Ohkay so, the production of Mastermind Productions, direction of Nadeem Siddique & the writing of Umera Ahmed, Thora Sa Aasman started airing on Geo Entertainment 2 weeks ago. Thora Sa Aasman is a story based on the novel that has been dramatized & aired before on PTV but this time around Geo TV has decided to bring it to us with new faces & new look. Those who’ve read the novel will definitely know that they’re in for a ride & after watching first two episodes, I had a feeling that at least in these initial episodes, they did justice to the essence of the script & I hope they stay true to it right till the end too. Thora Sa Aasman has a lot of characters & I am sure a lot of new faces will be introduced along the line as well, but for now they set the grounds for what is yet to come by introducing us to the main characters in the initial episodes & for that I will say that the first two episodes were directed really well & were quite impressive in terms of story-telling & character introduction.

The first family of characters that we got introduced to was of Shahista Kamal (Zeba Bakhtiyar) & her husband Haroon Kamal (Alyy Khan). Shahista belongs to a humble & modest background where her parents being God-fearing people made sure that their daughters also followed the path that they saw their parents at, all their lives. Their lives turn upside down when they find out that Shahista is emotionally involved with Haroon. Haroon happens to be Shahista’s first cousin & looks like he & his father make quite a progress in their business of pharmaceuticals that too after shifting recently to Karachi. Shahista’s father (Qazi Wajid) doesn’t have a high opinion of his brother Kamal & his nephew Haroon because he feels that they don’t earn money with the legal means & also, their lifestyle & mentality is completely different which according to him is wrong. Haroon happens to be quite a ruthlessly practical person but somehow he falls for Shahista’s beauty & convinces her that he will give her the life that she has never lived & has never even imagined. Shahista falls prey to Haroon’s promises & opts for a court marriage because her parents tell her clearly that they will never allow her to get married to Haroon.

After Shahista’s decision of getting married to Haroon without their permission, Shahista’s parents find it hard to forgive her & just in a short span of time, Shahista starts realizing that her parents’s judgment about Haroon & his character wasn’t wrong. Haroon does get married to Shahista but he most certainly doesn’t believe in leading a conventional sort of a marital life. He clearly lets Shahista know that he wants his space & wants to maintain his lifestyle, therefore she shouldn’t worry much about him & to keep herself busy, she should get involved in the family business too. Shahista finds it hard to cope up with such a practical person & his thinking because this was not the sort of a marriage that she signed up for. Shahista hits the rock bottom when she spots Haroon Kamal with someone else. Haroon Kamal being drawn towards beautiful women falls for Zarka; a singer who sells her voice to make a living. Zarka’s mother warns her to not get involved with Haroon but she doesn’t pay heed to what her mother says as she finds herself falling more & more for the irresistible charm of Haroon Kamal.

Then comes the family of Fatima Mukhtar (Yasra Rizvi). Fatima, a middle aged woman with an unpleasant birthmark on her face that affects her overall outer beauty & her appearance, who has never heard a good thing about herself from her family members. Fatima’s family wants her to get married but she doesn’t believe in the societal norms & believes in living a life that she would choose for herself. Fatima’s straight forwardness is often deemed as a bad behavior which then becomes a reason why Fatima drifts away from her family. Fatima comes from a lower middle class family but she dreams high, not in terms of financial security but in terms of living her life freely according to her conditions & rules. With the help of her neighbors Aasia & Azar, Fatima adopts a child from an orphanage that she names Shaheer & she leaves her mother’s house & moves to Karachi. Aasia & Azar also settle abroad & Fatima believes that no one will be able to trace her in such a big city. Fatima rents an upper portion of Askari Bee’s (Parveen Akbar) house, who happens to be a relative of Azar as well, she then starts working in a school & finds the inner peace that she never experienced when she was with her family. However, that peace turns out to be short-lived as people around her start questioning her about her child & her husband that never existed but Fatima lies about her husband being in Dubai in order to protect Shaheer.

Then comes the family of Saiqa (Kaif Ghanavi), whose husband Zafar (Adnan Jillani) sends her off to her parents’ house blaming her for giving birth to 3 daughters. Saiqa’s parents already find it hard to make the ends meet & when she shows up at their doorstep, her mother tells her to start earning in order to support herself & her daughters. Saiqa takes a job at the nearby factory & finds out that she is not the only one struggling with this ordeal. Saiqa’s husband gets married & his second wife gives birth to a son, which seals the deal that there’s no turning back for Saiqa as her husband will never reconcile with her & she will have to fend for her daughters all her life, on her own.

A new entry that made an appearance was of Baqir Shirazi (Qaiser Nizamani), a minister who meets Shahista Kamal at a dinner & gets attracted towards her beauty. Just when Baqir finds himself trying hard to come in contact with Shahista by questioning his manager’s wife Sabiha Jadoon about her, Haroon Kamal on the other hand gets in contact with Bariq’s manager Jadoon to find out that it is Baqir who hasn’t signed the papers to approve the consignment he has been waiting for. I am sure this would make them cross paths with each other & then Baqir would do everything to draw Shahista’s attention towards him using Haroon Kamal’s dependency on him as a bait. Another track that got a little coverage belonged to the girl named Aliya who goes to the orphanage to ask about a Safiya’s child. I am sure it must be Shaheer that she’s looking for, but let’s see.

Overall, these two episodes were really good & were directed quite well too. I read the novel 2 years ago & for that reason I felt that they have done justice to the novel & the characters. Also I must say that nothing has been added & they have tried to keep things as real & as closer to the novel as possible which is a bonus. I am sure when the drama will progress we will develop a relationship with all the characters but I am most excited about the track & story of Fatima & her life because what she’s doing & what she will do is not going to be easy for her. I must say all the actors did really well in their respective characters & there are so many characters that will get introduced along the way. The OST is good to & it somehow compliments the situations that the characters are facing. I must say that I am really impressed with the way the director introduced the characters & their background stories in just these two episodes, it actually developed a strong base for what is yet to come. This story for sure is nothing less than a roller coaster ride so buckle up everyone. I am most certainly looking forward to the next episode, so please share your thoughts about the first two episodes of Thora Sa Aasman.

Keep Supporting,
Cheers,
Zahra Mirza.

ps: It looks like GEO TV uploads the episodes of Thora Sa Aasman a bit late, so please expect the reviews of the upcoming episodes on Mondays or Tuesdays. Thanks. :)

Ohkay so, this episode of App Ke Liye was pretty decent because it took the story forward & looks like soon enough Shaheer & Washma will tie the knot & then the real game will begin.

Washma got Shaheer familiar with a unique way of dealing with the emotional pain & it was for the first time that Shaheer got to know that one can overcome a pain this way too. Washma told Shaheer what he might not have heard from someone before, that one should try to be as happy as possible because it will hurt the ego of those who’ve hurt them. Shaheer couldn’t fathom the fact that a girl whose fiancé just dumped her could be so happy & ecstatic. They both shared a good time together & immediately became friends, because they both were having a hard time & indirectly they were being a moral support for one another.

Nishat Apa is way too concerned for Shaheer but it is amazing that even in such crucial times (according to her) her curls were still intact. She plans to do something for her brother which according to her will help him overcome this emotional suffering that he is going through. Her husband is just a tag along & he doesn’t seem too involved in what his wife says or does as he is too busy hitting on Washma in their office.

As expected, Maryam didn’t take the news too well & she kept on blaming Washma for everything, without even thinking for a second that may be her brother Arsalan might also be thinking on those lines too. Washma took the brunt for something that Arsalan wants but it is good that she is strong enough to tolerate a few taunts without letting anyone change her decision. It is interesting to see that just because Maryam doubts & dislikes Washma, she didn’t think of asking Arsalan about what actually happened & why Washma was taking such a step. She left her husband because she feels for her brother more but like Washma said, it was quite immature of both Waheed & Maryam to let Arsalan & Washma’s decision affect their relationship.

It was good to see that Shaheer became comfortable around Washma & not only that he started reading her face & tried to decipher her thoughts too. At least he knows that her engagement has been called off, so that is why he is being courteous towards her & I believe soon enough he will start developing some feelings for her too.

Areesha is getting ticked off by Nishat’s interference in her life & she has warned Shaheer about it too. Areesha might be immature & impulsive but at least she is wise enough to see how controlling Nishat is & how she has Shaheer wrapped around her finger. Areesha’s motive might make her look selfish but at least her judgment when it comes to Nishat is spot on. Let’s see what more she does in order to make Shaheer see Nishat’s real face.

The preview of the next episode suggested that Nishat might tell Shaheer to adopt her son, which means that she definitely doesn’t want Shaheer to have his own kids because then they will become entitled to Shaheer’s wealth. I can’t wait to see what havoc Washma will create when she will enter their lives. The direction of the drama is good but I wish the cameraman had used an anti-glare lens, also I find it quite bothersome that the camera doesn’t stop moving, it actually evokes a headache. I hate to say it again & again but I am actually not impressed with the way Samina Peerzada has portrayed this character, her overall look is one thing but her OTT expressions are quite hard to digest too. She really didn’t need to go overboard to prove a point that Nishat is evil, we get that ma’am, we most certainly get it!!! Anyways, please share your thoughts about this episode of App Ke Liye.

Keep Supporting,
Cheers,
Zahra Mirza.

Ohkay so, I am not sure what to say about the latest developments in the story. Things are only focusing on what the ladies of the house are doing & it has been that way since the story has begun. The war between Asif/Taimur & Shujat made things looks promising & gave us a false hope that may be the focus of the story will shift towards something more meaningful but that doesn’t seem to be the case because we’re back to square one & once again, the ladies are setting traps for one another, which seems quite boring to be honest!

Farrukh Zaad was already heartbroken at how Asif Jahan got Taimur arrested, which was enough of a pain for her to deal with but things got even more difficult for her when Badshah Begum & Asif Jahan demanded the keys back from her. Farrukh Zaad actually thought that she will get away after being rude to her husband & after threatening him so disrespectfully but looks like Asif Jahan decided to show Farrukh Zaad her place by telling how she had to respect certain limits or else he would snatch everything away from her. Shahista & Farrukh Zaad had this confidence only because they thought they had a very important card under their belt which was the secret of Meher Bano & Banki, but sadly, they won’t be able to use it as things have started to become difficult for them too & Akhtari has already informed Badshah Begum about what has happened right under her nose.

Badshah Begum had to prove to Farrukh Zaad that she can change the fate of anyone if she wants to, that’s why she wanted to hand over the keys to Meher Bano through Banki. She finally met Banki & that’s when Akhtari grew suspicious of her & not only that, she actually was sure that something was definitely wrong at Banki & Meher Bano’s side. For the first time may be, Akhtari’s farsightedness didn’t disappoint her & she was right in assuming that Banki was expecting a child, which was later proved by what she heard from Meher Bano herself. Meher Bano hasn’t given up on her love Kabeer just yet but she has grown sick of being in an isolation, that’s why she wants Banki to help her out by requesting Asif Jahan to send her maid back home & for that she doesn’t mind taking up a role of being Banki’s maid too.

Akhtari reported the entire situation to Badshah Begum & it was expected that she wouldn’t believe what she’ll hear because no one could’ve imagined that this is the sort of a game that Meher Bano or Banki could play. Looks like Badshah Begum’s wrath will be directed towards Banki more than Meher Bano but I hope after the truth is exposed, Meher Bano stands up for Banki & doesn’t just leave her in the lurch because she is the one who ordered Banki to do what she did as she was helpless.

Looks like Surraya’s case is closed & she has been put to rest, which again seems odd considering how her fate was decided without the knowledge of Asif Jahan & I still find it hard to believe that he hasn’t even spoken about his new born Jamshed’s kidnapping once. Sadly, Mor Mahal’s script isn’t as good as I expected it to be & somehow this drama is turning out to be a joke which once can watch & laugh at as things & the characters are hardly making any sense anymore. Please share your thoughts about this episode of Mor Mahal if unfortunately, you’ve watched it!

Keep Supporting,
Cheers,
Zahra Mirza.

Hmm so 24 episodes down and we finally learn Mehtaab’s story. Her first husband was apparently going to go ahead with marrying another woman, a singer and although it is unclear whether he actually did marry her or not but Mehtaab did not marry Yusuf till a year after her first husband’s death. As Zainy says that ‘zehn par paray parday hatt gaye’ but there are still a few questions in my mind such as what was in the letter her father had penned then? Had he fabricated a story that Zainy ended up believing or was it only half the story? Or was the letter even from her father in the first place?

Yusuf and Sherry’s conversations are interesting. I have to admire how Yusuf has stepped up to fulfil his role as a father after Mehtaab’s death and to not let Zainy feel she is alone. Sherry was always Zainy’s saviour but with Mehtaab’s death, his heart seems to have hardened against Zainy. He accuses his father of ‘spoiling’ Zainy again and feels she is responsible for Mehtaab’s death for causing her all the grief and pain that she did. When Yusuf tells him to let things go, his ‘puraani baat ussay dekhtay he nayee ho jaati hai’ made me wonder whether he was referring to the love he felt for Zainy or the anger over Mehtaab’s death that resurfaces when he sees her but the last scene where we hear his thoughts out loud make it very clear that he is still in love with Zainy.

Ahmer has taken a rigid stance against Zainy’s family. He was all for trying to make amends when he was hoping to see some cash somewhere but I suppose Mehtaab’s provident fund was ample enough to do away with that urge. Where he shares contentedly his feelings over his family’s gathering, he flares up when Zainy mentions hers. Pehlay they were all her father’s ‘qaatil’ now they are all minus Mehtaab – Mehtaab’s qaatil. Sigh. However much I do not like Ahmer spewing venom and standing in the way of Zainy and her ‘other’ family – I feel he does have a point with regards to the relationship with Sherry. No, I am not siding with dhakiyanoos Ahmer but his ‘bhai kaunsa wala – jiss say shaadi honay wali thi’ did hit a bit too close to home. Yes, cousins are often ‘bhai’ before marriage but the oscillating between Sherry bhai and then the conversations about honeymoon with Abba in tow and then flashbacks in this episode regarding ‘bad omens’ left me all confused – Ahmer tau phir Ahmer hai!

Where Ahmer is all loud, emotional and outspoken, Sherry is just as quiet, introverted and unwilling to share his thoughts with others. He spends hours in Mehtaab’s room, looking at her things and lost in old memories. Abba worries and feels he should move on but Novera took things a bit far by taking matters into her own hands and instructing Liaqat chacha to box up Mehtaab’s belongings and give them to the poor. Whether it was time to give away Mehtaab’s things or not – it was not her call to make, despite her ‘yeh mera bhi ghar hai’ squeaky speech. Yusuf, Mehtaab and Sherry all put together do not feel as angry and righteous about what Zainy has done than this Novera alone does. True, her actions are spurned by her fear of losing Sherry to Zainy but then she has always known he loves Zainy and she was well aware of that when she married him. Also, why has Sherry suddenly returned from Islamabad? Why the secrecy over why Novera has not come back? Is she coming back?!

Zainy’s mission to now mend the ‘bridge’ between both families seems quite idealistic. In my opinion, there is nothing really to mend. Mehtaab is gone, her ex husband is gone, Abba has forgiven Zainy – all she really needs is Ahmer to stop forbidding her to meet her family and how she plans to change that I do not know. When she walked back into her home I did think for a moment maybe she would be able to strengthen Sherry and Novera’s relationship and change Ahmer’s way of thinking and remain happy with him but upon learning that Novera is absent from the scene – I wonder if Zainy is destined to end up with Sherry. Sherry is angry and refusing to speak to Zainy but his wishy washy ‘ I hate you Zainy’ at the end was anything but convincing.

Zainy has won Abba over and I do not think it will be long when she will be able to win Sherry over again. What really holds my interest at this point is wondering where does this all go from here? Ahmer’s greed and disrespect for Zainy’s family and his insecurity over Sherry ‘bhai’ can not possibly disappear overnight? While it is nice to see Zainy have Yusuf’s support and love again and flourish in that love, what kind of future does she have in that household with Novera around? She is frustrated with Ahmer but she does not hate him as yet and although he is stubborn, he does show concern for her at times such as when he asked her what was wrong as he felt she had been crying etc? I am glad more screen time has been given to Sherry’s character again as I feel Agha Ali has fit into this role so well and his scenes are a treat to watch. The chemistry and unspoken feelings between him and Seher Afzal have been done so well especially in the graveyard last episode and when Zainy returns to her house in this one. I really like this aspect of Yusuf’s character where he is there for Zainy but even though he detests Ahmer and Co he still does not try to poison her or lead her astray as he says she should tell her husband where she is going etc. I love how the director has not tried to include any unnecessary characters and Phuppo and Taayi are not given more screen time than necessary so that the focus does remain on the main characters.

I suppose the drama will be wrapped up within the next couple of episodes which will be good because I would hate for it to be dragged out now. What did you all make of this episode? Would love to hear your thoughts!

Kunwal Javid