Who’s that guy?

By Usman Ghafoor

Those who have seen Khuda Key Liye think of Fawad Khan as the suave but strong-headed, no-nonsense kind of a person. This image took effect from his convincing portrayal of the budding musician Sarmad who is pulled into the dangerous world of religious extremism. A lot of his fans started associating him with Sarmad and vice versa.

A musician in real life, Fawad first came into limelight as the lead vocalist of Entity-Paradigm (EP), a popular rock band of early 2000s. Later, he appeared in a small-time sitcom, titled Jutt & Bond, where he proved that he had a natural flair for comedy. Khuda Key Liye was a complete departure for this 30-year-old musician-turned-actor who made everyone sit up and notice his uninhibited performance even as he shared screen space – in his very first film – with Lollywood’s undisputed numero uno, Shaan. Fawad’s understated but well-nuanced portrayal of a young, impressionable youth was pitted competently against Shaan’s stellar histrionics. And, the result was a winner. Movie Mag International met with the ‘other hero’ of KKL who was described by renowned Bollywood trade analyst Komal Nahta as “cute” and “instantly likeable”.

What keeps you occupied these days?
I’m running my recording studio. Besides, there are a couple of TV projects that I finished recently. One of them has got to do with public awareness message. It’s titled Satrangi. Otherwise I am lying low.

How come you missed the glorious chance of attending the KKL premiere show in India? Wasn’t it a special occasion for you?
It definitely was. KKL took our cinema to international level. It is also different from the Indian formula. But, I was caught up with some domestic engagements, which required my immediate attention. That’s why I couldn’t make it to India. If I had gone, I would be very honoured to represent my country.

Shaan has come on record to say that he gave the premiere a miss on purpose. He had issues with director Shoaib Mansoor who, he said, didn’t bother to invite him to the show.
Well, as far as I am concerned, Shoaib sahib definitely contacted me. In fact, he insisted that I come along. But, my sister in law was getting married. I couldn’t possibly not attend her wedding.

Indian media has lavished praises on the performances by all actors of KKL. Don’t you think your presence at the premiere would have got you some interesting film project in Bollywood?
See, I’ll repeat that family for me comes first. Opportunities will come. I’ve been really lazy in my eight years of media career. I left the industry three times and came back. So, I don’t think this was THE only chance and I missed it.

Are you ambitious about acting?
I love whatever I do. You don’t always get the kind of work you want to do, but I love acting. I also love music. Whatever I do, I do it from my heart.

Tell us a bit about your band EP. How did it split, in the first place?
When I joined college to do Computers, it wasn’t to my liking. I had joined under some pressure, which is a different story altogether. So, I started a band with friends in college. It was called Paradigm. We used to do underground gigs and cover songs. I suddenly realised that I loved to do vocals. While I was doing Jutt & Bond, I told Zain that we should do the soundtrack for the play. He suggested that I do it in collaboration with Ahmed Ali Butt and Xulfi, my costars in Jutt… That’s when we sat down, made a few songs, and released them as Entity-Paradigm. We began in 2003 and released one album, titled Irtiqa. We toured and held concerts heavily for one year. Then we had some conflicts and decided to split the band.

Were you approached for KKL after Ali Zafar opted out?
My friend Bilal Lashari was in the 1st unit of Shoaib saheb’s assistant directors. One day he told me that they were finalising the cast. I went with him to Shoaib saheb’s office. The latter had a couple of pictures on the table. They were screen-test shots of Ali Zafar and Junaid Jamshed (who was later replaced by Shaan). The film’s shooting hadn’t started yet. Back then, I was really fat. My waist was 38″. Shoaib sahib joked that I’d look like Junaid’s elder brother. So, maybe, next time. I said ok.

A few months later, Ali Zafar left and I was called back by Shoaib sahib. That’s that. !

Originally published in Movie Mag International — June 2008