CHICAGO: “If Amjad Khan was known as Gabbar, Mast Ali is known as Saleem Pheku,” remarked Iftekhar Shareef as he introduced the team of Angrez at a press conference in Chicago to members of Indian media gathered at Mysore Woodland to greet and meet the comedian actors team from Hyderabad film industry.
The team members of first-ever full length comedy movie in Deccan Urdu-Hindi language were on a visit to Chicago. Shareef said it was an honor to present the people who worked under limited resources and created a unique film industry in Hyderabad. He introduced Director Syed Hussain, actor Feroz Khan and popular comedian duo actors Mast Ali and Aziz Naser.
Shareef said, “Popularly known as Saleem Pheku, actor Mast Ali and his companion Aziz Naser have created a unique comedian duo in first ever Deccani language movies. The success of Angrez in 2005 was immediately followed by Hyd Bad Nawabs. Both movies created a new film industry in Hyderabad, besides regional Telugu films. And the team is moving on for the mission laughter ever since. They gave more successful movies such as “Hungama in Dubai” Berozgaar” “Zabardast”, “FM Fun and Masti” and recently, “Stepney”. “Shareef said the team is expecting release of new film, “Dawat e Shaadi” soon.
Iftekhar Shareef also requested actor Mast Ali and Aziz Naser to share their success story.
Saleem Pheku-Mast Ali first chose to peak in English but when prompted for the peculiar Hyderabadi dialogue that made him so popular in his movies, he switched to Deccani Urdu. Mast Ali said they worked under tight budget and lack of facilities. Their script idea was to pick the fun from real life and real life characters. Turning to his friend Aziz Naser, Ali said working together they want to create a duo image similar to Tom and Jerry, fighting and remaining friends for fun.
Naser ali and Mast Ali answered questions from media persons. Their first movie Angrez remained in theatres for over 250 days. While their distributors worked under limited territories they got overwhelming response from the video market all over the world.
Asian Media USA adds
“The Hyderabad Film Industry, even though only about 10 years old, has churned out a series of comedy blockbusters and gained popularity not only in Andhra Pradesh and different parts of India but also among the large Diaspora in the Middle-East and the US, thanks to the Internet and DVDs”, said Mast Ali, a. k. a. Saleem Pheku, the king of comedy.
Ali has acted in over 20 high impact making films in different languages and brought laurels to Hyderabad.
“Our films entertained their audiences thoroughly, irrespective of their linguistic backgrounds, as the Hyderabadi Urdu, the lingua franca of the streets of Hyderabad, which is a unique mix of Urdu, Hindi, Telugu, and some Marathi. It is widely understood across the Indian subcontinent, including Pakistan”, added Mast Ali.
Mast Ali said the Hyderabad Film Industry is currently in growth mode and, hence, there is a great demand for story writers, lyricists, singers, etc. “Currently, we are caught up in all the departments of film making. Once the demand for different professionals is met, we can focus on our core job of acting and on producing high-quality films according to the felt needs of our audience, across the globe”, he added.
“It is a matter of gratification that the Hyderabad Film Industry is currently undergoing a metamorphosis; it is no longer confining itself to making small budget films for its niche market. Instead, it is focusing on producing typical Bollywood films, which are rich in terms of exquisite quality, pan-India appeal, and high-end technology”, said Aziz Naser, a. k. a. Jahanjir.
“It is a moment of pride that Dawat-e-Ishque’, a landmark Bollywood-type movie of the Hyderabad Film Industry, is being released by Rajshree Productions under its banner, with a big bang”, said Syed Hussain, Director of the film.
“The release of our film by Rajshree Productions, which has produced a number of blockbusters in India, will take the Hyderabadi cinema up a notch like never before and catapult it into the higher echelons of film appreciation, added Hussain, with a sense of accomplishment.
Feroz Khan, who has essayed a negative role in “Dawat-e-Ishque” said that Hyderabadi cinema has come to attain the status of a genre unto itself, not just considering the typical lingo of the City of Pearls, but even given the culture and traditions of the Deccan.
“Our films, which deliberately shun vulgarity and item songs, considering the culture of Hyderabad, focus mainly on delivering authentic entertainment for the entire family”, he added.
A.Q. Siddiqui
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