It’s been a good year for Riz Ahmed fans. After his brilliant short film The Long Goodbye arrived in the early months of the year, he now has a couple of feature films arriving in the coming months. As well as drumming drama Sound Of Metal, he'll soon be seen in Mogul Mowgli – an attention-grabbing feature in which he plays Zed, a New York-based British-Pakistani rapper whose rapid rise is threatened by a looming illness, forcing him to return to the UK to his family.
It marks the narrative debut of documentary filmmaker Bassam Tariq, who co-wrote the screenplay with Ahmed himself – marking Ahmed screenwriting feature debut, and making full use of his talents as hip-hop star Riz MC. Watch the striking first Mogul Mowgli trailer exclusively here, including an electrifying stage performance from Ahmed.
“Mogul Mowgli grew out of conversations Bassam and I had over a few years, about coming from a certain background economically and culturally and now earning our livings as artists,” says Ahmed of the film. “We wanted to tell a story about the tension that exists between pursuing your own ambitions and connecting to the people that matter – yourself, your family, your loved ones.”
Mogul Mowgli is screening as part of the BFI London Film Festival 2020 on 10 October, and is on general release in the UK and Ireland from 30 October.