By Usman Ghafoor
There are many ‘firsts’ attached to Bol, pop star Atif Aslam’s acting debut aside. MTV VJ turned model Mahirah Khan-Askari makes her first appearance on big screen, although she is now due on a lavish Mehreen Jabbar production also. Not only does she play one of the main leads in Bol, Mahirah is cast opposite Atif in what is actually the film’s only romantic track in the story.
Mahirah will be seen, for the first time, donning a burqa and sporting a very simple, non-glamorous look, minus any makeup and designer clothing — all of which is in accordance with her character as a lower-middle-class girl. Those who’ve had a peek into the sneak previews of Bol swear Mahirah hasn’t looked better. However, if this is a little turn-off for her fans from MTV days, watch out for ‘Kaho’, the concert song where she is all glammed up in a Fahd Huseyn outfit and also shakes a leg with Atif!
Of course, Bol being Humaima Malik’s first cinematic outing is old news now, but what is interesting to note is that a lady who loves to cut quite a figure(!) was made to wear the simplest of clothes, again with no makeup or bling bling, throughout the film. And, to know that she isn’t singing any songs or romancing anyone here. Humaima’s gain, however, is the fact that she has a completely author-backed role and she gets to speak some of Bol’s most powerful dialogues.
With Iman Ali, it’s quite the other way round. Having played the simple girl-next-door who lands among a bunch of religious bigots who victimise her but she never gives up the fight, in 2007’s Khuda Key Liye, another Shoaib Mansoor film that got her the Best Actress trophy at the Lux Style Awards, Iman now essays the role of a courtesan named Meena who is not only beautiful, with oodles of glamour, but also has a hint of mischief. It’s a role diametrically opposed to KKL’s educated and no-nonsense Maryam (aka Mary). Keep your eyes out for the gorgeous peshwazes and lehengas Iman gets to wear, courtesy of Mehdi; not to forget her ‘Sayyian Bolein’ dance number that is reminiscent of Rekha’s ‘Dil Cheez Kya Hai’ from Umrao Jaan.
Closely linked to the characters played by Iman, Humaima and Mahirah is Hakeem sahib, an ill-mouthed, rigid maulvi, with no care for human emotions, portrayed to a tee by first-timer Manzar Sehbai, the younger brother of well renowned writer/poet Sarmad Sehbai. Manzar has earlier acted in a PTV play, Toba Tek Singh, but Bol is his film debut. And, what a powerful role to debut with! It’s a role that Shoaib Mansoor is said to have written keeping Naseeruddin Shah in mind. But Naseer had his family engagements so he couldn’t give the required dates. Later, the role was offered to another Bollywood stalwart, Irrfan Khan, who also had his earlier assignments to complete. It was a character that imbued the film with a strong religious conflict, so Mansoor wanted only a Muslim actor for it. The headhunting eventually stopped at Manzar Sehbai, a new face who fit the bill amazingly well.
Bol has another PTV face from its classic days, appearing for the first time on silver screen — Zaib Rehman, an actor who garnered accolades for her graceful and understated performances in plays like Shikayatein Hikayatein and Andhera Ujala. She plays Hakeem sahib’s wife and the unfortunate mother of seven daughters in a poor household in Lahore’s Walled City. But her essential humility and silent suffering make her a perfect foil for Hakeem’s irrationality and fits of rage.
A mention must be made of an entire lot of supporting actors most of whom had never done film before but they had some relevant experience on their resume — from Lahore-based A-level students Amr Kashmiri and Mahnoor Khan whose previous acting credentials included theatre plays with Shah Sharabeel and other amateur groups, to Harvard student Hania Cheema who had also worked with Ajoka, to Warda Khan who had won ARY’s reality show Nachh Baliye the same year, and model-turned-TV-talk-show-host Minahil Akram.
Bol’s production team also comprised a vibrant young bunch of film graduates from BNU and NCA, Lahore, supervised by Fatima Asim Khan and Muhammad Asif. The film’s First AD, Ali Javed is a Masters in Film Making from London School of Film and has earlier assisted Shoaib Mansoor in editing KKL. The makeup for the entire cast was done by Maram Azmat, another film ‘first’, barring that of Iman Ali who stuck to her favourite Shahzad Reza.
Originally published in The News International, on June 12, 2011
Good Publicity (with UG) 