Pakistani singers have been getting a lot of attention lately, and Meesha Shafi’s success at South by Southwest is just the latest example. Mustache, starring the singer-turned-actor, won the Narrative Feature Competition Audience Award in 2023.
Teammates like Rizwan Manji shared their joy after the victory on social media. The singer of Hot Mango Chutney Sauce also posted something in honor of the occasion; she praised the story’s “wonderful film” quality and gave thanks to her co-stars.
The Film Stage called Mustache a “rebellious but small coming-of-age story.” Imran J. Khan wrote and directed it, and Christina Won, Jessica Sittig, Christopher Storer, and Tyson Bidner produced it.
The success of the festival at SXSW, an annual event that celebrates Texas’s lively music. The film, and comedy scenes, are a huge win for people. They want to see more positive portrayals of Islam in popular media.
Meesha gave a sneak peek of her hijab-wearing outfit for the movie as early as January. With a worried face and a young teen standing in for her. In addition, she annotated the image to share her thoughts on the work in progress.
“To begin with, a glimpse. I’m ecstatic to share the news that the film I made with such a talented and dedicated”.
Mustache tells the story of Ilyas, a Pakistani adolescent living in San Jose. After getting expelled from an Islamic elementary school for inciting a brawl, is forced to attend a public high school. Ilyas’ greatest problem is his mustache, which he started growing at the tender age of ten. Which causes him great embarrassment in school photos.
Ilyas, ever the rebel, recruits his new pal Arun to help him test the waters of controlled defiance. The movie takes place in the mid-1990s, and it shows what it’s like for a child. To be in the middle of a situation that seems impossible to solve and will change their lives forever.
