“Every Pakistani actor wants to work in India.” These are the words of noted Pakistani actor Jawed Sheikh who has been seen in Indian films for a little under two decades now. Even though he is a familiar and recognisable face in Indian films he still has not got pivotal roles which he would have loved to essay. Recently in the country to shoot for his forthcoming film he spoke to The Hindu about his work in films, serials and the revival of film industry in Pakistan, etc.
Excerpts from the interview:
What brings you to India at this time?
I have been working in Hindi films for quite some time now and that is what brings me to India. This time I am here for Imtiaz Ali’s film Tamasha . We did some shoot in Shimla and the next shoot will be done in Delhi before we wrap up the things. I have a good role in the film and am playing Ranbir Kapoor’s father.
You have worked in Lollywood as well as Bollywood. Which one do you prefer?
I have been doing films for over three decades now, I prefer working in films with good subjects. For me there is no difference, but if you want me to say Bollywood, I will say yes and the reason is that it is a very big industry, more advanced, more professional having more opportunities, big thinking and off course big money. I enjoy working here.
You haven’t bagged big roles in Hindi cinema yet.....
Yes, you are right, I am not getting big roles as I would have loved to do or what I do in Pakistan, and the simple reason behind this is that it is a new place for me and it will take some time. For example Amitabh Bachchan got a small role in the Hollywood film The Great Gatsby and Anil Kapoor in Mission Impossible . But now things have started changing a bit with the audience accepting me. As I said earlier, in Tamasha I have a good role while it is the same in my next film with Muzaffar Ali.
There seems to be a revival of film industry in Pakistan….
The film industry in Pakistan was in a very bad shape some years back. In the ’70s and 80s we made very good films and then our industry did not upgrade itself with the passage of time and the result was that it almost finished. But now a new industry has come up in Karachi with new directors, new writers, new actors and new thoughts and as a result of which we have started making good films. Actually it all started with my film Yeh Dil Aapka Hua . It started when a friend of mine asked me to make a film with an Indian touch. For us it was a costly film. We recorded the music of the film in India with Indian singers like Alka Yagnik, Kavita Krishnamurty, Sonu Nigam and Kumar Sanu. We also hired Saroj Khan as the choreographer for our film and this was Pakistan’s first Dolby Digital film. It took me two years to complete. After the film was completed there were no takers for it as it was a very costly film. So I opened my own distribution office. At that time the then president of Pakistan Pervez Musharraf in order to give a boost to the industry abolished the tax on the sale of the tickets which was about 35 per cent of the Rs.50 ticket. Being a costly film it was released in Dolby digital theatres. Moreover, there was not a single multiplex in Pakistan at that time. Our film was released in 17 theatres and I decided to charge one hundred rupees for the ticket. The film was a hit and went on to become a trendsetter. In those days making a film would cost about a crore of rupees but ours cost five crore and we did a business of twelve and a half crore rupees in about a year’s time.
You are seen on Pakistan television. Do you plan to work on Indian television as well?
I have been doing television shows in Pakistan for nearly four decades. I have been getting offers from Indian channels also which I have refused and the reason behind is that they are very lengthy, they go on and on for years and I do not have that much time. One show Meri Jaan Hai Tu is now being shown in India on Zindagi channel. I am playing the father of the male lead.
