\n\tKARACHI: As Pakistani audiences head to cinemas during the Eid Al-Adha holidays, actor Mehwish Hayat hopes her new zombie action-comedy \u201cZombeid\u201d signals a broader shift in an industry long dominated by romantic dramas and formula films.<\/p>\n
\n\tThe film, starring Hayat opposite leading actor Fahad Mustafa, is among several Pakistani releases competing for audiences during one of the country\u2019s biggest cinema weekends, when families traditionally flock to theaters during the Eid holidays.<\/p>\n
\n\tPakistan\u2019s film industry, once home to a thriving cinema culture known as \u201cLollywood,\u201d has struggled for years with shrinking cinema infrastructure, inconsistent film production and competition from Hollywood, Bollywood and streaming platforms. Industry figures have increasingly argued that Pakistani cinema needs stronger scripts, larger-scale productions and more experimental storytelling to rebuild audiences.<\/p>\n
\n\tHayat, who also appeared in Marvel\u2019s \u201cMs. Marvel,\u201d said Pakistani filmmakers needed to invest more time in development and take greater creative risks if the industry hoped to evolve.<\/p>\n
\n\t\u201cWhen it is an international project, a lot of work goes into development before going on the floor… Here we sometimes treat projects like a rushed exam, whereas filmmaking should be like architecture, where the foundation has to be strong,\u201d she told Arab News in an interview ahead of the film\u2019s release.\u00a0<\/p>\n
\n\tThe actor said Pakistan\u2019s cinema industry often falls into repetitive storytelling patterns after a film succeeds commercially.<\/p>\n
\n\t\u201cOne successful romantic comedy should not mean everyone starts making the same kind of movies,\u201d she said. \u201cWe need to experiment more and take risks with different genres.\u201d<\/p>\n
\n\tDirected by Nabeel Qureshi and co-written with longtime collaborator Fizza Ali Meerza, \u201cZombeid\u201d mixes comedy, horror and action in what filmmakers describe as one of Pakistan\u2019s most ambitious attempts at a zombie thriller.<\/p>\n
\n\tThe film also stars Dodi Khan, Irfan Motiwala, Javed Sheikh and Babar Ali.<\/p>\n
\n\tHayat said the project immediately stood out because large-scale zombie thrillers had rarely been attempted in Pakistan.<\/p>\n
\n\t\u201cWe, in Pakistan, have never attempted a zombie thriller at this scale before,\u201d she said. \u201cIt was risky but also very challenging. As an artist, I always like to attempt different genres and give audiences something fresh.\u201d<\/p>\n
\n\tThe actor said audiences would see a very different side of her performance compared to the emotional or romantic roles she has often played in commercially successful films.<\/p>\n
\n\t\u201cIn this movie, we have to react to danger and chaos,\u201d she said. \u201cThose reactions are very different from the kind of work we usually do.\u201d<\/p>\n
\n\tTo prepare for the role of a Zumba instructor in the film, Hayat said she attended fitness classes in the United States before production began.<\/p>\n
\n\t\u201cI attended a few Zumba classes at LA Fitness to understand how a trainer behaves,\u201d she said. \u201cI also worked on my fitness because the role was physically demanding.\u201d<\/p>\n
\n\tThe film reunites Hayat with Qureshi and Meerza, the filmmaking duo behind commercially successful Pakistani films including \u201cNa Maloom Afraad,\u201d \u201cActor in Law\u201d and \u201cLoad Wedding.\u201d<\/p>\n
\n\tHayat said she trusted the filmmakers\u2019 creative vision despite the unconventional premise.<\/p>\n
\n\tShe also argued that audiences across South Asia were increasingly rejecting simplistic or stereotypical storytelling because of wider exposure to global content online.<\/p>\n
\n\tWhile stereotypical portrayals of Muslims and Pakistanis still existed in some Bollywood films, Hayat said streaming platforms and younger filmmakers were gradually reshaping narratives in the region.<\/p>\n
\n\t\u201cPeople can now see through stereotypes and propaganda much more easily,\u201d she told Arab News.<\/p>\n
\n\t\u201cYou can love your country without demonizing another nation… Cinema is very powerful and it needs to be used carefully.\u201d<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"KARACHI: As Pakistani audiences head to cinemas during the Eid Al-Adha holidays, actor Mehwish Hayat hopes her new…\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":449056,"comment_status":"","ping_status":"","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[27],"tags":[156,409,111,139,69],"class_list":["post-449055","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","category-movies","tag-entertainment","tag-movies","tag-new-zealand","tag-newzealand","tag-nz"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/449055","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/2"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=449055"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/449055\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/449056"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=449055"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=449055"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.newsbeep.com\/nz\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=449055"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}