If the year of 2003 could be termed as cataclysmic, this one was quite possibly the worst ever year on record for Lollywood, now surely terminally ill with no recovery in sight. Production was at its lowest ebb yet and most of the studios started a shift of emphasis to the small screen and advertising. Basically its all over for Lollywood bar the fat lady singing, and she surely wont be too long now.
The Annus Mirabilis began in Januray with the release of director Iqbal Kashmiri's Aman ke Dushman which starred Shaan, Reema, Nirma, Saud, Baber Ali, Veena Malik and so on but the film was the dregs and the public shunned it just as it deserved. Pagri Sambhal Jatta was the other January release directed by Zahoor Hussain with a cast of Yousuf Khan, Sana, Saud, Moammar Rana, Resham etc but the film was a total washout lasting just days in local cinemas.
February had five releases - Masood Butts film Curfew Order which starred the usual suspects Shaan, Saima, Meera, Babar Ali, Moammar Rana and co bombed while Parvez Rana who has long lost his midas thouch of a couple of years ago released Jabroo which starred Shaan, Sana, Babar Ali, Saud etc but his luck continued to desert him as the film failed miserably. His next effort Sakhi Sultan fared just marginally better but couldn't be termed a success by any stretch of imagination - the film once again featured the same tired old faces of Shaan, Saima, Yousuf Khan, Babar Ali, Moammar Rana, Laila and co - a turgid and stale cast that is repeated by the brain dead Lollywood producers until the audiences literally can't tell one wretched film from another. Nasir Adeeb released his film Jagga Baloch which starred Shaan and Saima yet again and audiences rejected the film outright once more. The other release of this month was Maula Muzaffar starring with Shaan and Saima yet again. This worthless film by Parvez Rana kept his losing streak going and was lucky to last even a couple of weeks in cinemas.
In March only a single film Sassi Punnoo was released starring Sana and Moammar Rana in the title roles. The film was directed by Hasan Askari but it found the public totally uninterested and like all the films of the year before it also died a dismal death at the local box office.
April saw the release of Daman aur Chingari by Imtiaz Qureshi. The film starred Saima, Izhar Kazmi, John Rambo and Nargis but it had been delayed for a long time and arrived as a stale product and recieved a very cold shoulder from local audiences - yet another flop to add to the heap. Next up was Parvez Rana's Guddoo Badshah which bombed out of sight with Shaan adding to his long list of failures.
Madame Sangeeta released her first effort of the year in May in the form of Bhola Sajan starring Shaan, Saima, Nirma, Babar Ali etc but the film met with dismal results continuing Lollywoods endless run of flops. The next film was a co production with Nepal directed by Iqbal Kashmiri that borrowed elements from Wes Craven's Scream. The film called Jaan Layva was met with disbelief at its awfulness and vanished from theatres before one even knew it had hit town.
June saw actor director Kaifi trying to launch his son in a film called Maidan allong with Shaan and Saima but the film failed to attract any crowds and was yet another wipe-out.
July had no new films released at all but in August 4 new films were released including Mme Sangeeta's Nagri Data Di which naturally starred Shaan and Saima along with the other usuals, but this effort too met with disaster. On the 13th of August the much hyped Salakhein was released starring a new hero Ahmed Butt, Zara Shaikh, Saud and veteran Deeba who turned in a towering performance. The film was the only title of the year that managed to stay alive in cinemas and though not a huge money spinner it was at least a rock solid earner and still continues in some cinemas over six months later due in large part to the fact that there is no competition in sight. Parvez Rana tried his luck once again with Munna Bhai starring Shaan, Moammar Rana, Sana, Resham and Babar Ali but the film hit the dirt with abysmal results. at the end of the month Altaf Husain released his Rabba Ishq Na Hoye with a new star cast and though the film had a certain freshness and vitality it also failed to grab any decent business as the publicity had been poor and audiences had grown too wary of any new product in general.
Three new films arrived in September; The first Jaagir starred Saima, Moammar Rana, Veena Malik and Babar Ali but was a total copy of Virasat from accross the border and was totally rejected by audiences. Then came veteran Shamim Ara's latest misfire titled Buddha Bigra Jaye which many considered to be the most appalling film of the year - the hugest stinker among a pile of turds and the film bombed out of sight. Madame Sangeeta tried her luck with her lucky mascots Shaan, Saima, Nirma, Yusuf Khan, Moammar Rana, Saud and co in Dehshat but the film failed horribly maintaing Shaan and Saima's 100% failure record for the year thus far.
in November Syed Noor released Hum Aik Hain starring who else but Saima, Shaan and Shamil Khan but the film failed to click even if it wasn't quite as disastrous as most others had been and ran for a few weeks in some centres. Madame Sangeeta took lewdness to new levels with her next release Wehshi Haseena starring Shaan, Sana, Babar Ali and Laila however despite her efforts the film failed to inspire and flopped badly. Her next effort Billo Ghanta Gharya starring who else but Shaan and Saima with Babar Ali, Moammar Rana and friends was another failure for her as the public had clearly grown extremely sick of watching the same old faces again and again and again in films that are indistinguishable and interchangeable.
In December Parvez Rana released his Parosi Ae Watan Noo with Moammar Rana, Saud and Veena Malik but the film found no takers at all and finally Naag aur Nagin came acropper bringing to the end the worst ever year Lollywood has yet experienced. Only Salakhain was an earner, the rest all fell by the wayside.
Surely it was a year that there can be no recovery from, alas.
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just look at how mnay films had shaan and saima togehere
and they all floped
