INSTEP Magzine

instep
profile
"As an ethnic actor - especially a Pakistani working in Hollywood - I feel I have a responsibility to fulfill more than an American actor would need to."
– Faran Tahir moves on from Iron Man to Star Trek
Cracking the stereotype that has always cast Pakistanis as either illegal immigrants or of recent, terrorists in Hollywood movies, Faran Tahir is one actor hell bent on changing the mass consciousness. And he might achieve just that as he prepares to steer away from the baddie he played in Iron Man to the federation captain he will be playing in the much anticipated Star Trek movie, due to release in summer 2009.

By Aamna Haider Isani

Tall, dark and unconventionally handsome, 'Raza' made quite an impression as a villain of ethnic descent in Iron Man, the superhero movie that released this May. He was effective in his villainous gait and intimidating on screen. And the fact that he wore a keffiyah throughout the movie and spoke Arabic and Urdu, made him so easy to relate to as someone possibly from this region. But to everyone unaware of his descent or background, he was easily discarded as an actor who looked the part and had researched the role thoroughly. He was – to the thousands of Pakistani viewers who watched Iron Man in cinemas – just another American actor of ethnic ancestry and it has become quite the stereotype to cast a Muslim in a negative role. But no one could have imagined that the actor, whose name is Faran Tahir, is actually a Pakistani born in California and based in Hollywood for the last 15 years, probably stepping into one of the most talked about roles of his career as he turned a dark leaf for Iron Man. Faran had appeared in countless films and TV series before, but this role - as the captor of Tony Stark played by Robert Downey Jr - was well received, making way for the big time breakthrough that will follow in JJ Abrams' much anticipated Star Trek movie next summer.

Faran Tahir is in Pakistan, the unknown member of a relatively well-known Lahore based family - the son of Naeem Tahir (Director, Pakistan National Council of Arts) and renowned theatre personality, Yasmin Tahir. His brother Ali Tahir also works as a TV actor in Pakistan. But Faran's professional journey doesn't borrow much from his family, except for the healthy dose of liberal arts he grew up on and the legacy that eventually led him into show biz. That said, he chose not to pursue his interests in Pakistan, despite spending several of his growing up years in Lahore. He opted for another world altogether – the world of Hollywood where stars are spun as they can only be imagined in Pakistan.

"When I decided to move there, I thought to myself, what are the odds that I'll have to overcome?" he says. "They'll say I am not qualified; I got degrees from Berkely and Harvard. They'll say I don't have the accent; I worked on that. They'll say I don't have the looks so I worked on that too, even going for combat training, which all paid off."

Eventually his success came from all the professional training, most impressively the graduate degree from Harvard University's Institute for Advanced Theatre Training that brought him immense credibility. And though his movie roles have been quite short until now – ranging from The Jungle Book to Charlie Wilson's War – they have indicated a passion for acting and sincerity with the profession, resulting in him being acknowledged by American critics as a Pakistani who can act.

Other than his presence in mainstream Hollywood, Faran played the male lead in the 1999 independent film ABCD and he has guest starred in many television series including The Practice, Family Law, The Agency, NYPD Blue, Lost, 7th Heaven, The West Wing, JAG, Judging Amy, The D.A. and Cold Case. He appeared in two episodes of the hit series 24, as well as shows such as Monk and Justice. His substantial role in Iron Man brought him into another kind of limelight and in his next movie, he will be steering his career to higher terrain. He will beplaying a Federation captain named 'Robau' in the brand new and much anticipated Star Trek movie, due to release in May 2009. Interestingly, uptil now, all of his roles have cast him as an ethnic actor, many of them in a negative role, and one wondered whether it was possible for an'ethnic actor' to actually make it big in Hollywood?

Instep got hold of Faran Tahir for an interview during his short trip to Lahore this winter. These trips, as his mother explained as we waited for him to return from a meeting at CARE (the charity wants to involve him as Brand Ambassador to create possible bridges with similar organizations in the USA), were to ensure he remained connected to his roots. When she insisted he take the driver to commute within the rapidly changing geographic of Lahore, he replied with a confident, " I've driven here all my life and could never ever lose my way around this city." It's that bond – the family and friends he has here – that keep bringing him back, with bigger things on the agenda each time.

"As an ethnic actor - especially a Pakistani actor working in Hollywood - I feel I have a responsibility to fulfill more than an average American actor would need to," he explained, narrating how he landed the role in Iron Man and how he managed to influence John Favreau to diffuse any anti-Islam references in the film.
"To his credit, he listened," he continues, "but I convinced him to take out the mention of 'God' in the script, the constant allusions to 'infidels' and dialogue that had phrases like 'In God's name' in repetition. If you watch the film you'll notice that there is no reference to religion now. The terrorists shown may be based in Afghanistan but they are mercenaries, soldiers of fortune and not religious militants. I do feel that terrorism as we see it today has more to do with power and less with religion.

"We didn't want to regionalize the terrorists, which is why they spoke different languages: Arabic, Pushto and Urdu. I even tried to throw in a little Hungarian. The concept of Iron Man was 'boys playing superheroes' and there was no room for religious innuendos. Charlie Wilson's War, for instance, was different as religion had a place in that story."

But the terrorists were stereotyped in Iron Man, one countered…
"They were as stereotyped as Iron Man was himself. Even he is a stereotype superhero so I do think that the entire stereotype thing worked."

Talking about stereotypes, one pursued whether it was possible for an 'ethnic actor' to make it big in mainstream cinema internationally, as almost all the roles he had done were limited to his ethnicity and more recently exploiting the stereotype?

"Look, I am brown so I can't be doing roles that require me to be white, but the same rule applies to white actors, black actors, Hispanic actors, etc," he replied. "Plus things are changing. My role in Star Trek is not an ethnic one. There's another movie I've just completed called Ashes and it's about two manic depressive schizophrenics; in no way does it exploit the ethnic angle. I do feel that the whole Asian-stereotype thing has been done to death. Those stories have been told and we need to create new ones. As actors we need to be pushing the boundaries and cracking the stereotype."

Faran then narrated an interesting anecdote of how, almost 15 years ago, he landed one of his first movie roles. His agent convinced him to audition for a role in which he was required to be a store owner, who is held up at gunpoint.

"The store keeper, of course had to be either Indian or Pakistani," he still laughs at the memory, "and though I had my reservations, I put my hundred percent into practicing for the role, trying to bring a new perspective to it. The audition went really well and I thought I had done great until the director came and told me that though I could act, I wasn't 'South-Asian enough'- for the role. They needed the whole 'oh my Gad' shock scene. The wanted Appu from The Simpsons!"

But that was years ago and things are changing now. Faran adds that while movies still have limitations, it is theatre that allows one to explore the art of acting to the maximum, and he has had his fair share of that glory too. The actor has stepped into the shoes of many historic characters, his ethnicity never being a hindrance.

"When you're on the stage, all that counts is the connection you strike with your audience. I keep myself alive with theatre and I've worked in everything from Shakespeare to Chekov. In my opinion, that's how we as actors can crack ethnic molds. No one has ever questioned my being a brown Macbeth as long as I can elicit the same response from my audience."

And how much did his degree from Harvard help? Was it merely a CV enhancer or did one learn things that would be impossible to pick up on the sets?

"Oh a Harvard degree counts! The most important thing is that I could immerse myself into learning how to act without worrying about the response I was getting. That feeling of creative liberty was fantastic."
Now well established and settled in Hollywood, one also questioned what he could possibly bring back to Pakistan in terms of cinema revival? Faran was very aware of the ground reality of Pakistani cinema and he was conscious that despite a revival that had come around with Khuda Kay Liye and then Ramchand Pakistani, a lot more had to be done before Pakistani cinema could actually take off in any significant way. He also spoke of the relation between showbiz and media and how that relation had to be created to develop alliances that are strong enough to change mindsets all over the world.

"I'm not one of those people who think we are in forever competition with India," he strongly stated, "but I have to give them credit for winning the real battle, that is media related. India has created a love affair with the world through their movies and in that love they are forgiven many flaws. And it has happened over time. We have taken a great step forward with Khuda Kay Liye but rather than focusing on the success of one film which delivers a knock out blow, I'd say go for a slower and steadier path of softening the media and aiming for gradual revival."

"I do feel I have the responsibility to do something here," he added, "but I need to find the right people to build bridges with. The way I see it, it can't be accomplished as a one time effort but at least a quartet of four different projects taking off at the same time. I'm actively approaching people for that now even if it doesn't happen on a big level, I will make sure it happens on a small one. Even if one actor, one script writer or one director makes that link, it'll make a difference to Pakistan in the larger picture."

His efforts also take him beyond the world of the performing arts. The hope for developing some kind of relationship with Hollywood holds its advantages – even managing to get some sort of Pakistani perspective into films that are being made on the region will help – and Faran has been working on it. Teaching undergrads at Harvard, he has been bringing Pakistan into creative consciousness in a positive way, through art and charity. He managed to bring an entire community together when the massive earthquake struck north Pakistan two years ago, collecting thousands of dollars worth of blankets and sleeping bags and transporting them to Pakistan.

And back to movies, that consciousness is slowly seeping into Hollywood too. Faran's role as a Starfleet Captain in Star Trek is being talked about in the American media.
"The fact that Tahir is Pakistani also cannot be ignored," writes Anthony Pascale on Trekmovie.com. "One only needs to look at much of his recent work (on 24, Sleeper Cell, Iron Man, etc) to see that Tahir gets a lot of work playing villains. Like the Germans and Russians of past generations, many of today's popular culture villains are played by those of Middle-Eastern or South-west Asian descent. But just like Gene Roddenberry put a Russian onto the bridge of the Enterprise at the height of the Cold War, JJ Abrams has put a Pakistani into the captain's chair in the post–9/11 world."

"God that's perfect!" a blogger responds on the same website, one of many excited by the Pakistani actor. "Finally a Star Fleet Captain (aside from Kirk) who means business, 'cause that's what Faran Tahir looks like. And I'm so glad to the true Trek spirit and ideology in this casting as it welcomes a Pakistani into this role. The man from Pakistan – not the terrorist – but our hero Captain."

It is this very gradual change of consciousness that one hopes to see more of. As Pakistan is consistently being dragged into news headlines for one terrorist association or the other, it is very welcome to see even one Pakistan being the face of change. And one can't wait for May 2009, when Star Trek releases and puts Faran Tahir down in history as the first Pakistani to be cast in a heroic role of epic proportions. And even if the film doesn't make it that big, we're confident that he will.