Director Mehreen Jabbar was a guest on a Youtube Channel Drama Pakistani where she spoke about the struggles of working with production houses which would often block or delay payments for months, calling it ‘unprofessional’.
The ‘Daam’ director compared the Pakistani showbiz industry to Hollywood, saying that in the later payments were delivered on time and there was no struggle about it. “In Pakistan ,you have to keep chasing production houses in order to get your payment. Everyone, from actors to the spot boy to the director. There is no system. If you ask anyone you’ll hear over 10,000 stories about payment delays.”
The ‘Nadaan’ director also shed light on the struggles faced by crew members such as light men, who are made to work long hours with very little pay because there was no union in Pakistan to protect their rights. “Compare the salaries of crew men with ours, theirs is very low. Because there is no union in this country so no one can fight for their rights. But they’re the ones who work the hardest.”
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Mehreen Jabbar said it was a ‘frustrating’ process to shoot in Pakistan, unless you were filming a short series or one where a brand is involved. “I’ve been working for 30 years now, and sometimes I feel the issues I faced then still exist today. In fact maybe they are even worse,” reflected the ‘Daam’ director.
