KARIMABAD ?– The northern Hunza area of Pakistan was the model of James Hilton’s novel “Lost Horizon” he called it “Shangri-La”. Now a Japanese film has taken the step to do a film in this area. The shooting of a Japanese movie began this month in Hunza, an area of mountains at a level of 7,000- to 8,000-meters around Karimabad, northern Pakistan.
“Sogen no isu” (a chair in the grass) based on a novel of prize-winning writer Teru Miyamoto is the first Japanese film to be shot in the “last Shangri-La in the world,” said Toei Co., the distribution company of the movie.
The film features a middle-aged Japanese man’s quest for hope after the 2011 Great East Japan Earthquake through his journey to Hunza with his close friend of the same generation, a divorced woman and a boy who became an orphan after being abused.
“This film aims to encourage people to go forward in their own way, not giving up in today’s Japan, which has problems,” said Izuru Narushima, director of the film.
“I hope the audience will enjoy the journey together as Hunza can hardly be visited,” he added.
Actor Koichi Sato plays the leading character, while actor Masahiko Nishimura and actress Michiko Kichise are also among the cast.
A 106-year-old local played the role of an old man who helps the Japanese traveler regain hope.
The movie will be released next spring. For tours and hotel reservations in Hunza Please visit?
