Renowned journalist and filmmaker Abu Aleeha’s tenth feature film, ‘Mera Lyari,’ has graced the cinema halls. The film is being described as a step up from his previous big project, ‘Taksaali Gate’, which was produced and starred Ayesha Omar.
Ayesha Omar has once again emerged as an executive producer and actress in the film ‘Mera Lyari’, where she is playing the role of a former footballer and national coach, Behnaz. However, unlike ‘Taksaali Gate’, despite being at the forefront of the film’s posters and promotions, she is virtually absent from the film’s story.
The real life of the film is the renowned actress Danair Mubeen, who has held this very weak and thin story together like super glue. The story of the film revolves around a girl from Lyari, ‘Afsana’ (Dananir Mubeen), who dreams of playing professional football and eventually gets selected. Critics say that they wish the film had included more content, both in terms of story and football.
The film, based on the theme of women’s empowerment and football, despite star Dananir Mubeen’s valiant efforts to take the film to new heights, seems to falter at some points, like director Abu Aleeha’s other films.
The film depicts a collection of traditional and stereotypical characters around the main character, Afsana. Her father, ‘Arif Baloch’, is played by Nayyar Ijaz, who is an angry rickshaw driver and takes out his anger on his daughter’s sporting ambitions due to his backward thinking. On the other hand, her compassionate mother, Shakra Hussain, is played by Samia Mumtaz, who longs for a son and shares a strange and uneasy relationship with her daughter. Apart from this, the story also forcibly includes the cycle of fake feet and amulets.
The character of Afsana’s best friend, Kashmala, is played by Trinet Lucas, who is being called a great discovery in the field of acting. The film preaches women’s autonomy and completely rejects romantic subplots and shows men (with one exception) mostly in a negative light.
According to critics, Abu Aleeha is a journalist-turned-filmmaker, but his scripts still sound like first drafts that have been rushed for production. However, the film has been praised for its excellent cinematography by Asrad Khan and lively surround sound mastering by Ehtesham Malik. In contrast, Shayan Masood’s choppy editing and the experience of good-middling four different scenes at the same time is quite mind-boggling for the film-goers.
There is a clear maturity in Abu Aleeha’s style as a director and his ability to work with actors. Danair Mubeen has shown great maturity and range in her screen debut, and she has been largely successful in covering up all the film’s creative weaknesses and lack of football matches with her excellent performance.
Produced by Waqas Hassan Rizvi and Sania Sohail and released under the ‘Distribution Club’, ‘Mera Lyari’ has been given a ‘PG’ rating for its use of loud and adult language.
Read also: Sharjeel condemns Indian film ‘Dhurandhar’ for negative portrayal of Lyari
