Durefishan Saleem is the latest sensation in Pakistan’s entertainment industry and she can be found everywhere from hit dramas to advertisement campaigns and fashion magazines. Durefishan Saleem has been able to achieve milsestone after milestone in a very short period of time and she is already one of the top actresses of Pakistan though she made her debut just four years back in the year 2020. She has achieved an interesting filmography and her fans and followers have grown exponentially on both social media and in real life in the past one year.
Durefishan Saleem Early Life
Here are some adorable childhood pictures of Durefishan Saleem with her parents:
Durefishan Saleem is the daughter of ace PTV producer Saleem ul Hassan who worked for PTV in the early 2000s. She hails from Lahore and has three other siblings with her being the eldest. She always wanted to be an actor and often felt like Bollywood star Madhuri Dixit as she acted or danced as a child. She was super confident about her passion and always wanted to pursue acting.
Durefishan Saleem’s parents always wanted her to complete her education so she graduated in Law and went abroad for a year to complete her studies. She is a lawyer by education and interned at many big places including with the late Asma Jahangir’s chamber and at the AG office during her studies.
This is her educational background:
Entry Into Showbiz
Durefishan is originally from Lahore but had to fly to Karachi to pursue her dream of becoming an actress. She visited all the major production houses in the city to give her auditions. In an early interview, she revealed that although she had a connection in the industry, she did everything independently to secure her place in showbiz. Despite being new to the city, she gave many auditions at all the big channels and eventually landed a role in the industry.
Here is what she shared about her audition journey:
Durefishan Nepotism or Talent
Durefishan secured auditions in the industry through her father’s connection with veteran actor Kashif Mehmood.
This is what she shared in an interview early on in her career:
As she disclosed in the interview, Durefishan did not discuss her parents as they preferred to stay out of the public eye.
Rise To Stardom
Durefishan made her debut with Hum TV’s Dilruba. She kept holding on as she did not want to do a soap and only wanted to start with a prime-time drama. She almost locked one but then it did not happen and she picked up Dilruba in haste as she tried to start. She kept getting more offers throughout Dilruba and then she did Bharaas which registered with the audience. Durefishan and Marina Khan became close friends during the Dilruba shoot. Later, Durefishan starred as the lead in Pardes, a prime-time drama.
Durefishan Drama Choices
Durefishan Saleem is known for taking up unique and empowering scripts. However, the drama that made her a star was Kaisi Teri Khudgarzi, starring Danish Taimoor. Despite criticism for its regressive script and promotion of Stockholm Syndrome, the show performed well and was among the most watched shows in both India and Pakistan. After Kaisi Teri Khudgarzi, Durefishan received many good offers, and it established her as a talented actress to look forward to.
Dure also subtly disowned the story as she did not want to be a part of stories like that in the future:
She has done dramas like Dilruba, Bharaas, Pardes, Kaisi Teri Khudgarzi, Jaisay Aapki Marzi, Khaie, and Ishq Murshid till now. In recent times, every drama production that she has been involved in has received an overwhelming amount of praise and success. The quality of her work has been appreciated more by the audience than the critics.
Contemporaries Comments
Durefishan has just given three hits back to back including Jaisay Aapki Marzi, Khaie, and Ishq Murshid. She was also praised for her role in Khaie as it was a very different character but her contemporaries feel like she has luck working for her more than her talent. Her contemporary Nazish Jahangir recently said that Durefishan is mostly at the position she is because of her luck.
Nazish mentioned that Durefishan Saleem is lucky as all her dramas have become hits. She attributed her success to luck rather than talent.
DureFishan’s Success – Luck Or Talent?
Nazish Jahangir’s comments did start the luck vs talent debate on social media regarding Durefishan Saleem’s success and yes luck has favoured her well. She did not struggle like other outsiders of the industry to get roles. The financial stability also allowed her to be more picky with the scripts and she has also acknowledged that she has been lucky in this regard that she did not have to struggle. She however, said that she had other struggles like she had to live away from her family in Lahore and had to stay in Karachi for her work. She always misses her mother whom she is very close to and this is a sacrifice she had to make for her passion.
Here is what Durefishan thinks about being lucky:
Durefishan Massive Fanbase
Durefishan has amassed a massive following of 4.3 million and counting on social media. They love her and are always there to support her. After Ishq Murshid, the fan following has gone even crazier and the actress has fans all over the world now and not just in Pakistan.
Durefishan On Her Good Looks
Durefishan Saleem looks like the typical Pakistani heroine that is loved by millions if we go by the industry standards. She has a lighter complexion, a good height and straight hair. All these things do help someone bag roles more than the others who do not fit the mould. Durefishan is privy to this privilege and even acknowledged herself that yes her looks have made things easier for her in the industry. She was very open and honest and said that people in the industry still care about set beauty standards but things are evolving which makes her happier. She also aims to be known more for her work in her career and she is working towards her goal though she is a beautiful woman.
Her honest and wise thoughts on pretty privilege:
Durefishan’s Comparisons to Mahira Khan
As both the beauties have similar complexions and hair, many times Durefishan is compared to Mahira Khan. She also revealed in an interview that she is a big Mahira Khan fan and she will always want to be her fan more than becoming her friend. She also revealed that many people in the industry think that she looks like Mahira Khan.
This is how Durefishan had reacted to the comparisons:
In general, Durefishan Saleem is being selective with the scripts she chooses and is venturing out of her comfort zone by taking on projects such as Khaie. However, luck has also been on her side. Her fans eagerly anticipate what she will do next.
What do you believe is the reason behind Durefishan Saleem’s success: her talent or her luck?