Ahsan Khan awaits ‘good offer’ from Lollywood

British born Pakistan actor, model and host, Ahsan Khan said that he will surely work in a Pakistani movie, only if he gets a good offer.

He said, “I will prefer to do work in good movies. My work in Ishq Khuda is appreciated and if I am offered good scripts than why wouldn’t I work.

He further said my identification is film industry and I am proud of it. Whenever I got any offer I will re-manage my schedule to work in movie.

With latest technologies, new producers, unique concepts and heavy budgets, not only in Karachi but across Pakistan, our film industry is improving, he added.

Ashan said if we see the statistics then we can easily notice that last year Pakistani movies did more business than Indian movies and that’s a great achievement.

He continued saying that I have always done good roles in movies. When Shehzad Rafiqu offered me role in Ishq Khuda I accepted the work, he added.

After small and big screen, Ahsan Khan will now sing

Ahsan Khan feels music and all art-related genres play an integral part in forming an actor’s persona and in ultimately grooming their careers. PHOTO: FILE

LAHORE: 

Actors spend years lip-synching to voices of different singers. But there are some who try a hand at acting and singing simultaneously.

Priyanka Chopra is doing the same in Bollywood, while at home, we have seen the likes of Ayesha Omar and Mahwish Hayat trying their hand at singing. While people thought Mahwish can sing beautifully and in-tune, they fumed when Ayesha was given the Best Album of the Year at the Lux Style Awards 2013.

The newest addition to the list of actors-turned-singers is Ahsan Khan. Once caught humming on the set of his latest drama serial Khoya Khoya Chand, his director Fahim Burney gave him an opportunity to sing the title song for the TV series. The song sung by the actor is a nicely composed love duet which he sang alongside Dua Malik.

The actor, who recently appeared in the Punjabi film Ishq Khuda, has surprised everyone with his playback skills. “As an artist, music and all art-related genres play an integral part in forming an actor’s persona and grooming their career. So my inclination for slipping into other genres was quite natural,” says Khan.

Although the drama’s soundtrack is doing well and is being appreciated, Khan remains humble. “I had never thought that singing was my forte, but I love music. When I was given this opportunity by my director, I thought to myself, why not give it a shot? And thankfully, it turned out pretty well,” says Khan. The actor also plans to get formal training in singing for more serious projects.

With time, Ahsan has progressed in the field of acting and has proven himself as a versatile actor, who can perform varied roles.

The song’s composer Sohail Haider feels the trend of actors turning into singers has increased with the growth of the drama industry. Haider, who has worked multi-talented actors such as Fawad Khan, says that Khan’s singing aptitude and the ease with which he sung the OST surprised him. Haider plans to record more singles with him.

“I feel that there is singing talent in everyone and it is good that drama and film producers in Pakistan encourage such talent in actors, because places such as India don’t encourage multi-tasking,” says Haider.

Khan does not consider singing as something that would divert him from acting, as he sees it as an extension of his acting career. “The link between acting and singing brings me the closer to the idea of ‘entertainment’ — which is music and action on stage to communicate stories to the audience,” says Khan. “It is commendable that more multi-talented artists are coming to the forefront in Pakistan, daring to straddle the boundaries between acting and singing.”

Acting has always been his strength — he started his career with PTV films. The big screen fascinates him, but back-to-back television projects keep him busy. He also took a four-year break from the silver screen so he could concentrate on his television work. “I have always been open to cinema in general, whether the projects offered are in Urdu or any other language, provided they measure up to what I am looking for as an actor.”

Khan discloses that he might also try his hand at production next year, but as for now, he is busy with TV projects which include Kabhi Kabhi by Anjum Shehzad and Meri Zindagi Hai Tu by Ameen Iqbal.

We wish Khan the best of luck for all  the projects he opts for!

Are things looking up for Lollywood?

At the music launch of Ishq Khuda, film-makers talk about the industry’s comeback.

LAHORE: 

It’s about time film-makers got serious about Pakistani films. The Chairman of Pakistan Producers’ Association, Syed Noor, has been hounded by the question of how to revive Pakistani cinema for years. He is fixated on the idea that the influx of Indian cinema in Pakistan has been the biggest hindrance in the revival of Lollywood.

At the music launch of upcoming film Ishq Khuda, Noor, one of the best directors of Lollywood, embraced a different tone with regards to the country’s film industry. “I have said some harsh things about Amjad Rasheed [chairman of IMGC Global Entertainment],” Noor said. “I have said that he, as distributor, has done nothing but harm to the film industry in Pakistan.” Due to lack of space and support given to Pakistani cinema, veteran directors and advocates of Lollywood have been at odds with distributors and exhibitors. But at the launch, Noor shed light on the two major factors revolving around the film. “A distributor [IMGC] is supporting the film and the manager of PAF cinema [Nadir Minhas] announced that they will play one Pakistani film every week,” he said. “To hear about these developments is definitely a positive sign.”

Directed by Shehzad Rafique, the romantic Sufi-centric film Ishq Khuda stars Ahsan Khan, Meera, Wiam Dhamani, Kinza Malik, and has special appearances by Shaan and Saima. Rafique has always been business savvy to make sure his films receive maximum attention. His previous film, Mohabbtaan Sachiyaan, went to the South Asian film festival and the Muscat International Film Festival.

His new film intrinsically seems to be a Lollywood product, but is said to include better production value. It is produced by Shafquat Chaudhry, Arshad Mehmood and Shehzad Rafique. Saleem Zubairi and Pervaiz Kaleem have written the film.

At the launch, Shaan said a change was taking place within the industry. “We have to look at standing up on our feet first rather than depending on the government for finances,” said the actor. “Instead of begging for money, we must ask the government to make policies that encourage our film industry.”

Shaan added that there are several corporate funded projects in the pipeline, which would benefit and help revive Lollywood. He elaborated by saying that he would be participating in the remake of Aaina, which is being supported by the brand Tarang.

“It’s a form of corporate social responsibility, the way some multi-national companies and private corporations are getting involved with the film industry,” he continued.

Veteran television actor Rashed Mehmood, who has a supporting role in the film, agreed that Lollywood had a negative approach to competitive film-making.

“I think there has been a tendency of the old lot to get intimidated by some of the changes that have taken place,” said Mehmood. “We never really wanted to compete; we just wanted to ban Indian films to help our cause. But we are now looking at a way to compete.” He also said that the film proved there is still a role for existing talent in the new cinema that is being created in Pakistan.

Ishq Khuda will be distributed nationwide and has been supported by several multi-national brands — something which would have been unfathomable a couple of years ago. The film will be released on Eidul Fitr.

Ahsan Khan To Host The Fear Factor Pakistan

Pakistani actor Ahsan Khan signed to host the Pakistani version of Fear Factor which is currently being shot in Thailand. The contestants of Fear Factor Pakistan include Mehwish Hayat , film star Sana , Zeba Ali, Sana Askari, Madiha and Ayesha and will really be a treat for viewers to watch their favrotie celebrities doing exceptional stunts. The Fear Factor Pakistan will be aired on Ary Digital but the schedule dates are not announced so far.