We were extremely excited for Maalik’s release and hence watched the first day, first show.
The excitement wasn’t out of place, as it turned out. The movie got well deserved applause. It is wonderfully done; hard work has been put into every single detail.
Maalik is made on the current situation of Pakistan, but I won't get into the detail.
The presentation of such pictures can be dull and there is often not much room left for the artistic touch. But we can see this touch in bits throughout the film. For instance, when the C130 flew over the full moon – it was a good capture. We can see the full moon during the operation conducted by the army.
The artisan also spills his touch when we see picturesque shots of the remote areas of Baluchistan. There’s a shot taken from the top of a mountain in which a narrow road is zigzagging up the mountains and the van is snaking towards it through the winding roads. The big mountains on the both side of the meandering road look magnificent.
Now we come towards the content of the movie. Maalik won the viewers’ heart right in the first 15 minutes. Strong dialogue delivery is done by the character Mohammad Mohsin, especially in the scene where he was talking to the judge:
“Main malik hon aur tum noker. Malik noker ko dhamki nahi notice deta hai."
Wonderfully written and delivered.
Moreover, the oath taking scene was also very touching which depicts the gist of the entire film:
“Main Mohammad Mohsin Pakistan ka shehri hon. Pakistan ka maalik hon. Yeh zameen, yeh log meray hain.”
This is the main theme of the movie. The producer and director very efficiently delivered their message.
Also, Aashir Azeem talked about the corrupt government and how the people are not doing justice to their status and designation. In addition, he highlighted the corrupt feudal system.
They showed coexistence of different cultures and races. For instance, there’s the story of the Afghan girl who moved to Karachi due to the Russo-Afghan war and a Punjabi security guard helped her on different occasions. That he left everything behind and went to her village is a very good way of making the masses understand the concept of coexistence and harmony.
Likewise, in a very subliminal technique, the film showed that Pathans and Punjabis can be together and be helpful towards each other.
Also, the music is good as well, which is a plus point. The main theme song is on a high note which creates a "jazba" as we listen to it during the movie.
On the whole, Mr. Bagga has done a good job with the music. The other songs have also done justice to different situations.
Aashir Azeem is already known through his former work in a PTV play ‘Dhuwaan’ with his natural style of acting. We can see his real wife Bushra playing a role of his wife on the screen in the movie which is quite amusing, since it shows their chemistry.
All in all it is a must watch, especially for those who question the existence of Pakistan and for the ones seeking some masala movies. It's a patriotic film with a Hollywood-esque aura.
Maalik has made me feel proud being a Pakistani. It has made me restore hope in the future of our film industry.