The Legend of Maula Jatt, Tich Button: Eid releases halt due to Covid-19

ISLAMABAD  : Covid-19 has caused immense damage to the film industries across the world putting the global economy at risk with both Bollywood and Hollywood film producers at the verge of losing millions of rupees. 

Similar is the case with Pakistan’s film industry with filmmakers halting film releases and production since the pandemic took over.

 Following the consecutive halt, the release of films slated for Eid-ul-Fitr – including Fawad and Mahira Khan’s Legend of Maula Jatt, Urwa Hocane’s debut production Tich Button, as well as various films in Rawalpindi and Islamabad – have been postponed.

In view of the current situation, the announcement for release of the films will only be made after the situation improves. According to a senior official of the Central Board of Film, the coronavirus has affected the film industry across the globe. 

The screening of local films has been banned. While talking to The Express Tribune, the official revealed that censorship certificates were issued to the films in March. The agency had granted approval for the screening of commercial and non-commercial films. But the federal government closed cinema halls for the safety of the public. 

Thus, films will be screened after the federal government permits cinema houses to re-open in line with the new SOPs.

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Rishi Kapoor wanted to watch Pakistani film ‘The Legend of Maula Jutt’

Bollywood legend Rishi Kapoor passed away few days ago, leaving a void in his fans and the Bollywood.

 Rishi Kapoor’s wish to watch the Pakistani film ‘The Legend of Maula Jutt’ which could  not be fulfilled. 

Amara Hikmat, the filmmaker of ‘The Legend of Maula Jutt’, said that Rishi Kapoor was excited to see the film and he also praised its trailer. 

Amara Hikmat, shared a screenshot on her social media account of messages sent by the late actor Rishi Kapoor on Twitter.

Amara Hikmat said that she was deeply saddened to hear of Rishi Kapoor’s demise and that is why she wanted to shared the screenshot with everyone. 

Sharing a screenshot, Amara Hikmat said that Rishi Kapoor often asked about the release of the film The Legend of Maula Jutt and expressed his best wishes. 

She said that when she went to Twitter to watch the conversation with Rishi Kapoor, she was surprised to see that Rishi Kapoor had texted her on Twitter last month. Amara added that due to inactivity on Twitter, she could not see his message and she will always be saddened by not replying to Rishi Kapoor’s messages.

 Note that, the release of the Pakistani film The Legend of Maula Jutt was delayed for many years due to legal issues which was later announced to be released on Eid-ul-Fitr this year. Earlier, Ammara also shared the glimpse of the most awaited Pakistani movie ‘The Legend of Maula Jutt’.

Hearing of Petition Against “Legends of Maula Jatt” to be Held on April 25th!

Bilal Lashari’s film “Legends of Maula Jatt” is accused by Sarwar Bhatti the producer of the Punjabi Film “Maula Jatt” which was released in 1979. According to Sarwar Bhatti, Lashari used the title, script, characters, dialogue, poetry and music of the original Maula Jatt without taking permission.

The Lahore High Court admitted the petition and announced that the hearing will be on 25th April. Lahore High Court’s judge Justice Aminuddin considered the petition and Counsel Buzdar Haider stated that the arrangements for the release and publicity for the upcoming film have been completed that’s why we should hear the petition sooner. Hence it will be on April 25, instead of June 6, 2019.

The film Maula Jatt, released in 1979, was a record-breaking film and it is said to be the most successful film of the Pakistani film industry. Though Bilal Claims that his film has nothing to do with the 1979’s Maula Jatt but Sarwar Bhatti’s claims tell a completely different story.

The Legend of Maula Jutt is all set to release this Eid ul Fitr. The cast of the film includes the top-notch actors of Pakistan film industry including Fawad Khan as Maula Jatt and Hamza Ali Abbasi playing the role of Noorinath. These roles were previously played by legendary actors Sultan Rahi and Mustafa Qureshi in Sarwar’s Maula Jatt. The female leads of the film include the famous Mahira Khan and the beautiful Humaima Malik.

Let’s see how the court responds to this matter but we really hope that the issues between Bilal and Sarwat get resolved so that we can see the “The Legends of Maula Jatt” in the cinemas.

Hamza Ali Abbasi shuts down the trolls on The Legend Of Maula Jatt

The trailer of “The legend of Maula jatt” itself is a great answer for all the trolls who have been throwing on the movie since so long, apparently the movie release is taking so long, may be this was the reason we haven’t heard anything from Abbasi himself on the trolls, as the efforts speaks itself.

zBut, recently a comment over Imran Ismail’s tweet made Abbasi speak up and made everyone speechless as he usually does.

He mentioned, for those who think film industry is a waste of time, that how media industry is important for the growth of our economy and its role in generating employment in the country.

While talking to Something Haute, he says that he even take criticism as a compliment when people say Maula Jatt seems like Game of Thrones and Gladiator, because it shows that now we are up to that level where people are comparing a Pakistani movie with Hollywood’s A-grade projects.

Moreover, he also cleared the air by adding that there is no legal order regarding the ban on the movie due to any copyright issue, the film is releasing and he is expecting a huge response globally.

FIA takes action against Sarwar Bhatti, maker of original Maula Jatt

Bilal Lashari's coveted and much awaited film The Legend Of Maula Jatt, has been making rounds of news, ever since it was announced. However, as much as there has been good news, there have been some controversies attached to the film as well.

Recently, Sarwar Bhatti, maker of the original Maula Jatt, back in the 1981, commented and lodged a complaint against makers of The Legend Of Maula Jatt for copyrights violations. Bilal Lashari was accused of how he was using his father's influence to institutions like intellectual Property Organisation and Censor Board to bypass the whole legal system, for the release of his film.

Following allegations, producer The Legend Of Maula Jatt, Ammara Hikmat, lodged a compliant with the Federal Investigation Agency, citing that her film had all required approvals.

"The film The Legend of Maula Jatt has all the necessary approvals from the concerned government departments which are required for their trailer’s release. Ammara Hikmat and Bilal Lashari are legally well within their rights to release the movie at the time of their choice. Therefore, FIA has responded to producer Ammara Hikmat’s compliant against Bahoo Corporation for committing online defamation through cyber stalking and incitement by issuing summons to Bahoo Corporation CEO for appearance before FIA," read a press statement released by the makers of The Legend Of Maula Jatt.

The Legend Of Maula Jatt is all set to release on Eid ul Fitr next year.

The film stars Fawad Khan, Hamza Ali Abbasi, Mahira Khan and Humaima Malick in pivotal roles.

Bilal Lashari's 'Maula Jatt' trailer lives up to the gore, glory and gandasa

KARACHI: Ever since Bilal Lashari announced a Maula Jatt film, fans have been eagerly waiting for it. The Legend of Maula Jatt trailer finally dropped last night and it completely justifies why Lashari took his sweet time to cut the trailer.

The two-minute clip kicks off with the folklore of Maula Jatt and his gandasa. It then introduces Noori Nath – Jatt’s arch nemesis – and how the entire village fears his existence. Describing the rivalry between them, the trailer then cuts to a fierce Fawad Khan who essays Maula Jatt, followed by Hamza Ali Abbasi as the cunning Noori Nath.

Mahira Khan, who fans have been waiting to reunite with Fawad, also makes an appearance. Sporting long hair with multiple braids, she plays Maula’s love interest in the film, Mukkho Jatti. Humaima Malick, Gohar Rasheed along with Ali Azmat and Shafqat Cheema also make their presence felt.

The cinematography and production design speak volumes as to why Lashari, once again, took ages to edit the trailer of the film – he wanted it to be perfect and it is. The lighting, sound design and most importantly, picking the perfect snippets for an edgy and captivating first memory is something the young director has aced over the years. Here’s one director who actually knows how to put together a trailer you’d want to watch again and again. The sets look larger than life – a cross over of Padmaavat, Troy, 300 and Game of Thrones. And it goes with the concept of Maula Jatt dystopia.

Many may argue that it is a lot like Hollywood films or TV shows but when the audience demands it, the film-makers job is to deliver – which Lashari does full justice to in the trailer. Whether the same perfection will be delivered on screen when the film releases next year, is yet to be seen. But the trailer can be crowned as one of Pakistan’s finest.

While the visuals were jaw-dropping, the characters didn’t seem to stay as true to what the books or earlier films had – unless the upcoming film is a modern take on Maula Jatt. Fawad sports long hair with a long beard and has buffed up his physique as well; albeit it could have been a little more rough. Even Hamza didn’t look as terrifying as one would expect Noori Nath to look. After watching the trailer, some trolls even called him a “discounted version of Khal Drogo” from Game of Thrones.

Overall, none of the characters look bad. In fact, Humaima looked breathtaking in the few clips that she was shown in. Nonetheless, if The Legend of Maula Jatt is actually supposed to be a modern version of the folklore, then it does full justice.

However, it was surely missing Noori Nath’s iconic dialogue: Nawa aaya ae soneyaa? The Legend of Maula Jatt is set to hit screens on June 2019. The Maula Jatt films are based on a short story by Ahmed Nadeem Qasmi titled Gandasa, which essentially borrows characters from the folk tales of Punjab.

Bollywood is All Praise for The Legend of Maula Jatt

The Legend of Maula Jatt has been in the news for one reason or another. Now, with the 1st look of the film out, everyone has just positive things to say about it. It looks like, Bilal Lashari has created something unique for Pakistani cinema and we haven't seen our superstars play such characters ever before.

Not only us, but the Bollywood fraternity is also signing praising of the film.

Karan Johar liked the trailer and congratulated Fawad Khan.

Anurag Kashyap, showed his excitement and shared the trailer.

Trade analyst Taran Adarsh, highlighted that Fawad Khan and Salman Khan films are now set to clash on Eid at least in Pakistan.

Film critic Rohit Jaiswal, had his own peculiar way of showing his appreciation.

The Legend of Maula Jatt is all set to release on Eid-ul-Fitr 2019; the film stars Mahira Khan, Humaima Malick, Fawad Khan and Hamza Ali Abbasi in leads and will also become the first film from Pakistan which will release in China the same day.

'The Legend of Maula Jatt' becomes first Pakistani film to get same release date in China

KARACHI: Talks of the release of Bilal Lashari’s Maula Jatt has been making rounds for quite a few years, but the team finally made the announcement last weekend that the film will be hitting screens in 2019. While that’s huge news, The Legend of Maula Jatt will also be the first film from the subcontinent to get the same date release in China with its domestic release in Pakistan, stated a press release.

Only a handful of big studio backed projects from Hollywood have been able to achieve such mainstream release in China. The most commercially successful Bollywood films from India like Dangal, Secret Super Star, Hindi Medium and Bahubali, all have been released in China after months or a year later after their domestic and international screening.

It’s no mean feat as China has a limited quota for foreign films to be released each year. Therefore, annually a small number of films are selected among myriad of them released globally, after thorough scrutiny by the Chinese regulatory authorities. Till date only a handful of Hollywood movies belonging to the league of Spider Man 2, Captain America and X Men recently have been the chosen ones to secure the Chinese theatrical release overlapping with US domestic and worldwide release.

The rest of the foreign films from the most lucrative markets, primarily Hollywood and Bollywood, see a later date release in China, which is now the go-to market for Hollywood blockbusters theatrical revenue wise.

This breakthrough for a local film is all set to give Pakistan a global footing in the world of cinematic craft. A film from an infant industry like Pakistan has set benchmarks for even the most commercially viable neighbouring cinema in the subcontinent, Bollywood. Not only is this groundbreaking but also a hope for all other Pakistani movies to make it big internationally by not following Bollywood trends but by setting few for them.

Fawad Khan v Salman Khan: Who will break box office records on Eid 2019?

KARACHI: Fans have been waiting for Bilal Lashari’s Maula Jatt for a while now. While the principle cast of the upcoming film – Fawad Khan, Mahira Khan and Hamza Ali Abbasi – was announced long ago, it’s release date was kept under wraps until very recently.

But we now know that The Legend of Maula Jatt will hit screens on Eidul Fitr 2019. That’s great news, of course. But the festival brings with itself a bevy of other big releases. For instance, last Eid saw Parwaaz Hai Junoon, Load Wedding and Jawani Phir Nahi Ani 2 clash big time at the box office.

While no other Pakistani film has been announced just yet, it looks like The Legend of Maula Jatt will be battling it out with Salman Khan’s upcoming period drama Bharat upon release. It’s no big news that the Dabangg actor always releases his films during the Eid season. Needless to say, it will be one Khan battling out against another and film enthusiasts are already prepping for it.

Bollywood critic Taran Adarsh addressed the same concern tweeting, “Salman Khan versus Fawad Khan…Pakistan is all set to release its most ambitious film Maula Jatt on Eid 2019, in their country and overseas. Salman’s Bharat is also confirmed for Eid 2019 so it will be Khan vs Khan at the Pakistani box office.

Actor Gohar Rasheed, who plays an essential role in The Legend of Maula Jatt, also took to Twitter to share his two cents. Replying to Taran, he wrote, “Sir, we all love Sallu bhai but saada piece – Fawad – vi bada tight hai (We love Salman too but our Fawad is no less either).

Discussing the clash of the two films, The Legend of Maula Jatt executive producer Ammara Hikmat told The Express Tribune, “We are positioning our film as an international one overseas, it won’t be a regional language movie limited to desi audiences.”

 It will be interesting to see how our producers and exhibitors work around the clash. Earlier this year, when Race 3 was due for release, the authorities moved all international film releases one week further so that local productions could hold their own too.

The Ministry of Information, Broadcasting, National History and Literary Heritage had released a statement back then that read, “Keeping the importance of the local film industry and exhibition facilities in mind, the government has decided that screening of Bollywood movies shall be restricted for a period of one week in total, starting from the Eid day. The decision has been taken to promote the Pakistani film industry.”

Let’s see what happens when Bharat and The Legend of Maula Jatt come face to face. Even Twitterati remained divided on the matter. A Salman fan, Pawan Thakur wrote, “Aaja Fawad, apni maut ka tamasha dekhne (Come forward to your own death Fawad).”

Or perhaps both films won’t even end up clashing at all. Pakistani censor boards are notorious for banning Bollywood films that promote Indian nationalism. Bharat – as the title suggests – will be very patriotic as well. In fact, rumour has it that the film features a scene involving Salman and his leading lady Katrina Kaif at Wagah Border too. Katrina’s presence brings the Chikni Chameli star up against Pakistan’s very own Mahira Khan as well.

The Legend of Maula Jatt will be the first film from the subcontinent to get the same release date in China – a market that film industries from across the world are currently hoping to make the most of. Even the likes of Dangal and Hindi Medium were released there after months of their releases in Pakistan. Will this be a game changer for Pakistani films or The Legend of Maula Jatt? Only time will tell. But for now, let’s just say we’re rooting for Fawad. But also for Salman just a little…

Which film will you be watching on Eidul Fitr 2019?

Fawad Khan's 'Maula Jatt' release date announced

Bilal Lashari and Ammara Hikmat’s multi-starrer, Maula Jatt finally has a release date. The film, marred by controversy over the last year, is finally making progress as a teaser is soon to be dropped as well.

The makers of the 1979 hit rendition took to social media and shared that the film is all set to release on Eidul Fitr next year.

The Legend of Maula Jatt stars Mahira Khan, Fawad Khan, Hamza Ali Abbasi and Humaima Malick in pivotal roles. Ali Azmat and Gohar Rasheed will also be seen in the film.

 The film will see Fawad and Hamza take on the iconic characters of Maula Jatt and Noori Natt, respectively. Mahira will play Mukkho Jatti – the love interest of Maula Jatt.

The film was set to be a reboot version of the iconic Maula Jatt (1979), however, turns out it is a continuation of Nasir Adeeb’s series instead.

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