Pakistan Film Industry: To Be or Not To Be
There always remained dilemma for Pakistan governments to 'To be or Not to be' with the film industry, being a Muslim state. That is the greatest question. Shifting mindsets and opposing social classes within masses have made it difficult for the industry policy-makers to chalk out a certain plan for films, most suited to Pakistani values, for Pakistanis in and around the world. Sometimes, there is progressive-flavoured government, sometimes Islamic.
Comparatively, the film industry of neighbouring secular India, having almost same culture and language is the second largest film producer of the world. How? Consistent policy and proper promotion.
Pakistan is a land of many splendours. It has a lot to offer to the world in terms of scenic cinema locations. It has inherited the ancient Indus Valley civilization along with the rich legacy of Muslim, Christian, Hindu and Buddhist religious cultures. Its folklores and Sufi influences are imbibed with the most humanistic renderings of love, harmony and tolerance. The land is rich in natural beauty - be they the snow-clad peaks of the K-2, the gushing waters of the mighty Indus in the north, the emerald shades of the Arabian Sea, the serenity of the deserts of Thar and Cholistan or the lush green fields of Punjab.
The history of this region is rich in tales of man's lust for power, passion for romance, bravery and cowardice, brutality and compassion. With such a legacy, Pakistani film industry, popularly known as Lollywood, has a rich potential. If it could project even a fraction of it with imagination and art, it would rank amongst the finest film centres of the world.
For the advancement of film industry in the twenty-first century it is imperative that its present narrow range of target-audience be expanded. The question posed to some prominent film personalities as to how the middle income audience could be attracted to the local films brought forth some interesting answers. According to the most prolific screenwriter Nasir Adib, "Our government has to change its policy towards the film industry if we are to progress as a nation. People from middle class stopped going to cinemas after the advent of the VCR and satellite TV channels. They don't have to sit in the cinema halls for three hours. So the film makers and the film censor board should realize that they have to provide people with better entertainment for them to come out of their houses and walk in to cinemas."
Some film critics say that technical handicap is the main cause of the failure of the industry. It needs to make drastic improvements in the areas like music, story, recording, choreography and even a good part of direction as well.
Expediency for commercialism manifests itself even in the work of the seasoned directors like Iqbal Kashmiri, Shamim Ara, Syed Noor, Sangita and others. They are churning out films after films, wanting in every department of the industry. Titles of Indian bonanzas are commonly used for the local productions. This, it is said, is done to counteract the piracy of Pakistan's melodies by their Indian counterparts. In the process the real losers are the original creators on both sides who suffer through infringement of their artistic and intellectual property rights.
Presently, the world film market is overwhelmingly dominated by Hollywood, USA. Perhaps after the arms trade, the largest foreign exchange earning of the USA comes through its motion picture industry. Some of its recent blockbusters have grossed over billions of dollars. Conversely it has badly hit the production of other countries of the Northern Hemisphere, including France, Germany, England, Italy and Spain. The film circles in Europe, Scandinavia and Canada have been protesting, issuing threats and warning of the cultural colonization and annihilation of their indigenous cinemas.
Like the US, India has also promoted its motion picture industry more as a source of mustering revenues rather than promotion of its culture. Indian industry films also collect millions from abroad particularly in places like England, Middle East, African states, Canada and the Far Eastern region where there are sizable numbers of people of South Asian origin. Now it is reaching out to Japan and the US as well. Pakistani film industry or cinema does not suffer so much from the Hollywood or other foreign films entering the country through formal trade agreements. However, the informal or pirated imports of Indian movies in Pakistan have taken away a big chunk of the filmgoers.
Nasir Adib also disclosed that he wrote the script and the dialogues for an Indian film, Dharmendra's Ghayal, which won many awards besides being a box office hit. As India and Pakistan have no formal co-production agreement, Nasir's name was not credited in the film. According to him, what he achieved in Ghayal was possible only because he could write without pressure from the censors and what he wrote was shown on the screen.
Sajjad Gul, the owner of the largest film studios, production and distribution set-up in Pakistan, draws comparison with Iran, These countries are both producing very good films. The Iranian government invests in their film industry in order to show the world a different picture. They make an effort to enter their films in international festivals. In India, the copyright laws are strict. In Pakistan, we have laws but they are not enforced. In India audio rights of a film are sold for billion dollars but here they go for almost half million. We also don't get any support from the government. Pakistan government fails to understand that today the war can be fought on the cultural and economic fronts more effectively than on the military front.
In the recent years the Indian film industry has gained much by imposition of strict copyrights laws within the country and also by its association with the international forums for protection of intellectual property. In the early days video rights of Indian industry flicks were sold to Pakistan's underground video tycoons for $1.0 million depending on the star value of the movie. Now they get much more through telecast in the region via satellite channels. The new films are zealously protected, resulting in increase of revenue in the cinema halls. The Indian industry producers may not get anything directly from Pakistan, but it has badly affected the otherwise over-protected cinema here.
Pakistan has immense potential and talent for producing international standard films. If it can win in the fields of cricket, hockey, squash, information technology etc and can produce the heroes like Imran Khan (Cricketer), Jahangir Khan (Squash Player), Dr. Ata Ul Rahman (Science & Technology Minister) and the list goes on…, it can also win in the field of film-making. What it needs is government support, consistent policy and proper promotion in the local and international market.
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