Actor Shahroz Sabzwari is on an interview giving spree post Sadaf Kanwal’s gendered statement received public backlash. The Nand actor slamed Aurat March and the slogan ‘Mera Jism Meri Marzi’.
Talking on 92 News he said, that feminism a propaganda under the disguise of a ‘strong woman’.
“What kind of mothers will they become? How will they be able to build a nation,” he questioned.
The Chain Aye Na star recently reacted to the public’s backlash in another interview with a local media channel by stating that the criticism is only from a 10% segment of the society whereas the vast majority is ‘supporting Sadaf’s statement.’. The Dilruba star questioned the fellow panelist by asking her if she thinks that Vulgarity has become the primary motive of feminism.
Earlier the Hassad star took to his Instagram stories to express his gratitude on not being a Liberal. He even tagged his wife Sadaf in the post.
On the work front, Shahroz was last seen in ARY’s telefilm Mr and Mrs Chooza.
The Mere Paas Tum Ho writer Khalil-Ur-Rehman Qamar believes Sadaf Kanwal’s views on marriage are ‘not wrong at all’ her personal opinion and the model should not be scrutinized for it. He shared his opinion on the controversy in an interview with ’24 News’.
Qamar while responding to criticism on Sadaf’s statement said: “Sadaf Kanwal has not imposed anything on anyone, whatever she is doing at her home for her husband is her personal act. Where is it even happening in the houses, if a lady is doing such things for her husband it is not wrong at all, Sadaf Kanwal has not said anything wrong, people can do whatever they want to do. No one has the right to shout and impose their rules on anyone”.
Our celebrities have a large fan following and their words have an impact. When they use their celebrity status and clout to spout inanities, it is important to call them out. Recently, a clip of an interview of celebrity couple Shahroz Sabzwari and Sadaf Kanwal went viral where Sadaf made some problematic comments. “Our culture is our husband. I married him, which means I have to pick up his shoes and iron his clothes. I know where all of Shahroz’s things are and what and when he has to eat. I need to know these things because I am his wife and I am a woman. He doesn’t have to know the same about me.”
First of all, a woman’s life does not have to revolve around her marriage and her husband. She has her own agency, her own life. Secondly, what kind of marriage is Ms Kanwal propagating where a woman is the one doing everything for the husband while the husband does not need to know anything about his wife’s likes or dislikes and does not have to do anything for her? Marriage is about an equal partnership, marriage is about giving and take, marriage is about sharing responsibilities, marriage is about companionship, marriage is about compatibility. Marriage is not some one-sided relationship where the woman has to keep making compromises or do everything in accordance with her husband’s whims and fancies.
In a patriarchal society, a lot of women are told these things because women are only seen as mere objects instead of equal human beings. We are living in the 21st century now; we should really be challenging such archaic notions every second, every minute, every hour of our lives. Ms Kanwal also said that feminism has become a part of our lives now because liberals have ‘increased’ in society. We think that Ms Kanwal does not know the meaning of feminism. A feminist asks for equal rights for women, equal opportunities, an end to the oppression of women, an end to violence against women, and much more.
Also, why are words like ‘feminists’ and ‘liberals’ used in a negative and derogatory way? Just because they call a spade a spade? Our celebrities really need to educate themselves on these issues. Ms Kanwal has a budding career as a model, she has financial independence too and yet she is dishing out such irresponsible comments, not even thinking about countless women in this country who are stuck in bad marriages because they were told to do what all she is propagating.
As if Ms Kanwal’s comments were not enough, this week we saw a clip from the drama serial Laapata starring Ayeza Khan in which the issue of sexual harassment was shown as some sort of a blackmailing tool. Sexual harassment and sexual violence are serious issues and most of the underreported ones as well.
When drama serials start trivialising harassment and project it as some sort of tool used by women to falsely accuse men and/or to blackmail men, it is a disservice to those countless women who are the victims and survivors of this crime. It is a shame that in this day and age, we have to explain these things to TV networks or writers or actors. Let’s hope better sense prevails in the entertainment industry regarding such sensitive and highly important issues.
Shahroz Sabzwari and Sadaf Kanwal appeared on Nida Yasir’s morning show on July 7, this was their first appearance as a married couple on any morning show.
During the show’s conclusion Nida highlighted how post his marriage with Sadaf he got a blockbuster project in Nand. To which the Dilruba star responded saying that yes she has indeed brought luck to his life and even his parents are very happy with her.
He also opened up on how he fell for his ladylove, “Her Instagram feed has always been gorgeous. We met once or twice at an event or an opening.”
However it was not until the duo rehearsed together for an award show in Norway. “That’s where our love story began,” he said.
Shahroz went on to reveal that he was going through a rough patch in his life when he met Sadaf. The duo instantly clicked and he did not want to delay marrying her, the Chain Aye Na star said, “I was going through a very difficult time in my life and then meeting someone like Sadaf, who is so pure that you can’t help but get attracted to her. We don’t have to exaggerate about this. Our religion asks us to refrain from a lot of things and I try to stay away from it”.
On the work front, Shahroz and Sadaf were seen together in the telefilm Ghar Kay Na Ghat Kay.
ARY Digital’s masala-packed drama Nand finally came to a close on April 13 after 146 episodes with main antagonist Gohar’s death. The drama had everything from miscarriages to scheming nands and bhabhis and even plastic surgery.
Gohar’s domineering, jealous, and unsympathetic nature led her to a painful and heart-rending death. For those who haven’t watch the finale and want to know, Gohar died after her second husband poisoned her.
Nand originally featured Faiza Hasan, Shahroz Sabzwari, Minal Khan, Aijaz Aslam, Maha Hasan, and Ayaz Samoo in the lead and revolved around three couples, Gohar (Hasan) and Jehangir (Aslam), Saqib (Sabzwari) and Rabi (Khan), and Hasan (Samoo) and Farwa (Maha).
The drama busted rating charts with Hasan’s unbeaten acting. After ruining everyone’s lives and getting exposed Gohar got perfect retribution for her evil deeds – she lost her mind and started living on the streets following which audiences believed the drama was close to an end. But turns out the makers had other plans up their sleeves. They turned the drama into a Pakistani version of a Star Plus drama.
The drama had taken a complete turn from when it began and the titular character Gohar aka the Nand had gotten a face transformation and Hasan, who initially played the role and was a major attraction, was replaced by Javeria Saud.
The Nand was not the only one who had undergone a change but another female protagonist Rabi (played by Minal) died in Episode 95 that aired on January 13, 2021. Rabi and her daughter Dua died in a car accident in Germany, where they had gone to visit Rabi’s sister-in-law.
However, even after Saud replaced Hasan, many watched the drama but soon began to lose interest because the drama dragged on tirelessly.
With multiple new faces taking the story forward, Gohar did not learn from her mistakes and continued on different ventures making life for those around her hell.
After eight long months, the drama’s makers decided to end everyone’s suffering, including those of the audiences, and wrap up the show. While many viewers loved the drama giving it strong ratings, it drew mixed reviews with many wanting it to end. Hence, in an attempt to leave audiences satisfied, the drama makers gave Gohar a painful and tragic death for all the havoc she caused in other people’s lives.
Meanwhile, announcing the news of the drama’s conclusion, Aijaz Aslam wrote: “Finally it’s over. A beautiful year-long journey has come to an end on a very high note. Thank you, everyone, for your love and support which kept the viewership graph higher and higher all the way till the end.”
Finally its over #nand#jahangir … a beautiful year long journey has come to an end on a very high note … thank you everyone for your love and support which kept the viewership graph higher & higher all the way till the end … I just made a small collage of memories pic.twitter.com/rCVT4ixsTd
Shahroz Sabzwari has responded to Yasir Hussain over his comments that the former should have stuck to television instead of venturing into films.
In a recent interview with a local media outlet, when Yasir was asked to name an actor who should have stayed on television instead of doing films, the actor named Shahroz Sabzwari.
Responding to Yasir’s comments, Sabzwari said: “I think everyone has their own opinion and I respect Yasir’s. I respect everyone’s opinions, whether it comes from someone in my family or a random person on the street. No one has been subjected to flak the way I have.”
The actor further said: “And he’s [Yasir’s]… I know him. So if that is what he thinks, then that’s fine by me.”
It is pertinent to add here that Sabzwari has been subjected to a lot of criticism ranging from nepotism to his acting skills to his ‘questionable’ personal decisions.
“Nowadays, people say so many things and many of us take them to the heart. We need to be stronger. We have to nurture ourselves and filter out the bashing that comes our way. If you don’t filter it out, you will lose,” said Shahroz.
“I own all my characters and my films. One of them Chain Aye Na was a dead flop, but I own it. I think everyone should do that too. A bad film or a character that doesn’t work for you should never define your potential. An actor is only done when he tells himself in the mirror that he is done,” expressed Sabzwari.
When asked if he thinks he made the right choices with his films and if there could be some weight in Hussain’s opinion, Shahroz said: “I’ve never made a wrong decision in my life. Before taking on anything I say Bismillah and I give it my best.”
“But again, Yasir is entitled to his opinion and if you ask me mine, I will say that I respect all the actors around me,” said Shahroz, adding: “Even someone who plays a minor role is significant to me because when the camera is rolling, even saying ‘Assalamualaikum, kaisay hain aap’ becomes a task.”
Pakistani dramas are often criticised for unnecessarily dragging the story. Those which usually start off at a good pace eventually get stuck in a rut and lose audiences’ interest. Ongoing drama serial Nand has gone too far in following this trend, crossing 100 episodes.
The drama has taken a complete turn from when it began and we now have new characters and situations driving the plot. The titular character, Gohar aka the Nand, has gotten a face transformation and Faiza Hasan, who initially played the role and was a major attraction, has been replaced by Javeria Saud. The Nand is not the only one who has undergone a change but another female protagonist Rabi (played by Minal Khan) died in Episode 95 that aired on January 13. Rabi and her daughter Dua died in a car accident in Germany, where they had gone to visit Rabi’s sister-in-law.
While most viewers thought that when Gohar lost her mind after she was exposed for ruining her brothers’ marriage and creating a ruckus in the family, the drama would end, they were in for a surprise when it continued with multiple twists and turns before returning to square one. After Gohar was admitted to a hospital and treated for her mental condition, she regained her memory and got a brand new face. She returned to a completely different household and began to create havoc again.
On the other hand, Gohar’s brother Saqib[Shahroz Sabzwari] and Hassan[Ayaz Samoo] remarried after getting divorced from their first wives. While Saqib’s wife is a mild-natured girl, Hassan’s new wife, Gul Rukh[Amna Malick] is evil and greedy. She even killed her mother-in-law with her mother Naeema’s help.
Meanwhile, another mother-daughter duo – Sundus and Amna – have entered the storyline. The two have come to Pakistan from Germany with Rabi’s things to give to Jahangir [Aijaz Aslam].
With multiple new faces taking the story forward, Gohar is now plotting to get rid of Gul Rukh and Naeema.
Produced by Fahad Mustafa’s Big Bang Entertainment, Nand is written by Sameena Aijaz and directed by Zeeshan Ali Zaidi.
As absurd as the drama is, Nand has proven to be a commercial success, trending on television as well as on YouTube. According to some estimates, it was also one of the top TV plays with the highest ratings in November 2020.
ARY Digital‘s dramas are usually high on masala and Nand is no exception. Featuring Faiza Hasan, Shahroz Sabzwari, Minal Khan, Aijaz Aslam, Maha Hasan, and Ayaz Samoo in the lead, Nand tells the tale of three couples, Gohar (Hasan) and Jehangir (Aslam), Saqib (Sabzwari) and Rabi (Khan), and Hasan (Samoo) and Farwa (Maha). The main focus is the problems in Rabi and Farwa’s marital lives caused by their vile nand (sister-in-law), Gohar, who is estranged from her husband, Jehangir, and lives with her brothers.
Hasan and Saqib
As the main antagonist, Gohar is domineering, jealous, and unsympathetic. She is driven by an uncontrollable urge to disintegrate her brother Saqib’s marriage with Rabi, ironically a girl of her own choosing. Gohar frequently mistreats the mild and unassuming Rabi as Saqib, who prefers to appease his temperamental sister instead of supporting his wife, fails to stand by her. In a crass and rather senseless ode to Star Plus, Gohar successfully causes Rabi to miscarry by premeditating her accident.
Gohar
A few episodes later, Saqib defers to Gohar in divorcing Rabi. Gohar is now eyeing the demise of her younger brother Hasan’s marriage, who married a girl he liked. Although Hasan is shown to be assertive and exercising independent judgment frequently – much to the dislike of his sister – Gohar doesn’t leave a chance to poison his relationship with his wife. However, Farwa’s no-nonsense attitude kindles hope for a better ending to her story compared to Rabi, who lets things happen to her and grieves her poor fate later.
Rabi
With basic plot details out of the way, let us just say that Nand is no different than conventional Pakistani dramas in its disregard for intelligence, nuance, thoughtful writing, and the changes taking place around us that should ideally figure in our storytelling.
The characters in Nand are unidimensional. Morality is either possessed or unpossessed, whereas the aurat aurat ki dushman trope is alive and kicking. The concept of character arcs does not exist. Hence, both good and bad characters are unhinged in their virtue and vice. We also do not know why these characters are the way they are or what experiences inform their respective outlooks on life. On the one hand, the drama’s villain, Gohar, played brilliantly by Faiza Hasan, arouses hate and disgust through her conniving ways, while on the other, her incredulous brothers (especially Saqib), are shown to be deserving of sympathy, of being let off the hook because evil Gohar incites them to do bad things. Naturally, this means that the flaws in these men’s personalities causing trouble—i.e., lack of judgment, chauvinism, and sense of entitlement—remain unaddressed. After all, what good is a vamp if the moral agency of other characters were to remain intact?
Farwa
The notoriety in Nand does not end here. The drama sensationalizes domestic violence and promotes zero accountability for this wretched behavior in which siblings Gohar, Saqib, and Hasan engage against Rabi and Farwa.
Most importantly, Nand is outrageous in its portrayal of divorce and iddat. One fine day, Gohar accuses Rabi of having an affair with her husband, Jehangir. A yelling match ensues and culminates in Saqib throwing the ‘T word’ thrice towards Rabi, in a fit of rage. ‘Triple talaq’ or instant divorce is a deeply contentious issue among Muslims and does not enjoy universality – it is not as straightforward as this drama depicts it to be. In fact, the practice of ‘triple talaq’ defies common sense in that the pronouncement of divorce takes precedence over the intent to divorce. An Islamic marriage solemnizes between two sane, mentally and emotionally mature adults, who accept each other as spouses in the presence of witnesses. Apart from that, it is recommended that the rights and obligations of spouses with respect to maintenance, spending, and child-rearing be settled before a marriage takes place. How can marriage, (ideally) conducted with such elaborate procedures and planning, end at once in triple pronouncements of talaq, that too in fits of rage or humor? Why aren’t our dramas questioning this?
Jehangir and Saqib
There is also a constant emphasis on completing the traditional three-month waiting period (iddat) by Rabi’s family before she can step out of the house, meet someone, or work. The way Rabi is kept indoors is a painful reminder of how iddat is instrumentalized to deny mobility to women, even if temporarily. In many Pakistani households, older women who are decades past their reproductive years—read ineligible for iddat—are still made to observe complete waiting periods when they are widowed or divorced. Clearly, form is privileged over substance in matters of divorce and our creative industry is just as complacent as the rest of our society.
Despite its weaknesses, some viewers may still find Nand relatable. After all, entitled, abusive in-laws and husbands, are real and cause irreparable suffering to those at the lower rung of the domestic power ladder i.e., women and children. Having said that, transgressions within the family is a deeply sensitive and serious matter. Dramas touching upon it must offer intelligent, meticulous insight into the drivers of unsavory human behaviors instead of providing black-and-white explanations. This requires understanding that good and bad are never mutually exclusive or embedded in certain human relations by default. Additionally, to blame every misfortune on the villain’s machinations creates predictability and hampers the development of other characters. Not only should our drama writers understand such nuances, but they must also cultivate more insight into the ethical implications of their work.
Nandhas been written by Samina Aijaz and directed by Zeeshan Ali Zaidi.
Sadaf Kanwal and Shahroz Sabzwari’s wedding was the talk of the town when it happened back in May. While the couple did not share many details from the wedding, Sadaf in a recent interview said that she was very happy with the way everything turned out, adding that she always wanted an intimate and simple wedding.
“What’s the point of feeding so many people only to have them complain later,” laughed the model, when asked how she felt about her wedding given that it happened during a pandemic, without the regular festivities.
Adding to her comments, Sabzwari said: “We tied the knot in a minimal setting, as have other several renowned personalities across the world, with a presence of 70 to 80 people only. It had nothing to do with the lockdown.”
Shahroz also revealed that the food at their wedding was lavish because his mother is very particular about food and rakh rakhao.
https://www.instagram.com/p/CA2o3vQgoGF/
When asked how they dealt with the hate that came their way, the couple said that the trolling never really bothered them.
“Our elders shared some very wise words with us,” said Shahroz. “Woh qafla kabhi apni manzil nahi pohancha, jis nay ruk ruk kay har bhonkay kuttay ko pathar maara ho (A procession which stops and throws stones at every barking dog, never makes it to its destination).”
“We laugh at all the hatred; it had no impact on us,” said Sadaf. “Do you think, now that you are looking at me, that I have been affected? I have a loving husband so these things do not affect me. I really don’t care about the backlash that we received on our wedding since such incidents have also happened in the past. And with a lot of people.”
Sadaf added: “Maybe they should send more hate my way so that all my sins are washed away.”
In the same interview, Sadaf said that she will not be doing any more item songs in the future because she now has a big family to consider.
“I have a big family and thus I want to be vigilant,” said the model.
Meanwhile, the couple is excited about their first project together – a telefilm titled Na Ghar Ka Na Ghaat Ka scheduled to air on Eid ul Azha.
Ever since Shahroz Sabzwari and Sadaf Kanwal announced their marriage on social media, the entire country seems to be divided over the matter. While on one end people are calling them out for ruining a family given that Shahroz’s seven-year marriage with Syra Yousuf ended just a few months back, on the other end others are urging people to live and let live.
Amidst the brouhaha, Shahroz stepped in and aggressively defended his family and new wife.
In a video message, Shahroz said: “The purpose of this video is to defend myself and my family. And that is my right.” He added that he will defend himself till his last breath because he is an honest man.
“Syra and I got separated in August 2019,” revealed Sabzwari. “The reason behind our split was not another woman nor infidelity nor Sadaf, for that matter. If anyone thinks that the reason behind our separation is cheating or infidelity, I challenge them to come forward and prove it. Phir maza aye ga.”
Talking about his relationship with Sadaf, Shahroz said: “I met Sadaf for work about three to four months after my separation with Syra.”
Referring to an earlier video he had shared in which he had clarified that Sadaf and he were just colleagues, Shahroz said: “The way my first video has been edited and released, I know. But let me be clear. At that point, Sadaf was only my colleague and Syra was my wife, even though we were separated.”
“After that video, Syra and I tried to stop our marriage from breaking but because of irreconcilable differences – which are personal between me and Syra – we had to part ways.”
“I did not want to divorce Syra,” he added. “We separated with dignity.”
Shahroz further shared that he is making this video for his daughter, who “he loves a lot”.
“Maybe a few years down the line, she might come across all that the public has written about me and she will question me. This my answer to her. That I did not give in and fought back,” he said.
Shahroz asserted that he will continue to defend his family and will always tell the truth. He said people advised him to stay silent and let tongues wag but he said he couldn’t let it pass like that.
Watch video:
https://www.instagram.com/p/CA5g-MajF1h/
Shahroz and Sadaf tied the knot in an intimate ceremony. Except for a few pictures, the actors have not shared any further details from their nikkah ceremony. Sadaf also changed her name from Sadaf Kanwal to Sadaf Sabzwari on social media.
