After a flashback to that massacre we meet Maula (Fawad Khan) as a young man. The size of a well-fed bear, he earns a living fighting in gladiatorial games, pummelling poor souls from neighbouring villages. But the discovery of his past sets him off on a path of revenge against the Natt family responsible for killing his parents.
That journey is predictable enough but made juicily watchable by a trio of scenery-chewing villains from the Natt clan. Meanest of them is eldest son Noori (Hamza Ali Abbasi), an untameable mountain of a man who speaks in a menacingly gentle purr. Noori has chosen to live in prison, having heard it’s where the fiercest men in the country are kept. There’s a wonderful weariness in his disappointment at the poor quality of opponents. “Oh God, I ask you for lions and you send me sheep.”
Noori’s little brother and rival is petulant pretty-boy Maakha (Gohar Rasheed). There are shades of Nero in his psychotic smirk, his pouncing on a young woman for sexual thrills and killing her suitor. Last of the murderous siblings is sister Daaro (Humaima Malick). The movie ends, unsurprisingly, with a big fight between Maula and Noori – a fight in which Maula pauses to twiddle his fine moustache. Like I said, old school; still, I enjoyed every minute.
The producer of the blockbuster Punjabi film Maula Jatt believes that the remake of his classic – believed to have brought viewers on the edge of their seats – The Legend Of Maula Jatt doesn’t reflect Punjabi culture at all.
Released in 1979, the film Maula Jatt changed the course of the Pakistani film industry because of its dialogues and characters, besides highlighting the rural culture of Punjab in the cinematography of the film.
Although the theme and story of The Legend of Maula Jatt is derived from Maula Jatt, many tweaks have been done in the storyline.
Styling in The Legend of Maula Jatt
While in conversation with SAMAA TV, Bhatti expressed his disappointment with the costumes and styling of the cast in the remake and said that the movie does not reflect Punjabi culture anywhere in the trailer.
He said, “After watching the trailer, I felt that these characters belong to some barbarian kingdom. The Legend Of Maula Jatt’s costumes resemble the one from characters of the Indian film Baahubali.”
Sarwar Bhatti also added that he himself bought the clothes for the original Maula Jatt’s characters, which were designed by the dress master of his company Bahu Films corporation.
Legal action against TLOMJ
During the interview, the Mela producer also shed light on the controversy around The Legend Of Maula Jatt’s name and why he approached court against Bilal Lashari’s directorial.
He said that the filmmakers did not take his permission when they started making this film. This is the reason I decided to take legal action, he added.
He added that the high court and the Intellectual Property Tribunal (IPT) decided in his favor because the 1979 model is his property. The tribunal ruled in my favor regarding the trademark of the film, Sarwar Bhatti said.
After a legal quagmire extending to 28 months, the producer of the remake eventually sought his permission.
Bhatti said, “I own all the rights to the movie Maula Jatt, and I have given permission to use the dialogues only. They can only use the dialogues in the movie. It will not affect my copyrights.”
Is TLOMJ sequel of Maula Jatt?
Upon asking if The Legend of Maula Jatt is a sequel to his 1979 classic film, Bhatti replied, “Maula Jatt does not have any sequels, although several movies have been made using the names of the characters such as ‘Noori Nath’, ‘Jatt in London’, ‘Vehshi Jatt’, etc.”
The veteran producer further added, “The original Maula Jatt was [only] the Maula Jatt of 1979.”
How much it cost?
Sarwar Bhatti said that his Maula Jatt was among the most expensive films of the time. At that time, he spent a whopping Rs1.4 million.
He said that to make up for it, he sold his house and properties.
Just like the original, the remake of Maula Jatt is also being declared the most expensive movie to date in the history of Pakistani cinema.
How much artists were paid?
The 1979 blockbuster movie starred Mustafa Qureshi, Sultan Rahi, Aasia Chakori, Seema Begum and Alia.
Bhatti said that Sultan Rahi who played the lead role Maula Jatt in the film demanded Rs70,000. After the movie became a hit, he demanded another Rs10,000; he told.
Mustafa Qureshi who played Noori Nath also received Rs70,000.
Nasir Adeeb: the ‘writer’ who ‘kept hanging on’
The Bazar e Husn producer disclosed that Nasir Adeeb – who has written the screenplay of both, the original Maula Jatt and its remake – only wrote the screenplay because Maula Jatt’s story was thought by himself.
He said, “Nasir Adeeb only ‘penned down’ dialogues I narrated to him.”
Moments to reminisce
While reminiscing about his film, Bhatti said that during filming, Sultan Rahi was hit by a spear on his finger. After the incident, he could not move his ring finger, hence it always remained straight.
In one of the scenes, there were two girls Amroozia and Anita and the latter was so engrossed in dancing for a baraat scene that she struck her hand on the drum which resulted in minor injuries. However, she still completed the scene.
Maula Jatt was completed in three months
Bhatti revealed that it took them only two months and 26 days to complete filming of Maula Jatt. He added that there were 86 scenes in the movie.
However, he added, The Legend of Maula Jatt started filming in 2013, and it was being released in cinemas after almost a decade.
Bilal Lashari directorial, TLOMJ stars Fawad Khan, Hamza Ali Abbasi, Mahira Khan and Humaima Malik among other big names in the industry. The movie has been on October 13 in nationwide cinemas.
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