What's In the Name?

The Indian film industry aped Hollywood and called itself Bollywood just because it was based in Bombay (now Mumbai); B for Bombay so B for Bollywood. The Pakistani Film Industry copied the Indian copying style and since it was based in Lahore (Punjab, Pakistan), they chose to call it Lollywood. L for Lahore so L for Lollywood.

History Of Pakistan Film Industry

In 1929, Abdur Rashid Kardar setup United Players Corporation, a studio and production company in Lahore. It was later renamed Playart Phototone. It became the foundation stone for the Lahore film industry. In 1930, Abdur Kardar made the first silent film in Lahore. It was titled Husn Ka Daku. Though the movie was not that successful, it established Lahore as a functioning film industry.

K.D. Mehra made the first Punjabi film, Sheela (also known as "Pind di Kudi" in the year 1935. Baby Noor Jehan was introduced as an actress and singer in this film. With music by Mubarak Ali Khan, Sheela was made in Calcutta and released in Lahore, the capital of Punjab (Pakistani Punjab); it ran very successfully and was a super-hit across the province.

In 1946, Sajjad Gul set up Evernew Studios on Multan Road and a year later, Eveready Pictures was established by J.C. Anand, which later became the largest film production and distribution company in Pakistan.

Teri Yaad - The First Pakistani Film Post Independence:

In 1947, when Great Britain gave independence to British India and formed two countries viz. India and Pakistan. During partition, many of the working filmmakers and actors had left for or stayed back in India. Bombay became the film capital of Independent India and Lahore became the Cinema Hub of Pakistan. In 1948, the Pakistan Film Industry made its first feature film titled 'Teri Yaad' starring actress Asha Posley (not to be confused with Indian singer Asha Bhosle) and Nasir Khan, brother of renowned Indian actor Dilip Kumar who had stayed back in Bombay, India. The film did quite well and stayed for a significant time on the celluloid screens in Lahore, Dhaka and Quetta.

Pakistan's First Silver Jubilee Movie:

On April 7, 1950, Do Ansoo starring starring Santosh Kumar, Ajmal, Sabiha Khanum and Allauddin was released across East and West Pakistan. Directed by Anwar Kamal Pasha, Do Ansoo became the 1st Pakistani Lollywood Movie to reach silver jubilee status.

1950 to 1970 - The Golden Age of Pakistan Film Industry:

Pakistan Film Industry flourished from the year 1958 through 1970s. A lot of successful movies were made during this period. Bollywood movies were also screened in cinemas and the cinema culture flourished in Pakistan with abundance of content to screen.

Pakistan Losing A War To India In 1971 And Ban On Indian Movies:

Pakistan's military attack on India to occupy Jammu and Kashmir in 1965 and miserably failing in its misadventure cause a strain in India-Pakistan relations. Bollywood movies were banned in Pakistan. In 1971, Pakistan attacked India's western front using its air-force. India retaliated and not just defeated Pakistani army miserably but also liberated East Pakistan to create an independent country called Bangladesh. This humiliating defeat caused severe embarrassment to the Pakistani establishment and they instantly put a block on all Indian content. Pakistani Film Industry now didn't have any competition and it was in a one horse race.

The Downfall Of Pakistan Film Industry:

Post the ban on Indian cinema and a stop on cultural exchange between India and Pakistan, Lollywood or Pakistan Film Industry was left all alone without any competition. Instead of taking advantage of this one horse race, Lollywood became complacent. Since there was no competition, Pakistani filmmakers started churning out substandard movies expecting them to be hits. Films dropped from a total output of 98 in 1979, of which 42 were in Urdu, to only 58 films (26 in Urdu) in 1980. Punjabi filmmakers started making movies based on violent and vulgar gandasa-pashto culture. The movies were hit among sexually deprived Pashtos and Punjabi men but educated as well as decent class and family audience stopped visiting cinema halls and chose to watch Bollywood movies by renting them through VCR Cassettes, CDs etc. Indian dramas started making their way into Pakistani homes after the late 90s. Even Pakistani pop cinema collapsed due to Bollywood gaining tremendous popularity in Pakistan. Pakistan made only 27 Urdu Movies in 2016.

Hawks Like Javed Sheikh, Shaan and Hamza Abbasi Afraid Of Bollywood:

Pakistan has now allowed the release of Bollywood movies in their cinema halls and they are doing extremely well. This has even encouraged Pakistani families to watch movies in Cinema Halls. The Cinema culture has returned in Pakistan thanks to Bollywood but hawks like Javed Sheikh (Director), Shaan (Pakistan's Lead Actor From the 90s) and Hamza Abbasi (C-grade Pakistani actor) are vehemently opposing the release of Bollywood movies in Pakistan. Javed Sheikh knows that his movies would not be able to stand the competition from Bollywood. Shaan is already too old to appear as main lead. As per Bollywood insiders, Shaan had hired an Indian agency to help him get a role of a lead actor in Bollywood movies but he didn't get any success. He went on to say a blatant lie that the role of the main villain in Ghajini was offered to him and that he had declined. Bollywood insiders do not find any truth in Shaan Shahid's claim. Hamza Ali Abbasi is another flop actor in Lollywood. He tried his best to break into mainstream Pakistani cinema but failed miserably as his acting skills leave a lot to desire. He now does anchoring on Pakistani channels bashing India left-right and center. Mahira Khan is the mainstream Pakistani actress but she ain't really famous for her acting skills and that is the reason she was bashed a lot by critics for her poor performance in Raees.

The Good Lot In Pakistani Cinema:

Pakistan has its own talent and these are the artists who are revered in India and have a huge fan base:
Fawad Khan: Shot to fame with Zindagi Gulzar Hair serial and got success in Bollywood. He was last seen in Ae Dil Hai Mushkil, though the role was small, Fawad was praised for his acting skills.
Atif Aslam and Rahat Fateh Ali Khan: With their unique voices, these Pakistani singers have established themselves as mainstream playback singers in Bollywood.

Can Pakistani Cinema Outclass Bollywood?

This seems difficult as Pakistan Film Industry lacks originality. They blindly ape Bollywood style of film making with same masala formula and song and dance routine. Pakistani will continue to watch Bollywood movies till the time Lollywood does not churn out original content away from the regular song and dance routine.