REPORT
Maalik is a reply to those
who blame the country
rather than themselves:
Ashir Azeem
I
n 1993, a young Ashir Azeem rose to stardom as the
star and writer of PTV Quetta centre’s first action-drama Dhuaan, and captured the imagination of the entire
nation. The content was so strong that it did not require
the traditional star-studded cast or the staple ‘happily
ever after’ ending. The leading cast was killed off in the
final episode; something that still bothers those who followed it with all their heart. The question remains: why?
“First of all, the guys weren’t supposed to die in the original script; I had to kill them off because had I not done
so, Dhuaan would have become the story of individuals
and not the story of the system,” the cool and calm Ashir
Azeem discloses. “But then, I also believe that Dhuaan
had a happy ending since another young ASP replaces
my screen character of Azher and continues the good
work." "I was also under pressure to continue Dhuaan
and keep adding stories to it. If something is successful
we should know the right time to make an exit. Commercial success tends to blind us, we try to stretch that
success till people get sick of the concept and force us
to quit. It is better to leave in dignity than be forced out in
disgrace. That timely exit is one of the factors that made
Dhuaan so popular.”
Ashir Azeem's exit
Much like ASP Azher, Ashir Azeem left the scene soon
after giving the public something they could cheer for.
While Nazli Nasr, Nabeel and Asal Din Khan continued
with their showbiz careers, Ashir disappeared only to
return 22 years later.Out of sight but not out of mind,
Ashir Azeem is back at what he does best! Who is this
man who turned his back on fame? “By temperament
I am not a media person. I went in front of the screen
because I had something to say; having said it I had no
desire to linger on. I wanted to go back to being an ordinary guy and being with my friends and family.” But is
it really possible to go back being ordinary after capturing the fancy of millions? “No it’s not, Dhuaan changed
me forever. In a sense I became quieter, contemplative,
I matured, became humble. The tremendous affection
that I received from the people weighed down on me,
and I realised that people looked up to me and I felt obligated to live up to their standards. The carefree callous me, who occasionally ran through a red traffic light,
would stop at a signal even in the middle of the night
because somehow it felt like betraying the millions that
praised me so much.”
From Dhuaan to Maalik
The upcoming feature film Maalik sees Ashir return as
actor, writer and director.“I was inspired by reality back
then and even now. When I joined Civil Service Academy, I became friends with a lot of police officers who
were idealists like me. We got a wake-up call when we
came into active duty; practical life was different from
our thoughts. I deduced that the problem was not with
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