Hareem Farooq is a household name for sure. Within a matter of years, she has grown as an actress and is all set to grace the big screen once again in the upcoming 2018 comedy-action film ‘Parchi’. She is also one of the three judges on Miss Veet 2017. When asked, how she ventured into acting, Hareem Farooq says, “I wasn’t very vocal about being an actor, however I wanted to pursue it as a career for myself. This was about fifteen years ago when acting was not considered a serious profession. When I was pursuing law, Osman Khalid, a very dear friend of mine, knew I could act. He approached me for a small role for one of his plays as a replacement. So, I auditioned for the part and got selected. The moment I stepped on stage, I knew acting was what I wanted to do.” Farooq describes herself as hardworking, lazy and focused. I asked her what details she could share with me about her character and plot of the upcoming film in which she is starring called ‘Parchi’. She instantly responded, “You guys should wait and watch! One thing I would say is that Eman, my character, has never been portrayed in Pakistani or Indian films until now. She isn’t an average bubbly, girl next door. Eman is a badass leading lady who shouldn’t be messed with. With this film, I hope a convincing message is sent out to the audiences that a woman is capable of being bold and daring.” Acting aside, Farooq is also affiliated with IRK Films, a production house that has created two films in the past namely ‘Siyaah’ and ‘Janaan’. The latest addition to their list is ‘Parchi’, a comedy-action flick. I asked Farooq about IRK Films and its core objectives to which she answered, “IRK Films was founded by Imran Raza Kazmi, who is a very good friend of mine. When the industry was not producing quality films, Imran identified the potential this country had for uplifting Pakistan’s cinema. In 2009, he made the film ‘Siyaah’. Back then, we had no idea if we were going for a feature film or not. He created ‘Siyaah’ on an Rs 800,000 budget and the film ended up making Rs 4,000,000, which was brilliant. The purpose of IRK is cinema with a cause; we wanted to introduce a platform for new, talented people in Pakistan.” Farooq is also one of the three judges alongside Aamina Sheikh and Adnan Siddiqui in this year’s Miss Veet, Pakistan. When I inquired about her experience working as a judge on the panel and what she learned from her co-judges, Farooq answered diligently. “It is quite an honour and privilege that I was considered for this position as I was not as experienced as Aamina or Adnan; even for the brand to think that I was capable of doing this was a privilege itself. It was an eye opening experience for me and gave me a sense of responsibility and made me realize that fame shouldn’t be taken for granted but be channelled positively to help others.” Farooq is also a television actress. I asked her about her upcoming projects for television and film. “I am going to start doing television next year. Let’s see! At the moment, I don’t have time for it but I don’t intend to leave television. As far as other projects go, I am working on more films and other productions that are a surprise and I shouldn’t be talking about them right now.” To shake things up, I ended up asking her about politics. When I questioned her about Pakistan Muslim League-Nawaz and Nawaz Sharif’s disqualification, she responded hesitantly, “A country shouldn’t be involved in politics and politics shouldn’t be involved in any form of art, as simple as that.” Farooq also had a lot to say about sexual harassment. “It shouldn’t be done. Everyone needs to be educated about sex and should be taught to stand up for themselves. The youngsters ought to know that harassment is intolerable and one should not even think about doing it.” “Having lived in Islamabad for most of your life, what advice would you render to aspiring actors who reside in the capital city and want to pursue an acting career?” I queried. “Yes, Islamabad does lack in exposure in terms of media but it is now finally on the horizon. My advice for everybody is to follow your dreams, believe in yourself and not give up. Just because you are in a small city, it doesn’t mean you cannot achieve great things.” Having portrayed positive roles in her novel career, Farooq is headed in a completely different direction with her latest film role. Published in Daily Times, December 7th 2017.