LAHORE: A book titled ‘Journey Through Lens: Pakistani Cinema’ by Aijaz Gul and Jamal Sohail was launched at Alhamra Art Centre on Wednesday.

The ceremony was organised by Lok Virsa in collaboration with Lahore Arts Council.

In her inaugural address, Lok Virsa Executive Director Dr Fauzia Saeed said as less has been written about the Pakistani cinema, the efforts by both Mr Gul and Mr Sohail for their work was laudable, adding that the authors had spent five years on compiling the book.

“There is a disconnect between the younger generation and the glorious past of our cinema; this book will help them learn about our past films,” she said, adding that such more books should also be written to raise awareness on film and people associated with it.

Saleema Hashmi said that her father Faiz Ahmed Faiz had great interest in films and had written a film ‘Jago Huwa Sawera’ which was screened at Dhaka Art Summit. She congratulated Lok Virsa and the writers for such a wonderful book.

Lahore Arts Council Executive Director Atta Muhammad Khan said time was changing and so the present day cinema. “ Do we have a dearth of directors and filmmakers? We must think over it as how to go about the rebuilding of Pakistani Cinema,” he suggested.

Mr Gul threw light on different aspects of the book. He has also written books on melody queen Nur Jahan and different aspects of Pakistani cinema.

Mr Sohail, co-author, said that the history of Pakistan film industry was extremely rich. The book, he said, had been divided into decades staring from 1895. The book not only offered information on the Pakistani cinema but also on the international cinema as well. “ It’s a text reference book and film students can benefit from the publication,” he said.

Film Director Syed Noor said with the revival of the Pakistani cinema, several good news were also coming from several corners and one such good news was the book.

Nadeem Mandviwala emphasized on the revival of Punjabi movies, saying that Punjab had great contribution to the cinema of Pakistan.

Riaz Gul, film educationist at the National College of Arts, demanded that to finance new movies, the government should impose entertainment duty on films, exempting Pakistani films. There should be 40 percent duty on Indian films and 25 percent on English films, and the finance collected from the tax could be spent on the rebuilding of Pakistani movies and cinema. Film actress Bahar and Naghma also spoke.

Published in Dawn, February 8th, 2018