| Mustache | |
| Director: | Imran J. Khan |
| Producer: | Riz Ahmed Christopher Storer Christina Won Jessica Sittig Tyson Bidner Josh Senior Cooper Wehde Parker Mays Allie Moore |
| Starring: | Atharva Verma Alicia Silverstone Rizwan Manji Meesha Shafi |
| Cinematography: | David Robert Jones |
| Editing: | Harrison Atkins |
| Music: | Dan Romer |
| Runtime: | 83 minutes |
| Country: | United States |
| Language: | English |
Mustache is a 2023 Pakistani-American comedy drama film written and directed by Imran J. Khan and starring Atharva Verma and Alicia Silverstone.[1]
In the mid-1990s in Silicon Valley, Ilyas is a 14-year-old Pakistani-American who is forced to leave his private Islamic school to attend a public school. Adding to his struggles is a mustache that he has been growing since he was ten, to his chagrin.
The film premiered at South by Southwest on March 12, 2023.[2]
Mimi Calzada of The Daily Texan gave the film a positive review and wrote, "Mustache makes for an outstanding directorial feature debut from Imran Khan, which hugely benefits from Verma’s charming and endearing performance. Easily relatable, laugh-out-loud funny and downright delightful, Mustache solidifies itself as one of the best films in the SXSW 2023 lineup."[3]
Justin Lowe of The Hollywood Reporter also gave the film a positive review and wrote, "A religion-themed comedy can be a tricky proposition, even if the tone is predominantly respectful, but Khan strikes a satisfying balance between satire and deference that’s enjoyable without excessively pushing boundaries."[4]
The film won the Audience Award in the Narrative Feature competition at South by Southwest.[5]