Mumbai, April 21::Shoaib Mansoor made a movie on moderate Islam for an over-sensitive people and won over his home audience. His film, Khuda Kay Liye, is also the first Pakistani film to release in India in 43 years. The forthright debutant director on racial stereotyping, Islam and Indian television

Why don’t you like being photographed? Is it because of the security threats posed by the fatwas against your film?
There is no security threat to me. I live in Pakistan with my family and I am still alive. I insist on anonymity because I dislike the way creative people are getting addicted to self-publicity, even at the cost of their work. They are working hard on their films but working harder on exposure. I want to be recognised by my work, not my face.  

After spending 30 years in television, what made you make your first film Khuda Kay Liye?
The film is an expression of the anger that I have felt since childhood over the wrong interpretations of my faith. For instance, the dilemma faced by the singer brothers in the film seeks to dispel the notion that Islam prohibits music. It also shows the post-9/11 volte-face of the West towards Muslims. Suddenly, every Muslim became a suspect. The way Muslims were identified with their names and segregated at airports compelled me to tell this part of the story. The film tells the paradoxical tragedy of an average Muslim like me. Radical clerics at home consider me a bad Muslim because I wear Western clothes and don’t have a beard. And the West just reads my name and labels me a terror suspect.

Why was the film shot in two colour tones?
I deliberately shot the film’s American portions in a blue tone to highlight the coldness in the attitude there. The scenes in Pakistan were shot in yellow to signify the heated situation in Pakistan, which has turned into a battleground of pro-American and Islamist forces. No big powers seem to be interested in thinking about what makes people react so strongly that they are ready to lose their lives through suicide bombing. 

What’s the status of the fatwas on your film in Pakistan?
When the pre-release promos of the film were being shown, some people were shocked to see Islam being the focus of a commercial film. They presumed it to be anti-Islamic and many clerics issued fatwas against it without watching it. But once the film was released, the fatwas lost steam as people couldn’t find anything anti-Islamic about it. I had read religious books while writing the script and showed it to scholars to confirm my interpretation of Islam before shooting. Thus, there’s been no negative reaction to the film post-release and it has been feted at film festivals in Muslim countries such as Oman and Egypt. Even though a tiny adamant minority still refuses to listen to logic, the majority has received it well. The film has set box-office records in Pakistan. People who had stopped going to theatres for over 30 years are now returning to see Khuda Kay Liye.  

Was Naseeruddin Shah cast as the liberal cleric because no Pakistani actor would touch the role?
Not exactly, Naseer is a great actor and anyone making a serious film would want to cast him. I didn’t want a regular Pakistani actor for this very important character.

Your film ends with the leading male protagonist returning to Pakistan without his American wife and the leading female protagonist deciding not to go to UK to her British boyfriend. Was the characters’ cessation of ties with the West meant to appease the home audience?
I have not done it to appease the home audience but I do believe that that is the path we must take. I am not one for people leaving their native cultures for a life on foreign shores. One can study abroad but must return home eventually.  

The Indian censor board had recommended two cuts. Your reaction?
One cut had to do with a minor reference to Kashmir; the other with a longer sequence in which a radical cleric badmouths peace-loving preachers or the Tableegeez. That such a bold film was released without cuts in Pakistan indicates the strength of moderate Pakistan. In many ways, we are more tolerant and liberal. There is a very wrong perception about Pakistanis in India.  

Elaborate.
Funnily, many Indians still think Pakistan is populated by cartoons, where every man is a bearded fanatic and every woman is burqa-clad. Pakistan is as modern and liberal as India. While the Pakistanis don’t have any misconceptions about India, courtesy Indian television and films, Indians hardly know about the reality there. I see no Pakistani channel in India. The only Pakistani content you see is news. And that’s bad as it fuels enmity.

Your film is not regular Lollywood. What’s your take on the Pakistani film industry?
The film was made with Rs 5 crore before going into printing. An average Pakistani film would cost less than half that amount. I am not a part of the Pakistani film industry, which is practically non-existent. I felt ashamed at the way people made fun of Pakistani cinema and that’s partly why I left television for films. I made this movie with nobody—not even a technician—from the local film industry, as it is dominated by illiterate people doing vulgar productions.  

Yours is the first Pakistani film to officially release in India. How did it happen?
After I got a favorable response in Pakistan, I wanted to release it in India as it has more Muslims. So, I approached some Indian distributors but they didn’t even want to watch or talk about it. But once it stated going to the Indian film festivals starting with IFFI, Goa and then Delhi, Pune, Chennai and Kerala, the positive word-of-mouth set the ball rolling the other way. Indian distributors started contacting us for a release. Of the five-six offers made, we finally opted for Percept Pictures. 

What’s your take on the embargo on theatrical release of Indian films in Pakistan?
The incompetent people of the Pakistani film industry are afraid of competition and have been protesting against the release of Indian films there. But over 90 per cent of the audience wants Indian films to release there. That would benefit both countries. Indian films would profit from the big market. And the local cinema business would get a boost. Lack of good local films has resulted in converting theatres into malls.

Do you watch Indian soaps?
Not me, but when I see my wife or daughter watching those filthy Indian serials in which every man is philandering, every wife is adulterous and all families are replete with illicit relationships, I wonder what message are you conveying. How come the Indian audience is not reacting against it?

Which are your favourite Indian films?
Mughal-e-Azam and Mother India. Recently, I have seen Lagaan which was a great, commendable effort. During my last visit to India, I saw Jodhaa Akbar, where I felt that a lot of money was wasted.  

What’s next for you as a director?
Films are an important medium to spread a message. I have no plans of doing song-and-dance films.

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