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Moor (film)

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Moor
Theatrical release poster
مور
Directed byJami
Written byJami
Produced byNazira Ali
Nadeem Mandviwalla
Jami
Starring
CinematographyFarhan Hafeez
Edited byRizwan AQ
Sourath Behan
Music byStrings
Production
companies
Azad Film Company
Mandviwalla Entertainment
Distributed byGeo Films
Release date
  • 14 August 2015 (2015-08-14)
Running time
134 minutes
CountryPakistan
LanguagesUrdu
Pashto
BudgetRs. 5 crore (US$170,000)[1]
Box officeRs. 1.85 crore (US$64,000)

Moor (Pashto: مور, Urdu: ماں, meaning Mother) is a 2015 Pakistani drama film written and directed by Jami and co-produced by Nazira Ali, Nadeem Mandviwalla and Jami under the production banner of Azad Film Company and Mandviwalla Entertainment. The film stars Hameed Sheikh[2] in lead along with Samiya Mumtaz, Shaz Khan, Nayyar Ejaz, Ayaz Samoo and Abdul Qadir in lead roles. The film's title, Moor, is a Pashto word meaning "Mother". Moor was previously named as Morqaye (maan sahiba).[3][4][5][6] Film's story depicts the railway system of Balochistan, especially the closure of Zhob valley railways in 1984. Besides that the movie shows how families are run by the women. According to the director of the movie, the film depicts living through the problems faced by Pakistan.[7]

The film was released nationwide by Mandviwalla Entertainment on 14 August 2015 (Pakistan Independence Day).[8] It was selected to premiere at 20th Busan International Film Festival.[9] The film was selected as the Pakistani entry for the Best Foreign Language Film at the 88th Academy Awards but it was not nominated.[10][11][12]

Plot

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Recently widowed, Wahidullah Khan (Hameed Sheikh) is a troubled station-master at the Khost railway station on the fractured Bostan-Zhob tracks. The station, his sole source of income, has been reduced to a pitiable ruin due to the prevalence of a mafia which has caused several rifts in the Baluchistan railways. Using a combination of incentives and coercion, it acquires the land on which the tracks and stations were situated – and builds commercial and residential developments there. Additionally, it sells the steel, removed from the tracks, for a fortune. Wahid is in a predicament; torn between a verbal agreement to sell the station and tracks under his care to the mafia – including his brother, Zahir (Shabbir Rana), and gang leader, Lalu (Sultan Hussain) – and the last wishes of his deceased wife, Palwasha (Samiya Mumtaz). She vehemently opposed the deal, based on a strong conviction that this land keeps her family rooted.

Meanwhile, Wahid's son, Ehsaanullah Khan (Shaz Khan), has set out to turn his fortunes in Karachi, Pakistan's troubled megacity, only with the memory of his mother's guidance to use time to his advantage. Yet the city, which appeared to be a sweet promise of success from a distance, is more unforgiving than Balochistan's treacherous landscape; here, time is at no one's mercy. Frustrated by his circumstances, Ehsaan chooses the more dishonourable trajectory to success, by getting involved in the corrupt, but highly lucrative, business of counterfeit documentation. He continues in the business even after his mother's passing, and a scandal that almost exposes him in the film's opening sequences. He is, nonetheless, persistently haunted by his conscience and his mother's upright values of honour and loyalty to the land.[1]

Cast

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Production

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Casting

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Earlier, Shabbir Rana was chosen for lead role in film but was later opted out to give room to Hameed Sheikh who met the physical challenges of the role. Sheikh was selected after Jami was struck by his entry in the film Kandahar Break. For female lead Samiya Mumtaz was asked to do the role. Despite being a comedian in field, Ayaz Samoo was cast for villain's role in film. Abdul Qadir is senior most actor in cast hails from Quetta. On his role in the film he stated "I’m from a people who know how to live in the mountains, but I can't swim. But Jami was able to make me do it. My fellow actors proved that they are no less than any other in the country." Moreover, this will be the first film of Soniya Hussain and can be considered a second film for Eshita Mehboob Syed.[14]

Filming

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Moor is made at a budget of Rs. 5 crore (US$170,000).[1] The film was shot in Quetta, Muslim Bagh, Khanozai, Shelabagh, Bostan, Hyderabad, Sukkur and Karachi.[7] Making of Moor began in 2007 at a time when train issues were worse in Pakistan. To write the script, director and crew decided to travel to Balochistan by train. He summoned the conditions as "The 10-11 hour journey took us two days on a train that had no windows, no bathrooms and barely functioning lights. The engine broke down multiple times, and the diesel ran out just as many. And oh, we couldn’t stand near the door, because “rocket launcher kabhi bhi asakta hai”. We couldn't have anticipated the serious issues that we saw. Shooting in Muslimbagh had trials of its own. Not only was the weather inclement, but we encountered lack of support from security forces who would intervene to tell us it's not safe. Surprisingly, the Taliban cooperated and even emptied out their headquarters for us to shoot in. Our crew included girls wearing Western clothes, and nobody cared."[14]

Marketing

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The first look teaser was revealed online on 6 August 2013. The film release date was announced in a press conference held in Karachi where posters and theatrical trailer were also revealed.[15] Film's final extended trailer was revealed on 7 July 2015 on official Facebook page.[16][17][18] Final poster was revealed on 17 July.

Soundtrack

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Moor
Soundtrack album by
Strings
Released28 July 2015
GenreFeature film soundtrack
Length43:33
LabelAzad Film Company

Soundtrack of Moor is composed by the Pakistani band, Strings.[19][20] Kothbiro by Ayub Ogada is featured in the trailer. The film bought the copyrights.[21] Anwar Maqsood wrote the lyrics of songs. The soundtrack was released on 28 July 2015.[22]

Track listing
No.TitleSinger(s)Length
1."Jogiya"Javed Bashir5:12
2."Eva"Meesha Shafi4:25
3."Talabgaar Hoon"Javed Bashir6:00
4."Tum Ho"Strings3:48
5."Gul Bashri"Rahim Shah4:13
6."Jeye Jeye Ja"Rahma Ali, Noman Farooqi, Nisha Ali5:21
7."Ku Ku Ku"Strings3:45

Release

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Moor was premiered in Karachi on 10 August[23] and in Lahore on 13 August[24] whereas film had its red carpet in Rawalpindi the next day.[25] The film was released in cinemas across Pakistan on 14 August 2015 (Independence Day).[8][26] The film premiered in Dubai on 29 October, while released in cinemas UAE the next day.[27]

Reception

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Box office

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At box office, Moor collected Rs. 2.5 million (US$8,700) on its first day and opening weekend total collection was Rs. 6.21 million (US$22,000) The film had very low week days with collection of Rs. 8.58 million (US$30,000) in its first week. In its 2nd weekend film collected of Rs. 2.1 million (US$7,300) taking total box office collection to Rs. 1.07 crore (US$37,000).

Critical response

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The film was rated good overall by critics. Rafay Mahmood of The Express Tribune praised the film, rated 4 out of 5 stars and wrote "Jami manages to pull off the impossible with Moor. He grants us a true Pakistani film sans being pretentious or preachy and makes the much rural and suburban concept of ‘love for your motherland’ moving for urban audiences."[28] Aayan Mirza of Galaxy Lollywood rated 4/5 and summed up as "Moor is by far the best Pakistani cinema has ever offered in terms of overall execution. What a cinematography, what an acting, and what a music."[29] Adnan Murad of Blasting News rated 3.5/5 stars and verdicts as "A surprisingly engaging mix of reality and substance gives Moor a cult appeal that Pakistani film industry will always cherish. Moor has a swirl of allure and enchantment that sets it apart from other Pakistani films."[30] Elizabeth Kerr of The Hollywood Reporter praised the film at 20th Busan International Film Festival saying, "A gorgeous and intensely contemporary slice of Pakistani life."[31]

Director Jami at IFFI (2015)

Accolades

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Ceremony Won Nominated
15th Lux Style Awards
[32]
  • Azad Film Company – Best Film
  • Jami – Best Director
  • Hameed Sheikh – Best Actor
  • Samiya Mumtaz – Best Actress
  • Shaz Khan – Best Supporting Actor
  • Javed Bashir – Best Male Singer for "Talabgaar"
  • Rahim Shah – Best Male Singer for "Gul Bashri"
  • Meesha Shafi – Best Female Singer for "Eva"
  • Javed Bashir – Best Song of the Year for "Jogiya"
2nd Galaxy Lollywood Awards[33]
  • Sultan Hussain – Best Performance In a Negative Role
  • Azad Film Company – Best Film
  • Hameed Sheikh – Best Actor in a Leading Role Male
  • Jami – Best Director
  • Ayaz Samoo – Best Actor in a Supporting Role Male
  • Shaz Khan – Best Actor in a Supporting Role Male
  • Shaz Khan – Best Male Debut
  • Javed Bashir – Best Playback Singer Male for "Jogiya"
  • Strings – Best Music
  • Jogiya – Song Of The Year
2nd ARY Film Awards
  • Ayaz Samoo – Best Actor in a Negative Role
  • Strings – Best Background Score
  • Farhan Hafeez – Best Cinematography
  • Tahir Moosa (Sharp Image) – Best Special Effects (Visual)
  • Azad Film Company – Best Film
  • Jami – Best Director
  • Hameed Sheikh – Best Actor
  • Soniya Hussain – Best Actress
  • Soniya Hussain – Best Star Debut Female

References

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  1. ^ a b "Pakistan Zindabad!: Battle for box office azadi". 10 August 2015.
  2. ^ Rafay Mahmood. "Hameed Sheikh — when mountains speak, wise men listen". The Express Tribune. Retrieved 6 July 2014.
  3. ^ "Moor (Upcoming movie) Trailer - Pakistani Cinema". 16 October 2013.
  4. ^ Marium Ashfaq (8 September 2013). "Movie Preview: Moor by Jami Noor". brandsynario. Retrieved 6 July 2014.
  5. ^ "Have you seen? First Look of Jami's Moor goes Live!". The Express Tribune. 6 November 2013. Retrieved 7 August 2013.
  6. ^ Ayesha Hoda (12 September 2013). "The techie film-maker". Dawn. Retrieved 7 November 2013.
  7. ^ a b Rafay Mahmood (2 November 2013). "Jami's Moor highlights lost livelihood in Balochistan". The Express Tribune. Retrieved 7 November 2013.
  8. ^ a b Mohammad Nasir. "Gift of Independence Day: Much-awaited movie". The News. Retrieved 14 August 2015.
  9. ^ "Moor heads to Busan International Film Festival". The News. Archived from the original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 15 August 2015.
  10. ^ "Oscars: Pakistan Enters 'Moor' in Foreign-Language Film Race". The Hollywood Reporter. 10 September 2015. Retrieved 10 September 2015.
  11. ^ "Moor' is Pakistan's Oscar Foreign Language Film entry". Gulf News. 12 September 2015. Retrieved 9 October 2015.
  12. ^ "Oscars: Pakistan Enters 'Moor' in Foreign-Language Film Race". Variety. Retrieved 9 September 2015.
  13. ^ "New horror to be shot in Bolton as the cameras keep rolling". 31 October 2022.
  14. ^ a b Mehreen Hasan. "5 things you need to know about Jami's upcoming film Moor". DAWN.com. Retrieved 5 June 2015.
  15. ^ Has an Ansari. "Moor: bringing Balochistan back on track". The Express Tribune. Retrieved 5 June 2015.
  16. ^ "Moor trailer released and it's pretty impressive!". The Express Tribune. Retrieved 9 July 2015.
  17. ^ "Jami's Moor trailer is bound to leave you on the edge of your seat". DAWN.com. Retrieved 9 July 2015.
  18. ^ "Final trailer of upcoming Pakistani film 'Moor' releases". Daily Times. Retrieved 12 July 2015.
  19. ^ Maheen Sabeeh (26 August 2013). "Soundcheck: Bittersweet symphony". Dawn. Retrieved 7 November 2013.
  20. ^ "Strings Band reveals about their soundtracks for the film Moor". PAKIUM. 21 August 2014. Retrieved 24 August 2014.
  21. ^ Ayub Ogada. "soundtrack copyright of Kothbiro song by Ayub Ogada". Kothbiro.
  22. ^ "Moor". saavn.com.
  23. ^ "Film Moor's premiere held in Karachi". Business Recorder. Archived from the original on 4 March 2016. Retrieved 14 August 2015.
  24. ^ Faizan Ali. "'Moor' releases all over Pakistan". Daily Times. Retrieved 15 August 2015.
  25. ^ Afshan S. Khan. "'Moor' premieres today". The News. Retrieved 14 August 2015.
  26. ^ "'Moor' and 'Dekh Magar Pyar Say' to battle it out on Independence Day". The Express Tribune. Retrieved 4 June 2015.
  27. ^ David Tusing. "'Moor' pushing film boundaries". Gulf News. Retrieved 31 October 2015.
  28. ^ Rafay Mahmood (11 August 2015). "Review: Moor power to Pakistani cinema". The Express Tribune. Retrieved 14 August 2015.
  29. ^ Aayan Mirza (13 August 2015). "Moor (Review): It's Pakistani cinema at its finest". Galaxy Lollywood. Retrieved 14 August 2015.
  30. ^ Adnan Murad (15 August 2015). "Moor review: a truly pleasurable experience". Blasting News. Retrieved 15 August 2015.
  31. ^ Elizabeth Kerr (7 October 2015). "'Mother': Busan Review". The Hollywood Reporter. Retrieved 9 October 2015.
  32. ^ "Complete list of winners of 15th LUX Style Awards 2016 | SAMAA".
  33. ^ "Galaxy Lollywood Awards 2016 (Winners)". 13 February 2016.
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