Bilal Lashari is Reminiscing on his “lifetime experience” of creating “The Legend of Maula Jatt,” 

• As Pakistan’s first movie to reach the milestone of PKR 150 crore, The Legend of Maula Jatt has continued to shatter box office records!

Director Bilal Lashari discussed the innovative concept that drove the creation of TLoMJ while reflecting on his journey through obstacles and perseverance in creating Pakistan’s largest cinematic event.

In an exclusive interview with a News channel, Lashari spoke about the film’s resounding success around the world and his strategy for revitalising the long-forgotten Punjabi language “Gandasa” cinema subgenre.

The filmmaker remarked, “It was good to revisit the idea, but at the same time, it was a great challenge to remake it on a big scale.”

The gandasa genre was cited as the cause of the collapse of the Pakistani cinema industry, but “sadly, the cult genre did not evolve with time,” according to Lashari.

“Gandasa flicks did not hold up well over time. It became caught in a loop,” he continued. He continued by saying that the inspiration for TLoMJ struck him during Waar (2013) and quipped, ironically, “It was the last thing expected from me.”

On the 2007 film Khuda Kay Liye, Lashari served as Shoaib Mansoor’s associate director. She acknowledged that the TLoMJ news “came as a shock to many people.”

My close pals responded to me indifferently. People also provided some unfavourable feedback since they were unable to envision the revival of Punjabi gandasa movies.

Given his innovative method of creating a blockbuster movie in the annals of Pakistani cinema, it would be appropriate to refer to Lashari as the ultimate “risk taker” of his era. To the director, creating a significant and lasting work is a personal endeavour.

No matter how big or small the budget, he remarked, “every picture itself is a risk.” Making TLoMJ was a once-in-a-lifetime event for me since it forced me out of my comfort zone as a filmmaker.
The director remembers being urged to develop a sequel to Waar by the audience and other professionals in the field and said, “I didn’t want to stay in my comfort zone. I never wanted to repeat myself, and Waar 2 would be the same.

Similar to the TLoMJ, there won’t be a follow-up since Lashari doesn’t want to reiterate himself or risk becoming out of date. I constantly seek to learn new things, and I take care with the next creations I offer for the audience.

For TLoMJ, Lashari has served in a number of significant capacities behind the camera, including those of director, screenwriter, editor, and director of photography (DOP). He admitted that while working on TLoMJ, he particularly appreciated his role as the director of photography.

“Creating a universe that follows the movie’s plot was a difficult undertaking. Everything, from the production design to the set designs to the cinematography and photography, was imaginatively planned to tie the film’s consistency to a universe that is both fantasy and reality.

Lashari said that taking on numerous roles was challenging but also enjoyable for him. The portion of creating the screenplay that he most liked was, he stated.

When he finished writing the screenplay, he said, “I felt such a big relief.” Also disclosed by Lashari was the intriguing task of hiring Nasir Adeeb, the original author of the 1979 Maula Jatt, to compose the dialogue for TLoMJ.

It was not possible to modify the nature of this endeavour, so I was expecting him to see things my way, he said.

Speaking of difficulties, Lashari disclosed that TLoMJ’s post-production required a lot of time and perseverance. By 2019, the film’s main filming was complete, and the necessary post-production visual effects could not be completed due to funding constraints, he revealed.

The filmmaker praised film producer Ammara Hikmat for remaining committed to the project despite having to engage highly esteemed freelancers to complete the picture’s post-production.

Fawad Khan, Hamza Ali Abbasi, Mahira Khan, and Humaima Malick are among the impressive cast members of Lashari’s TLoMJ. They are joined by Mirza Gohar Rasheed, Faris Shafi, Ali Azmat, Nayyer Ejaz, Shafqat Cheema, and other notable actors.

Speaking of his favourite, the filmmaker admitted it was difficult to choose because they were all excellent in their roles.

He praised the movie’s villain Noori Natt (played by Hamza) and addressed audience and critic complaints that Noori eclipsed Maula Jatt’s heroic figure (played by Fawad).

Noori Nath is the movie’s driving force, and Hamza did his character incredible credit, according to Lashari.

“Noori’s persona has always been portrayed as being quite huge. He added that “Noori’s character essays the concept of the picture, which is a conflict of good vs. evil, and that he is the strong, dynamic villain by default.

As he stated, “we gave a different spin on Daaro’s character and showed her more powerful and demanding in her job.” He also discussed the rich character of Daaro (played by Humaima).

The moment Daaro received the crown turban of the Nath tribe was one of Lashari’s favourites in the movie because it “gave additional dramatic textures to her character following the dark background tale of her birth.”

The entire cast and crew were credited by the director for the film’s unprecedented triumph. Speaking about his upcoming endeavours, Lashari revealed some of the concepts he intended to pursue. “I was looking forward to TLoMJ’s conclusion. I’m now looking for the ideal inspiration.

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