Pakistani dramas have significantly broadened their audience base over the past two decades. The engaging narratives, skilled actors, and overall production quality have drawn millions of viewers, both domestically and internationally. The success of a television show is contingent upon several factors, including the strength of the script, the performances of the actors, and the visual appeal of the characters. It is noteworthy that numerous producers, directors, and actors have acknowledged the practice of casting certain actresses in roles based on their ability to portray emotional scenes effectively, particularly when depicting moments of distress. This underscores the importance of a character’s visual presentation in capturing the audience’s interest.
Pakistani drama producers often lament the lack of big budgets. They frequently highlight how Pakistan manages to produce top-quality content with minimal financial resources. However, noticeable beauty blunders in scenes and makeup mistakes, which could easily be avoided, are often overlooked. Many of these mistakes make it to the screen and subsequently become a target for criticism and trolling.
Here are a few beauty blunders that need to be addressed in Pakistani dramas:
Specialized Makeup
Pakistani dramas can often be quite monotonous, but occasionally, a true masterpiece emerges. These exceptional dramas feature characters that require special attention in the makeup department; however, productions often fall short in this area. For instance, Parizaad was a remarkable show in which the main character was portrayed as a man with dark skin. At the time, there was a significant debate about why a light-skinned actor was cast in this role. Despite this controversy, Ahmed Ali Akbar delivered a commendable performance and truly embodied the character. However, it would have been beneficial to hire a specialized makeup artist to ensure that his appearance remained consistent throughout the series. In several scenes where Parizaad was working in the heat and getting a tan, his skin appeared lighter than it did when he became wealthy and spent more time indoors.
Teeth Modification
Many Pakistani actors only get the upper part of their teeth polished, while the lower teeth remain pale, assuming they won’t be visible on screen. Frequently, the actors and actresses neglect to care for their dental appearance, which can be distracting on screen. While many have perfectly styled hair and makeup, their overall presentation is diminished by teeth that are polished on the surface but have a pale yellow color underneath. A recent example of this can be found in an episode of Rasm e Wafa.
Bad Wigs
Wigs are a part of performances in theatre, television, and films. For centuries, artists have worked hard on getting and wearing good wigs, but Pakistani dramas are still lagging. We have seen the most awful wigs on our screens. For example, in Parizaad, Bubbly Badmash was a very important character. Her battle with gender dysmorphia is a story that we do not see on our television often. But makers used the most awful wigs on Saboor Aly, which took away from her screen presence.
Overuse Of Fillers
Fillers and Botox have become very common in Pakistan, like all over the world. Many aesthetic clinics offer these treatments, and people get them to get rid of wrinkles and fine lines. But excessive use of such treatments is seriously taking away from performances. When you use excessive Botox or fillers on your face, you lose your ability to emote normally. The eyes and mouth, in general, do not move in a natural manner. Najiba Faiz seems to have this problem in her drama Sharakat, where he eyes and facial expressions look extremely exaggerated, which was not the case when she worked in Sang e Mah.
Rectangle Eyebrows
Exaggerated and overly drawn eyebrows can ruin the look of even the prettiest people. This happens so often in Pakistani dramas that it is unbearable at this point. Even the A-list starlets of the country are seen in dramas with box eyebrows, and they look so strange. Hiba Bukhari was spotted with these overdrawn eyebrows in Jaan Nisar recently. She is a beautiful girl, but her makeup ruined the performance she was giving as one’s eyes get fixated on those dark boxes.
Loud makeup
Loud makeup has become a trend among many Pakistani drama artists, but these looks often appear unflattering and jarring under stage lights. Aina Asif, a young and naturally beautiful actress, has been seen sporting such bold makeup. In stories featuring characters from ordinary backgrounds, the harsh red and pink lines on their faces can seem out of place and even nonsensical at times.
White Foundation
The obsession with white skin among some Asian cultures, particularly in Pakistan, shows no signs of fading. This colonial mindset is often evident in Pakistani dramas, where actors and actresses with beautiful brown skin are frequently lightened to the point of looking unnatural. For instance, Shaheera Jalil Al Basit, a radiant and talented artist, appeared with a gray complexion in Akhri Baar. Her foundation shade was so off that no amount of editing could disguise it.
Rapid Weight Loss
Weight loss is generally a part of many actors’ lives. Artists must maintain their weight, and many who gain a few pounds eventually lose them. But going through a weight transformation within a project looks absurd on screen. One such instance occurred with Savera Nadeem, who started as Bismil and resembled Saad Qureshi’s mother. By the time Bismil ended, she had lost so much weight that she looked like his sister. The weight transformation from Savera is stunning, but it looks absurd for Reham, whom she was playing at that time.
Bad Beards
Bad head wigs are not the only problem that Pakistani dramas showcase. Bad beards are another cause that will make even the most handsome men look absurd on screen. We have recently encountered many cases where actors were spotting fake facial hair. The quality was so bad that they looked jarring and clownish on screen. Arsalan Naseer in Radd and Hamza Ali Abbasi in Jaan e Jahan are two big examples:
Which of these beauty blunders put you off most in a drama? Share in comments!
