Pakistani cinema goes global with The Donkey King

The success of an animated comedy film, The Donkey King, has attracted international attention to the movie industry of Pakistan, a country that normally makes headlines for violent terror attacks and religious extremism rather than culture and entertainment.

The “accidental” director of the film, 41-year-old Aziz Jindani, told Efe news in an interview that he was proud of presenting a “soft face” to the country and added that it had a rich history of literature and film.

“Unfortunately, the negative cloud around the country has camouflaged all the good that we do,” said Jindani, a business executive who got into animation after creating an advertisement series for a popular FMCG brand in the country. “That’s how I got fascinated by animation. I liked it so much that I decided I would make a movie on my own. I took a sabbatical and made this film,” he said.

The Donkey King, which has become the sixth most viewed film in Pakistan’s history, has proved equally popular among children and adults.

“There are two underlying themes which are universal. One is that it is an allegorical, metaphorical film, a political satire... Part two, I think it is because of the fact that we use a donkey as a protagonist. A donkey is a very likable kind of character, part of pop culture. It’s a story about an underdog,” Jindani explained.

The film — released in Pakistan in 2018 and subsequently dubbed into seven foreign languages, including Spanish, Catalan, Russian and Turkish in 2019 — has had its share of controversies, including allegations that it mocked Prime Minister Imran Khan, as some say the protagonist resembled him. (IANS)

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