Around the same time Shah went into production in 2012, a musical called Karachi by Made4Stage hit theatres and entertained audiences through an original story based on the boxing culture in Lyari. The play’s director Nida Butt speaks to IoS about what inspired her to adapt this theme into a play and her opinion on the upcoming film, Shah

“All of it is set in the world’s most dangerous city’s most dangerous neighborhood, surely you have a winning idea right there!”

“I had accidentally stumbled upon a news report about boxing in Pakistan that had me floored,” related Nida, “I had been searching for an idea that would seem worthy of our first original musical and when I read this news story about boxing, and its home Lyari, I was instantly drawn.

“This was it!” she felt, “A story seeped in truth that would have the spicy mix of sport, dance, music … and it would be a triumph and celebration of Pakistan’s rich boxing history.”

“We began to visit the boxing clubs of Lyari to do research and were amazed to learn stories of forgotten heroes and lost legends. It was terrifically inspiring and the warm welcome of the Lyari folk gave us made me realise that this was a very special community of people.

“Since Karachi, The Musical (2012) we have done several not-for-profit arts programmes with children from Lyari and we continue to work with people from this neighborhood.

“Boxing, dance, music … it makes a terrific mix. All of it is set in the world’s most dangerous city’s most dangerous neighborhood, surely you have a winning idea right there. We do have a plan to convert the stage play to the silver screen one day.”

What does she think about Shah? “Can a commercial film truly represent the gritty, hard-hitting culture of a community that has lived in a state of war for the last two decades?” questions Nida. “Surely, some artistic liberties should be allowed to the director, or you may end up with an art movie instead.”

“Having said that, I wouldn’t judge a movie from its trailer, so would like to reserve my judgment until I see the film!”

While researching for Kolachi, what condition did she find boxing studios and the boxers in? “It doesn’t look like they have support from any official circles as the facilities were run down and dismal,” she related, “But having said that the mettle of the coaches and the enthusiasm and passion of the students was something to remember. Coaches were teaching without pay. We went to a one-day boxing tournament for juniors where all evening young boys and men were punching it out.

“My colleagues and I were given the honour of distributing prizes to the winners. The prizes were your basic average wall clock, but I remember thinking: someone from this community helped pay for these. The Lyari boxing community still has gems who take care of their own and are doing whatever they can to keep the sport and tradition of boxing alive.”

Published in Dawn, Sunday Magazine, August 9th, 2015

On a mobile phone? Get the Dawn Mobile App: Apple Store | Google Play