- Cast: Shaan Shahid, Aisha Khan, Shamoon Abbasi, Meesha Shafi, Ali Azmat & Hamza Abbasi
- Directed by Bilal Lashari
- Written by Hassan Waqas Rana
- Produced by Hassan Waqas Rana
- Release date: February 15, 2012
- Genre : Action Thriller
- Studio: Mind Works Media
- Music by Qayaas
- Editing by Hassan Chughtai
- Distributed by Warner Bros.
- Running time 140 minutes
- Country Pakistan
- Language Urdu, English
- Budget PKR: 170 million; USD 2 million
- Description: Inspired by true events, the film gives a fresh and stylized perspective on the current situation that Pakistan faces. The film is going to be a visual treat for the cinema goers and the plot shall take them on a roller coaster ride
A first look at Pakistan’s most likely feature film ‘WAAR’.It claims to not only be the most anticipated film in the history of Pakistan, but to be based on true events. And, for once, the Hollywood-style hyperbole can be excused. The feature-length action thriller called Waar (“to strike” in Urdu) is eagerly awaited, despite being out of tune with the trend for movies packed with singing and dancing.
One major difference with the traditional fare is the lack of song and dance routines. Director Bilal Lashari, who studied film-making in California, says: “There was just no question, even if people were telling me: ‘How can you do without them?’ For audiences here, it is going to be a complete 180 degree shift. From cinematography to style of acting, it is different from what has gone before.”
One is Kaptaan, a cinematic rendering of the recent life of Imran Khan, the cricketer turned
politician who currently tops popularity polls in Pakistan. The film will cover Khan’s life since retiring from sport 20 years ago and will dramatise his entry into politics as well as his failed marriage to Jemima Goldsmith, who is played by a Pakistan-American actress.
Tareen is producing Tamanna (Desire), a drama exploring class, adultery and, through flashbacks, the heyday of Lollywood. “It is neither action-based nor Bollywood-style. It is much more a pure drama with a narrative telling the story of three individuals,” she says.
Sanaa Ahmed, a film journalist in Pakistan, sees the new developments in Pakistan as part of a broader global trend. “There are a lot of new young people with stories to tell who are figuring out ways to tell it,” she says. “It’s a new wave.”
Lashari says Pakistan needs to “recreate” its cinema. “Everyone here has been following Bollywood but the best we can ever come up with is going to be a B grade knock off. We need to create our own identity,”
Lashari won ‘Best Music Video Director’ at the Lux Style Awards and ‘Best Pop Video’ at the
MTV Pakistan Music Video Awards for “Sajni”. He has also directed the popular video “Chal Bulleya” for Meekal Hassan Band.
Lashari also worked as assistant director for Shoaib Mansoor during the filming of Khuda Kay Liye.
The film has been produced by MindWorks Media with Hunt Lowry, producer of “Donnie Darko”and Warner Bros.’s smash hit “A Walk to Remember” and numerous other well known films.
The English-language film (Waar) has been shot at various locations in and outside of
Pakistan, from the beautiful hills of Islamabad to the second best tourist destination in Pakistan, Lahore to the fascinating valley of Swat (the Switzerland of Pakistan) in the Northern Areas of Pakistan, where a major military operation was launched two years ago. But most of the scenes and script are based around locations in Islamabad. Some parts of the film have also been shot in Istanbul Turkey.
The soundtrack of this one of it’s kind film has been done by Qayaas. “Inquilaab, Khayaal
and Pal are part of the soundtrack,”says Khurram Waqar, the lead guitarist of the band. The presence of Qayaas in the film makes the project sound even more interesting.
Waar Officail Trailer :
The trailer is out already and the movie looks very interesting. More importantly the movie looks very different and new. It seems to be an action movie and also made on the lines of the current situation in the country. It is most probably based on the current Taliban insurgency in Pakistan.The trailer was viewed more than 500,000 times in the first month when posted on YouTube in January, entering the website’s top five videos.
Making Film Waar:
Behind the scene Film Waar :
