Out of this world: From ‘Hotal’ to a mission to Mars

Film-maker Khalid Hasan on exploring untapped territory with upcoming project ‘Laal Peela’

KARACHI:

Unless you’re living on another planet, it’s hard not to notice how the new wave of Pakistani films has been experimental in its approach. While films, such as Na Maloom Afraad and Jawani Phir Nahi Aani, marked the rebirth of comedy, others such as Manto tried their hand at a biopic. As a tide of new films hits the shores of Pakistani cinema, a genre that is relatively unexplored but will soon be tapped, it seems, is sci-fi. Khalid Hasan, the man behind psychological-thriller Hotal, which is expected to release in Pakistan soon, now aims at taking a trip to outer space with his upcoming movie Laal Peela.

The film, a sci-fi with dashes of comedy and thriller, will feature an international cast. “The term ‘laal’ refers to Mars, which is known as the ‘Red Planet’, and ‘peela’ [the colour yellow] has significance in Chinese culture,” said Khalid as he deconstructed the title of the film. Khalid claims that just like Hotal explored a fresh genre, Laal Peela too would tap into unexplored territory.





Khalid shared he’s currently on the lookout for his film’s lead actors. “I’m looking for a male lead from Pakistan and a female one from China. So far, comedian Wali Sheikh has been roped in to play the villain in the film,” he stated. He noted that he has been granted permission by NASA to use images and videos of Mars in the film, a claim that couldn’t be verified from independent sources. He further stated that space-advocacy NGO The Mars Society in Lakewood, Colorado, will facilitate the Laal Peela team in the making of the film.

The director has already made a mark across the border with his film, the Meera-starrer Hotal, having premiered at Delhi International Film Festival (DIFF) last year. Khalid said around 60 countries participated at the DIFF and 300 films were selected for screening. “A low-on-budget yet high-on-concept film,” as Khalid puts it, Hotal earned two awards at the festival. Meera bagged the ‘Best Actress —  Cinema across the Border’ prize and the film also received the ‘Audience Choice Award —  Cinema across the Border’.



As for the local film industry, Khalid laments that it’s very unprofessional. “This isn’t an ‘industry’. There is talent here but no proper management of it. But film-makers still manage somehow,” he said. “People aren’t interested in investing capital into churning out good quality films. Not everything made using a big camera is a film … it’s simply videography,” he added. On the transcendental nature of film-making, Khalid feels it should be known that “the film industry is beyond borders. If that isn’t understood, we would produce box-office disasters.”

Published in The Express Tribune, November 8^th, 2015.

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