Celebrity health

The fitness craze has hit Pakistani celebrities and everyone can be seen rushing to the gym, posting pictures of their workouts with their fitness trainers and flaunting toned bodies on the red carpet. But while all this is appreciated, one wonders how important looks have become in this day and age and what role they play in the success of an individual.

Instep met Fahad Mustafa at a blogger’s meet for the promotion of Nabeel Qureshi’s upcoming film, Na Maloom Afraad 2, and spoke about how the star has reached super stardom in the course of the last two to three years. The star has been working in the industry for over a decade but it wasn’t until his success with films such as Na Maloom Afraad and Actor-in-Law that the actor was considered a superstar.

"I’ve been very lucky," replied Mustafa when asked how he deals with all the attention he gets nowadays. If one has ever seen Mustafa at a public event, they would have seen how he is usually hounded by the press and fans alike for selfies and interviews.  "True popularity is when you’re out on the road and people recognize you for your work and ten people come to you. I don’t understand or recognize social media popularity. When you put up a picture, 50 people will be abusing you and another 50 will be praising you. So what does it even matter?"

But the actor has undergone a makeover in terms of the way he looks. Mustafa is now sporting a leaner physique as well as an updated wardrobe. This makes us wonder if part of being a superstar has to do with the way one dresses or how fit their physique is.

Apparently, Mustafa doesn’t think it has any impact on your work. "Let’s just put it this way, all the great things I’ve done in my career have been during the time that I was overweight," the actor shared honestly. "So it didn’t make any difference to me, the fact that I was overweight. Of course it adds value if you’re in shape. Nowadays there are so many young, fit boys in the industry. If you want to stand neck and neck with them then you’ll have to put in a little hard work to maintain your physique. Other than that, it’s not like everything depends on your looks."

Nabeel Qureshi chooses to work with Mustafa film after film and the reason he gives for choosing Mustafa over other actors is that Mustafa is one of the most hard working stars in the industry today. Perhaps that’s what’s really working in Mustafa’s favour. "It doesn’t matter what you look like or what you’re wearing, or what your belief is. At the end of the day, what matters are your acting skills."

It’s heartening to see Mustafa share such a point of view, especially since the entertainment industry can be accused of being more than a little superficial at times.