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. 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." 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, while his other 2017 release,
Rangreza, was both a critical and commercial failure. In 2019, he played the leading role in
Ehteshamuddin's directorial debut,
Superstar, produced by
Momina Duraid and with
Mahira Khan as co-star.
Superstar became the highest-grossing film for Bilal Ashraf. 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. 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, their first release being the historical drama
Khaab Toot Jaatay Hain. ==In the media==