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Thanking Bilal Lashari and Ammara Hikmat for giving him the opportunity to choreograph Saima Baloch’s dance number in The Legend of Maula Jatt, artist Rehan Bashir looked at the final piece and felt a sense of pride.

On Monday, he took to Instagram quoting Noori Natt’s catchphrase and wrote, “Nawaan aya e sohneya! I can look back now and honestly say I am so glad I agreed to take this project on when I was approached by Ammara Hikmat. I was really apprehensive because I thought I wouldn’t be able to deliver but when I finally saw this piece that I choreographed for the film, I can’t help but feel a sense of pride.“

The artist said that Lashari had a very clear vision for the performance and it was not supposed to be reduced to a distasteful item number. “I feel like our ideas combined together quite beautifully. We were on a very tight schedule and I choreographed and rehearsed this with Saima Baloch over a span of roughly 10 days. I was strict [but] she took direction well and executed this beautifully. She gave it subtlety, rawness, grit and femininity, and made it a powerful performance.”

Bashir was deeply concerned that the dance number may look “cheap, tawdry and devoid of elegance”. And he considers it his “biggest victory” when people tell him the execution was full of elegance. “Dance as it’s been taught to me is a spiritual and meditative endeavour and I always hope to take that message forward,” he wrote. The artist thanked the director and producer for the “amazing experience” and feels honoured to be part of it.

The Legend of Maula Jatt is a fan favourite not for one reason but because all elements have been so carefully crafted. Even the item song was gracefully meaningful, with Baloch’s movements both connecting to her backstory and matching the rhythm of the plot as Maula rides his horse.

The film released on October 13 and since then, has broken Pakistani cinematic records. A reboot of Yunus Malik’s 1979 cult classic Maula Jatt, the film is a re-telling the story of the rivalry between Maula Jatt and Noori Natt.

Directed by Lashari, The Legend of Maula Jatt stars Fawad Khan, Hamza Ali Abbasi, Mahira Khan, Humaima Malick, Mirza Gohar Rasheed, Faris Shafi, Ali Azmat, Nayyer Ejaz, Shafqat Cheema, Raheela Agha, Zia Khan and Baloch. The Punjabi film is being produced by Hikmat’s Encyclomedia and Lashari Films.