Matteela Films release an unseen snippet from Zinda Bhaag, one of several deleted scenes available to watch on the DVD. Directors Meenu Gaur and Farjad Nabi share their thoughts about the DVD release.

While Zinda Bhaag was still on the cutting table, we were given a nugget of wisdom by an industry expert. There are three types of audiences, he claimed. One, those who go to the cinema, even if a DVD is available; two, those who download a torrent even if the film is in the cinema and third, those who wait for the DVD no matter what. Well, the wait is over. The full and final version of Zinda Bhaag is now out on a Masterprint DVD.

Our film collection of innumerable DVDs has been singlehandedly made through the one and only institution representative of the fulsome cinema watching culture of this city, Laraib. So of course we had to release a DVD for the film and of course our distributor had to be Laraib! Having previously distributed another Pakistani film Josh, we realised they had a huge network in smaller towns and big cities alike. Sukkhar, Quetta, Tando Alayar and the big metros, the film now has a chance to get to places it didn’t in its first run.

Also read: Movie Review: Zinda Bhaag

The biggest challenge for us as filmmakers has been getting the film to an audience beyond that of the multiplexes. While Zinda Bhaag was released on 35mm print in single screen cinemas, these remaining cinemas are too few in number. Our initiative ‘Kuchee Talkies’ came from the same motivation and we took Zinda Bhaag to low income areas and an audience that would never make it to a multiplex. We had 60 screenings in makeshift cinema tents and showed the film to more than 18,000 people in Korangi, Lyari and other parts of Karachi.

The really cynical amongst us would say why bother when there is the ubiquitous ‘torrent’. The present Zinda Bhaag torrent has a good half hour of the film missing, and not everybody yet has Internet and spends all their time on it. And most importantly, the DVD has scrumptious deleted scenes, glimpses of behind the scenes and much more.

Also read: Film 'Zinda Bhaag' released on Netflix in the US

It’s taken us two years to get the film released theatrically in Pakistan, USA and UAE, get it on VOD (Video on Demand) platforms like iTunes and Netflix and now finally a nationwide DVD in Pakistan. And our message for the die-hard torrent-ists: try and find it within you to watch this one on a Materprint DVD, and if that is too difficult – go buy a Masterprint DVD even if it is eventually to upload a torrent from it.

Taambi, the wise cracking tough guy in Zinda Bhaag, is fond of using the analogy of desi chicken versus broiler chicken as a measure of fake versus the real thing. Go get desi instead of broiler!