The world premiere of episode one of a new film named Spiritual Democracy about Prime Minister Imran Khan was hosted at the Sindh Governor House here on Tuesday, which also happened to be the PM’s 69th birthday.

The much-anticipated film looks into PM Imran’s 35-year career. Spiritual Democracy is a rollercoaster ride that follows the prime from his days of cricket and philanthropy to his eventual victory in Pakistan’s political arena.

Salman Ahmad of the ‘Junoon’ music band, who directed the film, stated that it was inspired by his positive test for Covid-19 and his close encounters with death.

“I was shortly appointed Covid-19 ambassador for South Asia. Working in that position, I witnessed how the Pakistani government fought the pandemic by assisting the underprivileged via its different programs,” he explained.

“It is all because we have a visionary leader. So, after seeing our country’s remarkable comeback, I requested an interview with the Prime Minister. “It turned out to be a lengthy interview that needed to be divided into four sections or episodes,” he explained.

The first part takes a trip down memory lane, focusing on the prime minister’s time as a cricketer.

The memorable moment when he lifted the World Cup in 1992 was also included, as was him delivering speeches during the PTI’s sit-in in 2014.

In addition, in his interview, the Prime Minister defined the term “Spiritual Democracy.” “Being humane is spiritual. And where a democracy serves the interests of the people, it is a spiritual democracy,” he explained.

He also mentioned that while building the cancer hospital, he would consider having a welfare state that cared about the nation.

His previous denials to enter politics were also brought up, as was his statement that he was not interested in marrying. Fast forward more than 30 years, when he is Prime Minister and has been married three times, and he smiles and says, “Humans evolved.” In between his interviews, there are comments from others, journalists, criticizing his U-turns like these and others.

Following the screening, Governor Imran Ismail recalled how he first met Imran Khan in 1993.

In a recent interview with Hum News, Ahmed stated that the documentary will cover about 50 years of PM Imran’s life. He stated that he has known the prime minister for 35 years and has been collecting childhood photos, archive footage he shot himself, and footage shot by his friend Shoaib Mansoor, the director of blockbuster films Bol and Khuda Kay Liye.

The singer claims to have a video of PM Imran’s very first Test match, which the PM lost.

Ahmed described how he has structured the documentary into four subject segments. The first section is called ‘Journey of Self Discovery, which focuses on PM Imran’s life before becoming the prime minister and what his thinking was at the time. The second section, ‘Nuclear Neighbours’, focuses on Pakistan’s relationship with India. The third, ‘Age of Crisis and Calamities’, discusses the problems encountered by the prime minister owing to the pandemic, how he contracted Covid-19 and handled the country’s response to the crisis. The last will be ‘Pakistan: The Search for Identity, which will focus on the premier’s future ambitions and vision for Pakistan.

The soundtrack of the documentary will contain music from Junoon, Ahmed’s band. The documentary also features the interviews of several prominent international leaders, like former Malaysian prime minister Mahathir Mohamad, whom Ahmed personally interviewed.

When asked how people would be able to watch the documentary, Ahmed indicated negotiations are continuing regarding distribution. He intends to promote the film in different parts of the world as it is in English and so has a very broad potential audience. The musician also claimed he is working on getting the film translated into seven to 10 languages.

Many documentaries have also been made before on Pm Imran khan, but this one has got special attention. The supporters of Imran Khan as Prime ministers and the fans of Imran Khan as cricketers all are eagerly waiting for this documentary to come.

By Sawera Amjad

Author is a Lahore College for Women University graduate. She writes with zeal and believes that there is nothing greater than words to express herself.

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