KARACHI 16 Feb (Online): Veteran Indian film, theater and television actor Shabana Azmi is a staunch advocate of co-productions between India and Pakistan.<\/p>\n
\u201cFor a long time now, my husband and I have been saying that we really need more co-productions between India and Pakistan. If you look at cricket, it divides you \u2014 it doesn\u2019t put you together! It is art that unites [when] politics divides. Art is an instrument that can bring about social change, and we can do it through cinema.\u201d<\/p>\n
As tensions between both countries remain high and engagement low, Azmi spoke to Dawn about the importance of projects that bring together talent from both countries, much like the British Asian rom-com What\u2019s Love Got To Do With It? Produced by Indian filmmaker Shekhar Kapur and written by British filmmaker Jemima Khan, the production features talent from the UK, India and Pakistan. Azmi and other members of the cast are in the UK to do media engagements and promotions ahead of the film\u2019s UK release on February 24. The cast was seen together earlier in the week at the red carpet for the movie premier at the Odeon Luxe and Leicester Square. The film is scheduled for release in Pakistan on March 3.<\/p>\n
\u201cWhen you have so much talent in Pakistan, particularly in writing, India and Pakistan can come together and make really, really good cinema,\u201d she said.<\/p>\n
Azmi was all praise for her co-star, beloved Pakistani actor Sajal Aly who stars in the cross-cultural film. \u201cSajal Aly is so good in the film. Sajal and I have struck such a deep bond and relationship despite our age difference. Ji karta hai usse pakar ke rakhoon, jaane nahin doo [I wish I could keep her with me, not let her go],\u201d Azmi said, as she raised her arms in an imaginary hug.<\/p>\n
The film shows the worlds of documentary-maker and dating app addict Zoe and her childhood friend and neighbour Kaz (Shazad Latif), who hopes to follow his parents\u2019 example and opt for an arran\u00acged marriage to a Pakistani girl Maymouna (Aly).<\/p>\n
\u201cOn the surface, it is a romcom but it has many layers and much more emotion, which is Shekar Kapur\u2019s forte. He infuses a lot of emotion in his films so it\u2019s a film where you have a laugh and enjoy it but also have moist eyes. It\u2019s wholesome.\u201d<\/p>\n
Azmi plays Aisha Khan, the family-focused matriarch of the Pakistani family based in the UK. \u201cShe thinks her work begins and ends with the happiness of her children. Aisha is a woman on the threshold of modernity and tradition, a warm, generous and good person,\u201d she says.<\/p>\n
Azmi describes the relationship of Aisha with another cha\u00acracter Cath, Aisha\u2019s next-door neighbour played by British actor Emma Thompson. \u201cThat story has a lot of affection, and it comes from Jemima\u2019s experience when she went [to Pakistan] as a 19-year-old.\u201d<\/p>\n
The film, she says, \u201cbusts the notion that arranged marriages are archaic and from a barbaric world\u201d. \u201cBut it does this with warmth and hum\u00acour\u2026 observing two cultures different from each other, but in a non-judgmental way.\u201d<\/p>\n
When asked to comment on her experience of \u201cfinding lasting love\u201d (one of the main themes of the film) Azmi laughs. \u201c[One finds lasting love] through friendship. My husband Javed says, \u2018Shabana and I are such good friends that even marriage couldn\u2019t ruin it\u2019.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cWe are people from very similar backgrounds. His father was a member of the communist party, both fathers were from the progressive writers\u2019 movement, both from Uttar Pradesh \u2014 in fact, we have such similar backgrounds that many people say we should have an arranged marriage!\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
KARACHI 16 Feb (Online): Veteran Indian film, theater and television actor Shabana Azmi is a staunch advocate of co-productions between India and Pakistan. \u201cFor a long time now, my husband and I have been saying that we really need more co-productions between India and Pakistan. […]<\/p>\n
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