Tag: Pakistani dramas

  • ‘Alif’ Episode 7: Ahsan Khan makes a fleeting appearance

    ‘Alif’ Episode 7: Ahsan Khan makes a fleeting appearance

    Seven episodes later, in, we’re still waiting for Alif to pick up. The drama boasts a brilliant cast, direction and story but because of its slow pace, it is unable to captivate the audiences the way it should have given its unique storyline.

    One of the lead characters of the show, played by Ahsan Khan, has finally made an appearance. But that too lasted for less than ten seconds. Till now the only thing we know about his character is that he is Momin’s (Hamza Ali Abbasi) father and left him and his mother for reasons unknown.

    The seventh episode mostly explored the relationship between Momin and his grandfather. Their relationship has been wonderfully portrayed and Manzar Sehbai as Abdul Aalaa has given a phenomenal performance.

    Meanwhile, Neha (Sadaf Kanwal) is out to get her revenge from Momin and is leaving no stone unturned to ensure that.

    Momina is still coping with the death of her brother. However, she fulfils her commitements and returns to work even though her mother told her that she doesn’t really need to. Her former love interest Faisal (Osman Khalid Butt) has also returned from America and there is friction between the two characters. As always, Sajal’s expressions are on point – is there any character she can’t do flawlessly?

    Towards the end of the episode, we’re shown that the drama is heading towards a twist. Hoping that this twist finally leads to Momin and Momina meeting again – the wait is getting a bit too long now. I probably sound like a broken record by now but I hope the drama starts moving a little faster. The pace kinda kills the buzz.

  • ‘Alif’ is slow-paced but intense

    ‘Alif’ is slow-paced but intense

    Hamza Ali Abbasi and Sajal Aly’s Alif hit screens early October amid a lot of hype and fanfare. This is their first pairing and fans were naturally excited to see two acting powerhouses come together. Not only that, the speculation that this might be Hamza’s last venture also added to the drama’s attraction.

    So far five episodes of Alif have aired and though the drama’s plotline is engrossing and interesting, it’s slow pace distracts you from it.

    Alif follows the life of two individuals Momin and Momina – oh the irony. The two belong to completely different worlds: Momin is a hotshot director who objectifies women and promotes vulgarity to sell his films, while Momina is a struggling actor, who is only in the profession to raise money for her sick brother. Their paths cross when Momina auditions for one of the Momin’s films and given their dissenting views, they clash.

    Till now, the drama largely focuses on Momin and his relationship with his grandfather with constant flashbacks to his childhood and Momina and her financial struggles.

    While the plotline and synopsis of the drama is captivating, the slow-pace makes your attention waiver. It is not gripping enough as yet but considering only five episodes have aired so far, we’re willing to let this go for now. The dialogues are also powerful.

    Both Hamza and Sajal have put up remarkable performances. Sajal as the struggling Momina is great – her expressions and the way she portrays the depth of her character is superb. Sadaf as Hamza’s love interest is also charming. We haven’t seen much of Kubra Khan but she does fit into the character of Husn-e-Jahan smoothly. The supporting cast is also commendable.

    Alif has been penned by Umera Ahmed and directed by Haseeb Hassan of Parwaaz Hai Junoon fame.

    The drama does appear to be promising watch given the teasers and cast but I do hope the pace doesn’t make it mundane and tiresome to watch.

  • Sanam Jung, Affan Waheed’s ‘Mein Na Janoo’ is…basic

    Sanam Jung, Affan Waheed’s ‘Mein Na Janoo’ is…basic

    Sanam Jung’s, much-hyped comeback to dramas had everyone buzzing. The actor has been an extremely popular morning show host and her fans were eagerly awaiting her return to the screens. Sadly, her latest offering Mein Na Janoo, which also stars the new heartthrob Affan Waheed and Zahid Ahmed, has fallen flat, leaving the audiences confused.

    Till now, six episodes have been aired and with every passing episode, the plot spirals into some unknown universe.

    The drama, produced by Adnan Siddiqui, revolves around Saira (Sanam) and her half-sister Kiran, played by Komal Aziz Khan. Both the girls have the same father but different mothers. While Kiran’s mother has been accepted by the family as their own, Saira’s mother (Huma Nawab) is an outcast and treated like a maid in the house, for reasons still unknown. All through the first six episodes, Saira’s mother is referred to as a “chalaak, gunegaar, behaya aurat” because she apparently stole her husband. Saira is also mistreated and vilified by the family even though her father supports her and defends her when the rest of fam accuses her of chalaoing her “jadu” on the men.

    Meanwhile, Nain (Zahid Ahmed), a former Airforce officer and Nehat (Affan Waheed) are Saira and Kiran’s cousins. Both of them are in love with Saira and want to marry her. However, Nehat’s mother refuses to make Saira her bahu (because you know she belongs to a behaya mother) and wants Nehat to marry Kiran, while Saira’s father is unsure about giving his daughter to a person who is blind, even though Nain’s family loves Saira.

    In short, the plot is basic and has nothing new to offer – crying heroines and abusive families have been done to death. Though I have to admit, the level of abuse in this drama is over the top and makes you cringe. Dialogues like “Iss larki nay izzat mitti main mila di,” “Iss ko main aisa sabaq sikhaoon gee keh dunya dekhay gee,” etc have been generously used. And of course, girls and boys have no right to fall in love with each other and if they do, it’s the girl’s fault because she trapped the guy.

    Both Saira and her mother as victims are seen crying in almost every scene. Saira’s mother barely says anything, just walks through every episode with her head down as the rest of the family members vilify her and call her names. Sanam’s expressions come across as wooden in most scenes, but then again her character has been written like that. Affan does a decent job as the arrogant spoiled brat as does Zahid as a blind former Airforce officer. But none of the actors give their best. Their acting is slightly above average at best.

    The drama is currently moving at a snail’s pace and leaving many questions unanswered which is why it is getting boring and dry. I hope the writers shake things up because if they continue like this, no one’s going to watch it. Affan is expected to turn into the antagonist and become a complete psychopath so that is one thing to look forward to.

  • Six episodes in, ‘Hassad’ is everything that’s wrong

    Six episodes in, ‘Hassad’ is everything that’s wrong

    To put it very simply, ARY’s latest drama, Hassad, starring Minal Khan and Shahroze Sabzwari, is everything typical.

    The story revolves around two brothers. The older one, Farhan (Noor Hassan), is married to his Khala’s jealous daughter Zari (Arij Fatima) while the younger, cute Armaan (Shahroze Sabzwari) is happily married to Naintara (Minal Khan). Zari detests Naintara and Armaan’s totally in love, happy relationship and tries her best to mess it up. But the happy-go-lucky Nain Tara keeps her mother-in-law happy and her husband happier (he calls her every hour because he misses her so much).

    In a tragic twist of fate, Armaan is killed in a robbery and Naintara becomes the oh-my-God banished widow, pregnant with her late husband’s child. Meanwhile, Zari fakes a pregnancy to score brownie points with her MIL and Farhan. What’s annoying is that even in the sadness of it all, Zari can’t let go of her jealousy (the title of the drama is Hassad, after all) and tries to kill Naintara with the help of her mother. Farhan catches on and tells her she’s nuts and needs to calm down. Zari then decides to make Naintara into a skank (pretty much the easiest way to get a woman shunned) and claims that she’s having affairs with men, including her brother, who by the way was caught trying to rape Naintara in the middle of the night.

    Six episodes of every-single-twist-you-can-think-of, keeps viewers hooked but once you start thinking or trying to understand it, you’re like “Wha?”

    Despite being a young and pretty girl, Naintara is cons-tant-ly forced to wear white after her husband’s death because she is now a bewa. She is constantly harassed by the evil Zari into being plain and is not allowed to go out and “sambhalo” her white dupatta. Soon enough, the MIL, being the MIL, joins in with Zari. So typical.

    In a nutshell, as the episodes progress, the MIL and SIL turn against sweet little bahu who is so beychari that she has nowhere else to turn to. She has to put her hand on the Quran to swear that she didn’t have an affair with Zari’s brother and destroy Armaan’s memory. So cliche. But then again so masalaydaar.

    Our drama directors know what sells and they’re literally selling it like no one’s business in this drama, with overdone twists in every episode. And they don’t appear to be stopping soon. While we personally don’t advocate the typical crap presented in this drama, it is stuff that will definitely sell.

  • Feel-good dramas to watch this Ramazan

    Feel-good dramas to watch this Ramazan

    We are already a few days into Ramazan and while we’ve gotten better at fasting, the slow, sluggish afternoons counting down to aftari are still there. Here are some feel-good dramas you can watch on Youtube while you wait to break your fast.

    Suno Chanda 2

    Suno Chanda is more of a post-iftar fix than a pre-iftar one. It is the perfect end to a long day of fasting. The show, now in its second season (a first for a Pakistani drama) is a comedy-drama about a joint family with such relatable situations and dialogues that you have laughing fits by the end of the show. The first episode of the second season has almost 3 million hits in just two days, while the second one had more than 1 million.

    If you haven’t watched the first season, now is the time to jump the bandwagon.

    Dolly Darling

    The sitcom which airs on Har Pal Geo is centred on the shenanigans of a married couple. Starring Nadia Khan and Aijaz Aslam in the lead, the show has tons of drama and overacting. Its a good show for time-pass.

    Aunn Zaara

    Though Aunn Zaara is several years old, the theme of the show is so relevant that one should definitely watch it if they haven’t and watch it again if they have. The show follows a young couple and the “privileged” problems they face while adjusting with each other and their families. Aunn Zaara is also a comedy-drama which will have you laughing throughout. Plus Osman Khalid Butt and Maya Ali’s chemistry is really lit. If you liked Suno Chanda, chances are you will love this too.

    An afterthought: As I was searching for easy, feel-good shows to add to this list, I realised that the Pakistani drama industry really doesn’t have much to offer in this genre. Most of the shows are either romantic dramas or they have a social message attached to it. So basically if you’re in the mood to watch something light, Netflix will probably be your best bet. Or game shows, if reality TV is your thing.