KARACHI: It is almost inevitable that if you arrange an event on chaand raat, guests will trickle in late. That’s understandable. And if a film premiere is organised the evening before Eid at that, well, people will arrive at the venue with pleasure… and rather leisurely.

Daghabaaz Dil, directed by Wajahat Rauf, had its opening night for the media and showbiz glitterati on Tuesday evening, and the principal cast of the film — Mehwish Hayat, Ali Rehman, Momin Saqib, Salim Sheikh and Tazeen Husain — came to the red carpet area at Nueplex Cinema a little after the given time on the invitation cards.

Again, that’s understandable, no grousing, because next day was Eidul Fitr. The media was there, as were a decent number of showbiz celebs who joined in to support the cast and crew of the movie, perhaps because it was the only major Pakistani cinematic release on the festive occasion.

While familiar faces of actors and actresses, both young and not-so-young (but still want to be counted as the former), were surrounded by their fans for selfies or media persons for a quick chitchat, this writer was pleasantly surprised to see former federal minister, author and filmmaker Javed Jabbar at the function. It was the right opportunity to pick his brain on the film being released and the general state of cinema business in Pakistan.

Mr Jabbar said, “Anything in 2024 that helps activate the Pakistani cinema has to be good.”

He was of the view that considering the context, it’s fine that not many releases are taking place. “It’s a sign of focus, deliberate initiative being taken, high risk but very commendable.”

On the question of why Pakistani filmmakers tend to go for rom-coms, he replied, “Because there are not enough cinemas, and not enough people willing to go out and take the risk of watching good cinema. I hold people responsible for it, not the filmmakers… Filmmakers are waiting for the people to come and support cinema.”

After the usual photo-ops and casual exchange of pleasantries, the guests walked into the cinema hall and the film began at 10:17pm.

Published in Dawn, April 13th, 2024