Shooting desi
Nothing remains hidden for long in our entertainment industry. No project, scheme, development or any kind of machinations that people might be up to. And so it was that a little bird working in a certain television channel told me about two individuals from the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC to you and me) who had flown into Karachi recently to make a documentary on certain aspects of Pakistan’s entertainment industry.

This immediately caused one to wonder why, followed by ‘what have they found’? It’s always interesting to get an outsider’s perception of our television industry that seems to have grown on us. Several phone calls later, I found myself face-to-face with the team members late last week.

Irshad Arshad and Atta Yaqoob look like they are in their late 20s or early 30s. Some of Atta’s immediate family members live in Lahore and have been constantly updating him on the developments that have been taking place in the entertainment industry here. For Irshad Arshad, it’s been 17 years since he last paid a visit to Pakistan and it was out of sheer curiosity that he made the pilgrimage back to his home country, albeit for purely professional reasons.

By the time this interviews appear in print, both Irshad and Atta will have left Pakistan and returned to the UK with the hope that once the four documentaries go on air, they will be back again to shoot some more.

Q: So what have you been preoccupied with in Karachi?

IA: We’ve been here to make four films about modern Pakistani culture — the television explosion, the fashion modelling scene, truck art and a film about the Food Street in Lahore. I’m the director and Atta is the presenter. We’ve been here for three weeks and we’ve been working every single day. It’s been amazing because the working trip has been the best trip because we’ve worked with Pakistani people from all levels of society and got an insight into Pakistan. Personally speaking, it has completely changed my opinion of Pakistan.

AY: I work as an actor in the UK. I’ve done quite a bit of established work in mainstream television, Irshad’s with the BBC and he knew me through that, and hence I’ve been invited along to report on the different aspects of Pakistani culture.

Q: And what was your perception about Pakistan?

IA: Most British Pakistanis’ opinion is based on the Pakistani community they grew up in, which left the country from the Kashmir and Mirpur region some 40 years ago. They are still dedicated to maintaining the traditions and lifestyle of the Mirpur that was four decades ago. My opinion of Pakistan was also formed by growing up in that immigrant Pakistani community in the UK.

Q: Is it very different here from what is perceived in the UK?

AY: Unbelievably different. But having said that there are a lot of aspects that you can relate to on both sides. In hindsight, before coming here I had thought ‘it won’t be like it is in the UK over here’. The fact that I’m sitting next to a female journalist interviewing me in a bar … I wouldn’t have pictured this.

Q: How far are you into your documentaries?

IA: We’ve shot all our stories. We shot the behind-the-scenes of a Hum TV drama and we shot with The Musik. We met some VJs, I saw some show reels and they blew me away. After we had interviewed some of them and walked around the studios, the impression we got was that the entertainment in Pakistan is a huge, burgeoning industry.

I’ve been talking to people and they say ‘if you’re young and smart and walking up the street and you got a job, you can succeed very quickly’. You can’t do that in England because getting anything like this done there is extremely difficult.

AY: For me, apart from the heat, it’s been refreshing so far. As an actor, seeing these television studios and production setups and the work going on, and not just any run-of-the-mill work, and the passion with which it is being done has been mind-blowing.

Q: In terms of programming content, what difference do you see?

IA: The stuff that’s really popular on network television in Britain is kind of live-talk reality shows which are really quite formulated. All the best television documentary makers are kind of in exile from British TV because their documentaries don’t get shown there. They are now working towards independent distribution.

I have seen the ARY show reel and technically I was blown away. I think it’s really good. There is a really popular comedy character in the UK called Borat who reinforces the worst stereotypes about the East … one of them being that they make crappy television programmes. At this point, the one thing that I want to do is say through my work that if you thought that Pakistan is anything like the Borat TV show, think again.

Q: What are your observations about Pakistan’s fashion industry?

IA: We did a story about the models and again it was interesting in the sense that all the models we met were really quite intelligent, well-spoken and we could hold really intelligent conversations with them. In Britain you can’t get that access. It will take me three weeks just to get to talk to their PR persons.

AY: We met some designers and I realised that they make clothes for the elite who can purchase these designer outfits. But something interesting came up in our research work: It will all be copied down, making fashion more of a commodity for the common man which is interesting. There is always a cheaper version available and that is how fashion can influence.

Q: Why pursue truck art?

IA: Truck art for me is a phenomenal outfall. When we went to the truck adda and we met guys over there we were blown away by the kind of authentic art we saw. In Britain, everything is commodified, everything is kind of globalised. We appreciate things that are unique and authentic. We cry out for things like “this is Pakistani culture and it’s best.” It’s a phenomenal kind of art form with a lot of skill going into it.

Q: Any final words of encouragement?

IA: The creative energy that we saw in the television industry here, we haven’t got in the UK because it is already so established there. Overall, you guys over here are doing your thing and doing it really well. You know, you don’t need the BBC to say that you are doing it well or for it to come over here at all. I am very impressed.

AY: It is always fascinating to see such a dynamic, innovative young team doing business. Professionally speaking, it is a war and it shows as such.

Photography: Amean J.

First Published:

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June 17, 2007