here is no one reason we were excited for the Maula Jatt reboot, reimagined by director Bilal Lashari – who also wrote the story, edited the film and directed photography.

On top of the list of reasons to be excited was the fact that Maula Jatt himself is one of Pakistan’s most iconic characters, representative of the common man who may not have the resources or education to know better, but learns to do better. This character can almost be the cultural pin dropped onto a 1980’s map of the country – or even region. We needed a savior among us, and even if we weren’t getting one in real life, Sultan Rahi would have to do.

Over time, Maula Jatt and Noori Natt, the antagonist in the original film and its spin-offs, became pop culture icons. They were over-the-top, loud, exceedingly evil, violent, or both, and hit the jackpot of incredible one-liners penned by Nasir Adeeb. Even if you don’t speak Punjabi, or care for Pakistani cinema, chances are you’ve had the lines said to you, seen them on a mug or tee, or said them yourself.

The actors, Sultan Rahi as Maula, and Mustafa Qureshi as Noori played the characters to their heavy-handed best. Qureshi was petrifying as Noori Natt, and Rahi was – well, he was Sultan Rahi: silent, stoic, ready to kill hundreds of men bare-handed, all by himself.

The second reason to anticipate The Legend Of Maula Jatt as a well-made, well-planned film was the fact Bilal Lashari was at the helm of this ship. One of the first career markers for Lashari would have to be 2007’s music video for Jal single, ‘Sajni’, he also worked on ‘Hungami Halaat’ for Atif Aslam, but if you’ve seen both videos (and one of Overload’s) you will come away impressed by ‘Sajni’, simply because of the very dream-like translation of song to video, and the technical planning and skill that went into it.

Thirdly: the cast. While yes, we think that Fawad Khan is the one actor in Pakistan who will be first choice for most big-budget, large-scale productions, he hasn’t gotten to his star status on his good looks alone. Over the years, Khan has sporadically appeared on TV and film, and he’s really quite a decent actor. He is also an intelligent actor, who chooses work carefully.

Hamza Ali Abbasi was a surprise cast as Noori Natt, because we really didn’t know what to expect from his rendition of the famous villain.

To be super fair – or unfair – to the female leads, Mahira Khan and Humaima Malick as Mukho Jatti and Daaro Natti, this is actually a film that has the male protagonist and antagonist front and center, and the ladies are there as story progressors or to look pretty. Mostly.

Bilal Lashari as the director gave as much prominence to Humaima Malick and Mahira Khan as he possibly could without compromising the focus of the film, which is the enmity between Maula Jatt and Noori Natt. Mukho Jatti may yearn to hear Maula’s confession of love, but she is no damsel in distress and can take care of herself. Daaro Natti is actually a whole new level of terrifying, which we can’t explore till we examine the Natts.

What makes The Legend of Maula Jatt, legendary? The chemistry between Maula and Noori, curated by Bilal Lashari, and cultivated by Fawad Khan and Hamza Ali Abbasi is excellent. They spar with words, wits, weapons, and never tire of the dance.

The Natts as portrayed in The Legend Of Maula Jatt are unrelentingly, unapologetically evil. Like, they just don’t care whom they are hurting (or hacking to pieces), when they’re doing it, or who’s watching. If a Natt wants to do away with you, they will.

Our first introduction to the family is through Maakha Natt, played by Gohar Rasheed, and while Rasheed had joked at an interview a few months prior that he never really gets a choice to play anything but villain, it’s just that he’s so good at it. Maakha does bad to do bad. That’s quite simply it. If there is anyone who could match or outmatch his evil, it’s his sister Daaro.

The way Humaima Malick carries herself as Daaro Natti is incredible. If you had watched her in Bol and thought she was good, wait till you see her villaining her way through TLMJ. The way she walks, the way she gestures, the thoughts that reside in Daaro’s head translated to facial expressions, are absurdly beautiful. In fact, if I could, I’d rewatch the scene Daaro makes an entrance a few times to really soak it in.

Their father, Jeeva Natt, essayed by Lollywood’s all-time favorite villain Shafqat Cheema, though obviously drunk on power and corrupt, is no match for his progeny, including Noori, who for a while is away from the family fold till he is asked to reenter with a bang.

Speaking of whom, Noori Natt is possibly the most noble of his siblings. He fights fair, he fights with honor, and his hair game is tops. When faced with the mere concept of Maula Jatt, he feels he has finally met a worthy opponent, which for Noori Natt, is rare.

Which leads us to what makes The Legend of Maula Jatt, legendary. The chemistry between Maula and Noori, curated by Bilal Lashari, and cultivated by Fawad Khan and Hamza Ali Abbasi is excellent. They spar with words, wits, weapons, and never tire of the dance. Maula Jatt is often good-humored and pleasant if left to his devices, and actually offers amicable solutions before jumping to violence, while Noori Natt extends every courtesy to this rival he admires but is set on defeating.

On the Jatt end, we have Faris Shafi as Maula’s brother and sidekick Mooda, who brings love and laughter where needed. As does Ali Azmat’s Gogi, who runs the village’s most successful (and only) carnival.

Where Lashari delivers as expected is the photography and lighting. The art direction and sets are spot on, even when you can tell that just a little portion of a particular area has been utilized to look like the entire fort is inhabited. We’ve known he has a knack for catching certain light, giving importance to shadows and negative space, and during the film itself you will notice how someone’s eyelashes rise and fall, or how a tree casts a certain shape, and know that this is by design, not happy coincidence. The film is edited as sharply as possible, everything rendered to its most beautiful. The Legend Of Maula Jatt is a visual joy.

What Lashari delivers rather unexpectedly is the humor with which he maintains the integrity of traditional Punjabi cinema in Pakistan. The characters move with deliberate exaggeration, the bloodshed reaches traumatic scale, the voices are loud, the symbolism in-your-face. Even the costumes and props are beyond the realm of any reality we know. This is truly Maula Jatt 2.0. Imagined in this millennium, but preserving what we hold most dear of traditions past. In case this got too poetic, we really do mean that The Legend Of Maula Jatt is as loud, brash, sometimes inappropriate, and unrealistic as any Pakistan Punjabi movie you have ever watched, but it is simply gorgeous, well-designed from the first shot to last, and hits you hard. You might just walk away thinking, what did I just watch and why did I like it so much, but you will immediately be able to list the reasons you liked it right away, and perhaps want to start a fan club too.

- The Legend Of Maula Jatt is directed by Bilal Lashari and produced by Ammara Hikmat under the joint venture of Encyclomedia and Lashari films, in association with AAA Motion Pictures. The filmmakers have partnered with Geo Films as their exhibiting partner, which is not just the largest media group in the country but also a vital contributor to the revival of cinema in Pakistan. The Legend of Maula Jatt will be locally distributed by Nadeem Mandviwalla of Mandviwalla Entertainment, known for his contribution to cinema. On the international front, the film will be distributed by MovieGoers Entertainment.