Establishment of a film industry in UP should be welcomed by all – Hasan Zaidi

REPORT BY S HASAN ZAIDI ;-Educated in Lucknow;  went abroad for  education in London and Muscat with a degree in anagement studies earned while working for a radio service overseas it was cricket and a love for acting that brought him back to India. Hasan Zaidi is a familiar face on TV and movies since the last eighteen years. He is currently playing a major role in the TV serial Behad 2.

Hasan Zaidi says that when he stared out eighteen years ago there was no instagram, facebook and youtube  too were not widely recognized and used and hence it was not easy for new artists to showcase their talent as is the case now. Hasan is very excited about the possibilities that will be opened up by establishment of a film industry in UP and says it is a step that should be welcomed by all concerned.

Over the last eighteen years Hasan Zaidi has appeared in hit serials like Ghar ek Sapna, Humne li Hai Shapath, Tum Saaht Ho Jap Apne, Khotey Sikke, Rishtey  Dot Com, Powder and many more on Indian TV. He has also acted alongside Sunny Deol In Dishkiaon and had major roles in the movies Horror Story by Vikram Bhatt and Sargoshiyan.

Recently Hasan Zaidi who has a close relation with Lucknow was on a visit to his ancestral place Pihani near Lucknow and spoke about various topics related to movies and about his personal life and his connection with UP. He regretted not being able to visit his ancestral town for the last two and a half years due to Corona and related lockdowns though he makes it a point to visit his native place at least two to three times a year inspite of having a very tight schedule in Mumbai. He spends s a lot of time in helping out people. He has a house in Mud Island in Mumbai and spends a lot of time in helping the poor and the needy especially daily wage earners who were badly hit due to Corona.

He is currently working on a play on audible which he will be completing as soon as he goes back to Mumbai. He has written a play himself titled Kaun Salim Kiski Anarkali which has also been staged and was a hit across India. He will again be staging the play soon across India.

Hasan says that he is enjoying working in his new serial Behad 2 which is being telecast in Syria, Egypt, Iraq and Romania too though these new territories require a lot of his time for social media promotions. Apart from these projects Hasan has two contracts for web series on Netflix the leading OTT platform.

Hasan is however very careful about his health in the light of Corona pandemic and shooting during these times as he has old family members at home for whose safety he feels concerned and chooses projects accordingly.

Speaking on the subject of the proposed film city and related film industry in UP Hasan says that the project should not be met with negativity at the outset. He says Mumbai too has many artists from UP and in fact from all of India. He believes UP has a big pool of talented artist and as such if an industry takes shape in UP itself these artists may not have to go all the way to Mumbai where there are obvious problems in living and finding accommodation. He himself faced such problems at first but fortunately he found solutions soon but not everyone is so lucky who tries his luck in Mumbai. He says if an industry is up and functional in UP it will not only benefit those directly connected with the film industry but even tourism will get a boost apart from local economy and local artists.

Hasan Zaidi is full of optimism for artists from UP both in Mumbai and in the nascent film industry in