 

 

+ Main Cast

1. Humaima Malik as Zainub
2. Manzar Sehbai as Hakim Sahib
3. Shafqat Cheema as Ishaq “Saqa” Kanjar
4. Amr Kashmiri as Saifi
5. Atif Aslam as Mustafa

 

 

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+ Supportive Cast

1. Mahira Khan as Ayesha
2. Zaib Rehman as Suraiya
3. Iman Ali as Sabina
4. Irfan Khoosat as Mustafa’s father
5. Meher Sagar as Young Saifi

 

 

 

+ Plot

A female convict on death row, her last wish is to tell her story to the media.

 

 

+ High Points

i – Humaima Malik’s performance is really good in playing as extrovert character. She showed everyone, how well she could play a lead role.

ii – Manzar Sehbai did a terrific job in the role as abusive father and husband. His inclusion in this film Bol made even further interesting to watch. Other Honorable Mentions: Shafqat Cheema and Atif Aslam.

iii – The multiples issues that are shown in the film are important problems that are either too sensitive or taboo to discuss about which are covered by some misguided religious molvis and scholars.

iv – The cinematography is quite effectively shoot, especially the different angle shots that are taken in creative manner of the city of Lahore.

v – Its interesting story made the viewer’s highly motivated to watch it till the end.

 

 

+ Low Points

i – Too many issues were highlighted in the film where unable to focus one subject matter strongly nor in detail.

ii – It’s funny to see how easily Ayesha is roaming around, going places with Mustafa… even if she is in burkha, the neighborhood is not stupid or blind to see who is it anyway or why don’t anyone complains to their father of it?

 

 

 

+ Overall

The presence of Shaqat Cheema kicks this interesting movie into faster gear where the audience & critics alike consider Bol as one of the most significant films that have been ever produced by our Pakistani film industry.

 

 

Rate: 4.0 out of 5 stars

 

A review on Pakistani Action-Drama feature length film, Raasta (2017) aka Path. The Production Houses are Sahir Lodhi Films, Hom Production, Sams Company & TV-1 Films while it’s Distributor is IMGC Global Entertainment.

 

 

+ Crew

• Written, Narrated, Produced & Directed by Sahir Lodhi
• Cinematography by Nabeel Jawaid Qureshi
• Co-Written by Shahid Naqvi
• Edited by Muhammad Irfan & Muhammad Bilal Habib
• Co-Produced by Moid Ul Hassan and Dr. Faisal Zia

 

 

 

+ Songs

1. Rahat Fateh Ali Khan
2. Sara Raza Khan
3. Nabeel Shaukat
4. Damiya Farooqui
5. Saman Saleem Sabri

 

 

 

+ Note

Raasta was to be released on 23^rd March 2017 (Defense Day). However, due to getting heavy censored it was postponed and released on 31^st March 2017. Since the film is cut a lot before its release thus it is unjust to blame on film editing as many times I felt why this scene was shown after this one. To do justice, one needs to watch the original cut (uncensored one). But the question is who has the guts to do that?

The music directors are Sajai Ali & Kamran Akhtar. It’s about two brothers, Sultan who is the elder brother, police inspector and has a family. The younger brother is Samir, who is qualified but is unemployed for last 8 years. This is Sahir Lodhi & Saima Azhar’s debut film.

Raasta’s theme reminded me of fame Bollywood film ‘Vaastav’ (1999).

 

 

+ Main Cast

1. Sahir Lodhi as Sameer
2. Aijaz Aslam as Inspector Sultan
3. Syed Naveed Raza as Sherry
4. Shamoon Abbasi as Shah Nawaz Rajput
5. Sana Nawaz as Bhabhi
6. Abeer Rizvi as N/A
7. Saima Azhar as N/A
8. Saleem Mairaj as N/A
9. Mathira (Item Girl) as N/A
10. Saniya Mansoor as N/A

 

 

+ Plot

The bond of two brothers is shown where the elder one Sultan is an honest police inspector, has a family and firmly believes that no one should be considered above the law. As for Samir, who is unable to get a white collar job thus starts doing odd jobs to make his ends meet. During Samir’s struggle for good work, he gets mixed up with gangsters like Shah Nawaz and his younger brother Sherry.

 

 

 

+ High Points

i – Aijaz Aslam’s acting is above average whereas mild performances by rest of the cast including Sahir Lodhi’s (but in the first half only).

ii – I liked the film’s message which they conveyed it throughout their film ‘Raasta’ (Path) that is instead of choosing between a righteous or misguided path to reach to your destiny… here the lead character is forced to take wrong path as a result of being jobless, society ignorance, lack of family support and getting into brawl with wrong people.

iii – The struggle to choose righteous path while facing many hurdles was properly handled in the film. The director gave importance in establishing his character emotional link with the audience. I believe it was a good effort that made in making the connection. What I am saying is that the first half of the film is… watchable! There, I said it aloud.

iv – The makeover of Sahir Lodhi in second half while the makeup & hair styling of Mathira looks good.

v – The cinematic shots and lighting particularly in the songs are nicely executed.

vi – Most of the songs are nice to listen to. Not all but most of them.

vii – Art direction throughout the film is very decent.

vii – There is a shot taken in the later of the film where Sahir Lodhi is lying down in the similar position of crucifixion. Either this scene was intended to give symbolic meaning to it or maybe Sahir Lodhi thought it may look cool on-screen.

 

 

 

+ Low Points

i – Writing is a very difficult task indeed. Anyone who has worked in the media production would agree to this right away. For a good writing skill, one should be able to give proper portray of their characters, to do justice with them, a story worth telling, sharing with the people — which is not an easy thing to do. It needs a lot of experience, study how to write or work under the guidance of an expert.

However, when a person who has vast abundance of wealth, many references / contacts then that person would most probably not give any heed to this above say and would a make film like ‘Raasta’. Although the film’s plot may look good on paper, but once it is shown as a film especially after interval — its equivalent of having brain hemorrhage.

ii – Sahir Lodhi’s character from start of the film shown able to overcome any thug, always wins in fights against anyone, even if that person is mafia leader / don himself. After the interval, all hell breaks loose! Then Sahir Lodhi’s character becomes very similar to Greek mythology’s immortal demi-god. Now anything is possible by him.

iii – Saleem Meeraj is such a good actor. He is usually in such good projects. But what made him say yes to be in a film like this? Anyone? I think perhaps to maintain his friendship he had to be in the film.

iv – We don’t have just one but two item songs. Yes, two! It does not matter if the item song is performed by a respected model / actress or not, either way it is still degrading and offending to be inserted in the film. Item girls are always considered as sex objects for the viewers and speaking of item songs, why do we need them anyways? Can you not entertain people with your good script, strong performances and great direction? In this case, no it’s not possible.

v – After a cliffhanger interval which was misleading (naturally), all logic is now officially thrown in the trash can and the film dares you to watch whatever they show you on screen. At this point, I was thinking perhaps watching Waseem Hassan Sheikh’s notorious ads were a better option.

The things they have showed in the second half is cruelty to your brain; because as soon as the interval came, it give you one last final warning to pack your bags and move abroad or just ditch your film ticket’s expense and go have a dinner at a good restaurant. As your life is more precious than what you are about to witness after the interval.

vi – When a person kills your loved one, it is understood that you would come back with vengeance (especially when both are killers). So instead of gathering your forces and keeping them on high alert, that person is enjoying an item song while having alcohol and getting wasted.

vii – Samir’s transformation into new self can now shoot & kill anyone without even looking. No matter where ever that person is, he just shoots them dead. All this is done with one magazine only which is enough for him to tackle and kill the entire gang of mafia rivals (clap, clap, clap… Bravo!).

viii – The fight sequence between Shamoon Abbasi and Sahir Lodhi is not only unrealistic but that the wiring attached to Shamoon is making him jump in highly impractical manner.

ix – A woman comes complaining to Shamoon Abbasi to know the whereabouts of her missing husband to which he lets her know but forces her to live with him instead. And in the very next scene, we are shown that woman has become his mistress… willingly! What…? My! I guess he must be so good in bed huh? <Wink>

x – A punch line Shahrukh Lodhi kept repeating in the film … ‘Is Zindagi Meh Sirf Do Log Hothay Hai… Eik Tum Aur Eik Meh’. And you have to listen to this lame dialogue in last few scenes much often.

xi – What we are shown in its end, is highly unlikely thing to happen. It is shown as a dream sequence but I can assure you that it’s not!

 

 

 

+ Overall

Despite the apparent great cinematography, decent songs, sound performances yet Raasta is a highly fictionalized story of one-man battle with never-ending trash action sequences and cheesy dialogues.

 

 

Rate: 1.75 out of 5 stars

 

A review on Pakistani Romantic feature length film, Chain Aye Na aka State of Restlessness (2017). The Production House is Hollywood Impressions & Paragon Entertainment Combined Production.

 

 

+ Crew

• Written, Directed & Produced by Syed Noor
• Cinematography by Irfan Mirza
• Edited by Syed Umar Shafiq
• Music by M. Arshad & Iffi-K (UK)
• Co-Produced by Jawed Siddiqi and Naim Haroon Sakhia

 

 

 

+ Note

Chain Aye Na’s infamous trailer created such a viral just within couple of days where many people and fans alike questioned Shehroz Sabzwari’s move to choose such a film. The film itself received mixed to mostly negative reviews by critics.

Adil Murad is the son of late Waheed Murad, one of the most famous Pakistani film actors of all time. This film debuts actress Sarish Khan.

 

 

 

 

+ Main Cast

1. Shehroz Sabzwari as Rayyan
2. Sarish Khan as Ruba
3. Adil Murad as Murad
4. Sobia Khan as Murad’s Mistress
5. Mustafa Qureshi as Murad’s Father
6. Nadeem Baig as Ruba’s Dad

 

 

xxxxxxx

 

 

+ Supportive Cast

1. Behroze Sabzwari as Rayyan’s Dad
2. Danish Nawaz as Danish
3. Atiqa Odho as Ruba’s Mom
4. Waqar Godhra as Rayyan’s Friend
5. Maryam as Rayyan’s Friend-Sis

 

 

+ Plot

It revolves around Rayyan, who is a young musician and falls in love with Ruba at first sight. However Ruba has no interest in Rayyan as she thinks she is happily engaged to Murad.

 

 

+ High Points

i – Danish Nawaz as Rayyan’s friend and musician has performed well. I was actually enjoying in watching his scenes. Other Honorable Mentions: Behroze Sabzwari and Mustafa Qureshi.

ii – The comic relief by Danish Nawaz and occasionally by Mustafa Qureshi was hilarious. They add up much fun during this un-interesting film.

iii – Most of the songs are good to listen to only.

iv – Shehroz Sabzwari’s boyish looks and attitude finally matched his role perfectly well. A person with a case of highly immaturity and is madly in love with to-be soon married young female.

 

 

+ Low Points

i – Warning: After watching Chain Aye Na personally, since there is a long list of flaws in this film that is why it’s better to talk on only the most recognizable ones.

A romantic comedy film turned out to be just cheesy-comedy film unintentionally. Just as the interval came, a guy sitting in front row to me said it a loud “Oh-My-God”! And everyone started laughing. Everyone means 11 people. That’s the total number of people as audience at Nuplex cinema hall; although this film is released only few days ago. Then we see that Rayyan is unable to take ‘No!’ for an answer. The same guy sitting in front row of mine said ‘Is he mad?’ Just like before, everyone started laughing. Even in dance scenes, audience were chuckling and giggling while covering their mouths.

ii – I disagree with other reviews regarding showing domestic violence against women. The film’s message was not that at all. Instead it shows no matter what, if a guy truly falls in love with someone and believes in himself then no one or divine intervention can stop him from winning that female’s heart. She would definitely fall in love with him eventually once she realizes his true love and craziness for her. Although I remember a very good Bollywood film, depicting same issue where the things end up pretty opposite as they would in real life — That film’s name is ‘Darr’ (1993).

The other message was how some parents take their children for granted and uses them for achieving their personal goals.

iii – This film needs a good dance choreographer, as Sobia Khan decides to wear red dress tries to dance in seductive manner but it appears as if she is aerobics fanatic.

iv – It gives a very bad impression of Shehroz Sabzwari to see with his father always / mostly in his projects. It looks as if Shehroz cannot find work and looks up to his father Behroze Sabzwari all the time. His father should let his son make his own choices regarding film career at least and try to work in separate projects. Let Shehroz appear in good films for some time before start working in his projects again. Shehroz has a long way to go to be in his father’s footsteps.

v – Adil Murad plays a dark, bad character therefore there are hardly any lights in his ‘Castle Vania’ where he most of time is in his nighty, smokes cigars and drinks a lot. His favorite place for ‘Having fun’ is by the house / farm’s poolside with his lovesick mistress.

vi – In different vocal songs, Shehroz’s voice doesn’t matches at all. It clearly shows that he is lip sync only.

vii – The intense scene in the film’s end was so funny that no one in the audience had a straight face but kept laughing non-stop. The sound of laughter became so loud that it started echoing in almost empty hall.

viii – Adil Murad’s last scene indicates that most probably there would a sequel. — A sequel?!? Are you ****ing kidding me?? Whose goanna watch THAT?

ix – Rayyan and Ruba come running to hug each other with such an expression on their faces which shows clear sign of relief as almost saying it aloud ‘Thank God! the film is over’!

 

 

 

+ Overall

Chain Aye Na is so Bad that it’s actually ‘Good’ and may become cult favorite by Syed Noor’s die-hard fans.

 

 

 

Rate: 1.0 out of 5 stars

 

A review on Pakistani Drama feature length film, Chalay Thay Saath (2017) aka We Walked Together. The Production Houses are We Think Films and Hot Water Bottle Films.

 

 

+ Crew

• Directed by Umer Adil
• Cinematography by Shahzad Khan
• Written by Atiya Zaidi
• Edited by M. Arsalan (Sharp Image)
• Produced by Beenish Umer

 

 

 

+ Note

Chalay Thay Saath is focused on the Hunza Culture. It was shot in the Northern Areas of Pakistan in the region of Gilgit-Baltistan. The film crew over 40 days to complete the film shoot in the Hunza region.

Its original background score is composed by Abbas Ali Khan and songs by Mooro.

 

 

+ Main Cast

1. Syra Shehroz as Resham
2. Kent S. Leung as Adam
3. Pepsi as Pepsi
4. Behroze Sabzwari as Resham’s father
5. Mansha Pasha as Tania
6. Osama Tahir as Zain
7. Sherbaaz Kaleem as N/A
8. Shamim Halai as N/A
9. Zhalay Sharhadi as N/A
10. Faris Khalid as N/A

 

 

+ Plot

Resham is on a journey to discover her past and future alongside her friends. They come across a Chinese citizen, Adam who carries a language translator application in his mobile to understand and speak his new friends’ language. During this time, with the surroundings of beautiful mountainous scenery, Resham and Adam fall in love with each other.

 

 

+ High Points

i – Osama Tahir’s performance is very intriguing and praise worthy. Last time I watched his performance in All-Stars theatre play ‘Qusorwaar’ directed by Sunil Shankar at Arts Council, based on classic Broadway & film ’12 Angry Men’. Osama is a great actor and was pleased to see his inclusion in this film as part of the supporting cast. Other Honorable Mentions: Rest of the performers.

ii – Art direction and the northern area locations that they chose to be used throughout the film is very exotic and highly stunning to look at.

iii – The humor is light hearted without using any vulgarity or cheap jokes. Some punch lines are very amusing.

iv – I was pleased to see Hani Taha in Mooroo’s song in mid of the film, thought she was an add-on in the cast for the later film. I have watched her performances in recent theatre plays, where she has acted really well. Unfortunately, she was just there as cameo appearance.

v – The cinematography is beautifully shot, and nicely handled. Good job!

 

 

 

+ Low Points

i – In multiple scenes, you would see Pepsi’s presence. Pepsi cans are everywhere, the people are shown consuming Pepsi instead of water. The person responsible for its ‘Product Placement’ should be sued / fired for almost ruining the film.

Plus in the start, a long list of ‘Media / Travel / Print / Sponsor / Radio partners’ were shown before the film actually began. I almost said it aloud in the audience, ‘Picture meh sirf yahi dekhnay ko milayga kya’?

ii – The writer used a very simple story / plot.

iii – The second half was a bit drag. A couple of reviewers gave bad reviews to the film due to this main reason but it did not bother me as such.

iv – Except for one or two, the songs are either so-so or forgettable.

v – There were some scenes of close medium shots where the camera was shaking unnecessarily that instead of focusing on what the scene is about or listen to the actor’s punch lines or watch his performance… my concern was ‘Why the hell camera is shaking for’?

 

 

 

+ Overall

Chalay Thay Saath is a smooth romantic comedy with charming performances.

 

 

Rate: 3.25 out of 5 stars