Coming of age with Ho Mann Jahaan

Director Asim Raza on why he has paid more importance to narrative than visuals in upcoming film

KARACHI:

Come January, Ho Mann Jahaan will unravel glimpses of Asim Raza’s personal journey along with the voyage of three aspiring musicians. The renowned ad filmmaker says his personal struggles and ambitions have translated to the movie’s canvas in one way or another.

“[Through my film], I want to talk about how we should follow our dreams and pursue passions where our hearts lie,” he tells The Express Tribune. “I want to communicate with the youth because when I struggled during that phase, it was quite frustrating for me. I knew I could do things but never knew how to tell my parents,” he adds.

Although he continued to blossom as an ad filmmaker-slash-music video director, his passion to make a feature film persisted to burn within him. “At that time, I used to think of multiple stories that I wanted to tell. One story I thought of was that of Ho Mann Jahaan. Parts of it was from my first-hand experiences and the rest from what I saw people around me experience.”





With the new wave of Pakistani cinema witnessing the country’s top flight of ad filmmakers explore another medium, TVC directors, such as Asadul Haq, have been criticised for their over-reliance on visuals rather than a strong story. Despite being a firm believer in the age-old proverb, ‘Content is king’, Asim feels people have put all TVC directors in the same basket.

“Even a painting without a good concept doesn’t make sense but if it is pretty and I can understand it, then it excites me. The same goes for films, which is why I opted for a more content-driven film with more characterisation and storytelling exercises.”



Mindful of the fact that a major section of his audience will comprise youth, he is quick to add that he has provided enough ‘excitement’ and ‘imagery’ to strike a chord with the youth. “When audiences watch the film, they will note that I have simplified a lot of things that I wouldn’t in a TVC,” he explains.

Prior to committing to Ho Mann Jahaan, Asim spent some time directing a telefilm titled Behadd. The experience helped smoothen his transition to feature filmaking, ensuring he wasn’t taking a “drastic leap.”

“That [Behadd] really taught me a lot. As long as the actor is emoting and you can feel the expression on his face, I don’t think you’d need to show any scenery whether it’s Chitral or Switzerland.”

A hallmark feature of the current spate of Pakistani films has been product placement – a trend that seems to be continuing with a beverage company’s association with the project. “It is important for filmmakers in the country to have some support system in terms of advertising an idea or presenting the commercial side to it. Plus, we’re competing with a huge industry that is Bollywood,” shares Raza.

As far as Coke Studio’s association with the project is concerned, he remarks that being the biggest platform for music in the country, it is a show all musicians aspire to perform at. With music at the heart of the film, the three characters in Ho Mann Jahaan also hope to perform on the show one day.

Published in The Express Tribune, November 5^th, 2015.

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