Daily Times

As news circulating actor and director Shamoon Abbasi’s ‘Durj’ making its way to the Cannes Film Festival 2019, there are reports of more variable projects that he is currently working on.

Shamoon Abbasi dares to play the most versatile and controversial roles in the industry. In a recent interview with Daily Times, he gave us an exclusive sneak peek into another major project that’s in process.

Abbasi’s working on a series based on notorious serial killer of Pakistan, ‘The Urban Legend of Javed Iqbal & the 100 Smiles.’

Abbasi is playing the character of Javed Iqbal who was considered one of the most deadly criminals.

Don’t you think doing another serial killer role after ‘Durj’ can actually land you in a category that could be hard to break out of? Playing a controversial, villainous serial killer again; doesn’t that feel too risky?

“I don’t mind because I’m not standing anywhere in the race of being cast by channels. I’m making my own mark in what I like to do. I’ve been cast as a villain since ‘Waar’ became a super hit. After that, no one gave me a good role,” he laughed.

Abbasi is playing the character of Jawed Iqbal who was considered one of the most deadly criminals

“So why bother? I will make my own project when I feel the need for a soft role,” he adds.

Revealing the darkest stories of our society, wouldn’t that send out a bad image of the country? Do you think these characters can affect people negatively?

“Can you stop the world from making documentaries about serial killers,” he said, sharing the example of the Netflix show ‘Conversations with a Killer – The Ted Bundy Tapes’.

“There are so many similar shows. The world has been watching and producing them since the birth of cinema and television. So it’s not a national issue rather a psychological issue that people adore to watch,” the actor stated.

The song and dance routine doesn’t interest the actor.

“Stories like ‘The Urban Legend of Javed Iqbal & the 100 Smiles’ interest the audience much more than any item number,” the star claims.

The actor is also unimpressed by the younger lot who show no regard for the craft, with no concept of sacrificing their ego for a character.

“These people just care about looking pretty for the screen. Jumping into character and getting their hands dirty for a role is beyond them,” he added.

When asked about the cast, Abbasi informed that he needs another month to finalise it and the shoot starts in May.

Abbasi also talked about another upcoming film ‘Patakh De’. The shoot starts this September. The star studded cast includes Ahsan Khan, Hania Amir, Kubra Khan, Azaan Sami, Shaan, Abbasi himself and also veteran actors like Javed Sheikh, Bushra Ansari and Shafqat Cheema.

The writer can be reached at zarimua@gmail.com