Shaan Shahid

Shaan (Urdu: شان) (born April 27, 1971) is a Pakistani actor, writer and director. Upon making his debut in Javed Fazil's Bulandi (1990) alongside Reema Khan, Shaan has acted in numerous commercially successful films and has established himself as one of the leading actors of Pakistan.

Family and early life

Armaghan Shahid was born in Lahore to well-known director Riaz Shahid and television, theater and film actress Neelo. He belongs to Christian Mother and Muslim father. He is a practicing Muslim. His paternal uncle Fiaz Shahid was a cameraman and producer

Career

Acting

Disputes section Shaan made his acting debut in Javed Fazil's Bulandi (1990), in which he starred opposite Reema Khan. The film received generally positive reviews, making it a commercial success and caused Shaan to be flooded with offers by directors at the time. Bulandi was followed up by Nagina, another hit in which he starred opposite Madiha Shah. However, due to inexperience and signing of too many films, it resulted in many back to back flops. He took a break from the cinema industry in 1994 and went abroad.

In 1996, he returned and starred in Syed Noor's Ghoonghat, which was his first villain role. The film went on to become a success. He then appeared in the same director's Sangam, yet another commercial success across Pakistan.

In 2000, he appeared in Mujhe Chand Chahiye, which also starred Atiqa Odho and Javed Sheikh. The film turned out to be a major hit at the box office and established Shaan's credentials as an actor. In 2007, he starred in Shoaib Mansoor's commercially successful Khuda Kay Liye, for which he won the "Best Actor" award at the Lux Style Awards. In 2009, he appeared in Zill-e-Shah and Nach Ke Yaar Manana.

As of 2010, Shaan has acted in more than 200 films, most of which became commercial successes in Pakistan. He is currently filming his own directional venture, Chup, alongside Juggan Kazim. Shaan opted out of Reema Khan's Love Mein Gum due to scripting problems.

Shaan has revealed that he had been offered small roles in films by Aamir Khan's Ghajini and Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra's Delhi-6 which he has declined as the roles portrayed Pakistanis as villains and were thus unacceptable for him (isputed section: Shaan claims that he was offered and refused to accept Bollywood films only because they portrayed Pakistanis as villains.

Directing

Keen on making a difference to the film making in Pakistan, Shaan launched himself as a director. He directed his ambitious project Guns and Roses - Ik Junoon, which was released in 1999. The film was produced by the art entrepreneur Tanvir Fatima Rehman. In the film, he co-starred with Faisal Rehman, Meera and Resham. The music was scored by M. Arshad while the cinematographer was done by Azhar Burki and the film was written by Pervaiz Kaleem.

He then directed Moosa Khan (2001), which starred himself, Saima, Abid Ali, Jan Rambo and Noor. The film received genuinely positive reviews from critics.

Shaan is working on Chup alongside Juggan Kazim. The film is written by Mashal Peerzada and distributed/produced by Lux productions. The film will feature Pakistani actress Resham in an "item number". The shooting of her song was shown on ARY Digital show Happenings in July 2010. According to Shaan, the music soundtrack is composed by Zeb and Haniya with several newcomers. In a interview with Instep Magazine, Shaan confirmed to be working on three more projects with will feature Juggan Kazim whilst talks are on with models Natasha. The film is a commercial drama film set in Pakistan winter time and unfolds a dramatic but thoughtful film. Later, he confirmed that he will be directing, producing and writing the other pojects by himself. His second project working with the title Masakali is written by himself and scripted by Sarmad Sultan Khoosat. The film features Juggan Kazim and newcomers. The filming will begin in mid-2011.

Scripting

Shaan is a successful writer and has written short stories and works during his career. Recently, he scripted Reema Khan's Love Mein Gum and was contracted to star in the film but opted out, as Reema was unable to direct the script in the way he planned. Shaan joined with Mashal Peerzada, an director, scriptwriter and produced to work on his film Chup. He wrote the story whilst Peerzada wrote the script for the film. He is writing the story for his three upcoming projects.

Producing

Shaan usually produces his own work as several distributors and producers have walked out of his projects, leading him to opening his own production. He is heading his own company 5th Element that is involved in the making of commercials and music videos as well as his own film projects. He produces films under Riaz Shahid Films banner, his father's name, to continue his work in Pakistan film industry.

Awards

• Government of Pakistan's Pride of Performance Award (2007)
• 4 National Film Awards
• 15 Nigar Awards
• 5 Lux Style Awards

Filmography

As actor

As director

External links

• Shaan at the Internet Movie Database
• Shaan film history at mazhar magazine
• Official Website
• Shaan at Showbizprofile.com