Karachi hosted acclaimed Bollywood filmmakers Nishtha Jain and Vishal Bhardwaj as well as musician Rekha Bhardwaj to two culture-related sessions on filmmaking and music titled ‘Films For Change – Socially Motivated Content In South Asian Films’ and ‘The Future Of Music & Lyrics – How Important Is Music In The Subcontinental Era?’ respectively. In the first session, Mr and Mrs Bhardwaj were flanked by Subhash Kapoor of ‘Jolly LBB’ fame, producer Momina Duraid, actress Hareem Farooq and filmmakers Nishtha Jain and Jami. The panel discussed effective storytelling, the evolution of Pakistani cinema and staying consistent in one’s approach towards attaining success. Vishal expressed his pride over the number of Bollywood films making it to international film festivals especially his own critically acclaimed films like ‘Omkara’, ‘Maqbool’ and ‘Haider’. Replying to a question, he joked how he had decided to rope in actor Shahid Kapoor for ‘Haider’ as he had not only agreed to be a part of the film cost free but was also ready to go bald for his role. Vishal also expressed his liking towards ‘items songs’ and how they add vigour to a film, much to an audience’s delight. Films contributing towards social change and leaving an impact on the audience were also discussed. In response to another question, Hareem Farooq expressed how at one point when she has aspired to become an actress, she was rejected by a number of filmmakers but instead of losing heart, she remained firm because of her undying passion and resolve to succeed. She said she had faith and confidence in her abilities and talent. Farooq’s statements were met with immense applause and her stance was backed by Momina Duraid. Jami. She said it was the age of mobile phone cameras, and now it is easy and convenient to make films even through phones. “If you have talent and a good story to tell, you will eventually get recognised. We have people coming in with their stories and so sometimes we like them, sometimes we don’t. I tell you, ‘Humsafar’ was rejected by three media houses before it came to us. So, if a story or a person has talent and substance, it does get recognised eventually,” Duraid said. At the second session which was also held on the premises of Ziauddin University, the panel consisted of Ali Zafar, Rekha, writer Asif Noorani, Sultan Arshad, actor and composer Arshad Mehmood doctor and writer Omer Adil. Dr Omer Adil, amidst cheers and applause, expressed his disappointment over how music these days had fallen victim to remixing and borrowing. He said these are just the kind of mistakes our government makes when taking over. “Music and lyrics have lost their flavour of authenticity and originality,” Dr Omer said. He added that artists should refrain from multitasking in a project and leave the needful to the person concerned. “The director is also the producer. He is also acting in the film, singing a track in the film and so on and so forth,” he said. Zafar disagreed with Adil saying the audience is the best judge. Forgotten medleys and films are sometimes reproduced in a way that awakens the audience’s love for them. Zafar announced the release of his upcoming film ‘Teefa in Trouble’ which would be on July 22 this year. Social media impact was also discussed during the session, where Zafar mentioned his dislike towards the platform and how much lost and involved we are in it these days. Dr Omer reminded us about the positive impact of social media and how it had helped many aspiring filmmakers and singers to get recognition and be discovered. The session ended with Rekha singing a few lines of her hit song ‘Hamri Attariya’, Zafar sang ‘Jhoom’ and Vishal sang ‘Dil tou bacha hai ji’. Renowned filmmaker Mehreen Jabbar’s newest film was screened at Nueplex Cinema alongside actor Irrfan Khan’s film as part of the Pakistan International Film Festival 2018. Towards the end of Day 3, a gala dinner was hosted by Jamil Baig of Nueplex at his residence where the who’s who of the industry showed up in large numbers. Award winning artist Javed Bashir took to stage to belt out some of his biggest hits from Bollywood. Published in Daily Times, April 2nd 2018.