Ohkay, so this was another week of Pakistan Idol. I don’t know why but I’d have to say this episode was my least favorite in terms of performances. I don’t know why but I didn’t enjoy any of the performances as much as the judges raved about them.

The guest judges were Bilal Maqsood & Faisal Kapadia of Strings. I liked the bit where Ali Asad Zaidi & Abdul Rafay Khan paid a tribute to them by singing their the-most hit song Duur. That was the highlight of the show for me which made me forget how badly irritating Hadiqa Kiyani is getting.

The theme of the episode was that the contestants had to perform the songs selected by the judges themselves. The performances & the commentary on them is as follows:

Zamad Baig (ZB) of Mandi Bahauddin performed Rahat Fateh Ali Khan’s ‘Jiya Dharak Dharak Jaye’ which was selected by Ali Azmat. I don’t know why but I just couldn’t feel any conntection to this particular performance by Zamad otherwise I always enjoy his performances. Ali said the voice suited his vocal tone & he sang it really well. Faisal said the same thing about the song matching his vocal tone & he liked his performance. Bilal felt he has an openness in his voice & singing therefore he enjoyed it too. Hadiqa said that his high notes came across effortlessly & it was a difficult song which he sang really well. Bushra said he gives away the impression of belonging to Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan’s family but other then that she felt he lacked expression in his singing.

Kashif Ali (KA) of Lahore performed Shafqat Amanat Ali’s ‘Mitwa’ selected by Bushra Ansari. He was good but I felt the music was too low & only his voice was audible throughout the performance making his weak points pretty audible plus Kashif sounded a bit hurried in his performance throughout but surprisingly he got a raving feedback. Bushra felt that his improvisation wasn’t necessary & it didn’t add much to the song but other than that his singing was good. Faisal felt he had a command over his voice. Hadiqa said he smoothly shifted from high to mid notes in his performance & obviously overly praised him. Bilal said to sing this song in 1 go is a massive task & he felt he could see Kashif winning the title of Pakistan Idol already. Ali liked his performance as well.

Mohammad Shoaib (MS) of Peshawar sang Reshma’s ‘Ankhiyan Nu Rehn De’ selected by Hadiqa Kiyani. I liked his performance as compared to the remarks he got. Hadiqa said he has improved but notes were totally weak. Ali felt his performance wasn’t flowy but otherwise he sang well. Bushra felt that his voice & notes fluctuated but the overall attempt was really good which had a feel to it as well. Bilal said he sings really well & has a nice voice. Faisal liked his performance & pointed out the mistakes regarding his notes too.

Ali Asad Zaidi (AS) of Karachi sang Shekhar’s ‘Bin Tere’ selected by Ali Azmat. I think this has to be the weakest performance of Ali Asad so far, even though he tried but it wasn’t that impressive. Ali said he had the version of Shafqat Amanat Ali in his mind therefore he didn’t enjoy much & also pointed out the mistakes in his chorus. Bushra loved it. Hadiqa said he’s a pop star & a born star already. Bilal said he sang it with simplicity & sometimes simple approach is what’s needed for a perfect performance. Faisal also pointed out about the weak notes but said his attitude & looks are what make him a star already.

Abdul Rafay Khan (RK) of Karachi sang Hamid Ali’s ‘Maye Ni’ selected by Hadiqa Kiyani. He sang it like usually & mostly he sings his slow songs. Hadiqa felt that the performance lacked emotions. Ali agreed to Hadiqa & said Abdul Rafay has shown a lot of improvement too. Bushra said he has a powerful voice but the flaw was that he had not heard the song before. Bilal said he didn’t enjoy much after the rehearsels but now he practiced & made it enjoyable. Faisal said he has a good voice but it looked like he wasn’t enjoying while singing which he must work upon.

Rosemary (RM) of Karachi sang Minmini’s ‘Dil Hai Chota Sa’ selected by Bushra Ansari. I haven’t seen her performance because it wasn’t included in the uploaded videos. I did see her performance in the preview by the end of the episode & I liked it. I am sure she got some great remarks by the judges. Do let me know about the judges’ feedback to Rosemary about her performance.

Well as much as I do believe that the contestants randomly selected the the name of the judges through chits, I highly doubt that they selected the songs like that too. I mean why didn’t Kashif Ali get ‘Dil Hai Chota Sa’ which was selected by Bushra because he got Bushra Ansari’s name who’d make a selection for him? Or why didn’t Ali Asad Zaidi get the other selection of Ali Azmat which was ‘Jiya Dharak Dharak Jaye’. I didn’t find any challenge in the performances tonight because all of the contestants very conveniently got the songs that matched their vocal tones & quality. Zamad Baig got the song of Rahat Fateh Ali Khan which obviously suited his voice. Kashif got a song which he could sing pretty well. Abdul Rafay Khan got to perform a slow song similar to what he has been choosing for himself? I do believe that the judges names would’ve been selected by the contestants randomly but after that the judges themselves must’ve allotted the songs to the contestants seeing their capability & their comfort zones. So, for this I don’t think there was any window of challenge remaining.

I feel Hadiqa has become way too biased now. There were clearly some mistakes in Kashif’s performance but she chose to overlook them along with the rest of the judges. I think now the judges just want to influence the public opinion that’s why they bash a contestant whom they really don’t like. Hadiqa clearly said ‘I’ll have to see HOW Shoaib performs the song that I gave him’ but when she had to assign a song to Abdul Rafay Khan she’s like ‘I’m so excited to see what he does’. This clearly shows she’s being biased & already has prejudices towards certain contestants. She clearly looked bored & least bothered when Mohammad Shoaib was performing but her WAH WAH WAH WAH WAH WAHHHH didn’t end when Kashif was on stage. I agree there might have been some weak points in Shoaib’s performance but not that much that he got bashed for it straight away & yes, I agree Kashif’s performance might’ve been nice but definitely not beyond perfection that not even a single mistake of his was picked or spoken about? Abdul Rafay Khan was clearly weak in his performance but Hadiqa very casually pointed out a single mistake but justified that he couldn’t sing properly because he is an Urdu speaker & it was a Punjabi song!?!?! Singing means singing & accepting a challenge means accepting it but why do judges have to JUSTIFY a mistake made by their favorite contestants?

Judges need to think neutrally & they shouldn’t just bash a contestant because they want to influence the public voting & opinion against him/her or just because they don’t think that a certain contestant is fit to be in the show.

Keep Supporting,
Cheers,
Zahra Mirza.

Mubarak ho!! Romaissa’s Khala is finally out of the picture. This episode was much better than the last one so that would make this one the 6th good episode of the drama. MSKSH doesn’t disappoint you if you don’t have high expectations from it but when you watch one good episode, you can’t help but expect that the next one will deliver too. The story is moving forward slowly, sometimes putting us to sleep and at other times giving us something to look forward to. The problem is that every good episode of the play is a case of too little too late. Every episode should to be judged based on its own merits and demerits so I will try my best to be neutral!

My favorite dialogue from tonight’s episode was “Mujhe is ghur aur masharey pe afsos ho raha hai Baba, jahan aik bewa aurat sirf apne bul bootay pur apne maray huvey shohar ke naam ke sahare izzat se nahi ji sakti”. Zeeshan proved yet again that he is nothing like rest of his family members and that is exactly the reason why Nabeel was so close to him. Nabeel’s father wants to ensure that the money stays in the family at all costs. The “tamam masalon ka hal” advised by his lawyer, with which he is quite content was sickening to the core and only a person like him could go along with such a wicked plan. It was funny when Nabeel’s mother said “aur Rabbiya ka kiya hi ga!!”, as if she really cares! Nabeel’s mother obviously has no idea that they have no chance of winning this situation. Nabeel’s father’s dialogue “Nabeel ne tumhei hamesha vo cheezein di jo usay buhat pasand hoti thi is liye ke usay yakeen tha ke tum usay aziz rakho gay” went to show what a manipulative person he is. Adeel Hussein is a brilliant actor; he is a natural who makes every single scene come to life.

This play is full of villains. It is almost as if all these characters are in competition with each other; trying to prove that they are capable of being much more evil than the other person. Even the maid of the house Bushra is a strong contender!! Bushra has something to say about everything; his advice to Waleed’s wife was hilarious and ironic! I won’t be surprised if she actually starts thinking on those lines.

I must confess that I felt for Romaissa in this episode with all my heart, although I vowed that I would never feel for her again because she can be totally lifeless sometimes. Some of the scenes were extremely moving like the one in which Romaissa tells her mother in law that she needed to go to the doctor for a check up. Her mother in law is as heartless as a person can be. This child must mean so much to Romaissa and it should mean the world to Nabeel’s family too but they are too busy finding ways to get hold of his financial assets. Romaissa’s telephonic conversation with Zeeshan was heart wrenching too; when she broke down and started crying, it was almost as if she was waiting for someone to show some sympathy or concern for her. The scene on the dinner table was equally touching.

Some scenes, developments and dialogues in tonight’s episode reminded me of the play “Ek Nazar Meri Taraf”. I am waiting to see how far will Zeeshan’s (Shaam?;) hamdardi take him.

Fatima Awan

Finally the moment has arrived & we’re free from Kabhi Kabhi. What a waste of time, money & most of all – THE BRAINS. After the end of this pathetic drama I am promising myself that I will never tune into any such play which would have Samira Fazal’s name attached to it. What a pathetic piece of writing I must say.

As usual this episode had Samira Fazal written all over it because all of a sudden her characters start having fits of awakening or detest. Similar thing happened to Zeb in Silvatein that her character flipped & she made herself a bechari. Similarly Eeshal was on an emo spree that now she was hating herself, shooing her kid away from her, arranging a party, eating medicines like crazy & then in the end she happily had a Halala. What a third class drama to show to the viewers!!!

From Ahsan Khan’s changing hairstyles to the to & fro between the clean shave & stubble, this episode & the whole conversations were just as confusing as anything & made no sense at all. Eeshal one fine day sighted the mood to jump from her ex’s terrace to taste the adventure of broken bones just because Soni told her off. One fine day she planned on leaving his home just like that to arrange a party to show how faarigh she actually is. I am guessing it was the same Eeshal right, who had issues remembering if she went to the washroom a moment ago is now pulling a red lipstick, sleeveless gown, has glammed up herself to make a pathetic certain point to her husband that she is a loon for sure. I mean was that all necessary?

I am guessing what was the use of Eva, Rehbar, Shahraiz & Soni in this drama? What were they doing in this play being a part of this crazy family? Oh & yes, now when Eeshal was supposedly walking towards her betterment, where was Eva buried to see her sister make a decision of her life once again? Dad thought pulling a tight fitted orange shirt to show his jelly belly & apologizing to his daughter would fix things just like that. Ohkay that was obviously necessary but then again I am thinking jab ye inka apsi mamla tha to is sab mai hamara kya kaam tha?

I must say the writer should be ashamed of bringing in a story that promotes or highlights Halala. It is such a serious issue that a girl faces as a consequence if she gets divorced. It’s not meant for people like Eeshal who don’t know what they want from life therefore they keep on stumbling upon different men without any good reason & it is definitely not for such immoral writers to bring into their stories just because they themselves are bored to the core & want to kill their time writing a piece of stupidity like this. For once they should stop ridiculing such serious institution of marriage & then divorce. Writers think writing about Taboos would be a great way to teach people something but sorry they’re sadly mistaken. What a farce, what a shame, what a useless display of one’s immorality.

Thank God this torture is over & so are my chances of EVER TUNING INTO SAMIRA FAZAL’s PLAYS AGAIN!!!! PATHETIC!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Keep Supporting,
Cheers,
Zahra Mirza.

I don’t really get why the character of Kiran was so important to the writer? I mean why not just get over with her character by showing that she chose to end her life & spare us from her negativity?

The episode was ohkay & could’ve been better if Kiran wasn’t given so much importance. Kiran cried her eyes out & her mother started blaming Shabbi for what happened. I think her mother should now take Kiran’s divorce as a reality check so as to understand how important it was to upbring her daughter like a lady & not like a loon who blurts out whatever she wishes to. Kiran was depressed & I didn’t find any reason to be because she was on a crying spree ever since she got married to Teeeeeepu. She never really respected him, accepted him so why cry over what happened? She called for it herself & hence, got it. Teeepu decided what he had to & left just like that. I just don’t want to believe that Kiran has Halala on her mind & therefore she has agreed to get married to Usman for this sake. I think the writer had nothing to offer through Surmed/Shabbi’s track so because of that Kiran & her misery has been given a lot more screen space than required.

Obviously Teepu left & because of that, his father is suffering a huge decline in the business. He has asked Surmed to help him get back on track & Surmed agreed. I hope Surmed doesn’t avenge his mother’s death by taking revenge from dead Neelam’s family because his expressions (which are most likely the same throughout) gave away a negative vibe backed up by the spooky & suspicious background score. I believe if that happens, it would be uncalled for because Neelam’s dead & Surmed needs a closure now.

At first when Usman’s father asked for Kiran’s proposal, I thought may be he wants his son to own the business & his intentions weren’t right but fortunately it wasn’t true. Usman is being way too gentle towards Kiran but I wish she understands & works on her marriage. I am literally sick of seeing her eyes rolling in arrogance & her shrieky voice shattering the glass windows all around. Move along gal!

Shabbi/Surmed’s track has become stagnant for now because there’s nothing much to offer at the moment. Surmed’s done with the darana dhamkana & Shabbi is least bothered about things around her so yeah, let’s see what they come up with in regards to their story. I feel for the sake of timepass Shabbi should & Shabbi must start interrogating the spook – Karam Din about the bottle of medicine that she saw in the kitchen. It would help her kill some time & help us in finding more about Karam Din because his story seems more interesting than anybody else’s, at the moment.

Keep Supporting,
Cheers,
Zahra Mirza.

Wow! Just when I thought & dreaded the idea of the drama being stretched I was caught off guard when the ticker of Last Episode flashed on my screen. What else could’ve been a better way to end a drama decently without dragging it for no good reason. This ending & the number of episodes gave me another reason to like this drama & I am glad that I tuned into Ishq Mein Tere because it was a perfect entertainment.

The last episode wrapped up the story nicely & we are left with no unanswered questions. Everything fell into the place perfectly for sure. Whatever Cuckoo said to Saad’s mother was extremely derogatory & went to show what sort of a cheap mentality a so-called literate & sophisticated person endorsed. I wished Saad’s mother had at least slapped Cuckoo for things she said but she held herself back because she didn’t want to stoop to her level.

Finally, Saad’s health took a bad turn & he became hospitalized. As usual he had Saim by his side & I didn’t like that Saad once again told him off saying you don’t understand a thing. If that was the case, why would Saad share things with Saim if he thought he never understood whatever Saad ever said? Hamdani family got to know about Saad’s disease right when he was on his death bed, which makes things a bit – a tinsy bit unrealistic because if someone is suffering from such a chronic disease, one member or the other gets the heed of it definitely.

Saad thought it was his duty to fix things before he dies therefore he confessed everything in front of Laiba & took a promise that she will subside the misunderstanding that was created between Aiza & Shehryar. Finally, Aiza was convinced to let go of whatever happened because Saad asked her to. Sadly, he died & took all the mishaps that the family went through with him.

It was a pretty decent ending of such a nice drama but I wish they had shown the family members insulting Cuckoo for how she maligned Laiba against Aiza & Saad but she went away seemingly after apologizing to everyone for what she did. & yes, I do want to know what & how did Bakhtiyaar take control of his life? I know people don’t really appreciate if the side characters are given much importance but here his family & their issues were highlighted every once in a while, so I think it would’ve been justified if they had shown how he took responsibility & shaped up his life.

One huge issue I had with this episode was the use of white clothes in the post-death scenes. Who wears white in Pakistan? The question still remains. Another mistake or may be lack of attention happened when Saad’s mother walked into his farmhouse & asked the servant about Saad, according to him Saad wasn’t at home but in the very next scene, Saad is seen almost lifeless vomiting his guts out & his mother runs towards him.

Anyways, a big shout out to the writer, the director & the entire cast for bringing in such a decent play with no such loopholes. All the characters were brilliantly enacted by the actors & one special actor who shined throughout was Madiha Imam as Laiba. I must say being a newbie she seems so promising. I hope she makes some amazing choices & we get to see her more. I am glad that the drama ended at the right time & indeed it was a perfect family entertainment so Thank You team Ishq Mein Tere for giving us a decent play that we hoped for.  Share your views about the drama.

Keep Supporting,
Cheers,
Zahra Mirza.

I decided to review the play every other week due to the slow pace but this was one episode that definitely deserved to be reviewed. There were some major developments in the story; Hiba moved out of the apartment and into her own house. I really like the way the relationship between these sisters has been shown. They genuinely love each other, just the way sisters should. So much has happened between them but it doesn’t take them long to put these issues behind them. Tooba was heart broken when Hiba left the house but the second she showed up at her door step, she welcomed her with open arms. Hiba also turned towards Tooba after being rejected by Rohail. Hiba always likes to have things her way so Rohail’s rejection of her feelings came as a big blow. I guess we all know by now that Hiba isn’t going to change. Her mother’s death and everything that happened has not changed her, she will stay over emotional and stubborn just the way she always was.

The story is still as unpredictable as it was from the first episode. Arsal and Rohail both are out of the picture for now and I am waiting to find out how Rohail in particular will come back into Hiba’s life. Hiba “hates” him now since Hiba feels only love and hatred for people, there is nothing in between!! It is not easy to change the way Hiba feels about someone so Rohail will have a very difficult time making Hiba understand that he has done nothing wrong. I really felt for Tooba today, she is exactly like her mother; sweet and very sensitive. I am definitely rooting for a happy ending for Tooba. Hiba wants to buy her mother’s house and business in the long run. I am actually surprised at how much she has earned in a short span of time.

Ranjish Hi Sahi has to be one of those very few plays that are on air at the moment which do not rely on conspiracies and misunderstandings to take the story forward. The characters are not flawless but there are no villains in the play either. It is also one of those rare plays in which eavesdropping is not used as a convenient way to take the story forward! The few filler episodes in between made me lose interest but I must admit that if I look at the play on the whole then I can’t help but praise the writer Maha Malik for staying very focused and Nadeem Siddique, the director for a very strong grip on the story and characters too. I have praised the picture quality of the play over and over again but every time I watch it, I want to rave about it a little more. All the colors look beautiful on screen. Sana Javed has especially put in extra effort to wear colors that brighten up the screen.

So, how many of you can guess what is going to happen next? What are you looking forward to the most? Do share your thoughts.

Fatima Awan

Another episode has passed and most of us are still trying to find out what the hype was all about. True, the budget and production values are impressive, but at the end of the day what matters is the content shown. I would rate the first two episodes as average; they concentrated more on character development in the first episode and paid less attention to the story, and now in the second episode they tried to create more drama and suspense.

Did they succeed? Well, not really! The whole drama created around Salman and Tayabba’s broken engagement was dragged to the limit. Mostly, they were trying to give more insight into Bashar Momin’s character through this forced drama. After watching the drama, we know a few things about Bashar. First of all, he adores his sisters and can go to any extent for their happiness. Second, he thinks money is above everything, it can buy anything (even a groom for his sister). Third, what happens to those who say no to him. We were all a bit shocked to see Bashar Momin acting so loud in the first episode, we expected him to be the sophisticated and charming businessman. The writer has experimented with his character, and we see a rich billionaire who acts more like a typical gunda. He is like volcanic lava ready to erupt any second; loud, rash and completely manner less.

I expected Ushnah Shah to be the weakest link in this show, but she is definitely proving me wrong. She is able to portray the innocence needed for this character with perfection. At times, I cannot believe she is the same girl playing a negative role in another show on the same channel. Her heart wrenching cries and her breakdown was brilliantly enacted by her. I enjoyed all her scenes in this episode.

I have only one word for Saira’s (Maheen Rizvi) acting: cringe worthy. Her fake accent and overacting were difficult to watch. I wish someone had told her to tone it down a bit. It was obvious that she did not like the attention Adil was giving to Rudaba after their father died. Adil has taken complete responsibility of Rudaba, and Saira had no option but to accept her presence in their lives and their house. She definitely did not like the idea of Rudaba shifting with them and Adil giving her the special treatment. Her attempt to gain Adil’s attention by pretending to be sick was just pathetic!

Adil is completely oblivious to Saira’s feelings, maybe because she is good at pretending. It is in her nature to show people what they want to see and not what she is really feeling. Well, at least Adil is not heart less and cares about his sister. Frankly, I did not expect him to play the role of the doting brother.

Tayyaba’s desperation to get married was simply getting on my nerves. Bashar got angry seeing her upset and the next thing we know, he is trying to buy Salman for his sister. He tried his best to bribe Salman with materialistic things, but to no avail. Now Salman and his family would face the wrath of Bashar Momin; he will show them what happens to those people who refuse him for anything.

Rudaba and Bashar’s first meeting was quite different from what I had expected. The huge contrast in their characters was so obvious. It was definitely a treat to watch the quiet and polite Rudaba meet the rash, loud and ill-mannered Bashar. The poor girl was scared out of her wits when she overheard his phone call and a bit hurt when he made her feel like an uninvited guest.

The only main character that has not been introduced so far is of Buland. There is an air of mystery around his character. I had expected him to come to his father’s burial, but I guess he would not make an entry for another one or two episode. We all know that he would not turn out to be the kind of guy Rudaba expects him to be. Now let’s see when Sami Khan would make his entry in the show.

The episode was not an amazing one, but I guess we need a few more episodes to give a verdict about the show. The problem is that the show is so overhyped and our expectation level so high that an average episode would not satisfy us. We want something extra ordinary in each episode.

A special mention for the dialogues of this show; there were a few good ones in this episode. Dialogues like ‘Bika To Khareed Ke Na Bika to Loot Ke’ and ‘Yeh Doosra Sifr Hai Jis Ne Apki Behn Ko Reject Ker diya’ were a few impactful dialogues!

Share your views about the show!

Mariam Shafiq

Once again a bad decision made by the voters. It should’ve been someone who didn’t give a 100% in the performance but sadly, someone who got amazing remarks was made to leave the show. Really disappointed at this week’s elimination (AGAIN)!

The episode started off at a perfect note that suited the day but one thing that caught my eye was Hadiqa Kiyani’s shocking hairstyle. Not sure if it was a wig or her own haircut but whatever it was as usually it was hideous. I wish she focuses more on the judging instead of her styling. Bushra Ansari needs to learn the art of being graceful as in really graceful but sadly I believe according to her, age is just a number & hence, she is being over the top.

The results:

The first duo that came in to get the results was of Rosemary & Kashif Ali. At this point I thought may be Kashif will make a debut to the danger zone because clearly his performance wasn’t that good but I guess the public accepted & ignored his one-time mistake & therefore he was safe along with Rosemary, who clearly deserved to be in the safe zone because of her brilliant performance.

The next two contestants who had to face the result were Mohammad Shoaib & Ali Asad Zaidi. As much as I wanted both of them to be safe, I knew it wasn’t meant to be because realistically if we compared the two, Ali Asad Zaidi was definitely better than Mohammad Shoaib & because of that, he was safe sending Mohammad Shoaib to the danger zone.

The last three remaining contestants who had to hear their results were Abdul Rafay Khan, Waqas Ali Vicky & Zamad Baig. It was definitely a tough call because looking at the previous voting trends, both Waqas Ali Vicky & Zamad Baig should’ve been unsafe but surprisingly & finally Abdul Rafay Khan made it to the danger zone, followed by Waqas Ali Vicky unfortunately.

It was the time for a final announcement & for this Mohammad Shoaib, Abdul Rafay Khan & Waqas Ali Vicky had to come to the stage to face the result. Looking at the voting trends I knew Mohammad Shoaib would be safe but yes apart from the votes, he did deserve to be, because he has been improving. Abdul Rafay Khan was safe as well & sadly Waqas Ali Vicky was eliminated.

I personally feel that Abdul Rafay Khan shouldn’t have made it to the next round because his graph has clearly declined. Waqas Ali Vicky got criticised in the beginning of the Gala round but later he picked up the pace & performed brilliantly every single time. Whereas Abdul Rafay Khan hasn’t performed too well from the last 3 weeks in Waqas Ali Vicky’s comparison.

I think the respective cities have a major role to play in the voting count & fan-base. Waqas Ali got eliminated because he belonged to the small neighbouring town of Islamabad – Rawalpindi & therefore he didn’t get much support. Shahmir despite of being bashed every single time was proceeding to the next rounds every single week because he belonged to the main city. Zamad Baig & Waqas Ali Vicky have both been to the danger zone frequently because they belong to small towns like Mandi Bahauddin & Mian Channu. I feel Pakistan Idol will be chosen from Karachi by the Karachiites or may be from Lahore because right now only one contestant is representing the city & has a huge fan-following, because of the obvious reasons.

Anyways, I am disappointed at this elimination & I’m sad to see Waqas Ali Vicky go. I wish him luck, success & a brighter future. Share your thoughts on this decision & do you think it was fair?

Keep Supporting,
Cheers,
Zahra Mirza.

This was yet another episode of Shukk which was filled with situations which you see only in funny sitcoms and not in serious dramas. The way Ehtesham’s mother and Sehrish “framed” him was quite unbelievable, ridiculous but funny at the same time! It was actually good to see Ehtesham being put in such a situation because a man like him deserves just that. But at the same time when I paused to think about what Ehtesham’s mother and Sehrish were up to I actually felt for them; how could such intelligent and educated women come up with such an outrageous plan? Desperate times call for desperate measure suna tha, ab dekh bhi liya! Samira Fazal must have felt a desperate need for a twist, otherwise she wouldn’t have added this latest development to the story. If Sehrish really is expecting than that would be even more absurd! Ehtesham’s mother’s crazy plans reminded me of the Fairy God mother in the animation Shrek;)

I am quite okay with watching the Bulbulay family resorting to senseless and illogical measures to achieve their ends but the same logic does not apply to a drama serial which made a lot of sense once! All the characters seem to have undergone a huge transformation, more like a complete personality change which just cannot be explained. Ehtesham, who was once very level-headed has turned into a very unreasonable person. Sehrish has turned from dominant to doormat. Saniya was once dignified but now she has no self-respect. Roomi couldn’t stay away from his mother before but now he looks for excuses to be with other people. Not only this, one can’t help but notice how different they look; it seems like Shaam has been spending a lot of time in the gym lately probably because he can’t find peace at home, Sehrish has been stress eating;) and Saniya spends most of her time in front of the mirror while Sehrish and her mother in law babysit Roomi.

I still cannot understand what is keeping Ehtesham from divorcing Sehrish. The only plausible explanation for this delay could be that if he does that then the play will come to an end! The play must not end before 25 episodes (or maybe more) have gone on air because the rationality and quality of the script is not half as important as the TRPs. Yes, the viewers will continue watching this play till the last episode because they would want to know how it ends but it was the responsibility of the producer and the writer in particular to ensure that the play ended on a good note. The way the story is moving forward, it seems highly unlikely that Shukk will have a decent ending.

I must quote here some of the funniest and childish dialogues from tonight’s episode:

Saniya: Aap ki ami Sehrish ke liye tohfay bhar ke suitcase layen hein.
Ehtesham: Mein tumhare liye tohfay laun ga.

Ehtesham: Seeriyan nahi chur sukti, tu kya yeh no mahenay inhin sofun pe tangi rahe gi
Ehtesham’s mother: Nahi tum isay godh mein utha ke le kr jao gay!!! Ab isay utha ke le kr jao gay ya bulaun Mushtaq ko!

Are you serious???

Do share your thoughts about tonight’s episode.

Fatima Awan

What a bad start of my day when I had to tune into this pathetic drama for the sake of reviewing it. During & after watching this episode I was like ohhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh, so this is what this drama was all about. They infused the adaption of Halala very colorfully, so that people by the end of it don’t feel bad & only have sympathy towards a girl who has gone crazy & who’s halat ki maari, bechari. 

I feel this drama should’ve been labeled as ‘Kabhi Kabhi Acchi Saas Miliiiiiiii’. Wallah, now Arez’s mother thought she was responsible for Eeshal’s condition therefore she had to rectify her mistakes. Very cleverly they are trying to wrap up the story at a point where it begun. Ohkay, if Arez’s mother wants to do good by Eeshal she should’ve chopped off Soni’s venomous tongue the first thing to protect her ex & potential Bahu from getting affected. But sadly she didn’t think of it.

The beginning of the episode right till the middle had nothing, absolutely nothing to offer. Scenes were long & boring, dialogues were pathetic, Sunny was there – enough said. Now he & his chic naukrani can live happily ever after in a house which he gifted to Eeshal, lol. I mean how many times Eeshal had to say that she wanted the medicines? At first in Sunny’s home then at Rehbar’s place & now at Arez’s? As if we really don’t know & more so as if we care?

The writer herself reassured that Eva & Rehbar have a very strong role to play in the story & I am still waiting for their part. Chop chop people because the drama’s endingggggg, boo hooo!!! Oh & yes while looking at Rehbar & Eva’s lifestyle, I mean Rehbar could afford a luxurious living & provide everything to Eva so why was he seen hovering & lingering & sulking in his FIL’s home in the beginning? What was all that about? I thought Rehbar would avenge his bankruptcy by torturing Eva’s Dad but none of it ever happened, so why all those mean & evil looks & why was Rehbar made to look like a spook with ulterior motives?

I am still amazed actually I am piting the mindset of the writer to serve us with a story of Halala. A girl who was intelligent, loved making choices of her own – gets divorced over a petty kabab-fight, later finds peace by being with a creep whose sight is enough to give you creepy shivers down your spine, marries him, becomes a drug addict & later gets divorced & settles with her first husband. To jab ye sab inka apas ka mamla tha to hum is sab k beech mai kya kar rahay thay? I mean hamara kya kaam tha???

Everyone knows that she is an addict & Dad used to speak about Paris & London & New York but deep down he was so low on brains to be thinking she was under a magic spell. My point is that I am actually amazed because Eeshal’s whole family is shown as a bunch of sophisticated elite loons so why none of them has suggested her admission to a re-hab? Oh did I say loon – enough said once again I guess!!!

Somewhere in the comments I read this was the second last episode & I hope it is because IF that happens I will distribute virtual laddus to every single person!!!

Keep Supporting,
Cheers,
Zahra Mirza.

Another beautiful episode of Pakistan Idol backed by a strong theme & some beautiful performances. Loved all the songs that the contestants sang & glad that they had a lot of messages to share too. :)

Abdul Sattar Ehdi’s part in the episode was a highlight definitely. We need such inspirational people to speak more about Pakistan to us & I am glad Pakistan Idol’s team approached him for this episode especially. This episode was a treat right from the start till the end. What a beautiful way to pay tribute to our country; Pakistan.

The list of the performances is as follows:

Mohammad Shoaib (MS) of Peshawar sang Noor Jahan’s ‘Aye Watan Ke Sajeelay Jawanon’. It was a beautiful performance but I felt he had a weak start & even he missed the right ending too but other than that he sang it beautifully & filled his performance with emotions. Hadiqa felt that he sang it devotedly & his expression was perfect but apart from all that she felt his beginning & ending wasn’t perfect. Ali felt that apart from a few mistakes his performance was great. Bushra also said that he was good overall.

Kashif Ali (KA) of Lahore sang Amanat Ali Khan’s ‘Chand Meri Zameen’. He was good but I missed the wow factor. Ali felt that his pronounciation was wrong but overall his performance had a feeling to remind him of his childhood. Hadiqa felt he had some breathing issues & also pointed out the pronounctiation mistakes. Bushra felt that he improved a lot & made a breathing space in between, that she pointed out last week & according to her, his performance was great.

Rosemary (RM) of Karachi sang Nayyara Noor’s ‘Watan Ki Mitti’. What a brilliant performance I must say, I loved it. Bushra found her performance extremely nice & praised her a lot, she felt Rose sang it almost similar to Nayyara Noor. Ali once again mentioned her age & said she sings a lot better than her age would permit her. Hadiqa felt that her notes were perfect throughout the song & she loved her performance too.

Abdul Rafay Khan (RK) of Karachi sang Amanat Ali Khan’s ‘Aye Watan Pyaray Watan’. It was a slow song & Abdul Rafay is good at singing slow numbers, therefore his performance was good but I felt he fell flat a bit in the middle of his song. Bushra said he was brilliant. Hadiqa loved his improvisation & said apart from 2 – 3 mistakes his performance was amazing. Ali was all praises for Abdul Rafay as well.

Ali Asad Zaidi (AZ) of Karachi sang Ali Azmat’s ‘Junoon Se Aur Ishq Se’. What a power packed & brilliant performance, I loved it completely & I am amazed at the change he has showed in his singing skills this time. Ali said he hasn’t sung this song for a few years now & feels that he couldn’t have performed it like Ali Asad & for that he gave him a well-deserved hug. Hadiqa loved it & said he was excellent. Bushra said he was flawless, which definitely he was.

Zamad Baig (ZB) of Mandi Bahauddin sang Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan’s ‘Pakistan Pakistan’. When I heard that he was attempting NFAK’s song, I was like yeah right, once again making a safe choice. He was good but I felt he changed the pace of the song & it lacked the depth. Bushra said he didn’t give any reason to point out any mistakes. Hadiqa said he chose a song that matches his tonal quality & he was wise at doing so. Ali named him as Ustad Zamad Baig Khan & praised him a lot.

Waqas Ali Vicky (WV) of Mian Channu sang Mehdi Hassan’s ‘Ye Watan Tumhara Hai’. Such a sweet voice he has & such a sweet performance it was. Ali said he sang it very well. Hadiqa felt she was on a journey & found his performance sweetest because he himself was relaxed while singing it. Bushra said that the sweet dish comes in the end & this is exactly how his performance was.

So, this was it from tonight’s episode. My favorite performances of this episode were by Rosemary, Ali Asad Zaidi & Waqas Ali Vicky. It’s going to be heart-breaking to see anyone of them leave the competition because they all were great & have improved a lot. Speak about your favorite & least favorite performances with me.

Keep Supporting,
Cheers,
Zahra Mirza.

I must say that this episode completely failed to impress or entertain me, things are moving forward at a snail’s pace and some of the scenes in tonight’s episode were too long for my liking and the side characters are getting excessive screen time yet again. Another problem is that there are way too many side characters who are supposed to be very important but I couldn’t care less for them! Khala and her family were given a lot more screen time than they should have been given. There were many scenes that were completely unnecessary. Sajjid’s phone call, business plans and the discussion that ensued was pointless. We already know that Khala and co are very greedy and they are banking on Romaissa’s share, can we please move on now. All the scenes were stretched without any reason. There were a few important developments which you literally had to fish out of all the meaningless details that we were shown in this episode.

I have heard Nabeel’s father telling his wife how upset he was with her because she asked Romaissa to leave so many times already that my ears hurt when he repeated similar dialogues again today. Zeeshan took a stand for Romaissa just like he did in the previous episode, so there was nothing new about those scenes as well.

Rabbiya has started to have problems with Zeeshan helping Romaissa out, she wants him to do only as much as she is comfortable with. She also gave Zeeshan a long (never ending) lecture on why he should get his share. Zeeshan’s mother’s opinion about Rabbiya has completely changed, the way she asked Romaissa to stay away from her was shocking!

Romaissa still has no idea what her In laws are capable of doing. She still has faith in Nabeel’s father although Khala told her clearly why they wanted her to live with them. Romaissa obviously had no choice because if she stayed at Khala’s house, she would have married her off to her son. I understand Romaissa’s situation but I did not feel for her after watching tonight’s episode. The story has been dragged so much already that I am losing patience now. It is also very difficult to focus on Romaissa’s character when the director herself is finding it hard to stay focused on her. There is absolutely nothing about this play that makes it a must-watch. 15 episodes have gone on air till now and out of them only 5 were worth watching. Our heroine is a bechari – nothing more and nothing less. I wish she had more of a personality.

Technically I should be looking forward to a lot like – Will Khala be able to take Romaissa back with her? Will Hamnah find out that Hassan was behind filing the case? How will Romaissa survive in Nabeel’s house? etc but honestly speaking I am not looking forward to the next episode at all. I am very very disappointed with Hum TV and also with Umera Ahmed; this is definitely not her best work!

Fatima Awan

Pretty interesting episode. I am glad that the story is moving forward reasonably & every now & then they have something or the other to reveal. I thought the episode was a bit slow in some parts but other than that most of the scenes were done really well.

So, Karam Din is not as harmless as he looks. He definitely has something going on under his moustache which both Surmed & Shabbi are unaware of. Shabbi did find the little bottle of suspicion in her kitchen but I feel she should’ve inquired if not in front of Karam Din but definitely behind his back because by the end of the day it’s her & her husband’s home but yes as our Shabbi is a slow-coach, she will take her sweet time in regards to this as well.

Surmed & Shabbi’s conversations were done well. It showed that Shabbi now puts forward her feelings in front of him but at times Surmed understands her & sometimes he doesn’t. It was made clear that Surmed resists falling in love with Shabbi or getting close to her because he is scared of the emotion of love. This justifies Surmed’s bitterness because he has seen his father make the wrong choices & his mother suffering just because his father fell in love. So, this makes Surmed detached from feeling any affection towards his own wife, whereas he is completely a different person in front of the whole family because he has no fear of being exploited by them, due to his love towards them.

The new entry of Habib Mirza’s son Usman definitely has a certain role to play. I suss that because Usman felt he was familiar to Surmed & he happened to see how Surmed was treating Shabbi, which clearly left him disturbed & I think he will get on with the probing on his own so that he can find out things related to Surmed which might help Shabbi. I think this is another interesting twist in the drama.

Finally, Kiran stooped to her actual level where she was bashing Teeeeeeepu left, right & center. At first he was a nymphomaniac then he became a womanizer & later she turned him into a sicko who’d flirt with his sister-like cousin. I must say whatever happened to Kiran was spot on because trust me girl, with a crappy tongue of yours, you called it yourself. Is it just me or others actually felt nothing for Kiran? LOL! Let’s see what happens next & I feel it would be a closure to Kiran & Teeeeepu’s track, to let’s wait for it.

Keep Supporting,
Cheers,
Zahra Mirza.

Hmmmm, so it was more of a drama in this drama now. Interesting as always & I guess they are off to wrapping up the story. I’d pretty much appreciate if they don’t drag the ending & wind it up just when needed.

Is it just me or others feel the same that Laiba is nothing but a crazy egoist? Didn’t she ever come across the saying of never believing in what you see? I mean how easily she just saw Aiza going into Saad’s room & assumed the gruesome details. Does she really think she is going to win Saad over by being like this, where at first she was clingy & now she has turned his mother against him too? Is he actually worth all the hassle? I don’t think so. What she thought & then blurted about Aiza & Saad goes to show Laiba’s own mentality more than anyone else’s in this situation. She is not insecure because that’s the small word, rather she is obsessed to a blinding point.

Aiza was just being herself & kept on reminding Saad about his upcoming marriage. His coughing fits were unbearable to watch where he would cough like he ain’t going to last but the very next moment he would walk like nothing happened, lol. I actually detest Saad & fail to sympathize with him because he has only created difficulties for people around him. I actually once again got a chance to feel bad for Saim because if Saad can’t tolerate his advices, why does he call Saim to listen to his issues quietly? Saim is being so tolerant towards his selfish friend but sadly Saad can’t see it. :(

Finally, Aiza’s brother Bakhtiyaar has taken hold of his life & without going into much detail they showed him having a good time with his family & providing them with the basics. I think it was a perfect timing for Aiza to come to her brother for support because now he is being reasonably responsible towards his family.

I expected better from Shehryar but sadly he gave preference to his daughter’s verdict over anything else & without even seeking for Aiza’s justification he decided to send her away. Aiza on her own is right that he didn’t even give her a chance to explain about what happened & I feel in this matter it would be justified if Shehryar apologizes to her because Aiza never gave him a chance to doubt her. She deserves all the respect & Sheheryar definitely owes her an apology.

Next episode shows Saad’s suffering reaching to a lethal level & hopefully it would make Laiba regret what she has done. Can’t wait to find out what happens next.

Keep Supporting,
Cheers,
Zahra Mirza.

Akbari Asghari; adapted by Deputy Nazir Ahmed’s Urdu novel Mirat Ul Uroos, produced by Samina Humayun for her production house Six Sigma, written by Faiza Iftikhar & directed by Haissam Hussain. What a combination. :)

It’s a story depicting the very basic concept of ‘never judging a book by it’s cover’. ‘Appearances are meant to be deceptive’, this is another example which defines Akbari Asghari for me. I can’t begin to tell how much I have enjoyed watching this drama twice & I think I can give it a go again & again because the main factor is, you can never get bored. All the actors have enacted their characters brilliantly & I am sure they themselves wouldn’t have known what they were doing for our entertainment & how grateful we would be to them. :)

The list of the actors & the characters is:

Ali Aijaz as Kareem Fazal Chaudhru (KFC)
Nasreen Qureshi as Bay Jee
Ashraf Khan as Luqmaan
Nayyar Ejaz as Peer o Murshid
Nargis Rasheed as Shaheen (Sheen)
Rehan Sheikh as Hatim
Amna Ansari as Kulsoom (Kim)
Imran Abbas as Akbar
Humaima Malik as Asghari (Sara)
Fawad Khan as Asghar
Sanam Baloch as Akbari (Becky)
Humaira Ali as Batool Pupho
Kiran Haq as Shabbo

The Family:

Yes, it was a family of Chaudhry KFC, with Bay Jee as his sister, Luqmaan, Hatim & Batool as his childern. Luqmaan was married to Shaheen & had two sons Akbar & Asghar, who lived with Chaudhry KFC in a small village in Punjab – Pakistan. Hatim was married to Kulsoom, had two daughter Akbari & Asghari, he was settled in UK, ran a cab & Kulsoom had a catering stall she looked after. Batool was married to the industrialist in Sialkot & had the only daughter Shabbo.

The Story:

Story was about everyone having an ulterior motive except a few elders of the family. Some had them for the betterment of their family members while the others spun them for their own selfishness. Akbari Asghari is a story of two sisters, Becky & Sara. Becky was manipulative, loved to be in everyone’s good books, pretended to be innocent & very sweet but deep down she was very sharp & knew how to mold situations for her benefit; whatever the cost may be. Sara on the surface might come across as a girl with very liberal values & no morality but in actual she was more upfront, straight forward & always had the accurate argument backing with logic to prove herself right. It was just about the time when Becky almost elopes to be with her non-Muslim boyfriend Roger but just in the nick of time her mother Kulsoom finds out about it. Becky heart-broken after finding out about Roger’s marriage then promises her mother that she will go to her father’s hometown & get married to her cousin Akbar.

Akbar who had left everything worldly thinking he was doing everything right for the sake of his Deen spent his life following the footsteps of his peer o murshid. Asghar, the youngest, everyone’s favorite & Gaon’s Casanova was always in a search for someone suitable who’d benefit him materialistically. So, finally the moment arrives when the promise has to be materialized. Promise that was made years ago at the birth of Akbari & Asghari when they were verbally engaged to their first cousins Akbar & Asghar.

Kim & Hatim who have high hopes for Becky dread marrying her away to Akbar – the fundamentalist of the family. Akbar on his own tries to walk out of the marriage because he thinks modern khatoon was way out of his league. Asghar being the opportunist senses Akbar’s distress & gets ready to be sacrificed for the sake of his brother. This is how Akbari & Asghar get married. I loved the fact that even though they were shown as two different people, they were totally the same; manipulative, & dishonest but the only difference that set them apart was Becky being more mature & clever whereas Asghar was gullible & naive. Things spice up a lot when Batool & Shabbo come in the picture because Asghar has made some promises to Shabbo as well but very easily he ditches her & gets married. Akbari keeps on manipulating Asghar because she wants out of this marriage & spend her life free from any obligations. She loves being loved & appreciated because she can’t tolerate being in anyone’s bad books. Asghar right after his marriage earns the title of Zan Mureed by being totally smitten with his wife, he obviously does it thinking this way he’ll be able to go abroad with her & settle there on the expense of his FIL’s business.

After Asghar Akbari’s wedding, Akbar accompanies Hatim because everyone tells him to take care of Hatim & his business after his heart attack so that his Chacha could rest. After finding out the reality of his Chacha & Chachi that they owned nothing which they flaunted about – Akbar tries to bring them out of their complexes & earns their respect because of his modesty. This paves the path of Asghari’s likeness towards Akbar because she finds herself getting attracted to such a humble person like him. Becky now ups her plan & starts fabricating the lies against her in-laws so that her family helps her walk out of her marriage but things go totally unexpected when Sara agrees to get married to Akbar thinking she will be with Becky & would undo the zulm going on with her sister. Akbar agrees to this marriage because according to his peer o murshid, he’d be doing this girl a favor by bringing her back to her long lost path of the Deen.

At first Akbar finds it hard to cope with the be-baak Asghari but as he gets to know her, he finds her submissive, practical, logical & falls in love with her. Asghari who has prejudices against him also after understanding him better knows that he is honest, down to earth & is a gem of a person but has been trapped by a fake peer o murshid because of Akbar’s blinding trust in him. Asghari jumps into a situation just for Akbar to rescue her from his peer o murshid & that’s when they confess their love for the first time. Akbari who later finds out that Asghar was in an awe of getting such a perfect wife feels guilty & rest Shabbo’s clinginess to Asghar does the trick of surfacing her deep etched love for her husband where she rectifies her mistakes & promises to be a good wife & daughter in law. Finally & last but not the least, Asghari takes the situation in her hand & sends Bay Jee away to her actual home – the home of her husband which she rejects going to at the day of her marriage for the sake of her brother’s dignity & in the end they all live happily ever after.

The Brilliance of Akbari Asghari:

I loved Akbari Asghari for the fact that it highlighted thick issues very lightheartedly such as complexes, insecurities, ulterior motives, misunderstandings, family politics & what not. Each & every episode was like a roller-coaster ride of laughter along with emotional moments. I can convincingly say that this drama was entertainment personified because even though they tackled things with humorous, the underlying issues still remained the focal point & were handled brilliantly. Undoubtedly, for people like me who like to tune into lighthearted realistic dramas, this was actually real because people in their daily lives do have such fun moments too which were portrayed with perfection in Akbari Asghari.

I loved all the characters of Akbari Asghari but I must say the star of the drama was Nargis Rasheed as Shaheen or Sheen as Bay Jee called her. Not only Sheen but all the female characters in this drama were perfect examples of how ladies of the family should be – strong, confident, like a binding force & forgiving on tops. I must especially mention the bit where Shaheen & Akbari come to a closure with seeking forgiveness & apologizing to each other was the best moment for me, it went to show how easy is it to let go of the past mistakes & work towards the better future. This is exactly what we need to see in our dramas, some strong headed but bighearted females who know exactly how to run a family. Apart from Shaheen, another interesting character was of Batoolan Pupho played by Humaira Ali brilliantly. I loved her fixation to English & her translations were just perfect. Kiran Haq was adorable as Shabbo & I think she did justice to her part as well. Well, what can I say about Nasreen Qureshi. I love love loveeee her Punjabi fluency & she made me love Punjabi more, she was adorable through out the drama & it was a treat to watch her as Bay Jee.

I loved this drama mainly for the reason because Akbar & Asghari’s characters went to show that how exactly religious matters can be handled. Akbar thought he was just doing things right – which he undoubtedly was, but just the little input from Asghari made him tackle his religious side logically as well. There were some amazing dialogues that targeted the mindset & notions of people which they might have towards someone who is trying hard to adapt the religious way of life. No one could’ve ever thought that a broad minded girl like Asghari could actually have a religious side to her as well but what stood out the most for me about her character was the logic that she always presented in each of her discussions.

I loved Akbari Asghari for the fact that each & every character had an important role to play, starting from Chaudhry KFC to Peer o Murshid, there was not even a single character which seemed boring, forced or someone who had nothing to contribute to the story. Every character was just as important as the other because together they made this drama a master piece.

I loved the Gaon touch, the use of Punjabi, the direction, the screenplay, the dialogues, the story & every thing about this drama & I must say that Humaima Malik & Imran Abbas outdid themselves & they stood out the most for me. Sanam Baloch & Fawad Khan were great as Akbari & Asghar as well & all the other actors were brilliant as usual because the director brought out the best in them.

I loved this drama, hence I label it as a complete package of entertainment. Do share your views about Akbari Asghari if you enjoyed it as much as I did & those of you who have missed this drama, go watch it NOW! ;)

Keep Supporting,
Cheers,
Zahra Mirza.