ISLAMABAD: “Pakistan cinema revival” headlines have become commonplace in the past five years, with the once dead “Lollywood” slowly being rehabilitated to produce not only commercially successful films but also critically acclaimed ones.
This past weekend Karachi played host to Pakistan’s first ever Pakistan International Film Festival (PIFF). Hosted by Karachi Film Society, the PIFF set out to provide a platform for Pakistani storytellers to show their work on an international stage.
Spread over six locations in Karachi, the event boasted an array of engagements from panel discussions to premiers and screening movies –- with the lasting note of a star-studded awards night.
Day one of the event kicked off with the highly anticipated panel “Collaborations across borders: Possibilities and future directors,” about tensions between Pakistan and India.
Members of the Bollywood film industry including award-winning actor and director, Nandita Das, veteran actor Vinay Pathak, Bahubali director S.S. Ranjouli, and “Gulabi Gang” director Nishtha Jain were among the attendees.
Day one also saw the premiere of the highly anticipated film “Cake,” starring Adnan Malik, Sanam Saeed and Aamina Sheikh.
On day two, S.S. Rajamouli, director of the two-part Indian epic “Baahubali“; Adnan Sarwar, Pakistani actress; and director Atiqa Odho joined for panel discussion sessions “Genre Busters” and “From script to screen and beyond.”
Day three featured Nishtha Jain, Vishal Bhardwaj, Subhash Kapoor, Pakistani film director Momina Duraid, director Jami, and actress and producer Hareem Farooq for a session titled “Films for change: Socially motivated content in South Asian film.”
“Gulabi Gang,” which was made by Jain in 2012, was also screened at the event and tells the story of a group of women in Bundelkhand, India, who, draped in pink saris, began a revolution in which they fight back against gender violence.
Day three also included a panel on the importance and the relationship between music and Bollywood films which was highly attended, possibly because of the ban on sharing entertainment that targeted Pakistani musicians Atif Aslam and Rahat Fateh Ali Khan, whose tunes and voices have become synonymous with modern Bollywood ballads.
The final day closed on a rocking note with a live performance by Sufi music legend Abida Parveen and an awards ceremony honoring the films and talent of the very first PIFF.
Chief guest, Minister of State for Information and Broadcasting Marriyum Aurangzeb, said in her speech on the closing night: “Artists have a huge role in portraying a positive image of their country.” She thanked the guests for “showing that people from other countries can also come to Pakistan and assist Pakistani cinema in its revival.”
“We’re grateful to KFS (Karachi Film Society) and Sultana Siddiqui (TV personality) for opening their arms to you all,” actress Mahira Khan told the international delegation. “But more than that, we’re grateful to you for coming running into these arms.”
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