Tan Man Neelo Neel is fast gaining traction as a message-driven Pakistani drama that is also clubbing entertainment, humour, poignant moments and well fleshed out characters packed in a story that, 3 episodes down, already has viewers invested. And if anyone were to ask, what makes a drama ‘watch-worthy’, the secret success formula for many such narratives today is not just the appeal of the lead pair, but also the stories surrounding the lead pair, which are often equally and at times, even more endearing than the main characters’ stories. Having said that, Moon is certainly playing out to be the main character too, one that has audiences’ emotions invested for sure. Here we talk to Ali Ammar who essays Moon in Tan <an Neelo Neel with great sensitivity and talent.
So without any further ado, Ali is here to take our questions and we dive into the story:
The point when Moon hands the money to his friends and says he managed to get it out ‘lekin maar kha li, paisay nahi chhoray’ – did you feel connected to the character. Was it hard to act out the scene and the one before that when he is sitting on the ground and Qaiser throws him the money? What was going through your mind?
Ali Ammar responds: “I would like to tell you a little background about this scene This scene was shot after the incident that happened while crying. It was not difficult for me to perform it although for this scene there was a lot of hesitation,” explained Ali, going on to clarify that the team skirted around the debate: “Like how will it happen? What will happen? How will it be? There was hesitation, even on the set, everyone on the set was talking about this scene. But the scene that I was sitting and crying in, was so intense that my behavior while crying, transported me to the situation where performing the second scene became very easy.” Ali elaborated that “When you are behaving like this and the atmosphere around you has already been created because of the crying scene (where the incident had alrady happened), you connect with that situation. So I was very connected to the situation, what Moon was going through at the time. That is perhaps why it all happened very organically and in a natural flow”
Reactions to your character. Any DMs that were particularly moving?
Ali Ammar reveals: “I was expecting some negative and some positive reactions, but didn’t expect this level of positivity and appreciation.” He replied with a smile. He went on to disclose that he literally feels honored to perform this character. “I was not expecting so much appreciation from all sides; in every video, in every episode so the DMs were absolutely the happiest reaction. When you are an actor, many people talk about your looks – you were looking so fabulous, you were looking so cute, which you obviously like. But the best thing about playing Moon, was that all my messages appreciated my acting, my craft, that I had performed it so well – this was the happiest thing for me.”
When you got the character, were there any doubts in your mind whether to do it or not, or because of Saife Sahab, you thought, bus it’s done.
Ali Ammar responds with honesty and explains the thought process that went behind his decision: “When I was offered this character, I did have a lot of doubts in my mind. I kept thinking whether I should take it on. I even called my friends and asked them for advice. I asked a mentor, a senior actor, and he had a very positive response. Then eventually, I realized that this character had a very positive impact. And if you are an actor, the first lesson of your life is that whatever you are performing in any character is different from your personality. So I stopped all the doubts right there. And Sir Saifi was directing it – what could be a more fortunate reason for me?”
Female rape survivor stories have been many, though each is important in telling a story and sending out a message, did you feel Moon’s story will help other people come forward too, and understand what they are going through?
Ali Ammar throws light on the issue that needs more conversations for sure: “I would like to say something – female rape survivor stories do exist. We have seen them in films and dramas. But male rape is something that our society has consciously thrown a veil over. I belong to a small city in South Punjab. I studied in Islamabad, a big city, and after that I lived in Karachi. But I know that in our remote areas, these incidents have been hidden. Everyone knows that this (male rape) exists. In our society, especially in remote areas where you will find very poor people or very rich people, there is a lot of class difference and the way it is portrayed in Tan Man Neelo Neel, showing how power is exploited and exercized by the influential and rich against the poor, these things happen. And through Moon, maybe those people who are victims of this crime, maybe they can connect with this story. And the message this story wants to deliver may help impact their lives.”
Ali continued to divulge how his family and friends responded to Moon:
“My family does not have a background in this industry so they don’t know much about this industry They don’t ask too many questions about my work. But after performing this character, my sisters and siblings were very happy. They didn’t know the details, so when it was released, I was also scared about their reaction. But their reaction was very positive. It was a joy for everyone in my family and friends circle too, that people were appreciating my work.”
When Moon smashed the brick on his foot. There must have been a discussion on how he will express his anger. How did you decide it would be a brick? Whose idea? And was it dangerous to execute? Walk us through it please.
Ali Ammar: ” Yes, I would like to tell you about the brick scene. This idea was Mustafa Bhai’s (Mustafa Afridi). He was the one who wrote the whole script for all the scenes in great detail. He had already written the lines in great detail. I had a lot of confusion about this scene. I did have an idea that there is a lot of screenplay involved in this. Picking up a brick and hitting it, you are literally hitting a stone on your foot and injuring it. And how can you feel the hit until you do not experience the pain? So, that was a difficult thing for me too. But in this scene, Sir Saifi Hassan executed it expertly. It was his brain behind the actions and dialogues. I still say that I may not have been able to perform that scene again if it wasn’t because of his direction, he was the reason why I was able to do it. I prayed to Allah that I would perform that scene safely. It was such a big thing.”
On working with Shuja and Sehar. Tell us something fun on the sets.
Ali Ammar: “Working with Shuja and Sehar was a really great experience. I would like to say about Sehar that the way she is in the serial, is the way she is on-set as well. If there was any tense situation on set, she would lighten the mood in a very comfortable way. And the atmosphere on set was very good because of everyone, because of Sehar and Shuja.
About Shuja, I would like to say that he has been very supportive of me. Before every scene, we would read each other’s script 5-10 times. And to give cues, we used to support each other, perhaps they supported me more than I did them. We would discuss every detail of the scene beforehand. And even after the serial went on air, I got a message from Shuja that his sister and mother watched the episode and they said that I have done a great job. So I got a compliment from them as well. Overall, there was a very positive atmosphere on set throughout.“
A bit about the song and dance choreography. How hard is it to get the coordination. How many retakes, or you were all naturals?
Ali Ammar: “I will tell you about the starting dance sequence that was crucial for me because I have never performed onscreen before. I think Shuja has performed on HUM Awards and he is really good at dancing. Other than that, I remember that day so well that I had pain in my legs when I came home after shooting that scene. We were continuously redoing the scene, it was shot from multiple angles so we were shooting for a long time. I think we performed it 20 plus times. There was a glitch in the audio, in the camera because obviously a lot of things were synced, crowd, stage, etc. So if there was a problem, we would start all over again. So obviously it was a crucial and hectic day for all of us.”
Any thing else you want to tell the audiences of Tan Man Neelo Neel?
Ali Ammar: “I am really honoured that people are appreciating me for my performance and my craft. This is everything for me, because I had originally studied Software Engineering. In my last year of college, I developed this passion to become an actor and when you take a decision that is totally out of the box, the biggest challenge for you is that you have to convince everyone by succeeding in that field. When you give up many things and select one, it is a challenge for you to excel. Maybe this is why when people appreciate my work, it is a matter of great joy for me.”
In the end, I am really thankful to all those people who helped me create a new identity. I am being recognized because of all the appreciation I get and I am really thankful to all the people who reviewed my performance.
The cast of Tan Man Neelo Neel includes Shuja Asad, Sehar Khan, Samiya Mumtaz, Saleem Mairaj, Nadia Afgan, Nauman Masood, Muhammad Usman Javed, Haseeb Khan, Leyla Zuberi, Tanveer Hussain, Ali Ammar, Rubina Naz, and Arsal. It is written by Mustafa Afridi, directed by Saife Hasan and produced by Sultana Siddiqui. It airs on HUM TV every Saturday.
