Mahesh Bhatt's 'Arth' Is All Set To Be Remade In Pakistan This Year!

In 1985, two Pakistani films by Pervez Mallick — Qurbaani and Meherbaani — were remade in India as Adhikaar and Alag Alag respectively, both featuring Rajesh Khanna and Tina Munim. Now, 31 years later, a Pakistani production house is rebooting an Indian film for an international summer release. 

Filmmaker, producer and distributor Hammad Chaudhry, HKC Entertainment, is remaking Mahesh Bhatt's 1982 drama Arth, featuring the late Smita Patil, Kulbhushan Kharbanda and Shabana Azmi, in collaboration with AAA Motion Pictures. Re-titled Arth 2, the Pakistani film is being directed by Shaan Shahid, who has co-produced the film and also plays the lead. Shaan, whom Indian audiences applauded in Shoaib Mansoor's 2007 thriller Khuda Kay Liye, will be seen alongside Bol beauty Humaima Malick. The film also features Mohib Mirza and Uzma Hassan.

"Shaan is Pakistan's greatest star and has acted in over 586 films. Mahesh Bhatt was extremely delighted to give him the remake rights of the film. He also came on board as mentor. Arth 2 is a contemporary take on relationships in modern Pakistan but the essence of the original is intact," promises Hammad.

The film is 80 per cent complete and Hammad is gearing up for a summer release across Pakistan and India, apart from other international pockets. He is hoping Arth 2 and the support the film has received from Bhatt will kickstart a new trend in cultural exchange. "Indian films have ruled the Pakistani market for decades. The Khans receive great openings and so do franchises like Dhoom and Krrish. An Indian film is being remade in Pakistan. It is only a matter of time before a Pakistani film is remade by Bollywood. That'll be the final breakthrough," Hammad says fervently, adding that actors like Fawad Khan, Ali Zafar and Mahira Khan and their Indian colleagues, Naseeruddin Shah and Om Puri, have crossed borders. "Films will bring our two countries closer." 

Mahesh Bhatt who is equally delighted by this partnership, reveals that Arth was a crucial film for him. "I started my career with it and it makes me happy to see another filmmaker interpret it in his own way. Every director has his own world-view and I have granted Shaan complete freedom to reinterpret my thoughts and present his version of an iconic romance-drama," says Bhatt.