The controversy surrounding Mango Jutt has taken a new turn after filmmaker Abu Aleeha opened up about his exit from the project, saying he walked away after refusing to accept what he called a “C-grade” final edit.
The trailer, featuring Faysal Quraishi, Hareem Farooq and Shamoon Abbasi, was released this week and quickly caught attention online. However, viewers also noticed that Abu Aleeha was not listed among the visible writing and directing credits, despite earlier reports and film listings identifying him as the writer and director.
Speaking to Lollywood Pictures, Abu Aleeha said he had written and directed Mango Jutt and revealed that the film was shot more than two years ago after months of work on the script. He said he rewrote the screenplay several times before filming and worked with his team during the shoot in Lahore and Nankana Sahib.
According to Abu Aleeha, problems started during the later stages of production and post-production. He claimed that the trailer released for the public does not represent the story, characters or the overall film that he had originally written, directed and shot.
The filmmaker was particularly unhappy with the editing process. He said he left the project after refusing to approve what he described as a “C-grade edit lock” prepared by an editor from Mumbai, India. According to him, the disagreement over the final cut eventually resulted in his exit from the film.
Abu Aleeha also claimed that additional shooting was proposed to secure Rs3 crore from the Punjab Government. He said he refused to participate in further shooting for that purpose, as he believed it could compromise the film. The filmmaker added that he had explained his position in an application submitted to the Pakistan Film Producers Association.
Talking about the newly released trailer, Abu Aleeha said he was disappointed with how the film has been presented. In his view, the footage does not properly reflect the script and characters he had worked on during production.
The issue has attracted further attention because Mango Jutt was previously promoted with Abu Aleeha credited as its director. An earlier report on the film’s teaser also named him as the director and stated that filming had already been completed.
Despite his concerns over the post-production process, Abu Aleeha said Mango Jutt remains a team effort. He maintained that the story, dialogues, characters, direction and footage captured during filming came from his work, while also acknowledging the contribution of the wider filmmaking team.
He further said he still believes the film has enough potential through its story, performances and visuals to connect with audiences, despite his concerns about the final post-production.