He came, he saw and
he conquered. Bilal Lashari’s journey as a film maker has begun on as high note
a note as it possibly could. While it’s clear that no one else can come close,
one wonders whether even he will be able to top himself and fulfil the expectations
associated with his next project. Now, Pakistan’s leading director is all set
to surprise us again, not with box office returns but with the project that he
has gotten his hands on. Lashari earlier
put the arms and ammunition of Pakistan army to stylistic use, and will now be
giving a new identity to Gandasa films with a multi-million dollar remake of
Maula Jatt. Bilal Lashari unveils his next venture in an exclusive interview
with The Express Tribune.
“This will be my
take on Gandasa films which are blamed for the death of Lollywood” says Bilal
Lashari. “I think the Gandasa genre was a missed opportunity for Pakistani
cinema, and what better choice to utilise it then by paying homage to the cult
classic Maula Jatt.”
This rebooted
version of Maula Jatt has been in its pre production phase for the last seven
months, and Lashari was waiting for the Waar hype to quiet down for the right
moment to disclose his new film. The film is a co-production with an American
production house, the name of which he is not disclosing just yet, and will
have a budget in the millions of dollars, according to the director. From a war
epic to a new brand of Gandasa films; Lashari is taking some huge steps and
even huger risks. Traditional Gandasa films have been looked down upon by
modern viewers due to a lack of content, but Lashari is not only aiming to stay
true to the spirit of the originals, but he is also determined to make it
palatable for contemporary audiences.
“The entire world
has been exporting their own styles and versions of cinema outside their
territory, but we have been silent,” Lashari says, concerned. “Hollywood sent
us the old westerns or the cowboy films, the Japanese gave us Samurais. We have
also had Ninjas, but I now feel it’s our time to tell the world what our
Gandasa films are capable of,” Lashari stays determinedly.
His concerns are
genuine, and the fact is that in the past few years many have spoken about
revamping Maula Jatt but no one has actually successfully done so, making
Lashari’s venture all the more interesting. Four different production teams
have approached The Express Tribune in the past two years for potential
coverage regarding their versions of Maula Jatt, and none have shown any
progress or delivered a finished product thus far. Lashari has acquired the
rights to the original cult classic starring Sultan Rahi, and one can’t help
but be intrigued as to what his vision of the film is.
“My version of
Maula Jatt will be a visual epic, with less dialogue and many captivating
moments. It will be a dark but stylised take on Pakistan’s original film
genre.”
While we can tell
you that the new Maula Jatt will stay true to the original by being a Punjabi
language film, the name of the script writer has not been disclosed as yet. The
casting process has just begun and Lashari is looking for younger and fresher
faces from Pakistan and is keeping his options open in terms of getting
Bollywood stars on board. The shooting locations for the film have not been
finalised and neither has the cast.
On the other hand,
Mindworks Media and Ary Films have announced the making of Waar 2 which
surprisingly, will not be directed Bilal Lashari. This time around, Dr Hasan
Waqas Rana will be calling the shots. This certainly doesn’t reduce Lashari’s
love for his passion project, which became the highest grossing film in
Pakistan. Apart from the fact that it made Lashari the most acclaimed film
maker in the country, the film also raised the bar in terms of production value
in Pakistani films. There are numerous reasons why Lashari is neither in favour
of a sequel being made and will not be onboard as director.
“Waar was something
extraordinary for Pakistani cinema and it should just be left alone,” he
chuckles. “Personally Waar 2 would mean
staying in my safe zone, and like any concerned artist I would rather challenge
myself with every new project. If I took the helm for Waar 2, it would be more
like taking one step ahead and five steps backwards.”
Ever since Waar was
released, the rumour mill has been churning our news that Lashari had a major
fall out with Rana, the producer/writer of the film who will now be directing
Waar 2. Some said that the reason was based on the producer/director
distribution of revenues, while others believed it was due to the criticism that
the film was receiving on its script.
“The rumours are
completely false, and I share a good relationship with the producer of the
film, or I would not be in Dubai busy promoting Waar. Yes, the
director-producer relationship is one where you have differences, but they
certainly do not outweigh the good times,” Lashari says.
Partly excited and
partly nervous, Lashari had to take a deep breath before giving a final message
for his fans out there regarding the expectations from his next film.
“Maula Jatt will be
much bigger and better than Waar, and my fans should keep expectations as high
as possible, because that’ll motivate me to meet them.”
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