Every Episode of Woh proves to be more entertaining than the previous one; the story has been moving forward at a very steady pace right from the get-go. Woh has a lot going for it; a different genre altogether and a very solid storyline but what stands out the most are the well etched-out characters which make this play very relatable. The viewer’s can’t help but feel everything that the characters are feeling in the play; their relationship with each other, their fears, insecurities and yes the innocence, all of it has been very well portrayed. The credit for that goes to the entire team, the writer, director and the actors. I have said this before and I will say it again that Woh is a perfect example of team effort. The chemistry between all the actors seems effortless.
The demon took over Faisal’s house completely in this recent episode; it is getting stronger by the day. Faisal faces a very difficult situation since he loves Mehr too much to let her go. Despite of all the strange happenings around the house and his concern for Saba, he knows only too well that Mehr is a victim and he cannot leave her when she is not at fault. Arij Fatima yet again mesmerized the viewers with her brilliant acting. Shamoon Abbasi portrayed the confusion and fear that Faisal is facing superbly.
Surraiya’s character adds a light touch to the whole play and I find the character very amusing. Ruqqaiya continued trying to get the demon out of the house and even forced Mehr to leave the house but Faisal on the other hand wants to find a more tangible solution to the problem.
The horror scenes were very well done but why does everyone wake up from sleep after the encounter from the demon? That made it look like the whole scene/encounter was just a dream sequence – although that was not the case. It would have been good if they used Quran or Islamic versus to get the demon to go away. We have two iconic directors who are a major part of this serial; Angeline Malik and Shamoon Abbasi, so I expect nothing but perfection from them. I hope that Mehr’s brother and bhabi are not going to be completely eliminated from the story now because that would be a big flaw in an otherwise flawless story. If they just disappear all of a sudden because they have nothing to do with taking the story forward then that would make no sense.
The preview for the next episode showed that Faisal decides to get professional help in order to get rid of the demon. I am waiting to find out how that particular part is shown because it would count as a major event in the play. Faisal and Mehr’s relationship with each other is very heart warming. A happy ending would be the perfect icing on the cake. It would be great if the team of Woh could make a special show on the making of the play especially some of the horror scenes; like the one we saw at the end of this episode and many others.
Did you watch this latest installment? Which was your favorite scene from this episode?
This week’s episode completely revolved around Maira and Shahab and all their scenes were a pure delight to watch. The roothna and then manana were the best parts.
Maira anger dissolved when Shahab apologized to her, but she went overboard in her playfulness and still pretended to be angry at Shahab. Shahab took all this seriously and reacted very badly which shocked Maira and everyone else. Shahab is such a calm and patient person and I was really not expecting him to act this way. It was not really his anger, but his frustration speaking; he feels suffocated by all the people around him demanding one thing after the other from him, and nobody even bothers to understand him or ask how he wants to live his life.
The scene where he goes to say sorry to Maira was the cutest scene ever! They looked like two small kids having fun, and I cannot believe Shahab actually became a murga when Maira demanded it. I had a huge smile on my face when he went on his knees and gave Maira a heartfelt apology. They were having a really good time until Badi Sarkar made her entry, and took Maira’s class for making Shahab kneel in front of her.
I find Maira pretty immature; I did not understand why she blamed Shahab for not speaking up for her when he was defending her throughout. He is such a loving and caring person and Maira really needs to start understanding him instead of blaming him all the time. The way Maira was blaming him was downright insulting! But he did not react in any way and listened to her patiently. If anyone else was in his place, he would have been seriously offended by her words. This made me fall more in love with his character; he is a very mature person who knows how to compromise with the situation.
Shahab’s break down in front of Naseemi showed how close he is to her. Naseemi always gives him genuine advice and Shahab always follows it. According to Naseemi, Shahab has forgotten Yasmeen, but I do not think that is true. Whenever he tries to talk to her, he gets her taunts in reply and he has just stopped trying now. Maybe he needs to try a bit more from now on.
Shahab, for the third time in one day, went to Maira to patch things up with her. (This guy sure has a lot of patience!) How these two got back at Fatima was another one of my favorite scenes in the episode. Fatima felt insulted when she saw Maira sitting in the front seat of the car, and she was ready to kill someone with her expressions when she saw Maira holding Shahab’s hand.
I simply cannot believe that Fatima records all her grievances against Shahab in a CD. Does she intend to make him listen to them after marriage? Is she a nutcase or what! She made sure everyone got a scolding after that scene in Shahab’s room. Since she could not take Shahab’s name, she made sure the rest suffered for her insult.
After the initial misunderstandings in Shahab and Maira’s relationship, they finally started understanding each other when Shahab spoke about his feelings to Maira. Maira understood what he had been through his whole childhood when he narrated his past to her.
‘Woh Shahab Jo Mujhe Bohat Ache Laghte Hai, Woh Shahab Jin Ko Mein Hamesha Khush Dekhna Chahti Hoon’
I simply loved the scene when Maira spoke these words to Shahab to uplift his mood. Shahab really needs someone in his life who could relate with him and understand his situation too. Ainie Jafferi and Noor Hasan have once again outdone themselves. I simply love their chemistry!
After the car incident, Fatima decided to get married to Shahab at all cost. The preview for the next episode shows that Fatima will get married to Shahab very soon. Also, Shahab and Maira will face more misunderstandings when Bilal will call Maira. I am curious to know why he is calling her in the first place.
A lot of twist and turns are coming up in the next episode, so do keep watching and share your views about this week’s episode.
We are back with our analysis on the ‘Top Pakistani Dramas’ again this week. This season, there are a lot of good shows on air and each show is struggling to gain the top spot from its competitors every week. Here is the list of the top 15 shows of this week:
1. Aasmanon Pay Likha
2. Adhoori Aurat
3. Kankar
4. Mujhay Khuda Pe Yaqeen Hai
5. Aunn Zara
6. Mere Humrahi
7. Aseer Zadi
8. Kadurat
9. Numm
10. Meri Zindagi Hai Tu
11. Mere Khuwaboon Ka Diya
12. Darmiyan
13. Taar e Ankaboot
14. Kabhi Kabhi
15. Rishtay Kuch Adhooray Se
Asmanoon Pay Likha managed to stay in the first position once again this week. This show has gained viewers in a very short time; it has just been mere two weeks since the show started and it is getting such a good response despite the tough competition.
Adhoori Aurat has turned out to be a hit show and that too when it is nearing towards its end. Unfortunately, it was unable to gain good numbers in the beginning, but in the last few weeks its high ratings has surprised everyone. Such stories always appeal to the masses and it has jumped from the 4th spot to the 2nd spot this week.
Kankar has remained in the 3rd spot once again this week. We have been seeing a lot of dramatic twist and turns in Kankar which is keeping the viewers hooked to the show. The ratings of its competitors in the same slot are also increasing by the week. Now let’s see if Kabhi Kabhi and Meri Zindagi Hai Tu can steal Kankar’s viewers in the future.
Last week Mujhe Khuda Pe Yaqeen Hai did not make it to the list of the Top 15, and many viewers were surprised at this because it is one of the best shows on air nowadays. Well, now it has not only reached the top 15 shows, but also gained the 4th position this week.
It is surprising to see Aunn Zara drop from the 2nd position to the 5th position. It is the first show of its kind and has many loyal viewers. However, the competition might be taking a toll on the show as it is facing competition from Mann Ke Moti, Justuju and Khoya Khoya Chand.
Mere Humrahi has dropped from the 5th to the 6th position this week, and the main reason is the slow pace of the show. Kadurat has also dropped from the 6th to the 8th position despite the controversial and shocking twist seen in the show this week.
Numm has been unable to gain the rating that was initially expected from it. Despite the outstanding direction and cast, it has been unable to impress the audiences. Aseer Zadi and Numm were very close in the ratings last week, but this week Aseer Zadi overtook Numm and reached the 7 position.
Darmiyan has fallen from the 8th spot to the 12th spot this week and the main reason can be the competition it is facing from Aasmanon Pay Likha and Kadurat.
It was surprising to see that Mann Ke Moti did not make it to the list of the top 15 as it got good ratings in the beginning. Last week, it was seen in the 15th position and this week it did not make it to the list at all. Mere Khawaboo Ka Diya has remained intact in its place while Taar e Ankaboot has experienced a steep fall in the ratings.
Kabhi Kabhi has also dropped from the 13th to the 14th position but I have a feeling that it will get higher ratings in the future as it has a good cast and a story that will appeal to the masses. Rishtay Kuch Adhooray Say has also made it to the top 15 this week. I must admit that I am delighted to see Quddusi Sahab Ki Bewa out of the Top 15 list.
What do you guys think about the ratings this week?
There are about hundreds of people who are been killed in Pakistan daily, becoming a victim of political instability and a complete absence of law enforcement. It is far easy to become a terrorist than to be a doctor or engineer here in Pakistan, thanks to the readily available cheap weapons, and make money by killing people, snatching their mobile belongings and kidnapping people for ransom.
It was previously Hasan Ahmed who was kidnapped for ransom, Sajjal Ali, who was threatened to pay a certain amount to the mafias, and it is now Pakistani stage actress Aarzoo who is brutally killed in Multan.
As per the news, the actress got shot on Saturday night, that is, September 29th when she returned from her stage. The family suspects Ahsaan, the man she was living with, for the murder though the actual story is yet not revealed. It is again nothing new to see this side of our stage actresses who do not believe in the boundaries that are been drawn by the religion this country follows, neither do they care about the society they live in.
The victim’s post mortem was held at Nishtar Hospital, Multan, which stated that Aarzoo Khan was twice shot.
See news here:
Aarzoo Khan was well-known by the stage lovers and enjoyed fame for her live acting and dance. She started her career while, still being in her early age.
Zinda Bhaag has already garnered a lot of attention by getting selected for the Oscars for the Foreign Film Category. After bagging four awards at the International South Asian FilmFestival in Canada this year, it finally released in Pakistan on 21st September, 2013.
If one is expecting Zinda Bhaag to be a mainstream movie with the typical mirch masala then you are definitely in for a surprise. It contains laughter and romance, but most importantly it depicts a mindset commonly found in our society. This movie has proved that the Pakistani Film Industry does not need to go with the flow and feature item songs or renowned cast to gain attention.
The story revolves around three individuals – Khaldi (Khurram Patras), Chitta (Salman Ahmed) and Tambi (Zohaib) who reside in a typical lower-middle class mohalla in Lahore. As many other youngster in our country, they also aspire to leave their desimohalla, and take any route to reach foreign lands where according to them ‘Their dreams will come true and all life problems will be solved’. Like many Pakistanis, the trio is under the misguided perception that once they reach a foreign place, life will be a piece of cake!
Here the dunky system comes in; which is a Lahori term for crossing the borders illegally. The trio makes their journey to a foreign land through this system, and what happens next is what the story is all about.
The first half of the movie concentrates on the life of the three individuals in the mohalla which is hilarious and unique in its execution. Since the film is 80% in Punjabi, one will get to hear some colorful and blunt Punjabi vocabulary that will make us all roll in our seats. (Especially those who are familiar with the language!) When the producer Mazhar Moin was asked the reason for Punjabi being used instead of Urdu, he stated “Making it in Urdu would have not kept the movie authentic to its setting.”
While the first half will make you clutch your stomach, the second half will make the environment a big more charged, and leave you with sadness as the leads realize the harsh truth that all that glitter is not gold. As the story progresses, it takes a 360 degree turn from the vibrancy of youth and love, to the dark realities of life. The story penned down by Meenu Gaur and Farjad Nabi will make you laugh in the beginning, but with each passing scene it will also make you realize how serious the story actually is.
Meenu and Farjad’s strong direction have made the newcomers stand out, and give their best in all their scenes. For those who do not know, the three main leads were actually auditioned from a typical mohalla in Lahore and casted in the movie! The cinematography has managed to capture the essence of Lahore and the director did not shy away from showing the true culture as there were many scenes that hinted at the various habits and characteristics of Lahoris. Even the sets captured the kitschy, loud and garish soul of Punjab.
Now coming to the highlight of the movie; Naseeruddin Shah has performed exceptionally well as Pehlvan who happens to be the don of the mohalla. His interesting character keeps you hooked as he loves to narrate dramatic stories with a moral lesson in the end. The role of Pehlvan was written by keeping Naseeruddin Shah in mind, and the script was mailed to him because the makers had no other way to contact him. The makers were in for a surprise when Naseeruddin Shah contacted them himself, and gave a nod for the movie.
Amna Ilyas who plays Khaldi’s love interest, Rubina, has managed to give a very decent performance. Rubina did not look like a typical Lahori Kudi from any angle though; she seemed more like a girl from the urban areas. She was also seen conversing in Urdu instead of Punjabi which really does not make sense since her character also belonged to the same mohalla as the male leads.
Sahir Ali Bagga’s soundtrack in this movie is definitely worth looking forward too. There are some slow tracks, along with some upbeat catchy ones that will make you sing along. Pani Da Bulbula is one track that will stay in your mind because it manages to get stuck on your tongue for a long time after hearing it. Pata Yaar Da by Rahat Fateh Ali Khan and Paar Channa De by Arif Lahor are the two must-listen tracks in the album. Kurri Yes Ae, Munda Set Ae (sung by Amanat Ali and Iqra) is another kitschy track along the lines of Paani Da Bulbula; its video will definitely make you laugh with its surreal background and colorful costumes and not to forget the ‘cool’ moves by the couple. They really tried hard to make the couple look HOT, but it turned out to be a huge disaster! The track Saari Saari Raat will be loved by the slow song lovers; Dekhenge is another upbeat song which will be liked by many. Taareyan is the only track which does not have anything special to offer.
Zinda Bhaag definitely deserves a round of applause as it is an excellent effort by the makers. Sometimes it is refreshing to watch a movie with a bit of light heartedness; instead of the heavy duty movies that highlight serious social issues in our society. Zinda Bhaag also has a lesson in the end which will make you wonder where our society is heading!
Do give this movie a try, but do not go to the cinema expecting a masterpiece. Zinda Bhaag also has a few flaws here and there which need to be overlooked.
The audience of Pakistan is found all bind with the two drama channels majorly these days, to be specific, HUM TV and ARY Digital, which too are making the full use of the opportunity and coming up with hit drama serials back2back.
One of the most eye-catching drama serial on ARY Digital these days is Shehr-e-Yaaran which is a beautiful write up of Riffat Siraj and was previously dramatized under the title of Tawaan. The direction is been done by Mohammad Iftikhar Iffi while the production is done by Six Sigma Productions. What makes this drama amazingly appealing is its cast which includes Firdous Jamal, Abid Ali, Agha Ali, Ushna Shah, Kaif Ghaznavi, Saadia Ghaffar, Diya Mughal, Shaista Jabeen, Yasir Shoro, Mehak Ali, Shaheen Khan and others. The drama is basically a daily soap that goes on air four days a week that is, Monday to Friday.
Agha Ali, an emerging actor in the drama industry is now all known for his absolutely great acting in some hit dramas like Teri Nazar, Main Haari Piya and Halki Si Khalish, will be seen in a lead role coming up with a new shade of his acting skills on ARY Digital. It is quite long to have seen Abid Ali on screen, so for his fans, it’s a wonderful news to have him back again on TV.
Dramas are offered to actors everyday, sometimes they take up a project, sometimes they don’t. Once a project that they missed goes on to become a hit, they secretly regret saying no. In the following, we cover some such classic roles and actors who refused them for various reasons
1- Faisal Qureshi as Asher
Yes,the role made immortal by Fawad Afzal Khan was initially offered to Faisal Qureshi. However, he felt that there was nothing much to do in the role and refused it. The role went to Fawad Afzal Khan who grabbed it and the rest they say is history. It’s difficult to imagine the chemistry of anyone but Fawad-Mahira in Humsafar but who knows what sparks could have flied if Faisal was seen romancing Mahira.
2- Mahira Khan as Kiran
Mahira was offered two projects of Umera post Humsafar, one was Shehr-e-Zaat and the other was Kankar. Mahira consulted Momina Duraid who had earlier convinced her to do Humsafar and decided in favour of Shehr-e-Zaat. She felt that Shehr-e-Zaat would elevate her as an actress much more than Kankar would and ratings and popularity wise it would be safe to assume that Mahira was right. Her replacement Sanam Baloch is doing good work but the drama is not as strong/popular as Shehr-e-Zaat.
3- Fawad Khan and Sanam Baloch as Irtiza and Saman
In the classic romantic story Bin Roye Ansoo earlier Fawad and Sanam were approached to essay the roles of Irtiza and Saman in this Farhat Ishtiaq drama. However, due to dates and other issues, both actors couldn’t do the serial. They were later replaced by Humayun Saeed and Armeena Rana Khan. Die hard fans of Fawad are extremely disappointed with the current casting and feel that it would ruin the serial. Rest would only be revealed once the drama starts airing. Maybe Humayun and Armeena will be accepted as Irtiza and Saman.
4- Fawad Khan as Ibaad Uzair (Aabi)
This was Farhat Ishtiaq’s second drama after the phenomenal Humsafar. It could not, however, gain the same popularity as its predecessor. Besides other reasons, casting of Adeel Hussain as Aabi was considered one of the reasons of drama not getting as much popularity as Humsafar. Fawad Khan was to play this role but he could not get the visa at the right time and resultantly Adeel Hussain stepped in.
5- Faisal Qureshi as Waqar Ul Hassan
The role of Aiman’s father Waqar Ul Hassan in Zard Mausam was initially offered to Faisal Qureshi who refused once again on the pretext that the role was not powerful enough. The role went to Faisal Rehman but the drama never got much popularity.
6- Mehwish Hayat as Mehru
Mehwish Hayat was approached to play Mehru in Hum TV’s ‘Na Kaho Tum Mere Nahi’ but since she was busy in Mirat-Ul-Uroos and other projects she declined the offer. This is despite that fact that her last serial with Hum TV ‘Meray Qatil Mere Dildar’ proved to a hit and provided her with much needed boost for her career. Saba Qamar stepped into Mehwish’s shoes at the last minute and played the character beautifully.
7- Zaini of Man-o-salwa and Khadeeja of Lahasil
Resham and Angeline Malik were not the first choices for lead roles of Man-o-salwa and Lahasil. However, since all other actresses approached for these roles refused point blankly, Resham and Angeline came in. The exact reasons for other actresses refusing these roles remain unknown. Casting remains one of the main reasons of criticism on these dramas.
Besides the roles mentioned above Fawad was not the first choice for Ashk either. He came in once Sarmad Khoosat took over as the director of the play.
The Miss World Contest is one of the most awaited global events of the year. It happens to be the oldest surviving major international beauty pageant. It started off back in 1951, more than 60 years ago! Each delegate or participant must win her national title or a specifically designated Miss World national preliminary, to be eligible for competing in Miss World contest. The annual final event is a month long and consists of several galas, dinners, balls and many other activities which ends in a globally telecast final in which the delegates are narrowed down to between 15 to 20.
This year the spectacular finale of ‘Miss World 2013’ was held in an Indonesian resort island of Bali. Miss Philippines won this auspicious title this year and was crowned Miss World 2013. Megan Young, 23, who looked stunning in a pink fishtail dress, won the 63rd annual beauty pageant contest on 28th September, 2013.
Megan had her eyes filled with tears of joy as she was awarded the most coveted title of the year. A very emotional Megan announced to the world that ‘I promise to be the best Miss World ever’
The second runner up in this competition was Miss France (Marine Lorpheline), followed by Miss Ghana (Carranza Naa Okailey Shooter) in the third position. Around 127 contestants competed in the finale, but they were quickly narrowed down to six. In the weeks before the finale, all the contestants took part in a series of challenging events for which they were given points. These included a bikini round, which had a slight change in its format this year. The participants were seen adoring sarongs instead of usual bikinis to avoid causing offense to the Muslim majority in Indonesia. All the contestants were photographed in different Bali locations wearing long sleeved shirts or body covering shawls so that the Muslim population would not get aggravated.
This year the contest faced a lot of problems due to the protest done by certain Muslims groups in Indonesia who regarded the beauty pageant as unethical and against their religion. Because of the uproar caused by the Muslims in Indonesia, the beauty pageant was shifted from the main island of Java to Bali. Around 600 people gathered in protest in Java around 3 weeks before the event, and the number kept on increasing by the day. Students came out in Java’s Surabaya City with banners which read “We are ready to die for the Miss World Contest to be scrapped” while other people bought goats wearing Miss World sashes to ridicule the event. Many people argued that this event exploited women and was an export of Western hedonism.
The event happened under tight security as there were almost 700 police officers along with the traditional Balinese security. Because of the deteriorating conditions, two participants from the initial 129 contestants also withdrew, and the contest was left with 127 contestants.
The air was thick with tension as the protest kept on increasing as thousands of Muslims protested across Indonesia. The participants and organizers were finally relieved when the three week contest finally came to an end this Saturday.
After being unsuccessful in their protest, the Muslim population gathered for a prayer session in Sentul, just outside the capital Jakarta, to express their opposition to the pageant.
Our dazzling Pakistani top Model,Mehreen Saeed,has got married recently. She got married to a son of famous fashion designer Nasreen Humayun.Wedding was celebrated traditionally and every single arrangement of event was one of its own kinds.We wish Mehreen a very happy and prosperous married life.Have a look at her wedding pictures.
What I have noticed nowadays is that many of our dramas have started adopting the filmi tarka in their stories. For a long time now, our shows have been more focused on social issues prevailing in the society, and the only filmy drama (more like an Indian drama to be precise) that was seen on air was ‘Yeh Zindagi Hai’(which has the highest ratings for the longest time now!) Now we can see that other production houses are also following the lead, and introducing the filminess in their stories to attract viewers.
As viewers, we all like a bit of filminess in the stories which is a nice change from the reality based shows that also tend to get a bit depressing at times.
Here is a list of shows that are on air nowadays and have a touch of filminess to make them more attractive for the viewers:
Khoya Khoya Chaand:
Khoya Khoya Chaand stars Ahsan Khan, Maya Ali and Sohai Ali Abro as the leads. The promos of this show itself had a filmy touch to it as the leads were showing dancing and singing in it. Even the title track would have been more suitable for a movie; especially the video with had the leads runningaround, dupattas flying, and flowers everywhere! Faheem Burney always likes to add a bit of spiciness seen in films in the shows he directs. Even the story would have been more appropriate for a movie; the male lead getting married to the sister of the girl he loved. Cliched, right? Not something we have not heard before, but definitely something that would keep the viewers hooked.
Mere Humrahi:
Mere Humrahi is another show with the filmy factor in it. The promo featured leads in the rain and it resembled a scene more appropriate for a SRK movie! But in truth, this is what attracted me to the show in the first place. It stars Fahad Mustafa, Shehzad sheikh and Soniya Hussain as the leads. The promos seemed different from the usual ones that we see on Pakistani Television nowadays, and I always prefer to watch shows with a refreshing concept. When the promos were so filmy, then how can the story not have a touch of filminess! Haaniyah and Ahad are in love and they decide to get married, until Ahad gets cold feet and ditches Haaniyah one day before the marriage. Ahmed, who happens to be Ahad’s brother, takes his place and gets married to Haaniyah. How convenient right?
Yeh Shaadi Nahi Hosakti:
Yeh Shaadi Nahi Hosakhti’s promo featured a whole dance sequence which had the whole cast in it! When I saw the promos the first thought that came to my mind was of the Baraat series. Yeh Shaadi Nahi Hosakhti’s concept is also somewhat similar to it as it revolves around marriage, and also has a stellar cast which includes names like Mohib Mirza, Urwa Hocane, Qazi Wajid, Badar Khalil, Waseem Abbas, Saba Hameed and many more popular names. This show revolves around the leads Sikander and Alishba who are desperately in love, and the only obstacle in their lives is their families who can barely stand each other’s presence. Now they both have set out to unite the two families, and make their marriage happens at all cost! This sitcom might have some over the top characters and a bit of overacting, but it is definitely a show to watch if you are in mood for a light hearted show!
Rishtay Kuch Adhooray Se:
This show has Sohai Ali Abro, Yumna Zaidi, and Jahanzeb Khan as the main leads. ‘Another drama on sister rivalry, can’t they come up with new concepts?’ This is what came to my mind when I watched the show’s promos. I knew from the beginning that the show would feature a clash between the two sisters, but the circumstances that lead to this was quite shocking. Gaiti and Arsal are about to get married but due to Gaiti’s absence during the Nikah, her sister Kiran secretly takes her place. This is the most absurd and unbelievable twist that I have ever seen! A twist that would have been more appropriate for an Indian drama or movie!
Aasmanon Pay Likha:
Aasmanon Pay Likha recently went on air and reached the first spot in the ratings with its very first episode. Why? The main reason was the attractive promos; the scenes in the promos had the filmy tadka, and the sizzling chemistry between the leads was just like a cherry on top. The male lead (Sheheryar Munawar) goes to the wedding of his employee’s daughter (Sajjal Ali), and ends up getting married to the girl himself. The circumstances in which the wedding occurred seemed quite illogical, but these loopholes can be overlooked when there is potential in the show. Its filminess is definitely its USP!
I personally do not mind a bit of filminess in shows because it is refreshing to watch shows with concepts that are different from what we usually see in dramas. But an overdose of filminess would definitely not be appreciated!
Share your opinion about these shows and feel free to add to the list!
A big fashion event,8th Annual Expo Pakistan 2013,has been organized by Trade Development Authority of Pakistan (TDAP). This mega event was held in Pakistan’s biggest city of fashion, Karachi. Fashion showcase continued for two days (26th and 27th Sept,2013).
Top and famous Pakistani fashion designers participated in this expo with their amazing designs. Designers who took part in this expo include Rezwan Beyg, Zaheer Abbas, Farnaz Mustafa,Sana Safinaz,Sana Maskatiya,Tapu Javeri, Maheen Khan,Deepak Parwaani,Ayesha mustafa,Pakistan Institute of Fashion and Design,Shamael Ansaari etc.
First Day of Expo Pakistan comprised of designs of these designers:
Rezwan Beyg
Sana Safinaz
Zaheer Abbas
Umaima Mustafa
Fahad Hussain
Ayesha Ibrahim
Ahmed Bhaam
Pakistan Institute of Fashion and Design
Second day designers break down of this mega event is :
Maheen Khan
Deepak Perwani
Umaima Mustafa
Fahad Hussayn
Ayesha Ibrahim
Ahmad Bham
Shamaeel Ansari
Rezwaan Beyg in Expo Pakistan
Rezwaan Beyg showcased his hard work done on both males and females designs.His main theme was Truck Art with a bit of western touch.Have a look at his designs :
Sana Safinaz Collection in Expo Pakistan
Sana Safinaz designs are one of its own kinds. She is no doubt a famous and top rank designer in Pakistan.Sana Safinaz showcased her classy outfits in fashion show with beautifully embellished art work,embroidery thread work and motifs.
Rest of designers collection will be uploaded soon.
Today for the first time I felt like there was more to Mahjabeen and Wali’s relationship than what we have seen till now. Mahjabeen’s reaction to Wali’s attitude towards her indicated that there was a time when Wali used to listen to Mahjabeen and probably respected her too. Now that Wali is all grown up, he knows that he does not need to respect the woman who brought him up and Mahjabeen is finding it very hard to cope with this situation. All these years she dedicated her time to raising Wali. She seemed completely lost today which could mean that she brought Wali up with a lot of dedication. Mahjabeen leaves her hair pin in Wali’s room which would mean that this particular pin is symbolic of the relationship they once had. Despite of the fact that she is Vani she is not used to being treated like a worthless person, which is something I still find very hard to believe but then Bare Sahab seems like a very reasonable man. The only unreasonable aspect of his personality is that he believes in clinging to old traditions other than that he has never been shown as a cruel man. He is always very kind to servants and even though Mahjabeen is Vani he treats her with respect. I like the fact that Bare Sahab’s character has different shades and he tackles things head-on in his own peculiar manner.
This latest episode focused on showing the viewers how Mahjabeen is being affected by Wali’s changed disposition. Mahjabeen calls Wali numerous times, stays up tll late waiting for him to come back home and at the same time she thinks about her past life. It almost seems like these memories from the past are like an escape for Mahjabeen – a very painful escape but one nevertheless! In order to distract herself from the pain of today she is very often reminded of all the hurt that she has felt in the past. The time she spent with the person she loved cannot possibly bring happy feelings because the outcome was so agonizing. Mahjabeen realizes more than ever in this latest episode the amount of time she has given to the haveli and how she is not indispensable anymore. There was once a time when Wali used to look at her as a living and breathing human being who cared for her but things have changed enormously now.
There were times when I felt like Wali felt guilty because he married Neelam. His friend also remarks that he seemed so upset, as if he had two wives. Is that really the case? Does Wali feel that he has let Mahjabeen down? Or that he shouldn’t have done this to her? Or maybe he thinks that Mahjabeen deserves better? He cannot do anything about the situation so he feels very frustrated and upset. Technically Wali should have felt relieved because he managed to sort things out with Neelam but contrary to that he was very agitated which goes to show that he is not happy with the given situation. The preview of the next episode showed that Wali shows his dislike for the way his elders think so that could be another reason for his disturbed state of mind. He wants the car and the luxuries but he does not feel like a free man for obvious reasons.
The scene in the car when Wali drives Neelam to the Convent was actually very cute. I finally see Neelam as a young girl who is infatuated with her husband but at the same time is not willing to accept things for what they are. Kanza Wyne was very cute in this particular scene but later on when she was talking to her tree friend she got a little carried away. The girls at the hostel do not like Neelam at all so she is left with no choice but to befriend a tree in the Convent. Neelam is very lonely even more so now because Ammo is gone. Neelam is wise enough to understand that Wali and her have a lot in common but whether that is a good thing or not is another debate.
Someone please fix the audio quality of the play, the dialogues were hardly audible even today and there were times when the OST was playing so loud in the background that you had to lip read to understand what was being said. Not much happened in tonight’s episode; there was a lot of Mahjabeen in it but I still enjoyed every minute of it. Numm has a very different feel to it; you can feel the characters talking to you even when they are only thinking. One can easily interpret things sometimes because of the lines of the OST and at other times because of the expressions of the actors. I really liked Sania Saeed in tonight’s episode; she was at her best tonight and totally into Mahjabeen’s character. The viewer’s did not get to find out who the “mystery man” was and whether the scene was from the past or present. The preview of the next episode showed that Wali will finally start seeing Mahjabeen as a living person with feelings. Will Wali’s feelings for Mahjabeen be based on sympathy or something more than that? I would happily settle for Wali giving Mahjabeen the kind of respect that one would give to their caretaker or mother.
It would not be wrong to predict the future of Pakistani film industry which is now trying to cope up with the universal standards of entertainment and improving its impression all over the world. Now that we see movies like MHSA, Josh, Seedlings, Zinda Bhaag and Waar making the best use of available resources and limitless potentials of our actors, another name in the list is the upcoming movie Azaad.
We did break the news of this movie few months back when it was propagated that Adnan Sami’s son has turned into a director and will soon be making a Pakistani movie. Now that the sources have revealed much about the project, here we are again to share more of it.
Azaad is said to be Pakistan’s first Psychological thriller movie which is based on the true events of serial killers. Pakistan is one of those countries where one finds the maximum number of patients who are mentally unfit and perceive the common meaning of life differently. Azaad is all about the life of a criminal who is actually mentally sick and lives in a fantasy that he created in his childhood to stay at peace. He is sentenced to death for killing eight innocent people.
The first theatrical promo is now all available on social media and film reviewing sites and the thriller movie lovers are now all waiting anxiously for the movie to make its release.
See promo here>>
We wish the team all the very best for its future endeavors.
Not much of a progress in the story this week in stead some of the repetitive conversations that were heard over & over again. It’s just that Eshaal has started to lean on Arez much more than she realizes & even though Arez has some realization, he just is trying to confine his feelings to a limit because he knows Ehsaal’s father very well.
I find it really odd that even though they are shown as liberal people & Eshaal’s father is not very strict either but how can he just be persistent on Ehsaal getting engaged to Shahveer? Even though he knows that Eshaal is not into the whole idea of getting engaged to the guy her father wants her to, Javed Sheikh is being stubborn here.
Got to know more about Arez’s family. Even though his brother blackmailed him but still it showed a brotherly bond between the two. Who’s more evil is Arez’s mother & his sister is equally irritating. Looks like Soni has got nothing better to do but in stead just keep a check on her brother so that she can use it against him. I just can’t relate to this fact that even though Arez has now stepped into his practical life, he is still scared of his mother finding about the girl he is just friends with. If he knows that he will keep himself in check where Ehsaal is concerned, why is he afraid of his mother? I could understand his mother’s strictness if he was just a school/college going boy but I think he is old enough to be independent in that sort too.
I think it is something funny that it’s Eshaal who is an interior designer keeps on asking Arez about the things related to the office-decor. As far as taking him with her for a company is concerned, that seems alright but to actually ask him about his suggestions that too being an interior decorator herself just doesn’t look right.
Ehsaal has yet to find out her growing love towards Arez & vice versa, but Eshaal is the one I feel will fall for him first because Arez knows about his social status, his background & more over his very own ‘family’. I found their conversations a bit dragged & boring where Eshaal is just finding an excuse to meet or speak to Arez, where she is trying so hard to convince Arez in fact that she doesn’t want to get married to Shahveer & then she is equally trying hard to hear Arez say the words.
I think as a side story Rehbar & Eva’s characters are poorly executed where they have nothing much to say or do. They are just their to complete a family picture & I think no one would’ve missed a great deal if Eshaal was shown as the only child of her father. Eva’s husband is just someone who has got nothing going on in his own life. He is npt even too keen about the business of his father-in-law, nor he is head over heels for his wife, he is just a bit too interested in what Eshaal does, which makes it really boring & “been there, seen it” before kind of a thing
I think the 3rd episode is not a right number to make the pace of the story slow. It should’ve been much more happening than it was. Let’s see what’s in store for us because so far I can predict that Eshaal will end up with Arez & get married but then a whole new level of saas-bahu will start. I hope there’s something different there in stead of the seen-before story executed in new circles.
All of us are very familiar of songs “Tera Kangna jab khankay” and “tere waadoun ka maine aitebaar..”. Yes, I am talking about none other than Shehzad Roy. Till now,I havent came across any singer who tried every style of singing and proved to be versatile singer.From “Ya Rab dil e muslim ko” to “Kya pyaar yehe hai”,every single song of him impressed me and forced me to applaud. So,all fans of Shehzad Roy in Los Angeles,get ready for Shehzad Roy’s rocking performance in Musical Gala soon.
I want to add up here that Shehzad Roy will be performing for fund raising. As we all know that Shehzad is working for a very noble cause of education of children and improve education of public schools in Paksitan.He is running a non-profit organization of his own, named as Zindage Trust.
For there cause,Guns N’ Roses’ will also be there to perform with him. Guns N’ Roses’ drummer, Matt Sorum, is working for arts education in US and for that he has also joined his hands with Shehzad to give a mind blasting musical performance.He is also running an NGO named as Adopt the Arts.
Both of them have joined hands for similar cause – education.My well wishes are with them. Hope they will get success in every field of life.
From Ishq e Mamnoo to Fatima Gul and then Feriha,we,Pakistanis have developed a vibrant flavor of Turkish dramas. As we welcomed ,almost every Turkish Serial warm heartedly, a Turkish Movie for the very first time will soon hit Pakistani screens soon.
Turkish showbiz industry is well aware of great response of their serials from Pakistani viewers,they have decided to launch a movie named as “Mohabbat.. Ek Ittefaaq” soon.
Names of movies and dramas of Turkey are given according to native language of country in which they are launching.Like for Pakistan, Urdu name is allotted. For India, it would be Hindi and so on.
Plot of movie revolves around Deniz,Buraaq and Ozgur.Deniz is a young ambitious girl,who has a dream of becoming a fine actress one day. She meets Buraaq one day and falls for her.Problem arrises when Buraq parents disagreed for Deniz and Buraaq marriage.In the meanwhile,Deniz meets Ozgur in an exhibition and they came to know that they have met somewhere else before. Ozgur falls for Deniz and then love triangle make this movie enter into another phase.
This movie is a must watch due to perfect performances by artists,its well paced track and classic climax. I would like to congratulate Pakistani film production houses to dub this movie as much close to real voices as possible.
Tonight’s episode was an extension of the last one with some very well written and superbly acted out conversations to its credit. Kiran has finally achieved what her mother and mother in law couldn’t – she has made her husband realize that everything that he thought was right till now was actually wrong. She has managed to convince Sikandar that his mother isn’t a role model because she put up with abuse and neither was her father right in disrespecting his wife. Sikandar rightly blames his parents for setting a bad example and I hope that very soon he will be thankful to Kiran for saving another generation from meeting the same fate. This play goes to show that if a woman takes a stand for her self, she maybe able to accomplish a lot more than she ever realized she could. Sikandar has definitely realized that hitting women is not normal and women who put up with abuse are not mazloom but they are buzdul. Sikandar hasn’t apologized to Kiran yet; he may have assured her of his love and he has told her many times that he won’t hit her again but he hasn’t actually told her that he is sorry. He hasn’t taken responsibility for his actions too wholly; he blamed his parents entirely when they were only responsible partially and also he tells Kiran that there were times when she disrespected him too, when she apologizes, he does not reciprocate in kind.
The conversation between Kiran and Sikandar on the phone was very meaningful, every single dialogue was heart touching and very deep. Kiran accepts that there have been times when she did not give Sikandar the respect he deserved and feels no shame in apologizing although she was only disrespectful toward Sikandar as a reaction to his inappropriate behavior. Sikandar hasn’t begged for Kiran’s forgiveness yet and still thinks that Kiran’s desire to be respected is nothing more than zid but he did seem to be more affected by the whole scenario than ever before. Kiran tells Sikandar that she will try to move on although it will be difficult which goes to show that despite of everything that happened, it won’t be easy for her to let go.
Adnan’s conversation with Kiran was very heart warming. He truly loves Kiran and his love for Kiran is nothing like Sikandar’s love for her. If he was selfish, he would have rejoiced in the fact that Kiran wants to leave Sikandar.
No one supported Kiran but most of the people including her own mother blamed her in some way or the other. Even though after the conversation with Shaista, Kiran’s mother realized what Shaista was actually capable of but even then she seemed to be making “excuses” in order to console herself. But it was very good to see Aysha defending her daughter, she also knows that Sikandar is wrong but she wants her daughter to give her marriage another chance. Faiqa, Arzoo and Shaista are beyond hopeless. Faiqa and Arzoo have absolutely no self-respect and Shaista continues blaming Kiran. The way Sikandar remained undeterred despite of his parents’ negative opinion of Kiran went to prove that he is still the same person that he was when he got married. Sikandar believes in making his own decisions; nothing that anyone says or thinks matters.
Some of the dialogues in tonight’s episode seemed repetitive but overall this was a very good episode which may have changed the opinion of some viewers about Sikandar and Kiran’s future. It is plain to see that Shaista will not make Kiran’s stay in the house comfortable when she comes back but the real question is that has Sikandar really changed or is it just another phase? Is he just desperate to get Kiran back so that he can control her or has he really learned that a man should give his wife respect too? Sikandar’s attitude today reminded me of the time when he wanted to marry Kiran and that is the reason why I am not sure if Sikandar will give Kiran the respect she wants.
The preview of the next episode showed that Kiran finally goes back to Sikandar and Kiran’s father decides that he owes his wife an apology for everything that he put her through. I am sure that the only reason he realized his mistake after so long was because of the conversation he had with Kiran after she finds out that her father used to hit her mother too.
Is there anyone who had a change of heart after watching this episode? Do you think Sikandar has changed for good?
ARY Digital will now soon be offering its viewers another flavor of entertainment with its next big project which will soon be going on air under the title of ‘Meri Beti’. The promos of the drama are already out and there are no second thoughts that this drama is really going to be a hit due to its different story and outstanding cast.
Written by Mohsin Ali, the drama is directed by Badar Mehmood, who is also known for his phenomenal direction of the drama ‘Tere Anay k Baad’, where we will see Samina Peerzada, Arij Fatima, Ismat Zaidi and other famous celebrities.
The drama basically highlights the bond which is shared in between a mother and her daughter. This surely, is not a new concept but the one which never goes unappreciated. It is assumed that Arij Fatima will be found doing a completely different role as compared to all her previous work that she has been doing. On the other hand, watching Samina Peerzada on screen is always a treat and her fans are now all waiting for the drama to go on-air.
Here are a few pictures of the drama and the celebrities affiliated to it. Have a look!
All for now, share your views about this upcoming project. Will you be following it?
Voila! My star of the show; Daadi’s back. Even though Daadi’s presence was felt all this while but I thought that her character shifted to the back-seat in few of the previous episodes. So glad she had an appropriate screen-time & I absolutely loved seeing her. She just looked so adorable with a disbelief in her eyes & innocence on her face when Aunn confronted her. Even though the whole episode was based on the hard-times this Punjabi family is facing but still some really heart-touching moments came up, filling us with compassion.
Daadi & Husna’s conversation about Zara was so inspirational. Daadi who endears Zara equally like her own grand-son Aunn thought it was just fine if Zara was showing tantrums. A whole new thought was provoked by saying that no daughter-in-law is evil, what actually wrong is that the men often forget how to maintain a balance between their family & then the wife. What Aunn’s doing is just a perfect example of the notion. He is just not strong enough to fend what he wants for himself therefore, he is stirring things up & even resorting to the most dangerous sleeping pills.
Even after Nighat’s glass found wings & while practicing it’s first flight, it hit Zara, even though such a huge mess was created – Nighat still found her time & ways for socializing. I just love this about her that even though she has two girls to take care of, she always finds her me-time in the middle of everything. She does retail therapy, loves visiting her friends & also has found a personal chauffeur aka Jamshed. It was just so like Jamshed who first blurted out things which he didn’t mean but then came to make up for it. I loved the strong point that Nighat put forward saying ‘mai kaunsi ghalat fehmi ko khush fehmi bana k dil mai chuppa k bethi hoon’. To-the-point & spot-on dialogues are what makes this whole experience a lot more better. Aunn & Nighat’s encounter was just so funny but I commend Osman Khalid Butt for switching his moods & expressions just so easily when he changes rooms & I must say that OKB makes the evil look good & effortless too.
Zara has gone into the shell of misunderstandings & is not willing to come out because even when she tried, Aunn used it & twisted it to turn Zara against his family. Daadi who thinks no one in her 7 generations has been ‘Mashoom’ just couldn’t believe her ears when Aunn told her everything that Zara Jee has said. Even thought Aunn apologized to Allah for everything that he is doing, I still want to see the ‘kutt’ he will get once he will be exposed, because he deserves it. That was rather clever & sweet at the same time that Aunn saw Daadi’s restlessness so he came to compensate for it & told her things which made her believe that her Aunn is ‘beeba’ & ‘chann’. Poor Daadi doesn’t know that her ‘Chann’ Aunn is actually personifying ‘Chandaal’ these days.
Love the whole Zara Jee drama followed by everybody’s reactions on this. The best came from Chacha Jaan who thought it was Zara’s Khala who had come to visit them because no one expected Aunn to become a ‘zan mureed’ if we put it in Daadi’s words. Zara’s morning sickness & nausea are telling a whole new story. I think this may become the reason for the whole family to re-unite but it’s Aunn Zara I am talking about, things get worst & best in a thin-air which no one can ever predict & I say that in a good sense of course. I loved that even though this episode had some weak moments where Daadi broke so many times, filling our hearts with sadness, they still managed to giggle us with their one-liners. Still found Aunn & his ‘fafay kutni’ attitude amusing but wish to see him suffering for all that he has done. Everybody else was just perfect & glad to see Chacha & Chachi back for more.
Can’t wait for the next episode because things have gotten way too interesting, & like always a shout out for the whole team for their best efforts which are obviously paying off.
This week’s episode was full of surprises and focused on the consequences that each of Zayaan’s family members is facing for their deeds. Nusrat brought Ashiya home in the hope that she would control Zayaan through her and get him out of Faiza’s clutches, but her plan turned out to be a huge failure.
Zayaan got emotional when he saw Ashiya after such a long time (didn’t know he even had any paternal feelings left in him!) He even told Faiza not to interfere in this matter; but just then Maryam came and threatened to spill his secret and he had to unwillingly back off. Maryam is the only one who knew his involvement with the maid, and for Zayaan his reputation is more important than anything else so he immediately gave Ashiya back to Maryam.
Faiza did notice that something was amiss and immediately asked Zayaan why he gave Ashiya so easily when he did not want to part with her. The story that Zayaan made up to cover this simply made me roll my eyes. Zayaan apparently did not want to do more injustice with Maryam since he was already very guilty etc. etc. He does not have an ounce of guilt for what he has done! But the best part was his dialogue in the end which made me laugh out loud!
‘Mein Zindagi Bhar Kafara Ada Karunga Ke Meine Tumse Nahi Maryam Se Shaadi Ki’
Oh really, Zayaan! Zayaan’s regret would not be marrying Maryam instead of Faiza, but it would be leaving Maryam and marrying Faiza. He has become a mere puppet who does everything that she wishes. He has absolutely no say in anything that happens in the house. When the show moved forward 14 years, the conditions in the house had worsened. Nusrat was getting the treatment that she truly deserved and I did not feel bad for her at all. Afshah was still not allowed to visit the house without Faiza’s permission, and Faiza dominated Zayaan even more than before.
Maryam’s baddua had finally come true as nobody was truly happy in the house. Even after 14 years, Zayaan and Faiza were childless and Nusrat had lost her son who barely had time to visit her anymore.
Another tragedy came in Maryam’s life when another one of her family member passed away. After her mother’s death, she and Ajji were left alone and they raised Ashiya together. Maryam did face a lot of problems in the beginning but she managed to cope up and move on with her life. Ayeza Khan has done a marvelous job in this show. The scene where she goes to Zayaan’s house to get Ashiya back and was thrown out by Afshah and Nusrat was power packed. I had never seen Maryam acting so violently!
Like any child, Ashiya is also curious to know about her father and his family. Her questions always disturb Maryam who has not told her anything yet. Maybe it is time for Maryam to tell a censored version to Ashiya to satisfy her curiosity.
Maheen Rizvi has fully justified Faiza’s character and for me, this is her best performance so far. This is the first show I have watched her perform as one of the leads and she has proved what she is capable of. The direction of all the emotional scenes is simply outstanding, and the acting of the leads makes it even better. I do not think I need to praise Faysal Qureshi; he is always consistent with his acting skills. He acts to perfection and gives his 100% in every scene.
The next episode will most probably be the last episode. Judging from the preview of the next episode, Zayaan might contact Ashiya and they may keep this a secret.
Do share your opinion about the episode; I would love to hear them!
I was pretty excited about this week’s episode as I knew that Aaliyan and Qudsiya will get married. I also had an idea what the circumstances would be that would lead to their marriage. But I did expect a bigger drama than what I saw in this episode. The scene was quite filmy and Aaliyan agreeing to get married to Qudsiya so easily was kind of shocking; I had a feeling he would be extremely pressurized but that did not happen.
Haleema making demands for the car and then creating a huge drama afterwards was nicely executed. Sheheryar was good in the scene where he casually walks in the wedding hall, and then gets shocked at the scene before him. What I have gathered about Aaliyan’s character so far is that he is pretty business minded and a tad bit immature too, and of course kind-hearted. He did not even realize the seriousness of the situation when he said ‘Main Tayyar Hoon Yeh Contract Kerne Ke Liyeah, Matlab Nikah Kerne Ke Liye’ I had my eye brows raised when he casually said this dialogue. He literally read the Nikah Nama like a business contract, and this seriously made me laugh out loud!
He wanted to compensate them because indirectly he was the reason for the broken marriage. First, he did not grant the loan to Zaheer for the car, and then his name was linked with Qudsiya’s when he gave his car keys to Haleema. Aaliyan gave a nod for the nikkah pretty quickly much to our surprise, and the person who was pressurized was Qudsiya.
‘Khuda Ke Liyeah Mera Tamasha Mat Banaye’
Qudsiya pleaded to Aaliyan not to make a mess out of the situation, but finally gave in when she was emotionally blackmailed to agree because of her father’s condition.
One scene I found really adorable was when Aaliyan took her to his house and their first conversation after that. She refused to enter the house and Aaliyan had to convince her for a good two to three minutes to come inside with him.
Aaliyan’s family member’s reaction to the news of his Nikah was expected of course. He took his time to explain ‘the chota sa issue’ to his Dudi (Aaliyan’s dadi) which he had encountered at the wedding. I could not believe my ears when he casually dismissed the issue by saying ‘kiya hum kisi aur topic per baat kersakhte hai’
After a good lecture from his Dudi, it was his father’s turn to lash out at him for his immature behavior. Aaliyan spoke about the marriage contract and then divorce like it was not a big deal at all. It was clear that Aaliyan does not have any intention to stay married to Qudsiya for long. Also, his involvement with Natasha was also mentioned in this episode. She is his love interest and the girl he intends to get married too in the future.
I also liked the scene where Qudsiya gets angry at Aaliyan and he listens to her patiently. ‘Kia Zarurat Thi Meri Madad Karne Ki, Yaha Bezati Waha Bezati’Sheheryar Munawar and Sajjal Ali have excellent chemistry, and their chemistry was evident from the promos too which attracted me to the show in the first place. I am looking forward to more of their scenes in the future.
Now the question is that what will prevent him from divorcing Qudsiya? He has made it clear that as soon as her father’s condition gets better, he would immediately leave her back at her house and divorce her.
The preview of the next episode shows that Qudsiya is in for a rough time ahead. Aaliyan’s family members are going to give her a hard time, and she would not be accepted in the house anytime soon.
I personally do not care how they got married; what I am looking forward too is how their relationship will develop in the future.
Do share your views about the episode as I would love to hear them!
Very much into the fashion industry, Mehwish Hayat is all known for her differently attractive features and is often seen doing modeling for popular clothing brands. The actress enjoys a decent fan following for her acting skills in dramas like ‘Thodi si Wafa chahie’, ‘Masi aur Malika’, ‘Mere Qatil Mere Dildar’, etc. She was ranked number ninth as Best Eastern Eye in the list of “Asia’s Sexiest Woman” by UK’s magazine in 2008 and was also declared as the 9th sexiest Asian woman in 2009. She started her showbiz career as a model and now pursuing both domains perfectly.
It was only few days back when we shared her interesting photoshoot for Warda Lawn which was held at Port Grand, Karachi and here we are back again with some latest clicks of this celebrity which are been taken at her much formal photoshoot for Naushemian Formal Wear Collection 2013.
Have a look!
We wish Mehwish all the very best for her future endeavors and would like to see her on screen more often,
Kadurat’s story has gone from happening and engaging to just plain mind-boggling. The sad part is that Kadurat had tons of potential, the writer came up with a brand new idea and the cast was very impressive too. Mina’s hatred for her step family has been very relatable but I have always been of the opinion that the story could easily have been taken forward without adding Mina’s desire to marry Shaheen to her father. The way Mahmood fell for Shaheen and Mina’s trap was completely unbelievable. The story is getting very sensational no doubt; I am sure despite of all the criticism many people just watch this show to find out just how far the writer will go or how the story will unwind. So, it probably serves the purpose of getting some public attention but shouldn’t the writers also be worried about what kind of attention they are getting? Sanam Saeed’s phenomenal performance in the play seems like a total waste of talent at this point. She was perfect even in tonight’s episode and I must say that there is a very obvious chemistry between her and Imran Aslam. Even though Asad and Mina do not like each other at all but their scenes are always perfect. You can feel the undeniable screen presence of both these stars.
Mahmood has always been shown as a very dim-witted person but what he did today was more foolish than anything else that he has done till date! I wonder how someone with his IQ manages to run such a big business. He could have easily taken his wife into confidence and resolved the situation – getting married to Shaheen wasn’t the solution to the problem. Mahmood’s decisions right from the start have been devoid of logic – firstly he got married out of the blue, then he sent Mina away and now this! This is only the second play that Deepak Perwani has ever starred in, one would think that someone who works only once in a while would choose a better project. I fail to understand why our actors settle for mediocre scripts and why do our producers think that choosing a star cast will ensure the success of a play. I started watching this show primarily because of its unusual and very interesting cast. The story seemed very different and engaging in the beginning, gradually it started going around circles and now it has come to a point where one can watch it only out of curiosity to find out what will happen next and how crazy the happenings can be!
I am one of those viewers too who are following the show because they are waiting to find out how Atiqa will react once she finds out about what had happened. If the problem was the accusation by Shaheen alone, something could have been done about it but what will she do about the new relationship between Shaheen and Mahmood?
The preview of the next episode showed that Mina’s psychiatrist tells her that there is no hope for her and therefore he will stop seeing her. This turns Mina even more negative (if that is possible) and I cannot even imagine what worse she can do! She has tried every negative tactic in the book and more. Mina and Shaheen’s adventures were good fun for a while but honestly speaking they are getting extremely disturbing now.
Did you watch tonight’s episode? Do you think that Kadurat had a lot of potential but the disappointing turn that the story has taken has marred any chances that it had to qualify as a quality serial? If you’re still enjoying the show, please feel free to share your opinion here.
Television Rating Points – TRP is the criterion that indicates the popularity of a channel or program and this data is very useful for the advertisers. In a highly clustered market targeting audiences it is very problematic because in the market there are numerous channels with a variety of programs catering round the clock to a vast and scattered population. Television ratings provide information about the viewers TV watching habits and the socio-economic background of the audience. This helps advertisers and corporate media planners in selecting the right media at the right time.
In Pakistan, Medialogic is the company which provides television rating using frequency monitoring meter in which ‘people meters’ are installed in sample homes and these electronic gadgets continuously record data about the channel watched by the family members. ‘People meter’ is costly equipment, which is imported from abroad. It reads the frequencies of channels, which are later, decoded into the name of the channels and the agency prepares a national data on the basis of its sample homes readings. But there is a drawback in the technique, as cable operators frequently change the frequencies of the different channels before sending signals to the homes. It may be very misleading to read a channel according to a particular frequency even if the down linking frequency is same all over Pakistan.
Sampling is a statistical technique where a small sample is considered representative of a large chunk of population, the size of sample is determined by the total number of population. The most crucial part of TRP business is the sample size of the research. Presently, TRP is based upon only a small urban sample of 700 homes spread in 9 major cities including Karachi, Lahore, Rawalpindi, Islamabad, Hyderabad, Faisalabad, Multan, Peshawar, while 50% people meters are in Karachi. All of the sample homes are situated in urban areas with no representation of rural population. Critics doubt as to how this small sample could truly represent the taste of Pakistani audience, as it is less than 1% of total population. Also majority of meters installed in Karachi the largest city of country, so is it justified to portray preference of one urban center as choice of whole country.
Some also raised concerns that TV channel authorities can influence the TRP data by accessing households where these are installed. But Gallup Pakistan and Medialogic claim that whereabouts of these houses are kept classified to ensure transparency and accuracy and channels or any other authority cannot locate them.
Following video will help understand how TRP is gathered and provided by company Medialogic. Where Salman Danish CEO of Medialogic explains it to BBC representative (Video courtesy of BBC Urdu)
Right now when we all know that the Pakistani drama industry is in all it’s glory, our industry is not only being appreciated in Pakistan but worldwide as well. I feel the content that our respected writers are exposing us to, is fictitious. I have seen so many weak story-lines coming into execution just because they were dealing with some sort of taboos of our society. I hate to say but even the rules of Islam are being ridiculed just because some writer somewhere thought that there wasn’t anything else left to write a story about so why not play with our very fragile concepts of Islam too?
Without taking any names of the dramas I’ll speak about so many negativity that the writers & then the whole production team has shown to us over the last few years. Divorce has now become a major part of our story line. If one or the other couple in any of our drama is NOT divorced then according to the writer, the drama won’t be a hit. It’s ohkay, divorce has gotten a lot more common but that is just because the society is moving away from the teachings of Islam & that doesn’t mean that they have to use these close to real-life incidents to actually bring it on our screens for their own revenue.
The term ‘Halala’ was taught to us by our parents as something which depicted a severe punishment set by Allah in response to the divorce. While surfing through some channels I actually started watching this so called comedy serial on one of our well-reputed channels & there the guy who jokingly told the girl that why don’t you get married to this guy & divorce him & ‘phir tum Halala kar lena’. I think these are the fine lines which should never be joked about consciously or unconsciously, because the media is our mind-controlling machine & it is set to program the viewers minds. We learn mostly what we see on the TV & this fact can not be doubted. Anyways, listening to this term actually made me cringe because I don’t think it gives a right to any of the content or dialogue writer to just blurt out anything in the name of a comedy?
Came across one of the drama serials about an year ago where a wife’s husband gets into a serious situation with wife’s sister & then the ‘satti savitri’ sister gets divorced just because her husband couldn’t hold his horses, after getting married to the younger sister he realizes that his ex-wife was better & then he comes back telling her that if she agrees for Halala, he’ll be fine with it. I mean what sort of a message was being conveyed through such a drama? That it’s the guy who was at fault & just because NOW he wants his wife back, he wants her to go through such a huge thing.
Ohkie, now all the sisters in the world according to our media are evil. This is the new trend set off after Maat. I didn’t dislike the story or the concept of Maat because yes for the whole audience it was something new to see. But ever since it seems like the writers limited their thinking prowess & got stuck in the Maat era, literally trashing every single relation that two sisters can experience in their life. Be it a sister’s husband, or sister’s fiance, nothing was spared & rather maligned just for the sake of entertainment. What we came to see in Maat was even based on reality that the husband or the wife does tend to grow out of each other in years & this is what the character of Saba Qamar did just because she had other standards in life, therefore choosing a more well-settled husband for herself. But after this serial so many other dramas came to surface with similar story line but with actually a lot more sickness that one couldn’t even think of.
I know so many of our writers are well respected for one writing of theirs or the other, but in this matter I do appreciate Umera Ahmed because she does highlight all the negatives of our societies but every time she has a lesson to be conveyed through them, to which most of us in fact all of us can relate to, but her caliber is different. The wavelength of her stories is far beyond than many of the writers out there, who later try to make stories by picking up a few bits & bobs from her original stories. I saw so many dramas which were always similar to Umera Ahmed’s writings but the level was completely different or in simple terms a bit more commercial with some ‘tarka’.
A whole new campaign I would say prevalent on our screen these days is the marriage of a girl & then her ordeals. Her saas, her nand, her irresponsible husband & what not. The one who stands up for herself becomes the negative character & the one who works like a ‘massi’ & doesn’t demand anything in return becomes the best example of a ‘bahu’. Every girl knows that marriage comes with a lot of happiness but with certain baggage attached so why only focus on the bad side of the picture in stead of maintaining a balance?
Another interesting in fact disgusting thing that I noticed was that every younger one of the sister’s duo is a gold-digger. Each & every drama told the story of a younger sister being the evil & the materialistic one, to such a point that she is ready to take her sister’s place. These days this drama is on-air in which some Nikkah got wrong (a whole new level of ignorance shown) but just because the youngest sister has seen where her eldest is going to be married, she now is having thoughts of staying in the Nikkah with her jeeja. Another, in fact so many of the dramas have been been on-air showing that the younger sisters are the evil ones & the elders are better than the saints which actually is completely false. In real lives, I have seen so many of the younger sisters actually a bit more mature than the elder ones.
For once I want to see ONE such drama in which the sisters bonding is shown nicely. I think Khoya Khoya Chand is the currently on-air drama which shows that the two sisters have a good relationship (though I didn’t see but could figure out from some of the glimpses). & a few months ago Tanhaiyan Naye Silsilay showed some refreshing bonding of two sisters, though I was not a fan but because it walked on the lines set by the original Tanhaiyaan, it showed some nice bonding between the sisters & apart from these I just can not recall any other drama? Extra-marital affair is another spicy aspect of one’s married life that our drama writers are resorting too. Every other guy in the drama these days is shown having an extra marital affair & when exposed he gives such insane arguments that we just can’t help nodding our heads in disbelief. The current on-air & much hyped drama has taken such a sick turn which I would definitely wouldn’t want to see where a girl is framing her own father with some evil schemes & taking a help of her own friend. I think this was the last thing which I ever even thought of seeing on Pakistani Television??? The same girl goes around proposing her step-brother, I think we have now taken liberalism to a whole new level!
I feel there are so many aspects of our life which can be represented through our dramas & in such a time of distress I don’t think anyone would want to switch on the TV to actually get hold of a bit more of a negativity around. A few dramas do touch some norms but in such a way that tackling them doesn’t become difficult & we actually want to see what happens more but I feel all the time focusing on the similar story lines again & again makes it a lot more tiresome & nothing to be amazed about.
I do see dramas of other ethnicity in which they also speak about their social standards & even the love stories but I feel they are more decent in approach towards their social norms than we are. We always tend to cross just so many lines even when we see a love story, sadly! It is interesting that even those countries are known for their negativeness but the way they portray their lifestyle is commendable. Speaking of India & about their lifestyle – which I know on a personal level too, strategically what we see on their TV screen is completely opposite. All those glamorous ladies with extravagant lavish homes, even to the point where it looks unreal (in fact it is unreal obviously) but this is what we call as image management. They show things which only represents a certain class of India but in Pakistan where the lifestyle & standards are so much better than so many countries, sadly our drama writers are trying to spoil everything – be it our image, our relations, our culture & so much more.
Every-time I have a discussion with any of the people around me & even whenever I read the comments, it is quite satisfying to know that people think on all these lines & never hold back in labeling them as cheapness. I, then fail to understand that which percentage of Pakistanis are these who approve of all this on coming on to our TV screens??? I hope that we see some reality based dramas in a whole different light & the aspect which makes our norms & life look more real without any such ‘mirch masala’ or any such tag lines which may scream that Pakistan is a depressed country with depressed people.
After watching this show for 7 weeks, I have come to the conclusion that this show is not going to become fast paced. It was very slow in the beginning, but now gradually it is progressing at a steady pace. The story is getting more focused now and this episode mainly revolved around three characters; Haaniyah, Ahmed and Ahad.
The sad part is that Ahad does not feel even a bit guilty, and he actually had the audacity to put the blame on Haaniyah for not waiting for him. The flashback scene was brilliantly executed, and I am glad it was shown as it gave more insight to what kind of a rapport Ahad and Haaniyah shared. I simply loved Haaniyah’s jovial and talkative kind of nature which is a stark contrast from what she has become now; serious and quiet. Ahad has managed to break the spirit of Haaniyah who once used to be full of life.
We also got to know why Haaniyah is so cold towards Ahmed and why she is not able to adjust to the new situation. She thinks that Ahmed has made a huge sacrifice for her and this seems like a huge burden to live with.
‘Mein Thoopi Gaee Hoon Un Per’, this is what Haaniyah said to her mother when she asked the reason behind her cold behavior towards Ahmed. Haaniyah knows that he has married her just to save her and his family’s reputation, and this hurts her self-respect. What she does not know yet is that Ahmed has whole heartedly accepted her and intends to keep her happy. She just needs to give him a chance!
Ahad is now trying to contact Haaniyah so that he can get answers to his questions and blame her for being unfaithful to him. After Haaniyah ignored his calls, he misbehaved with Haaniyah and they had a pretty intense scene. Technically, Haaniyah should be the one blaming him for leaving her but the case was the other way round. Haaniyah has been very calm so far but she lost all control when he accused her, and her reaction was fierce. Ahmed has faith in Ahad that he would respect Haaniyah as she is his wife now, but I do not think Ahad has plans to leave Haaniyah alone anytime soon. Soniya performed well in this scene, though she did go a bit overboard. Shehzaad had the same expression throughout the scene once again; he really needs to work on his expressions.
Of course, Samina cannot be left out in any episode and she did get her share of screen space in this episode; though not as much as before. Her haughty attitude is just unbearable! Ahsan really has a lot of patience to withstand her intolerable attitude. Zaheer and Afshah’s scenes are still more bearable and I do not mind watching their scenes. Zaheer and Afshah is an ideal couple who understand each other; they are poles apart from Ahsan and Samina. But I still fail to understand the reason behind the focus on the problems they are facing in their house. Sidetracks can get really annoying at times!
The scene where Ahmed sees Haaniyah hurt and lovingly puts medicine on her wounds was the best scene in the episode for me. For the first time, Haaniyah let him care for her and did not try to keep distance from him. She was moved by his concern for her and could not help but realize what a caring person he is. One brother gives the wound while the other brother heals it! Their chemistry in this scene was just superb!
The story is finally moving forward and we can now see an understanding developing between Ahmed and Haaniyah. I am looking forward to see more of their scenes in the upcoming episodes.
The preview of the next episode shows that Ahad is not ready to leave Haaniyah alone. Let’s see how Haaniyah deals with him!
Do share your opinion about the episode; I would love to hear them!
So once again we’re left to solve the riddles all by ourselves & trust me it’s getting tedious. I mean I don’t find myself handling the whole ‘Mujhe Khuda Pe Yakeen Hai’ dialogue again & again & again along with the unsolved mystery. I feel we’d be pushed to such a point; when the real issue will be revealed, we’d not be bothered at all.
Narmeen’s getting evil day by day & whose more evil is her mother. I mean all this while, when she knows that Narmeen is mentally handicapped, still she goes around helping her transpiring more malicious schemes in her married life. I think Narmeen’s mother’s suggestion of filing a complaint against Arham to the police was way too much. She unnecessarily blew things out of proportion. Narmeen is not only bothering Arham but her own husband as well, whom she herself fell for. I think the whole family is way too lenient in handling Narmeen. Arham who keeps on yelling to the point where his vocal chords hurt still can not make his point clear & Narmeen, who being in a joint family ignorantly keeps on paying her ‘devar’ some meaningless visits. This just all look so unrealistic. I don’t think in a joint family (no matter how big the bungalow is) it is possible to just go to anyone’s room. Even if we take it as a drama, I feel somethings should be made real.
I find the to’s & fro’s from present to the past & vice versa a bit too confusing to follow. All this while I kept on wondering if Arham was recollecting some of the bad memories from the past or was Shakeel having those outbursts again in the present day. May be some B&W effects would’ve made it easier for us to follow through their patterns of Arham’s miseries, like it was still easier when he was in the Islamic get up but ever since he changed himself for Narmeen, things have gotten difficult…for Narmeen & for us; the viewers too.
Finally one particular twist that seemed interesting was Narmeen’s one on one conversation with Areeba. I never expected such a calm person like Areeba to actually react the way she did & I think it was a high time she got her point clear & through Narmeen’s head. This was one move of Narmeen which was spot on in a sense that she herself told the driver to let Arham know, so that he can be tortured & then eventually he will end up blaming Areeba for not being the first one to let him know about Narmeen’s visit.
I still find it really odd that being their family friends since childhood, Narmeen was actually telling Areeba that she was Arham’s ex-fiancée. Even though they try revealing something new but it’s just one or two scenes in the whole episode, which is why the whole drama is becoming bore-some. Rest of the episode is always like the very first episode in which they kept on beating around the bush.
I kind of laughed that Areeba at first stated ‘Mujhe Khuda Pe Yakeen Hai’ (almost making me bang my head into the cushion) & later just by Narmeen’s say, she was having second thoughts. I know she will over-come Narmeen’s negativity & won’t pay heed but for that moment I found it amusing. So, hoping to see some progress in the story next week but preparing myself to hear one thing from Mr. Shakeel, Mrs. Shakeel, Sarah, Shahiq, Arham & Areeba that ‘MUJHE KHUDA PE YAKEEN HAI BHAI’. lol!
The direction seems really unprofessional & the editing tops the unprofessional-ism. I see that they have not paid attention to minor details like in every scene their dresses changed just in a jiffy, which disrupts the continuity of the episode. Like Narmeen walked away after taunting Arham in front of the whole family in some other dress, but when she walks in her room & Shahiq is waiting for an explanation, she has a completely different ensemble. I don’t even find the dialogues appealing. Didn’t even come across a single dialogue that I could remember & sadly all the conversations just seem so repetitive with same words being uttered again & again & for this reason I fear that by the end of the serial my own reviews don’t end up sounding similar. lol!
Plus I never say that about anyone but I feel Momal Sheikh needs some good makeup artist who can actually enhance her beauty appropriately but sadly every time the case is otherwise.
Hum TV’s Kadurat is currently the most happening drama serial going on air which is enjoying a huge viewership and decent TRP in general. The drama is more like a ride where the viewer often lands up in a difficult state; all confused whether to hate Mina for her silly pranks she plans with her friend Shaheen to take revenge of her sufferings or to feel for her for all what she has been witnessing from her childhood.
The drama, written by Zoha Hassan, is a beautiful script which is quite near to the real world where the children suffer really hard when their father remarries, bringing them a step-mother after the death of their mother. However, Kadurat is now taking a new turn where the excitement of the plot is turning all controversial, especially after the recent promo which is now going on air. At one end where a pious relation of a brother and sister is put on stake with Mina now offering her brother to marry her, Shaheen’s greed and Mina’s revenge has crossed all the boundaries of decency with their latest move.
As been shown in the promo, Shaheen calls Mina’s father Mehmood at her place, telling him a lie about Mina’s health where Mehmood is drugged and the two girls capture his indecent photos while he lies unconscious. Deepak Parwani is all exposed shirtless giving a real sick intuition to the audience about the story.
Watch Promo here.
The drama no more seems to be a Pakistani project but reflects an old Indian touch where all one can do to avenge is to make the story go this way. Knowing that we have some very broad minded readers here, I would not be passing my personal views over the issue, but would definitely like to add that watching such promos while your father and brother been seated beside you is really awkward and there seems no difference in between our culture and the foreign traditions we are often criticizing.
This show is getting more interesting by the week. This week’s episode concentrated on the development of Maira and Shahab’s relationship, and the problems both of them faced in their relationship.
The stark reality of the people in the haveli was revealed in front of Maira the very first day. She had every right to be upset and disappointed with the way things had turned out. Her conversation with her mother showed her frustration, and how she feels about the whole situation. Like any parent, her mother was also upset after seeing her daughter so unhappy. If she thought that the situation was going to get better after she speaks to Badi Sarkar, then she was wrong. Amna gave her a reality check and made her realize what she had done to her daughter’s life. She seemed worried and scared for her daughter’s fate after that; but she also knows that it is too late to do anything for her daughter now.
Shahab does not know how to deal with the situation he is in right now. Yasmeen is becoming more and more difficult to handle. He got a very cold response from her when he went to apologize to her for the slap, on the behest of Maira. Technically, he should have gone and apologized to her before Maira told him too. I love the fact that he always discusses all his problems with the Bibis, and give importance to their suggestions. Amna always cracks me up with her extremely weird suggestions.
It was a very sweet gesture from Maira’s side to think about Yasmeen’s feelings. But if she expected Yasmeen’s behavior to improve with her after that, then she was totally wrong. Yasmeen never leaves a chance to taunt her and always remind her that she would also suffer the same fate as her. This show highlights how some people believe in traditions that are pure nonsense. The concept of getting the heir from the third wife beats me! It is hard to believe that some people follow and believe in orthodox traditions which are highly illogical. Hopefully, Maira will break their highly illogical tradition very soon.
I thoroughly enjoyed the interaction between Shahab and Maira, and all their conversations were the highlight of the episode. First the cute breakfast scene and then the ‘honey’ and the ‘moon’ scene was a total treat to watch. Maira is slowly realizing now that Shahab is very different from what she had initially thought, and is finally opening towards him. Shahab and Maira’s laughter during the scene where he gives her the present seemed a bit forced to me though. Ainie Jaffri and Noor Hassan have excellent chemistry and I am looking forward to see more interaction between them.
Just when Maira and Shahab were finally adjusting to the new situation; Fatima had to come and create problems for both of them. Her indecent behavior was ridiculous, and Maira’s anger was totally justified. But unfortunately, Shahab got all the blame even though he was innocent. Shahab can barely stand Fatima, but he has no say in who he wants to marry. Fatima is Badi Sarkar’s choice to be Shahab’s third and real wife, and Fatima always uses this to her advantage. She was gloating when Badi Sarkar was insulting Maira, and purposely showed the picture of her and Shahab’s house after marriage to Badi Sarkar in front of her.
Fatima became the reason for Shahab and Maira’s first argument. A little credit also goes to Yasmeen who instigated Maira in the first place. The preview for the next episode seems promising as Shahab will show Fatima her true place, and her reaction will also be worth looking forward too.
Fatima will not spare Maira for insulting her, and she will get back to her through Badi Sarkar. Next week’s episode will definitely be worth watching.
Do share your opinion about this week’s episode. I would love to hear your views!
Nyla Jafferi was absolutely flawless in tonight’s episode; I could relate to Ruqqaiya’s growing fears more than anything else in the play today. If I compare Rubina Ashraf and Nyla Jafferi in this particular drama then Nyla Jafferi takes the lead without a doubt. Rubina Ashraf needs to change her style a little in order to make her characters stand out. I am a big fan of Rubina Ashraf but lately I have felt that the way she breathes in between her dialogues is getting repetitive. My favorite scene from tonight’s episode was the one in which Ruqqaiya is saying her prayers and she can feel the demon’s presence in the room. This scene was sheer brilliance on part of the person behind the camera, the one guiding him and most importantly because of the superb acting by Nyla Jafferi. The amount of thinking that has gone into each of the scenes shows clearly in the play.
The most important development in this recent episode was that Faisal finally gets convinced that Mehr is possessed. The demon does not speak or act through Mehr now but it has an existence of its own. It is only getting stronger and will perish anyone who tries to harm it in any way. Shamoon Abbasi portrayed Faisal’s confusion and fear very well. The way Faisal gets convinced of paranormal activity was sheer brilliance too. The only thing that I find missing in the play is that the demon doesn’t actually do anything to harm the people in the house. It does not even destroy things but just scares people. Usually such creatures are very determined and they want something in particular that is why they show themselves to people. In this case the ultimate goal maybe to get Mehr divorced.
Mehr’s brother decides to take her to the mazar again so that the could once again seek help from the person who helped them befor eonly to know that he had died. The demon confesses to the crime and that makes Mehr’s mother even more concerned. Arij Fatima has proved in this play that she is not just another pretty face but she is talented as well brave enough to opt for such a difficult character.
Ruqqaiya decides that the best way to get out of this difficult situation is that Faisal leaves Mehr because she thinks that Mehr and her mother are involved in black magic. Ruqqaiya and Faisal’s conversation was also very nicely written and directed. Ruqqaiya’s friend is taking advantage of the situation and minting money out of her. The actress playing Surraiya always plays these kid of roles, she is the official trouble maker of our drama industry now!
The scene in the car when Faisal is driving Saba and Mehr back home could conveniently be shorter. The purpose of the scene was to show Faisal’s state of mind which was something that could have easily been done in a much shorter scene. The ending suggested that Faisal has finally decided to something about the situation but I couldn’t help but think that leaving his family alone at that time was not the wisest thing to do! the preview of the next episode showed that the demon is taking things to the next level and Faisal decides to find out more about Mehr’s state.
Woh has been a very engaging play till now. It has its flaws but it has definitely managed to serve the purpose. It has the right amount of horror and drama in it. The story is convincing and entertaining, the direction and camera work are very impressive most of the times and the acting is worth raving about over and over again.
The most anticipated movie of the year, which will also be representing Pakistani entertainment industry in Oscars this time made its grand release last Friday, that is, September 20th, 2013. The movie is a joint venture of India and Pakistan where we see Indian director adding in his experiences of direction in the movie and the Indian flawless actor Naseeruddin Shah doing a major role in the movie. The story is based on the lives of three friends in Lahore who are more than willing to do anything to get their green cards done.
The movie made its premiere recently and interestingly, many of our renowned celebrities made their appearance in the premiere and also appreciated the movie. The premiere was held at the ‘Ocean Tower’ (and not the atrium mall this time) last Wednesday where the presence of stars like including Zeba Bakhtiar, Samina Peerzada, Yusaf Bashir, Behroz Sabzwari, Faisal Qureshi, Nabeel, Junaid Khan, Amina Sheikh, Azfar, Nadia Jamil, Sarmad Khoosat, Noor-ul-Hassan, Aisha Khan, Sajal Ali, Momal Sheikh and Ainy Jaffri glowed up the evening further.
It is yet shocking that the movie hardly conducted any promotional campaigns apart from the promos that were seen going on air on ARY Digital, being a major contributor in the film’s production, yet, the movie is now ruling all the cinema houses all over the world.
Here are a few clicks of the night,
Have a look!
All for now, we congratulate the entire team of ‘Zinda Bhaag’ for its huge success and wish all the verys best for its future moves at Oscars.
Many new dramas have started recently, the viewers have a wide range of storylines, cast and crew to choose from. While the viewers may start watching a drama based on its cast and crew but the fact of the matter is that at the end of the day what really matters is that how engaging a play actually is. Many dramas which were not on top of the list previously have made their way on the top and some plays which people started watching enthusiastically have gone down because they failed to keep the audience engaged.
The first episode of Aasmano Pe Likha tops the list despite of the fact that it had some good competition on other channels. People watched this first episode more than giving their time to plays like Kadurat and Darmiyan which air on the same day.
Aunn Zara is second on the list beating plays like Khoya Khoya Chand, Maan Ke Moti and Justuju on the leading channels. This is a great success for Aplus, one which many couldn’t have predicted at all.
Kankar is third on the list which means that it has some loyal viewers who did not stop watching the play although the play Kabhi Kabhi which is also very appealing has started on ARY.
Adhoori Aurat is the fourth on the list. With the drama drawing to a close and some dramatic twists and turns in the story, the viewers are more interested in finding out how the story will unwind.
Mera Hamrahi even with its weak storyline and slow pace is number fifth on the list leaving behind a much more engaging play Halki Si Khalish, which did not make it to the list at all.
Kadurat is on sixth, which means that Darmiyan is gradually lagging behind.
Tar e Ankaboot is on number seventh although the story of Rishtey Kuch Adhoorey Se has gotten much more entertaining too.
Darmiyan is on number eight and it is surprising that Aseer Zadi and Numm even with a star cast have bagged TRPs that are not very impressive. Out of all the plays that are in the last five positions, Quddusi Sahab Ki Bewa is the most unbelievable one since it has been on air for the longest time but still is always there in the top charts.
This list looks very realistic, do share your opinion about it.
Finally, we have seen some developments in this serial today. Aliya received divorce papers and went into serious mental trauma after that.
On hearing Aliya’s divorce news, Gaiti’s father made it very clear that Arsal could have taken a step to eradicate that fuss created by him only because of his marriage.His one step could have saved Aliya’s life. He was,no doubt, right at his place but at the same time Aliya’s parents were also right that if they would have accomplished one of his demands now,he will ask for more and more in future.They were not expecting him to be such a coward and narrow minded human who can ruin his own life just to pamper and spoil his sister much more than before.
Gaiti is now realizing that she should take some serious step to solve out Nikah issue and for that she is continuously thinking to dug out a possible way through which she can solve out the issue. To maintain her relations, she also went to talk to Kiran that she went through a phase of tension soon after that Nikah incident and for that Kiran owes an apology from her.
While their discussion, Kiran came across shining Kangan that were carried by Gaiti so beautifully. Kiran is now getting serious for Arsal.Even if she is not ready to ruin her sister’s life still she can’t stop herself from thinking and observing every step that Gaiti takes. Her curiosity while Gaiti was on call with Arsal said it all.
Germs of jealousy are getting multiplied in Kiran with every passing day.She cant bear Gaiti’s late night phone calls. It can be easily observed that Kiran is messed up between her concern for her sister and that Nikah. All we have to wait for is which aspect of her will lead and which will lag.
On hearing about telephonic and asking about a situation closer to Gaiti’s issue, Gaiti’s mother considered it as a ray of hope that this Nikah is not a problem anymore. Still, Gaiti wants to confirm this matter from some religious scholar.
Last scene was quite interesting as Gaiti goes to her father and narrates everything to him.His fierce and angry looks were enough to kill any one.I was thinking that after that angry look,he will slap Gaiti but he stood up and went out of the room. And then,we heard a fired bullet sound..
Is this a dream of Gaiti or her father has seriously committed suicide? What will happen after Gaiti’s mother will come to know that Gaiti is not wed locked with Arsal.? Will she be able to get a possible way out of trouble or not ?
Novel based dramas are not new for our TV screens.Since the times of Ptv various novels of A.R.Khatoon, Zubaida Khatoon and Naheed Sultana Akhtar have been dramatized under the titles Shama,Afshan,Uroosa,Tasweer and Aanch etc.The advent of private television programming took this trend further and the stories,novels and novelettes of different digest writers were dramatized. Some of them proved to be super duper hits while others fail to leave a mark.In the following,we present our list of three worst drama based novels. You are free to disagree or present us with your own list
1- Amar Bail
This is a very popular story of Umera Ahmed.It is a love story of Umar Jahangir and Aleezay Sikandar set against the backdrop of Pakistan’s bureaucracy. How these two individuals fight their battles and complexes is the crux of the story. TVOne made a drama on it which was aired a few years ago. It starred Adnan Siddiqui and Maria Rabab (of Daak Time fame). However, Maria Rabab couldn’t do justice to her role and was much criticized by everyone for her poor acting skills and physical features also. A remake of the story featuring Fawad Khan and Nida Khan (Sanam’s friend in Kadoorat) was doing the rounds on social media sometime back but it remained a rumour as no such drama is under consideration atleast for now.It remains the most hated drama specially by fans of Umera Ahmed.
2- Mata-e-Jaan Hai Tu
It is a popular novel by ace novelist and superhit drama writer Farhat Ishtiaq.The story revolves around Ibaad Uzair (Aabi),his extreme love for his parents and what happens when he comes across Haniya Sajjad in foreign land and falls for while his parents has selected someone else for him back home in Karachi. The tragic death of Aabi as he’s coming back to convince his parents to accept his marriage with Haniya was the turning point of the story and the events thereafter took the graph of the story upwards.A drama was made on it and aired by Hum TV. It was scripted by Farhat herself and directed by Mehreen Jabbar.However,the suspense factor was missing for the large part in the story plus the casting of Adeel Hussain as Aabi disappointed a lot of Farhat Ishtiaq fans and was probably one of the reasons that the drama never saw the kind of ratings that the earlier blockbuster Humsafar had seen. It would be pertinent to mention here that Fawad Khan was originally to play Aabi but he couldn’t get the visa on time,hence came in Adeel Hussain.
3- Jo Chalay To Jaan Se Guzar Gaye
This novel of Maha Malik has been dramatized not once but twice, however, both times the drama version failed to impress the audience. It was a tale of a powerful person falling in love with a girl and getting her forcefully. The girl initially hates him but with time their relationship evolves. The second drama version starred Nauman Ejaz and Saba Qamar in leads but due to many differences from the actual story, added twists and turns and change in events led to this drama not getting much popularity.
As per the latest reveals received from the showbiz industry, Pakistani actress Sarwat Gillani who is loved for her exceptional and breathtaking acting on screen, is now all engaged to Fahad Mirza who is a well-known surgeon and is also seen on screen for his acting acting skills. Though rarely.
This beautiful diva started her career with her first drama ‘Ishq Gumshuda’ where she was actually noticed as an actress. She did her masters in film making and since then, she is affiliated with the entertainment industry. Out of so many hit serials she has given to the Pakistani entertainment, some of the outstanding ones include Azar ki Ayegi Baraat, Ishq Ki Inteha, Saiqa, Kuch dil ne Kaha, Mere paas pass, Meri Zaat Zara-e-Benishaan, Saiqa, Dil-e-Muzter and many more. Sarwat was recently appreciated for her outstanding theatre ‘’Dhani where she shared the stage live with Sanam Saeed. She made her film debut with Tarang’s housefull ‘Dil Mera Dharkan Teri’, starring Ahsan Khan and Sanam Saeed.
What might not be known by her fans is the fact that she was previously married to Omer Saleem who is the brother of very popular Ali Saleem (Begam Nawazish Ali) but somehow the marriage didn’t work and now she is all engaged to Fahad Mirza. The couple will soon be tying the knots of marriage this year.
We wish Sarwat and Fahad a healthy and smooth married life ahead,
2013 has brought glory for the Pakistani Entertainment Industry. Independent movies made by amateur Pakistanis have reached different movie festivals all over the world. Pakistani talent is being appreciated far and wide, and recently a Pakistani movie ‘Zinda Bhaag’ has also reached the Oscars.
Sharaz Ali is the director of the movie ‘Writhe’, which had the opportunity to feature in the Cannes Film Festival 2013. The short film has Armeena Rana Khan and Geoff Cooper as the leads. The story revolves around a woman’s mental pain and suffering due to an incident that occurred in her life.
Sharaz might have lived in Derby for most of his life, but his roots are still from Pakistan. He aspired to make an independent film, and though he faced many difficulties; he stayed determined and finally managed to complete his film with a lot of hard work and dedication. He had stated that he had no high hopes for the movie to get selected at the Cannes Film Festival, and had entered it in the spur of the moment, but he was in for a pleasant surprise when he got the acceptance mail. His film gave him an opportunity to mingle with the Hollywood’s elite crowd which included names like the Oscar winning actress Jennifer Lawrence and James Franco; the star from the Spiderman series. All the stars had nothing but praise for his spectacular short film. Writhe was also premiered in London after its success in the Cannes Film Festival.
Here is an interview of Sharaz Ali where he talks about his movie Writhe, his experience of working with Armeena Rana Khan, and why his movie has not released in Pakistan yet.
How did the concept of ‘Writhe’ evolve? Is it based on any true incident?
‘Writhe is based on a true story’, I said standing this in front of the packed screening room…
Followed by ‘no, not really’, after receiving some raised eye brows!
Even though it is not based on a true story, the core ingredients are all very much true and one that the audiences of countries such as Pakistan have seen much too often- domestic violence, rape and suicide due to depression and lack of support from the community. Writhe touches on all these in a way where the beauty of the shots, the audience don’t get hit with it until they have walked away- once the film has finished and discussion begins of the intentionally multilayered story.
Armeena Rana Khan is a new sensation of Pakistan. How was the experience of working with her?
She is a director’s dream, as she takes direction very well, easy to work with and gives 110% each take. I am really pleased and have every faith in her that she will keep surpassing audience expectations and be a force to reckon with in the future.
The first day of shooting was on a brisk winter morning- the sun was out but not everyone could tell the temperature was in the minus! Everyone was layered up and freezing yet thanks to me, Armeena had to be a thin red dress- she was feeling like an ice cube, but kept marching on with each take! I think that was the point I knew she in it with me and her professional commitment showed.
Do you think that Armeena has portrayed the character well? Would you like to work with her in future as well?
I pictured this almost innocent, beautiful woman in this big, bad world of London and she played that to perfection. Armeena has a beautiful face but her eyes were the key and window to her pain and suffering, as seen in the poster. Not only that, you also see something sinister brewing in there and that is why she was perfect for the role!
Armeena is a pleasure to work with and we have become a close friend since our shoot together, we have complete faith in each others talent. We have been eager to work together since Writhe, but time has been the only barrier for our future collaborations. We have many interesting projects in development so watch this space!
Do you have any intention to release ‘Writhe’ in Pakistan? If no, then how Pakistani fans of Armeena will be able to see it?
I think most of the Pakistani audiences would have heard of Writhe in the Writhe special bulletin on ARY. ARY was there exclusively to cover the screening, and had exclusive access to some of the footage for their report.
I am finalizing a deal with some online/on demand companies where the film will eventually be available for audiences from around the world.
What according to you is the secret ingredient for making a successful film?
Making a successful film needs a team – a tight, well-polished and hardworking team. You can have a great script, but it could get ruined in the shoot, or have a great shoot and ruin it in post, and even having the best actor sometimes doesn’t help if you take big Hollywood examples; if the rest of the team didn’t perform! Overall, you need a well-oiled machine and each cog needs to be on the same page – once you have that, success will follow.
So in this instance, I had a great idea I was enthusiastic about, great team and a beautiful actress who was made for the role! I knew exactly what I want to shoot with and how to get the shots I require, which I believe gave the rest of the team more confidence in me and believed in my vision. Just knowing that they trusted me was humbling, and also stressful- as it’s all on me!
Don’t you think parallel cinema is only for a limited audience as mostly people would not be able to digest the stories?
Parallel cinema is, at the starting point for a niche audience, which then spills over to slightly more mainstream when audience hunger for different, creative or new age cinema content grows.
In Pakistan, I know my film maybe bold for the general audience, but I know the younger generation will grasp this as an alternative to the norm. I am not saying Pakistani cinema needs a change or is dead as many reports suggest, but more so that as a global audience, I would like to give Pakistanis next generations something more rewarding to watch and something that’s not entertaining, but brings to light many issues in a creative way.
I know finance is also a very key issue here but if we can push/fund quality instead of quantity, younger filmmakers who see things differently like myself and born in Pakistan to share the vision and voice- eventually this will bring our Lollywood industry up to date and up to scratch.
This will eventually, bring a blurred line between mainstream and parallel cinema which in return will do what cinema is supposed to; give the audience a choice of what they would like to watch.
I believe in coming years, we need to move with the times but also not forget our roots. This will bring a positive change to the industry, the audience acceptance and the country’s stand in the film world.
What message would you like to give to the young film makers in Pakistan?
As a filmmaker, I know sometimes you have to compromise your vision to get to the end result… As an individual who has seen change from the outside, lived in Pakistan and seen it from both sides. The best advice I can offer is to keep working on your art, keep your focus and patience as it’s not an easy industry- anywhere in the world to break into and we have a saying here, ‘You’re only as good as your last work!’ so make sure each projects counts.
Finally, as I am sure you already know, the more you do the more you learn, so don’t stop or give up at the first hurdle, the race is long and only with yourself- so only you can push yourself to the finish line!
Would you ever consider working in Pakistan?
I would love to work in Pakistan- either in the TV or Film world. Besides being a challenge, I think I can teach and learn from a country that I would like to push into the world via its creative platforms.
This year was the first time I had gone to the Cannes Film Festival with my films, and to hear people saying that my film was the ONLY Pakistani film in the festival was astonishing. I thought to myself, how could an industry as large as Lollywood not have anything here?
For this reason, I would like to come and help develop, change and mold the industry to help get positive recognition, show its talent and of course that we can and are a competitive force in the film industry!
