Well, after fabulous Khuda Kay Liye, I was curious to watch Bol by same director. [and excited, cause it has Atif Aslam as lead :)] Thanks a lot to Twitter buddy @dishoompk who blogs at Dishoom Dishoom ; who agreed to do this guest post about the movie. After reading the same, I am waiting for its release [by Eros Entertainment] in India. Lets see, what 'Dishoom' has to tell about the movie.
"Bol" is Shoaib Mansoor's second directorial venture, after his debut "Khuda Kay Liye". Even though he is new to the movie world, Shoaib is not new to the world of entertainment, as he is the creator of some of the biggest pop culture phenomenons in the Pakistani entertainment realm. His has a great sense of awareness of what the public would love, and despite the apparent non-commercial nature of the movie, it is one of the biggest hits in the recent Pakistani movie history, if not THE biggest.
Though it is conceived as an Atif Aslam movie by many people. And even though he has a significant supporting role in the movie, he is not, by far, the star of the movie. The star of the movie is actually the brilliant Humaima Malik and Mazhar Sehbai.
"Bol" starts in the Lahore Central Jail, where Zainub (Humaima Malik) is on the death row. Her appeal for clemency was rejected, but her last wish of making a press statement, on the gallows, was granted. She, then, tells her story and how ignorance and male-chauvinism has led her to where she was. She tells the story of her family, which was a very conservative Urdu speaking immigrants from Delhi residing in the predominantly Punjabi Old Lahore. The family is headed by Hakim Shafiqullah Khan (Mazhar Sehbai), his wife, and his seven daughters. He keeps on hoping for a boy, and hence keeps impregnating his wife. Eventually, on the eight try, Saif is born. However, he is a Hermaphrodite.
Zainub has to stand up for her sister and "Saifi", to Hakim Sahab's misogyny and ignorant beliefs, whilst Hakim Sahab is going through financial problems. Being uneducated, they have no choice but to remain more or less imprisoned in their house. A notable exception was the adorable Ayeshah (Mahira Khan), who is smitten by their neighbor Mustafa (Atif Aslam). She sneaks out with him, and sees the world, that none of her sisters know of! As the story progresses, the family goes through some heart-wrenching tragedies (brought on by Hakim Sahab's intransigent nature). As Zainub's story goes on, there's a realization among the press that she is actually innocent, and theres a race against time to stall the hanging.
Though Bol has some of the same preachy elements in it, which were off putting for some in Khuda Kay Liye, but overall it is kind of.... awesome!! The viewer was emotionally invested in the fate of the family. The dramatic moments, the dialogues, the banter, made me laugh and sad on cue. As a Lahori, I get a bit more excited seeing more local locales and characters on the big screen, and this movie was full of them. There were only three songs that were lipsynced (the two Atif Aslam ones, and the one Mujrah one) - and all three were quite satisfactory. I did get a bit excited about seeing Atif performing on the big screen, in Kaho Na. However, and this might be because of my pre-existing bias, the song "Dil Pareshan" by Sajjad Ali hit the right notes, and hence very effective, when it was following the young Saifi as he tries to make sense of the confused world around him.
The performances of almost all the main characters were commendable, especially of Humaima and Mazhar Sehbai. Special mention is due to the legendary Shafqat Cheema who played a pimp, and especially Iman Ali who played a prostitute named Meena. Though Iman's acting in Khuda Ke Liye suffered greatly because she was attempting a very bad British accent, but in this one she is regal. Her character, Meena, tries to mimic the classic traits of a classy Lucknow prostitute, despite her Lahori upbringing (She mentions that she has watched Pakeeza and Umrao Jaan Ada many, many times to get the language right, and she changed her name because of Meena Kumari).
All in all, Bol is highly recommended! The story was heart-wrenching, the acting was brilliant, the direction was really great! Not to forget, Atif Aslam crooning on the big screen!!!
Tags : Bol movie review, Eros Entertainment Pakistani Movie, Atif Aslam, Humaima, Mazhar Sehbai, Shafaqat, Iman Ali, Shoaib Mansoor
"Bol" is Shoaib Mansoor's second directorial venture, after his debut "Khuda Kay Liye". Even though he is new to the movie world, Shoaib is not new to the world of entertainment, as he is the creator of some of the biggest pop culture phenomenons in the Pakistani entertainment realm. His has a great sense of awareness of what the public would love, and despite the apparent non-commercial nature of the movie, it is one of the biggest hits in the recent Pakistani movie history, if not THE biggest.
Though it is conceived as an Atif Aslam movie by many people. And even though he has a significant supporting role in the movie, he is not, by far, the star of the movie. The star of the movie is actually the brilliant Humaima Malik and Mazhar Sehbai.
"Bol" starts in the Lahore Central Jail, where Zainub (Humaima Malik) is on the death row. Her appeal for clemency was rejected, but her last wish of making a press statement, on the gallows, was granted. She, then, tells her story and how ignorance and male-chauvinism has led her to where she was. She tells the story of her family, which was a very conservative Urdu speaking immigrants from Delhi residing in the predominantly Punjabi Old Lahore. The family is headed by Hakim Shafiqullah Khan (Mazhar Sehbai), his wife, and his seven daughters. He keeps on hoping for a boy, and hence keeps impregnating his wife. Eventually, on the eight try, Saif is born. However, he is a Hermaphrodite.
Zainub has to stand up for her sister and "Saifi", to Hakim Sahab's misogyny and ignorant beliefs, whilst Hakim Sahab is going through financial problems. Being uneducated, they have no choice but to remain more or less imprisoned in their house. A notable exception was the adorable Ayeshah (Mahira Khan), who is smitten by their neighbor Mustafa (Atif Aslam). She sneaks out with him, and sees the world, that none of her sisters know of! As the story progresses, the family goes through some heart-wrenching tragedies (brought on by Hakim Sahab's intransigent nature). As Zainub's story goes on, there's a realization among the press that she is actually innocent, and theres a race against time to stall the hanging.
Though Bol has some of the same preachy elements in it, which were off putting for some in Khuda Kay Liye, but overall it is kind of.... awesome!! The viewer was emotionally invested in the fate of the family. The dramatic moments, the dialogues, the banter, made me laugh and sad on cue. As a Lahori, I get a bit more excited seeing more local locales and characters on the big screen, and this movie was full of them. There were only three songs that were lipsynced (the two Atif Aslam ones, and the one Mujrah one) - and all three were quite satisfactory. I did get a bit excited about seeing Atif performing on the big screen, in Kaho Na. However, and this might be because of my pre-existing bias, the song "Dil Pareshan" by Sajjad Ali hit the right notes, and hence very effective, when it was following the young Saifi as he tries to make sense of the confused world around him.
The performances of almost all the main characters were commendable, especially of Humaima and Mazhar Sehbai. Special mention is due to the legendary Shafqat Cheema who played a pimp, and especially Iman Ali who played a prostitute named Meena. Though Iman's acting in Khuda Ke Liye suffered greatly because she was attempting a very bad British accent, but in this one she is regal. Her character, Meena, tries to mimic the classic traits of a classy Lucknow prostitute, despite her Lahori upbringing (She mentions that she has watched Pakeeza and Umrao Jaan Ada many, many times to get the language right, and she changed her name because of Meena Kumari).
All in all, Bol is highly recommended! The story was heart-wrenching, the acting was brilliant, the direction was really great! Not to forget, Atif Aslam crooning on the big screen!!!
Tags : Bol movie review, Eros Entertainment Pakistani Movie, Atif Aslam, Humaima, Mazhar Sehbai, Shafaqat, Iman Ali, Shoaib Mansoor
