Harune Massey

Gardaab (Whirlpool) (2016)
Film by Matteela Films (Drama) Writer Director In a city haunted by unending cycles of violence, turf wars, ethnic and class divisions, blossoms an unlikely romance. Shahbaz (Fawad Khan), the protégé of a drug lord, meets Parveen( Amna Ilyas), the daughter of a powerful rival clan who has no inkling of the secret that Shahbaz harbors. While Parveen’s marriage is being arranged with the scion of another influential Mafioso, Shahbaz’s patron, Firdous Khan (Khalid Ahmed), has a new assignment in mind for him. The lovers are caught in a whirlpool of desire, deceit, and obligations. The boy-meets-a-girl story unfolds as an Orphic tale set in Karachi, Pakistan.

Nightlife (2013)
Film (short) (Drama and Short) Writer Director Producer Two kids on a sidewalk, the opening scene of short film NightLife, sets in motion a highly nuanced glimpse into the life of male sex workers of Lahore, Pakistan, who often ply their trade as teenage masseurs clinking their oil bottles on the discreet but known-to-the -customer street corners waiting to be picked up by passing motorists. As the initial attention seeking bullying of the elder turns to gentle teasing to hand feeding of orange slices, the film peels the layers of relationship between the two characters: partners, lovers, co-protectors. A fellow worker approaches and tricks them into losing a potential customer. Instead of simply letting the kids fade into day break, the last scene depicts the repetitive cycle of their vulnerable existence when a pair of young women approaches them for reasons not quite lustful but no less exploitative. The film is not only a subtle examination of a grave circumstance in the lives of such children, but also works as a self critique, ... Written by Naveed Alam

Zinda Bhaag (2013)
Film (Drama, Family and Musical) Second Unit Director or Assistant Director What makes a man step into a cargo container that is going to be sealed for days? Why does he step into a flimsy overloaded boat to face a stormy sea? Or dart across international borders dodging bullets? What are the compulsions faced by men in Pakistan, which make them take extreme risks to chase a mirage of a secure future in alien lands? Set against the backdrop of the world of illegal immigration, Zinda Bhaag is a film about three young men trying to escape the reality of their everyday lives ... and succeeding in ways they had least expected. In a nondescript neighbourhood of Lahore, three friends are desperate to get on to the fast track to success. Khaldi, Taambi and Chitta, all in their early twenties, believe that the only way out ... is to the West. The journey that unfolds through the story of this film gives us a peep into what constitutes the everyday in the lives of many young men and women in Pakistan - a sense of entitlement that cannot be fulfilled, desperation to ... Written by Farjad Nabi & Meenu Kaur

Good Morning Karachi (2013)
Film (Drama) Second Unit Director or Assistant Director Good Morning, Karachi is the story of a young girl (Amna Ilyas) who wants to be a model while struggling towards her dream against the backdrop of the Benazir Bhutto assassination.

Panorama Obscura (2009)
Film (Short) Writer Director Tina, a middle aged South Asian woman, and Tanya, a nouveau rich housewife, aspire to make a documentary. Both want to cash in on the current trend towards things Islamic. Tina is fascinated by Ibn-Ul-Haitham, a 9th century Arab scientist, whereas Tanya is more interested in portraying the past glories of Islam by resorting to cultural clichés. Tye, Tina's young drug dealer, joins the project only to intensify the tension between the women. Delusions, desire, and deceit surface as each character attempts to exploit the situation, revealing the symbiotic and parasitic aspects of urban existence. Written by Naveed Alam