Metropolis: Pehalwans, inner city and Shia culture highlighted

Documentaries present shorts detailing aspects of city culture.

LAHORE:

Thaap Conference 2011 hosted a documentary film festival at the Alhamra Arts Centre on Wednesday. Short documentaries made by students and some teachers from the National College of Arts (NCA) were shown.

The documentaries all focused on some aspect of Lahore’s culture. Topics ran a wide expanse, from pehalwan culture to the restoration of the Walled City. Films shown included Pakhiwas, Khadim-i-Zuljinnah, Life in the Gutter Gate: A Story of Survival, Rocket Pehalwan and Future of the Past.

Khadim-i-Zuljinnah, directed by Shirin Pasha, focused on Lahore’s shiite culture and the rituals associated with it. Pasha is the head and founder of the film making department at the NCA.

“It is important for Pakistani’s to understand their own film culture,” says Pasha, “We know Hollywood and Bollywood and we also know Lollywood, so it is imperative to understand what will work in Pakistan and how to teach film making accordingly.”

Fauzia Yousaf Zaeem, the director of Life in the Gutter Gate: A Story of Survival, followed the struggle and challenges faced by two young boys on the streets of Lahore.

Director Adnan Asim’s Rocket Pehalwan cast its eye on the pehalwan culture in Lahore. The film captured the process of becoming a pehalwan (wrestler).

The festival concluded with Syed Salman Ahmed’s documentary, Future of the Past, outlining the lack of restoration of the Walled City and how detrimental that has been to the history of the city.

The film followed the journey of a few residents of the walled city who had restored their homes or havelis. Ahmed said that out of the 22,000 houses of archaeological value only 400 were left.

During the question and answer session, out of the 50 students present only two said they had seen the Walled City.

Published in The Express Tribune, November 17^th, 2011.