Mehwish Hayat and Fahad Mustafa "Actor in Law" Interview – BDC Exclusive

BDC Team member Ms. Pooja Shetty interview upcoming film actor and actress Fahad Mustaf and Mehwish Hayat.
Film:  Actor in Law
Cast: Om Puri, Fahad Mustafa, Mehwish Hayat
Pooja Shetty – We have seen the trailer of Actor In Law and it looks absolutely fantastic and intriguing! Can you tell us a little about the film?
Mehwish Hayat – Well it’s a ‘social comedy’, it talks about the surroundings in Pakistan, the environment around us, our society, our people and we see that happening, we see that going on and we think while growing up that we will bring about a change and do something about it..this is about all of these things, it’s youth based.. It has something for everyone!It might be an awakening as well!It’s been made in a very tasteful and intelligent way!
Fahad Mustafa -Yaar, it’s a very interesting kind of film, coming from the background that Pakistan as a country doesn’t always make a lot of sense as we all know. Now Actor in Law is a very interesting film in the way that we don’t really make these kind of films and I’m an actor who gets different kind of roles,it’s very rare I’m lucky in that way. It’s about social issues that are happening in Pakistan and everybody is quite knows what’s happening in Pakistan. Everyone in Pakistan, from Pakistan or has lived here knows what we are talking about. but we don’t want to sound like we are lecturing, we just want to bring it to the forefront in a lighter manner and a comic element is there. Actor in Law is an out and out masala, commercial film yet has a very intelligent message in it. it is not all nonsense! I personally believe that you can do comedy films and put some intelligence in it also. This film is all about that. The script is very funny yet it’s very intelligent, the performances are amazing and the music is good. All in all it is a wonderful package and I’m sure everyone is going to love it!
Pooja Shetty – What inspired you to take on this role?
Mehwish– This character is very different and special..I know that not just me but nobody else has portrayed a character like this! I’m representing a minority and she is a strong headed journalist who says what she believes in or what is right! She does not manipulate or hideaway in the corner and she certainly is not diplomatic about things! That’s what I loved about her and I had to give ‘bahut saari gaaliyan'( which was fun!)..It’s very different and interesting character and I had to do a lot of rehearsals to get into the skin of the character and even learn the dialect! I just loved the character and had to take it on.Hopefully I have done justice to the character! I had to really prepare myself and I absolutely loved it! I always look for challenging work and this was right up my alley! When the script was read to me..I was completely blown away and I absolutely had to do the role of Meenue 🙂 It also helped that I had such good co-actors like Fahad and Om Puri (who is such a nice person)!
Fahad– yaar..I don’t think any actor chooses his role or something like that! I think that a film chooses you and I happen to be very lucky that I get all these characters and I get the title characters most of the time.This film is all about me, I am the Actor in law and this film is about the boy who wants to be big in life, who has these dreams and wants make them come true..so it’s all about that! Why would anybody say no to such films?Such great scripts and it has Om Puri Saab, it’s such a great honour to work with him!All in all I never chose the film..the film chose me!
Pooja Shetty – Do you feel you identify with the character you are playing? Is he/she similar to you in any way?
Mehwish– I identify with her and I think a lot of girls would relate to her. This character is very meaningful, this character is very strong. She has many dimensions but she has something that I think every girl can relate to and understand! I can’t give away much but I do believe that what she feels, I think every girl feels! I believe in women empowerment just like her so in a way yes , she is like me! 
Fahad– I think that this character is very similar to lots of boys in Karachi, in Lahore and Islamabad.. even in India for that matter because we kind of experience these issues every day. We know what’s wrong with the system and and no one comes forward though heart of heart everyone wants to bring about a change but no one comes forward as they dont have enough guts!So this character has similarities with everybody, maybe even you can relate to this character! :)It’s me, It’s you..it can be anybody so anybody can relate to this character and that is the beauty of this character!It’s about everybody and that is the basic connect of the movie!
Pooja Shetty – What are your thoughts on the pressures upon desi children?and how they are not allowed to pursue their dreams?
Fahad– Ideally this is my story in a way…. My father is an actor that too an elitist one who was awarded the highest award called the Pride of Performance Pakistan and despite that he used to tell me that this not the kind of stuff you should do, you should pursue something else instead of acting, it’s not a fulltime job..Get on with it and do something else..I was in pharmacy school, when in between I decided no yaar I don’t want to do this, this not the kind of life I want to lead so all of a sudden I decided to something else. somehow acting happened, I never planned it but it happened and I realized somewhere that this is what I am actually meant to do and even now my mother asks me, although I’m the biggest star in the country, I own a production house and have over 100 people working for me, she still asks me when am I going to do something real, a job or something like that! J.It’s everybody story, it is very common in our society!
Pooja Shetty – This is Indian actor Om Puri’s debut with Lollywood-how was your experience working with the veteran actor?
Fahad– You should ask him :)Puri Saab is such a wonderful person to work with…he came to Pakistan and I don’t know what he was expecting ..because I see a lot of Indian movies in which they make these Pakistani characters wear sherwanis ,topis and dupattas, it’s nothing like that but when he came over and we started chatting we just clicked! and we became the best of friends, we talk every other day now and I had a plan..I used to tell him that I will feed you so much that you will not want to leave..And he used to say that this is a conspiracy against him in Pakistan and I would get him killed just by the food! We had such a good time on set, such positive energy and he is such a huge star yaar…we love him and have watched his films all our lives. In fact my mother who never talks to any of my father’s colleagues in Pakistanbut when I asked if she wanted to talk to Om Puri…she said yes and spoke to him for over an hour! Then I called her back and asked her, ‘what were you talking about you don’t talk to my father for that long?’ and she said, yeah, we were catching up and all that! That’s the kind of fan following Puri saab has in Pakistan! It’s an honor to share the screen with him! In all seriousness he is one of the most brilliant actors India has produced and it was my honor and pleasure to be able to work with him!
Pooja Shetty – Now that you’ve worked with actors from both Pakistan and India …do you feel there is a difference in the methodology or how they operate?
Fahad– Yaar when we talk about Bollywood it’s a much bigger bigger industry, they have history of over 70-80 years now, and we are a newer industry comparatively- very young! So we don’t know what the norms are, we don’t know what the formulas are..we are still developing and getting to know what our genres are .We don’t know, we are just making films and in 2015 the industry got on track again with films like Na Maloom Afrad! Before that there were no films being made. Guys like me have been producing films for the past 4-5 years! I have the biggest production house in Pakistan, I do a lot of television and I’ve been doing that for the past 4-5 years and before that I was acting in tv shows and only recently I’ve started producing films !Like I met Mr Mahesh Bhatt and he called me and said he wants to meet me for a film and all that and he narrated a script and personally I didn’t like it! I thought that we have lot more stories to tell , fresh stories that the world needs to know. I think in that industry there is a lack of creativity, a little bit of reality is lacking!Our cinema is much more real as it has just started! It’s comparatively new and fresh also!I just want to be part of something that is fresh and developing.I want to be part of this industry and be remembered as one of the few people who got the industry through. You know we might do something amazing here!
Pooja Shetty – Do you recall any funny incidents during the movie?can you tell us about them?
Fahad– We had lots of fun and funny incidents. Every day was memorable and me and Puri saab were roaming on the bike almost every other day . For consecutive 30 days we were riding that bike all over Karachi and sometimes we just had to be somewhere so we used to park our vanity vans far away just so that we could ride to it! It was hilarious !We enjoyed every bit of it..the food we shared together , fed him a lot and had so much fun! It was an amazing experience as we were serious about the film and it was great as this is my 3rd film and Puri Saab’s 300th-400th, I don’t know but the energy and passion that he has for his work is commendable!
Pooja Shetty – Now both of you’ll work in television as well as mainstream cinema,do you find it difficult to balance the two?
Fahad– yaar I don’t act in television anymore.Not that I don’t want to but I don’t get enough time for that as I told you I have a production house and  Iproduce for television. Even right now as we speak 7-8 serials are on set. it’s just that I don’t get enough time to act in TV.When it comes to films it has 70-75 maximum 80 scenes but when it comes to serials it has 600.. so you know it take a lot of time! I try to work less and keep fresh,make lots of money and enjoy! 🙂
Pooja Shetty – How do you think the movie will be received in India,UK and the US?
Fahad-If India lets us release our film there …I don’t know what the possibilities are but I think it has a huge prospect there. It is an amazing film, good story, good performances and good music and is very different from Indian cinema. I’m not saying that it is outstanding or very good in comparison to Indian cinema but ……just keep that in mind that it’s a new industry and there may be flaws but it’s a film that’s made from the heart, it’s a very honest film. It has a lot of honesty! As for US, I have a lot of friends though it’s interesting I’ve never been to the US..I’ve been almost everywhere in the world but not been to the USA..every time I make plans something come up!I don’t like that it’s a long flight and I hate flights! I don’t have enough time and I feel that if I go I should go there at least for a month or two which is not going to happen. But this time we have a reason and the reason is Actor in Law and I’m going to be there on the 14th!
Now Mehwish -you were voted as one of the sexiest Asian women by the Eastern Eye magazine in the UK J how did that come about? And how did you feel about that?
Pooja Shetty –  And finally now……what’s next on the cards for the both of  you?
Mehwish– Well Actor in Law..I have a couple of things that I am considering, I still haven’t decided yet and maybe I have but I am not going to tell you yet! For right now it’s Actor in Law and my Coke Studio debut.That’s all for the moment and I’m enjoying it right now! The next project I haven’t really thought about it, maybe once I’m done with the premier and all and the movie is released – my mind will start focusing on what’s next! Right now I haven’t really put much thought into it!
Fahad– I’m doing a movie next year with Mahira Khan who just did a film with Shahrukh Khan. It’s not a comedy film .I actually plan to do all kinds of films ,I’m a very difficult kind of an actor in a way that I just don’t want to do nonsense. And I need a change constantly and not get typecast! I only look for films that will make me look different and I don’t be myself which is the whole point of being an actor! It’s a different film and I am also producing my own film. so Let’s see Inshallah beginning of next year we’ll begin that as well
Pooja Shetty – Do you have anything to say to your fans here in Boston?
Mehwish – I have to say please do watch ‘Actor in Law’..it has everything you think of that you need in a movie! It has a story, the emotions, the songs, the performances, romance etc.. so please watch it and enjoy it! And hopefully I will get to see you’ll soon.. I really want to visit Boston sometime soon!
Fahad– I love you..I love you..I love you! There are a lot of people in America who watch my show which is called Jeeto Pakistan, it happens to be the biggest show in the country. They’ve been watching my serials for the last 10 years so I think there’s a love there and lot of fan following. I want to thank them for following me for the past 10 years and being a part of my life..it’s about time that I meet them and talk to them personally! I’ll be there soon Inshallah so don’t be upset anymore! Thank you!
Thank you!