‘The Legend of Maula Jatt’ bags two honours at Chinese film festival

WEB DESK: Pakistani blockbuster The Legend of Maula Jatt has picked up two awards at the seventh Jackie Chan International Action Film Week in Harbin, taking home the Special Jury Award and the Best Art Direction Award at the event’s closing ceremony.

Director Bilal Lashari shared the news on X, saying he still couldn’t quite believe winning “two awards, in the pouring rain, on a stage with Jackie Chan’s name on it.” He called it wild to see the film in a lineup alongside titles such as Mortal Kombat 2 and The Furious, at what he described as one of Asia’s biggest celebrations of action cinema.

Describing the ceremony, Lashari said the open-air stage in Harbin saw rain on and off through the evening, which picked up just as his turn came to go up. He said he was soaked by the time he reached the microphone, with a stranger holding an umbrella over him as he collected the dripping trophy while the arena lit up behind the rain. Reflecting on the scene, he said such moments were usually things a director could only dream of building on set, adding, “This one just happened.”

Lashari said the Best Art Direction award was especially meaningful to him as it belonged to production designers Namsa Abbasi and Hamza Bajwa, who he said had built not just sets but an entire world that gave every scene of the film its life. He said he wished the two had been present to accept it themselves, and dedicated the win to them. He also said the team had felt the absence of producer Ammara Hikmat, who was unable to travel to Harbin.

Calling it a dream come true to represent Pakistan on a stage bearing Jackie Chan’s name, Lashari said he had grown up on the actor’s films, as many others had, and that shaking Chan’s hand and receiving his congratulations in person was something he could never have imagined when work on the film began. He added that action cinema had a unique way of pulling people together across the world without need for subtitles, and thanked Chan, the organisers and the jury for honouring action films and their makers. He also credited producers Nadeem Mandviwalla and his wife as partners through the film’s journey in China, and thanked his entire team, dedicating the achievement to Pakistan.

A reboot of the 1979 cult classic, The Legend of Maula Jatt stars Fawad Khan, Mahira Khan, Hamza Ali Abbasi, Humaima Malick, Gohar Rasheed and Faris Shafi.