EXTREMELY fond of watching movies, Rizwan Beyg, the well-known haute couture designer, claims that he has so many favourites that it is very difficult to name just a few. However, he concedes that he finds the Star Wars series very fascinating.
Says the designer, “They epitomize good versus evil and are a wonderful combination of fairytale set in the future, making the unreal, real for me. They have been set in a place and time when anything and everything is possible and is intergalacticly homogeneous, what with humans and androids co-existing. The series solidifies my belief that all men are equal. And, of course, the space crafts, fight sequences and laser guns bring out the boy in me.”
Another hot favourite with Beyg is Blade Runner, which he claims is the first major science fiction film that changed the history of film-making. Focusing on robots and machinery, the film is all about how one perceives inanimate objects. Silence of the Lambs is yet another of his pet movies, a very powerful film that highlights the fine line existing between genius and insanity.
Beyg doesn’t have too many favourite English songs. However, he feels Ain’t nobody is the ultimate love song. Although it has been redone by many people, he prefers the version sung by Chaka Khan of Rufus.
Surprisingly, it is a different story with Indian songs. He admits to having many favourites — mostly nostalgic numbers — that have been rendered by Lata, Mukesh and Rafi. He also rates Raina beti jai and Zindagi key safar mein, sung by Kishore Kumar, very highly. In Pakistani music, his favourite song is Noor Jehan’s Kaindey ne naina.
The book that was instrumental in changing Beyg’s perspective of life is Johnathan Livingstone Seagull by Richard Bach. He was very young when he had read it and it left a great impact on his mind. Confesses the designer, “That was the first time I had read something that made me dwell on the limitless scope of the imagination, the speed of thought, and individuality. Seagull stood out for being different and in spite of being ridiculed and even ostracized, stood his ground all for an idea, a concept, a cause. The book came at a time in my life when it was very important for me to appreciate its message, and strengthened in me the resolve to stand up for my beliefs, no matter what the consequences.”
The other book that is among Beyg’s favourites is The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho. States Beyg, “At one level, it is a simple fable, but like an onion it has many layers and each time you peel one, another one emerges. It is about a person who travels the world to look for a treasure only to discover that it was in his home all along. The complexity under the simplicity is fascinating. For me, it was about the realization that you always have to make do with what you have and although you may expand your horizons by travelling, the eventual understanding of life comes from discovering yourself.”
Another book that Beyg claims to have thoroughly enjoyed is One Hundred Years of Solitude by Gabriel Garcia Marquez. Read a long time ago, it was his first book by a Latin American author. Says the designer, “It was this book that made me realize that a parallel culture to Pakistan’s exists in the world, albeit many miles away. The sunny, Latin American culture with its passion, betrayal and infidelity struck a chord and I realized that people are not so different after all.”
And finally, Beyg is also impressed by Lord of the Rings by J.R.R. Tolkien, which he describes as an amazing combination of mythology based on real life. Describing the book, he says: “It is magical and contemporary at the same time and impresses on one how a small individual can make a difference in the larger scheme of things.”
FAVOURITE MOVIE: Star Wars series
FAVOURITE MUSIC:Ain’t nobody by Chaka Khan, and Kaindey ne naina by Noor Jehan
FAVOURITE BOOK:Johnathan Livingstone Seagull by Richard Bach.
EXTREMELY fond of watching movies, Rizwan Beyg, the well-known haute couture designer, claims that he has so many favourites that it is very difficult to name just a few. However, he concedes that he finds the Star Wars series very fascinating.
