I’m 75 now. I want to retire: Anwar Maqsood

Satirist on writing for theatre after decades and film writing requests of Ali Zafar and Fawad Khan

ISLAMABAD:

Anwar Maqsood is a man who needs no introduction; his name is almost synonymous with the success of satire and humour on Pakistani television. His artistic abilities, however, span multiple facets that are generally not known to the public.

He has been associated with the trade for around 50 years however it wasn’t until recently that Anwar began taking theatre seriously. Talking to The Express Tribune, he says, “My close friends such as Zia Mohyeddin and Talat Hussain have long been asking me to write for theatre. I did write a play a long time back, called Script-tease.

Zia was in power back then. Unfortunately, it never got the green light from censor boards and henceforth I never wrote for theatre.”
Things remained the same until Dawar Mehmood and Co rang his doorbell.



“They knew Aagan Terha and several episodes of Loose Talk by heart. They wanted me write a script for them,” he says. A few minutes of convincing and Anwar agreed to writing Pawnay 14 August. “It took me three days.” The overwhelming response to the play brought tears to his eyes.



Nonetheless, taking it as a one-off thing, Anwar returned to his everyday life at home. But the Kopykats had no plans of letting go this soon. “Jaisay Imran Khan dharna day kay phass gaye thay, main Kopykats ka play likh ke phass gaya hoon,” he laughingly adds.
The 75-year-old he has no plans of continuing to write. “Being 75 in a country like Pakistan is a matter of shame, I believe. This is creative work. One cannot exert oneself to do it.”
However, Anwar recently wrote another play for the team, Siachen. Having already had a successful run in Islamabad, the troupe is now heading for Anwar’s hometown, Karachi. “I had told them it’s a very grave and serious topic and children will not be able to understand it but they still insisted,” he says. Anwar took Siachen up as a challenge. “The play focuses on the harsh realities of life as a soldier at Siachen.”



One cannot discuss Anwar sahib’s writing career and not bring up Loose Talk. At the show’s mention, he says, “The reason it went on for so long was that it wasn’t on PTV, otherwise the censor board would have censored it.” Anwar credits the show’s phenomenal success to the chemistry between him and late actor Moin Akhtar. “It’s my best work to date… 394 episodes, all different and unique.”
No matter how hard he tries, it seems his long-time admirers will not let him settle for retirement. Anwar is currently writing a film for Shehzad Roy. “Ali Zafar and Fawad Khan have also requested me to write for them but beta I am tired now. I want to retire. I paint only because that is my source of income.”

Then there is the music connoisseur in him, whose collection of memories and physical records is awe-inspiring. “I listen to The Beatles and Elvis everyday! My collection is so diverse that it includes both Beach Boys and Roshan Ara Begum. I have 650 hours worth of recordings of Vilayat Khan sahib,” he says, admitting it was this very taste of his that inspired son Bilal Maqsood to make music.
Whenever Anwar’s associates like Farida Khanum, Iqbal Bano and Ghulam Farid would come over, the young Bilal would sit in their company and listen with enthusiasm. “All his songs are written by me so you know how much I support him. He had decided to pursue music at a very early age. I told him it is my responsibility to educate him so he should first get a proper degree and then do what he likes.”

Anwar was brimming with pride, mentioning his son’s successes. “Officials from Google recently came to meet the Coke Studio team. They were surprised how a show originating from a country where YouTube is blocked went so viral that it has 72 million downloads and is watched in 120 countries.”
Like his sister, cooking expert Zubaida Aapa, Anwar is also fond of working in the kitchen. “His food is even better than his script,” interrupts Dawar. Anwar says he learnt the basics from his mother and the rest through experimentation. “If 50 people are coming over for dinner, give me an hour and I will cook for all of them,” he says, mentioning that he enjoys cooking seafood the most. However, he himself is a die-hard fan of daal chawal.”It is probably that one meal that I can never have enough of.”

Looking back, he says, “At times I feel like I should have chosen one field. I think I would have done great as a schoolteacher.”

Published in The Express Tribune, December 28^th, 2015.

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