Mahira Khan is stepping into production, starting with a web series titled ‘Baarwan Khiladi [Twelfth Player]’.
The actor has set up a production house, Soulfry Films, with her friend and producer Nina Kashif. ‘Baarwan Khiladi‘ will be their first project together.
In a recent interview with Gulf News, Mahira opened up about trying her hand at production.
She said that the reason why she is getting into production is because it is something she always wanted.
“To be honest, I’ve always been inclined to getting behind the camera,” she said, adding that she always wanted to direct or produce.
“But I am also very lazy when it comes to finally deciding and doing something. My co-producer, Nina Kashif, gave me that push and it’s very small at the moment. I want to get my hands dirty with smaller projects first, make stories that get me excited,” she added.
Answering a question about why she did not cast herself in the web series, Mahira said, “There wasn’t a role that suited me,” adding, “Maybe if I was younger I would have played a character in it.”
‘Baarwan Khiladi ‘ is a sports-based web series and when asked why she was getting into a sports-related genre, Mahira said, “I have to admit — I’m not a sports fan at all, so I could have never imagined wanting to make my first series about that. But when I heard the story and read the script, it got me excited.”
Not just sports, she also wanted to work with the new crowd. “Also working with younger/newer people was something that I really wanted to do — be it the actors or the writer or the art director etc.”
Mahira also opened about the process of choosing the cast for her debut project as a producer, “[I was] completely involved [in the process of casting]. Nina got both Shahveer [Jafry] and Danyal [Zafar] on board.”
“We got everyone to audition for most of the parts. Sarmad [Khoosat] was a huge bonus because he is one of the main characters. I got Kinza Hashmi on board. That’s the fun of being the producer — you can put together a team that will enhance your vision for the project.”
The series has reportedly been shot inside the Walled City of Lahore and Shahveer, in an Instagram story, revealed that the shooting lasted for one and a half month.
The series will stream on Tapmad, a South Asian OTT platform, and is expected to release soon after the Pakistan Super League (PSL) final.
