June 29, 2025 — Lahore / Karachi** — Pakistan’s film industry stands at a pivotal moment, divided across geography, funding, and creative direction. While a handful of recent titles have performed well at the box office, many filmmakers warn that the overall landscape remains deeply fragmented.
Few Successes Amid Struggles
Films such as Love Guru and Deemak have brought large audiences back to cinemas — Love Guru reportedly grossing around Rs70 crore worldwide and Deemak earning nearly Rs13 crore. Yet these remain rare triumphs in an industry where most productions fail to break even.
Box-office data indicates that even “hit” films in Pakistan usually make between Rs13 crore and Rs16 crore, while smaller titles earn as little as Rs1–3 crore. With production budgets often ranging from Rs5 to Rs7 crore, a movie needs at least Rs15–21 crore in revenue to recover costs.
Adding to the uncertainty is the lack of a standardized and transparent system for box-office reporting, making it difficult to gauge performance or forecast trends with accuracy.
Karachi vs. Lahore: A Persistent Rivalry
The divide between Pakistan’s two main film hubs — Karachi and Lahore — continues to shape industry politics. Differences in language, cultural approach, and access to production resources have long defined the competition between the two cities.
Government initiatives have tried to support the sector, though with mixed results. In 2023, the federal government announced a Rs1-billion film fund to help offset production costs, but the money was never distributed. A subsequent program expanded funding categories to include telefilms, documentaries, songs, and dramas, aiming to align projects with national priorities.
Provincially, Punjab launched a Rs2-billion fund open to filmmakers from all regions and languages to spur production activity. Sindh, meanwhile, introduced a “work-for-hire” scheme, requiring filmmakers to create content on government-specified themes while transferring ownership rights to the state.
Deep-Rooted Challenges
Beyond financing, several structural issues continue to hinder
