KARACHI: A “mob” attacked a film set this week while some of Pakistan’s most popular actors were shooting for an upcoming movie in Karachi, the actor in the leading role, Hira Mani, said, while a police report of the incident said five crew members were injured.
The incident, which has taken Pakistani mainstream and social media by storm, occurred on Monday evening during the shoot of upcoming film ‘Sajin Mahel,’ directed by Nabeel Qureshi, and starring Mani, her husband Salman Saquib (popularly known as Mani) and Gul-e-Rana.
Mani said the attack happened after the film director got into a spat with neighbors who complained about noise from the shoot, which was taking place in a rented property in Karachi’s PIB Colony. An “armed mob” forcibly entered the house, she said, describing it as a “pre-planned” attack by people aiming to disrupt the shooting.
“They manipulated the policemen sitting outside the premises [by telling them] that something inappropriate was taking place inside,” Mani told Arab News. “They were going to burn us, [they were] chanting ‘Allah O Akbar’.”
The attackers, according to Mani, were demanding to speak directly to Qureshi and the top actors, who were locked up for their protection in a room of the house by the owner, a man identified in a police complaint only by his first name, Shakir.
Calls to the police went unanswered, she added:
“They [attackers] had almost reached the cast when the [paramilitary] Rangers arrived and rescued us after almost an hour.”
According to a copy of the first information, or police, report (FIR) seen by Arab News, producer Ali Hussain said up to 50 people, many of them carrying sticks, barged into the house where the shoot was ongoing and beat up its owner, Shakir, who rents the property for film shoots. The attackers also allegedly beat up crew members and injured five, including one who was hit on the head with a pistol.
The FIR said several pieces of equipment were stolen from the set, including a 2k light, bulbs, C-stands, avenger stand, 10kg jib weight, set pancake and cables and three mobile phones.
Arab News heard a sound recording of the incident, shared by a member of the cast, in which women could be heard screaming and shouting. The sounds of blows being exchanged is also heard and Mani is frantically yelling to suspects that there were women and children in the house.
Mani said three people had been arrested since the complaint was filed. She said this was not the first time that violence had ensued at this particular location, recalling a similar incident last year when Pakistani actor and comedian Yasir Hussain was directing the TV series, “Aik Thi Laila” at the spot.
Speaking to Arab News, Hussain complained that while Shakir rented out the property for large sums for Tv and film shoots, he did not take responsibility for controlling crowds.
During the shooting of “Aik Thi Laila” he said, uninvited entrants on the set fought with the producer when they were asked to leave. Over 100 people subsequently entered and attacked the crew, forcing the team to cancel the shoot twice. The actor said he couldn’t complain at the time since he wasn’t the show’s producer.
“We wanted to wrap the shoot so we didn’t post any [Instagram] stories either,” Hussain said. “This is quite scary and this needs to end.”
Arab News could not reach the owner of the house, Shakir, or police for comment.
