Leading actors, directors and writers from the Pakistani film and television industry highlighted the importance of a good script, idea or a story for any film and drama. Under the banner of ‘In Search of The Next Big Story’, renowned actor Fawad Khan moderated a session planned for providing a platform to the young and aspiring script writers of the country. A large number of students from film and TV degree from the leading universities of Lahore including LUMS, BNU, NCA and LSE were present on the occasion to have input from the distinguished panel of experts who shed light on the art of good script writing and storytelling. “A great story is the flesh and bones behind a great film as the backbone of every film or drama is a good story,” said leading actor and screenwriter Fawad Khan. He was of the view that we cannot have good structure of film or drama without a good story or idea behind it. We are living in a competitive world today but unfortunately there is a huge vacuum in scriptwriting here, Fawad said. “After finding good talent of music in Pakistan, the Pepsi is providing a platform to the aspiring writers because we have great talent in scriptwriting here and we only need to shed light on it,” said the Humsafar star Fawad Khan, while moderating the session. Talking on the script before signing any drama or film, renowned actress Mahira Khan said that she doesn’t think that this script will be a hit or not but she only thinks that either this script suits her or not before signing any drama. We have good scripts in dramas because we have 25 episodes for a drama and writer can show you 25 climax scenes as well because he has a broader scope there, said Mahira. In films, the writer has only two hours and he can show you only one or two climax scenes and therefore we are facing the problem of good script in movies, said the Humsafar star. Actor Ahmad Ali Butt, who came from the theatre and then did TV and ultimately appeared in many hit films, said that first he wanted to sign a film and therefore he didn’t give much attention to the script. I wanted a film and Nadeem Baig was an excellent director and therefore I didn’t see the script and did Jawani Phir Nhi Ani with him, said Butt. He further added that he at a later stage refused three films of another director just because of the weak script because he already did hit movies and didn’t want to take a risk now. Giving advice to the aspiring and young writers, Butt said that you must understand your culture and heritage if you want to produce good stuff. “Try to relate it with your culture and the audience,” he said. The younger generation must know about Munawar Zarif, Noor Jehan and the great Nanha because how one can worship if he doesn’t know about his Gods, said Ahmad Ali Butt, who is also the grandson of great Noor Jehan. Talking on the script before signing any drama or film, actress Mahira Khan said that she doesn’t think whether a script will be a hit or not, she only thinks if a script suits her or not before signing any project. ‘We have good scripts in dramas because we have 25 episodes for a drama and a writer can show you 25 climax scenes as well because he has a broader scope there,’ she said Writer and academician Navid Shahzad said that every story must have a beginning, middle and an end. “I have taught cinema throughout my life and it is very close to my heart. A good product is result of a team work. Sometimes director has to trust the actor for a good scene and sometimes the actor has to trust the director in order to get good results,” said writer and critic Navid Shahzad. She was of the view that our young graduates and students of film and TV should be made part of the industry. The internship must be mandatory for film and TV programs as it can help bridging the gap between the students and the industry, said Navid, who has just written her debut novel Aslan’s Roar that talks about the Turkish cinema. Writer, actor and director Vasay Chaudhry said that one should not be disheartened if any idea or story didn’t get into a film or drama because ideas frequently come to your mind from time to time. “I wrote a movie on the subject of Hockey in 2005 because there wasn’t any work on Hockey in the whole subcontinent and later Shahrukh Khan made Chakday India based on the same subject but my movie is yet to be made,” said Chaudhry, who has written many hits including Jawani Phir nhi Ani and Mein Hon Shahid Afridi. Answering to a student of film and TV that why we are making only love stories in Pakistan, Vasay Chaudhry said that because it is a hit formula these days to go with the love stories. It is a trend and people follow the trends everywhere in the world, he said. The biggest hero of our time Humayun Saeed said that if the script is weak then we go for other options to make the film better by getting good cast and direction. He was of the view that he has both the money and respect in mind before doing any project and he tries his best that people shouldn’t be bored at all after watching his film. Talking about his super hit drama serial Meray Pass Tum Ho that is the talk of the town these days, Humayun said that it is the best ever script of Khalil ur Rehman Qamar so far and director Nadeem Baig has also done complete justice with the script of Khalil Sahab. He revealed that the script of Meray Pass Tum Ho wasn’t changed by the director even for a single scene and it is completely in its original form as written by Khalil. Talking to the young students of film and TV, Humayun said that he really wants to get good scripts from the young generation but he doesn’t know how they will send to him. I’ll make a film if you people send me good scripts and I am sure that the cinema of Pakistan will be changed by the work of you all the young generation, said Humayun, who has given many super hits including Jawani Phir Nhi Ani, JPNA2 and Bin Roye. Director Asim Raza said that film is a collaborative art and everyone should sit together including writer and director to give a good product. It will be good for the director if he gets the sketches of all the actors also, he said. Asim, who has given us films like Ho Mann Jahan and Parey Hut Love, advised the students not to write for Fawad or Mahira but write for yourself with inner feel. Fawad Khan thanked the Pepsi Black for providing an opportunity to the young and aspiring writers through the platform and termed the ‘In Search of The Next Big Story’ a successful initiative in near future.