Bilal Ashraf

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Bilal Ashraf
Ashraf promoting Janaan in 2016
Born (1979-10-10) 10 October 1979 (age 45)
Karachi, Sindh, Pakistan
Alma materFranklin & Marshall College
Occupations
  • Actor
  • Visual director
  • Producer
Years active2014 – present
RelativesSadia Ashraf (sister)[1]

Bilal Ashraf (Urdu: بلال اشرف; born 10 October 1979) is a Pakistani actor, producer, and visual effects director. After studying visual effects at Franklin Marshall College, he started his career as a visual effects director and then pursued his career in acting after making a brief appearance in the 2014 thriller O21. Ashraf has since starred in the romantic comedy Janaan (2016), the acclaimed war drama Yalghaar (2017), and the musical romance Superstar (2019).

Early life and education

Bilal Ashraf was born in Karachi into an Urdu speaking family of Punjabi origins.[2] Playing a Pashtun character in Janaan (2016) but himself not being one, he learnt some Pashto for his role, enough to "look comfortable lip-syncing to songs."[3]

Ashraf received his early education from St. Michael's Convent School in Karachi. He studied visual effects direction at Franklin & Marshall College in Pennsylvania, United States. He did a double major in finance and arts. Later, he went to Escape Studios in London to learn animation. He has ten years of experience behind the camera.[4]

Career

Ashraf initially worked as a hedge consultant in New York, but he later quit his job and moved to London in order to study animation and visual effects at the insistence of his late sister, Sadia Ashraf, a director as well as a teacher of filmmaking at the New York University, who wanted to improve Pakistan's cinema and with whom he created Radical Films. She is the reason he decided to become an actor.[5] Ashraf has named Pink Floyd as his all-time favourite band,and has chosen Scent of a Woman as the movie that pushed him to become an actor, while he also described sculpting and painting as his "hidden talents."[6]

Ashraf made a cameo appearance in the 2014 thriller film O21. In 2016, Ashraf made his lead acting debut in Janaan, a romantic comedy, alongside Armeena Khan and Ali Rehman Khan, which was appreciated by critics as well as by the audiences. The next year he appeared in the war film Yalghaar, which had a decent opening at the box office,[7] while his other 2017 release, Rangreza, was both a critical and commercial failure.[citation needed]

In 2019, he played the leading role in Ehteshamuddin's directorial debut, Superstar, produced by Momina Duraid and with Mahira Khan as co-star.[8][9] Superstar becomes the highest-grossing film for Bilal Ashraf.[10] Explaining his long absence since Rangreza, he said that, considering its missed potential, he'll look more seriously at the scripts, and also shared the fact that he took acting classes in the United Kingdom as well as theater classes with actor Sunil Shankar in the NAPA, in Karachi.[11]

In 2021, he launched his acting career on television with Aik Hai Nigar and also became a producer, founding the production house Behive Transmedia with director-actor Ehteshamuddin,[12] their first release being the historical drama Khaab Toot Jaatay Hain.

In the media

In 2019, he was featured in the magazine Eastern Eye's listing in the United Kingdom and was ranked No. 7th on "Sexiest Asian Men", which included Ali Zafar, Hrithik Roshan, Zayn Malik, and Ali Rehman Khan.[13][14]

Filmography

Film

Year Title Role Director(s) Notes
2014 O21 Ahmad Jami
Summer Nicks 		Cameo appearance
2016 Janaan Asfandyar Azfar Jafri Debut film as a lead
2017 Yalghaar Captain Bilal Hassan Rana
Rangreza Ali Zain Amir Mohiuddin
2019 Superstar Sameer Mohammed Ehteshamuddin
TBA Waar 2 Hassan Rana

Television series

Year Title Role Producer Network Notes
2021 Khaab Toot Jaatay Hain No Yes Hum TV Debut as producer[15]
2023 Yunhi Dr. Dawood Basharat Debut as television actor[16]

Telefilm

Year Title Role Network Notes
2021 Aik Hai Nigar Johar Ali Khan ARY Digital Debut television[17]

Other appearance

Year Title Role Network Notes
2017 Mazaaq Raat Himself Dunya News Guest
Tonite with HSY Hum TV
2020 Jeeto Pakistan League Season 1 ARY Digital

Awards and nominations

Year Award Category Work Result Ref.
2017 1st International Pakistan Prestige Awards Best Actor Debut Janaan Nominated [18]
3rd Pakistani Music and Media Awards Best Actor Won [19]
International Pakistan Prestige Awards IPPA Style Icon of the Year — Nominated [20]
2020 1st Pakistan International Screen Awards Favourite Actor Film Superstar Nominated [21]
2021 5th Kashmir Hum Style Awards Most Stylish Actor in Film — Won [22]
2022 Pakistan Digital Awards Host for Jubiliee — Won [23]
Best Actor — Won [23]

References

  1. ^ "Bilal Ashraf is Achieving His Sister's Ambitions". News 360. 23 August 2021.
  2. ^ The After Moon Show | Episode #3 | 24 Feb 2018 | Kubra Khan & Humayun Saeed with Yasir Hussain, at 34:10 in the link
  3. ^ Mariam Mushtaq (4 October 2015), "Bilal Ashraf – a name to look out for" Archived 2019-06-11 at the Wayback Machine, The News. Retrieved 27 April 2019.
  4. ^ Sultan, Sana (11–17 January 2014). "Interview>> Bilal Ashraf Next heartthrob of Pakistan". magtheweekly.com. Archived from the original on 20 January 2014. Retrieved 23 August 2018.
  5. ^ Humay Waseem (25 August 2015), "A mix of muscle and masala", The Express Tribune. Archived on 11 April 2025.
  6. ^ "Movie stars, Bilal Ashraf and Syra Shahroz’s insane Chemistry fogs up in the camera lens", GOOD TIMES Magazine. 15 May 2017. Archived on 11 April 2025.
  7. ^ "Yalghaar rules box-office". The Nation. Retrieved 6 July 2017.
  8. ^ Ahmed Sarym (21 August 2018). "Mahira Khan, Bilal Ashraf to star in Momina Duraid's next film". The Express Tribune. Archived from the original on 22 August 2018. Retrieved 22 August 2018.
  9. ^ "Mahira Khan and Bilal Ashraf pair up for Superstar, director Ehteshamuddin confirms". The News. 25 August 2018. Archived from the original on 27 August 2018. Retrieved 25 August 2018.
  10. ^ Sarah Shaukat (29 August 2019). "Superstar Becomes Highest Grossing Film For Bilal Ashraf". Entertainment Pakistan. Retrieved 2 September 2019.
  11. ^ Momina Mindeel (6 February 2019), "“I now understand why she is Mahira Khan”- Bilal Ashraf on his ‘Superstar’ co-star", Galaxy Lollywood. Retrieved 7 March 2019.
  12. ^ Abdullah, Farheen (27 September 2021). "Pakistani celebrities diversifying their craft". Cutacut.
  13. ^ "Bilal Ashraf named sexiest Pakistani man in the world". Daily Times. 10 December 2019.
  14. ^ "Ali Zafar & Bilal Ashraf Made It To The Sexiest Men List — Here Are A Few More We Want!". Galaxy Lollywood. 24 January 2021.
  15. ^ "Bilal Ashraf's 'Khaab Toot Jatay Hain' to air from December 27". cutacut. 22 December 2021.
  16. ^ "Bilal Ashraf to make TV debut with Maya Ali in a drama directed by Mohammed Ehteshamuddin". Dawn.com. 30 August 2022. Retrieved 30 August 2022.
  17. ^ "I found my role challenging: Bilal Ashraf". Express Tribune. 15 November 2021. Retrieved 11 December 2021.
  18. ^ "International Pakistan prestige Awards 2017". Mag - The Weekly. 23 December 2017.
  19. ^ "Bilal Ashraf Wins Award For Best Debutante!". Pakistani Drama Story & Movie Reviews | Ratings | Celebrities | Entertainment news Portal | Reviewit.pk. 18 September 2017.
  20. ^ "IPPA reveals nominations for the year 2017". Runaway Pakistan. 20 August 2018.
  21. ^ Images Staff (8 February 2020). "PISA 2020 winners – complete list of all categories". Incpak. Retrieved 8 February 2020.
  22. ^ "HSAs 2021 come sweeping in like a breath of fresh air as Pakistan tries to defeat COVID". Daily Times. 8 July 2021.
  23. ^ a b "JLI wins two major awards at Pakistan Digital Awards 2022". Pakistan Observer. 8 June 2022.