Melting hearts: Gulzar pens lyrics for Yasir Nawaz’s next

Gulzar collaborates with Yasir Nawaz on his next Pakistani film Mehrunissa, We Lub You

With his roots in Jhelum and branches spread across India and the Urdu/Hindi speaking community of the world, Gulzar, like any great poet is not restricted by borders. And it’s not only because of his timeless poetry and songs but also because of the stand he takes in times of utter chaos. Whenever the war drums have rolled, he has written for peace, whenever India and Pakistan have indulged in mudslinging, he has held the mirror.

While we were trying to figure out if Indians have refused to export Bollywood movies or we have chosen not to screen them, Gulzar collaborated with Yasir Nawaz on his next Pakistani film Mehrunissa, We Lub You.



Talking to The Express Tribune Nawaz revealed that it was Gulzar's wish to collaborate with the Pakistani film industry and having been born here, the poet was keen on writing a song for our industry.

Nawaz had been friends with Gulzar for four years, after being introduced to him by Hassan Zia whom he had known since two decades. “We planned the collaboration some six to eight months back before Pak-India tensions intensified,” Nawaz told The Express Tribune.



“However, despite the worsening socio-political scenario Gulzar saab did not back out from the project, and the team of Mehrunnisa, We Lub You is indebted to his presence in the movie and to his gesture amid so much turmoil. We were blown away by his keenness to keep his word,” he said.

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The legendary lyricist has penned down a song titled Badalna hai, which has been sung by none other than the vocal powerhouse, Sukhwinder Singh. It is also reported that perhaps Gulzar will be writing one more song for the movie but Nawaz didn’t confirm this.

The director shared that he has deep admiration for the poet and his work referring him as a "legend". The choice between Gulzar and other Pakistani lyricists was an obvious one, considering the poet's rich experience and immense command on his craft.

PHOTO: INDIAN EXPRESS

Apart from winning numerous awards in India, Gulzar has also been internationally recognised with an Academy Award and Grammy Award both for the song Jai Ho from the film Slumdog Millionaire.

“I must mention here that our collaboration with Gulzar was purely an artistic move without any other intentions. I as a Pakistani respect the decision to ban Indian films but at the same time am aware of its repercussions”. He admitted that in his personal opinion from the business perspective, it would cause a major loss for the film industries of both countries.



However, Nawaz is optimistic about the future of Pakistani cinema as he believes that the industry will keep producing better films in the future.

Mehrunnisa, We Lub You will mark the film debut of TV actor Sana Javed, who will be playing the female lead in the film alongside Danish Taimoor, who also featured as the lead actor in Nawaz’s first feature film outing, Wrong No. .The film will also feature Javed Sheikh and theater actor Saqib Sumeer in the side roles, with Sumeer also serving as the screenwriter of the film.

PHOTO: FASHION AND SHOWBIZ

Taking to the floors this time with a bigger budget and greater confidence, Nawaz also revealed that Mehrunnisa, We Lub You will have one of the biggest sets ever created for a Pakistani production.

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