Tonight’s episode focused (generously) on everyone’s reaction to Zeeshan’s father’s decision. The viewers were shown in great detail the reactions of all the family members. The first half of the play was filled with meaningless conversations. The only conversation that deserved all the screen time was the one between Rabbiya and Zeeshan. Mira Sethi was brilliant in that particular scene. She portrayed all the emotions of her character flawlessly. Rabbiya found it impossible to believe that Zeeshan’s father could come up with such an unacceptable solution to the problem. Her reaction was justified and shown superbly. I could not be less bothered with how the rest of the family members felt about it because none of them had anything new to say. Those scenes could easily have been chopped down. The viewers know all the family members well enough by now so even a couple of lines from each character would have conveyed the message loud and clear.

Hassan deserves to be shot; the way he has been harassing Romaissa is beyond sickening. But then all of Nabeel’s family members except for Zeeshan of course have done everything in their power and more to make things even more difficult for Romaissa. Even Waleed proved today that he is not just useless but he can also stoop as low as Hassan and Nabeel’s father to get his hands on Romaissa’s money. No surprises there of course.

The best part of this episode was that the viewers got a chance to see a lot of what Romaissa was thinking and going through. Usually we see Romaissa crying, we hardly ever see her thinking or reacting to anything. This time around Romaissa decided to take action. She felt cornered, used and abused. She even turned to Khala in order to get out of the situation she is in and she went as far as contemplating suicide. I am so glad that it wasn’t Zeeshan who rescued her because I was expecting that it may just happen. The two most important people in her life – her father and her dead husband – were the reason she chose to stay alive.

The flashback scene in which Romaissa is talking to her father was truly touching. I wish we could have seen more of the beautiful conversations that Romaissa used to have with her father. The sweet words that her father spoke to her helped me relate to the person Romaissa is today. Her father was obviously her ideal and whatever he taught her is very close to her heart, which is exactly the reason why she is such a harmless and sweet person.

I feel for Adeel Hussein, his character has one more shukki wife to deal with now. But I must admit that Zeeshan’s character is way better than Ehtesham in every way possible and I do not expect it to go downhill. Zeeshan threatened Hassan like a true policeman and I loved him for it!! The preview of the next episode definitely gave me something to look forward to. Looks like it would be Rabbiya’s greed because of which Zeeshan will leave her. No wonder her parents figured out the reason behind Zeeshan’s father’s grand plans – it takes one to know one!! I really liked the way the scene in which Zeeshan sees Romaissa and Hassan talking was shown. In any other drama Zeeshan would have heard the entire conversation but in this one Romaissa spots him the second he is near enough to hear what they are talking about. This was definitely more real.

This episode could have been much better if Nabeel’s family members were given less screen time but overall it was good mainly because it showed the more human side of Romaissa. Sanam Jung was absolutely wonderful in tonight’s episode today. Adeel Hussein never ceases to impress me with his performance and I really liked Mira Sethi in tonight’s episode as well.

Do share your thoughts about tonight’s episode. Any predictions about what is going to happen next?

Fatima Awan

Ohkay, I must say Rubaru is getting better & better. 14th episode, still going strong & still not disappointed. I hope they do not stretch the drama & end it at a good note.

I am still unable to figure out the importance of Kiran Teeepu story. I mean what does Kiran want now? She wasn’t satisfied & happy when she was single, she was at her worst when she got married, she herself left no stone unturned to get divorced & now when she has remarried, she has totally gone crazy. Does she really think she can win Teeeepu over again? & I really don’t get why her irritating character is even so important that we get to see her throughout the episode. Aik do scene karo aur paray karo isay.

Teepu has found an old/new friend in Neha. He definitely knows her as Surmed’s ex but now she is also single after having her bad share of divorce. I think things might shape up for Neha & Teeeepu & they’ll tie the knot pretty soon because they both are seemingly enjoying each other’s company these days.

I thought Surmed actually had nothing against Shabbi & Neelam’s family but I was wrong. He only pulled off the acting till he got to the position which he hoped for. He has now found the perfect way of taking revenge from the whole family. I am glad that Shabbi got to know everything about Surmed at just the right time because now she can still prevent something worse that might happen.

I think none of us might’ve even imagined the things Surmed went through as a child & for this I do commend the writer for bringing in these twists at just the right time. At first he did come across as a victim but surprisingly he was a nanha munha villain on his own. I think Syra Yousaf failed in portraying the shock Shabbi got after finding the truth & the real face of her husband because she conveniently seemed too dumb & numb thinking crying another glass of tears would be the perfect thing to do.

I must say in a bunch of expressionless people like Teepu, Kiran, Shabbi & Surmed, Neha is such a pretty face & a breath of fresh air. I know she doesn’t have much of a role to play but definitely brings in the energy & a positive one at that. I think we all complained at the never-ending wrath on Surmed/Faizan Khuwaja’s face but now when I saw him smiling I thought this guy must never smile again. I am glad he uses his teeth stealthily & miserly because that smile just doesn’t suit him & he is definitely saving a lot of people from the creepy shivers.

Anyhow, this was quite an interesting episode & I can’t wait to find out what happens ahead minus Kiran & her irritating voice.

Keep Supporting,
Cheers,
Zahra Mirza.

I started watching the play Meri Beti because it had some of my favorite stars. I must confess that all the dramas that have been produced by the Big Bang Entertainment (Fahad Mustafa & Dr. Ali Kazmi’s production house) start with a big bang but gradually go downhill after a few episodes. The casting and acting is always stellar but the direction is so weak that even a story with tons of potential falls flat completely.

The story of the play Meri Beti was unusual and intriguing but the writer and the director failed to keep the viewers looking forward to more after episode 18; like many other dramas the focus on stretching the dramas till episode 25 or more took over everything else. The relationships between all the characters were established beautifully in the beginning, I couldn’t help but connect to everything that I saw on screen. But once Iraj found out the truth, the pace of the drama got so slow that it was very hard to keep that connection with the characters. Iraj’s reaction was completely justified but the entire situation was dragged without end. Samina Peerzada’s character’s death was completely unnecessary. Everyone could have resolved their differences without this turn in the story. What Iraj’s grandmother did was extremely wrong because many people were affected by her decision but I really did not want her character to die with guilt! She was not portrayed as villain but was made to look like one towards the end. I would have been much happier with the ending if Iraj’s grandmother’s death was not used to take the story forward.

Faisal and Iraj’s relationship was the only good thing about the play that lasted till the end. There were times in this last episode and also in the play overall when the emotional scenes were overplayed. Simplicity and clarity in direction most often leaves more of an impact than scenes that are over dramatic. There was way too much crying in the past few episodes as well. Irij took too long to forgive her grandmother who had given her all the love in the world which could easily have made up for the mistake she committed in the past. Iraj’s grandmother’s intentions were always pure; she wanted her daughter to be happy and she raised Iraj in the best way possible. Iraj’s mother in law got away with everything but the writer made sure that her grandmother paid for her mistakes! It is ironic how our writers conveniently forget about these trouble makers when they are winding up the story. They are used as a tool to create misunderstandings but these negative characters hardly ever pay for their mistakes.

The story was stretched to the limit, so much so that by the time we got to episode 20, I just wanted the play to be over! I completely lost interest in the play after Samina Peerzada’s character died because in my opinion her character deserved to be happy just as much as Iraj and everyone else. Samina Peerzada, Sabreen Hisbani, Arij Fatyma, Shahood Alvi and the child star Maryam deserve a special mention for their brilliant performances.

How many of you followed the play Meri Beti? Are you satisfied with the ending?

Fatima Awan

While looking at the promos I thought this drama definitely would offer something different. I must say considering the very first episode they did progress the story with the help of some flashbacks quite appropriately. If I have to explain in the simple words this is just another story about the joint family politics written by Zanjabeel Asim Shah & directed by Owais Khan. I have heard some great reviews from the viewers who have seen the scripts written by Zanjabeel Asim therefore I’m ready to give this one a try plus after APlus’s brilliant Aunn Zara that I covered, I am hoping APlus will not disappoint the viewers this time around too.

It’s the story of Gaitiara (Saba Hameed) who spent all her life miserably under the domination of her mother in law (Badar Khalil). Before her death, Gaitiara’s MIL thinks the best way to keep the family close-knit is to have the interchanged marriage of her grandchildren. Without the consent of her daughter-in-law Gaitiara, the MIL orders Rafique (M. Hanif) & Sherbano (Naila Jafri) to get their children married when they grow up.

Gaitiara & Rafique have a son Daood (Ahsan Khan) & a daughter Deeba (Sadia Faisal) where as Shehrbano’s son is Abdullah (Furqan Qureshi) & the daughter is Momenah (Sonia Hussain). Daood & Momenah have always loved each other because of their pre-arranged relation but Momenah has her inhibitions because of Daood’s mother. Momenah feels that Gaitiara has become quite bitter because of the ill-treatment of her own MIL. Daood tells Momenah to ignore his mother’s bitterness & treat her with love & respect because she can’t resist as she has emotionally suffered a lot. Momenah also dreads that things might go wrong & they’d have to part.

Where Daood & Momenah have a good relation & they love each other, Deeba always feels that Abdullah isn’t interested in her but she decides to give the utmost attention to her relation with a wishful thinking that Abdullah will fathom her love & she will win him over one day. Gaitiara who feels that now she is in a position to break the engagement, tries to talk her daughter out of her commitment but Deeba refuses to let go despite the fact that Abdullah has always lent a cold shoulder to her. Gaitiara tries to explain to Deeba that the way her own father was cold, similarly Abdullah will not treat her well but Deeba remains persistent because she believes the time will change.

Abdullah after an year of his marriage to an Indian Muslim girl in the USA tells his mother, sister & Daood that he has gotten married. Hell breaks loose when Daood finds out as he is devastated & can’t imagine what his sister will go through because she loves Abdullah & this also compels him to have second thoughts about his own engagement to Momenah.

Momenah tries to persuade Daood into getting married to her before his mother finds out about Abdullah’s marriage as she knows that Gaitiara will not allow Daood to get married to Momenah as well. Daood does try to convince his mother for his marriage but Gaitiara clearly tells him that she won’t allow it until Deeba is married off to Abdullah.

This much was revealed till now & I feel the pace was good. I did find the beginning scene of the episode a bit too prolonged & felt they should’ve tackled it better because the conversation seemed never-ending & the flashbacks weren’t supporting the whole feel of the conversation but after that the episode picked up the pace & it got me interested. Let’s see what happens next because we have a lot of characters to know the story of. I feel that the fresh young cast will play a great role in the success of the drama but this depends on the director the most as to how he brings out the best in them, let’s see. Share what you thought about the very first episode.

Keep Supporting,
Cheers,
Zahra Mirza.

Hmmmmmmmmmmmmm, so sad that I expected something different by looking at the promos of this drama. I know it’s too early to pass a verdict about the story but as far as I can foresee, this drama is another of those infidel love triangle sagas which do have a capability to make your head spin. Written by Amna Mufti & directed by Misbah Khalid – let’s see what this duo has come up with.

When I saw Saba Qamar act like a normal lady as in not as a villain in the promos I thought I definitely will give this drama a try but seems like Mikaal Zulfikar didn’t want to experiment & to be on a safer side, there he is, once again playing a role of a bored husband who’s bored with his wife & is egoistic. Zara (Saba Qamar) is a working woman who handles everything on her own but only expects her husband to acknowledge the efforts she puts in running the house. Surprise surprise, Jazib (Mikaal Zulfikaar) is once again a discontented husband who is not only egocentric but thinks highly of every single female other than his wife. They have a beautiful home with two lovely kids Sofia & Tabrez.

Jazib is now taking care of his Khala (Seemi Raheel) who separated from her husband just because he got married again. Khala has come to stay with Jazib because apart from him she has no one to seek help from. She has an only daughter Dua (Sanyia Shamshad) who’s B.A & Parathas have impressed Jazib so much that he expects his wife to leave everything & try to be like Dua for once & if not totally, she must at least try her hands on parathas by herself which will improve the state of their turbulent married life by heaps.

I must say I really don’t understand why all the working women in our dramas are shown as head-strong females who have a good salary & a dysfunctional marriage to their credit? In reality, I have seen so many working women who know how to maintain a balance between their professional & personal lives. Who excel in their careers & also have a squeaky clean home & kids but sadly none of such character has ever made it to our TV screens. It seems like the writers want to impose the fact that all those working women who leave their homes for their jobs have sulking husbands who miss their presence & a bunch of servants who take care of the house. Seems like Jazib very easily wants to get away with his unfairness by taking his wife for a lunch & by apologizing to her after belittling her, because it was the very same Jazib who just snubbed Zara off as he didn’t want to remind kids of their routine.

Even though Zara has wholeheartedly accepted Jazib’s gesture to help his Khala, Jazib thinks Zara is unhappy because she’s being exposed for not taking care of the home like a normal married woman. Zara on her own feels that Jazib has provided her with everything except loyalty. Khala herself has sussed that Dua’s presence might prove to be a hurdle in Zara & Jazib’s rocky marriage but she unwillingly & hesitantly has chosen to stay because Dua is having a time of her life by making Pink Tea for her Jazib Jee & Parathas for Jazib Jee’s kids. I found it a bit too clingy to see Dua getting so much involved in household chores; I mean who does it these days?

Overall, it was a pretty average episode & a very disappointing start because the story has begun with the negativity. The direction was pretty ohkay but I am not too impressed by the script as yet. I am not sure what the drama will offer because for now it seems like a predictable love triangle & nothing else. For the sake of my wishful thinking I’ll give this drama a chance, so let’s see how it goes! Share your opinion about the very first episode of the drama.

Keep Supporting,
Cheers,
Zahra Mirza.

Dhoop Kinare – a classic of olden times, written by Haseena Moin, directed by Sahira Kazmi & produced by Farkhanda Shaheen for PTV. I thought it was a high time to revive & relive the excellence of our old blockbusters by discussing them therefore my pick from one of them for this week is Dhoop Kinare.

This drama needs no introduction because it is one of those classic masterpieces of PTV that made it across the border & compelled everyone to say that Pakistani dramas are beyond imagination amazing. I must say I had heard about it & somehow picked the story as well when my family watched it back in those days but this is the first time I got to see it myself & couldn’t resist praising it, not wondering why it got such popularity. All the actors were perfect & their conversations just brought a smile to my face.

The list of the actors & characters is:

Rahat Kazmi as Dr. Ahmer Ansari
Marina Khan as Dr. Zoya Ali Khan
Badar Khalil as Dr. Sheena Karamat
Sajjid Hassan as Dr. Irfan & Anji’s Fiancé
Qazi Wajid as Mohsin Ali Khan & Zoya’s Father.
Arshad Mehmood as Baba & Dr. Ahmer’s Foster Father.
Azra Sherwani as Fazeelat Bibi & Homemaker
Hamid Wayne as Mr. Jalal & Anji’s Father
Ishrat Hashmi as Mrs. Jalal & Anji’s Mother
Kehkashaan Awan as Anji & Zoya’s Best Friend
Rizwan Wasti as Mr. Nasir Jamal & Dr. Sheena’s Husband
Latif Kapadia as Dr. Adil & Dr. Ahmer’s Best Friend

The Story:

Dr. Ahmer; an orphan lives a life with his foster father who adopts him when he was just a child. Since then they both share a cordial relation because they both mean the world to each other. Dr. Ahmer’s life turns upside down when Baba dies leaving him devastated not only because of his death but because a secret he kept all his life from Ahmer about a family that he once had. Baba leaves a letter to Ahmer revealing the truth but he refuses to read because he is on his journey of detest & doubts. He feels wronged because of the secret Baba kept to himself all his life. For Ahmer, Baba adopted him because he wanted him as a partner to end his loneliness & all these doubts take place in Ahmer’s heart because before dying Baba makes his grand-daughter a beneficiary of the home both Baba & Ahmer lived in.

Zoya Ali Khan who’s a fresh MBBS graduate finds out that her grandfather whom she never met left a house under her ownership. Zoya a boisterous young girl who takes life way too casually now believes that she has attained a wealth overnight so therefore she doesn’t need to work hard in becoming a practicing doctor, but just because her father reminds her of how much her mother wanted their daughter to be a doctor Zoya agrees to do the house job to fulfil the wish of her late mother.

Zoya joins the hospital in a children’s ward where Dr. Ahmer is her boss. Oblivious of the link they both share, they both continue to have turbulent relation because Dr. Ahmer’s a perfectionist & a dedicated doctor but Zoya is least bothered about her duties & doesn’t understand the complexity of her job. Time takes her toll on Zoya & Dr. Ahmer’s continuous scolding convince her to take her job seriously & she also promises herself to prove a point to Dr. Ahmer that she can be a good doctor too. Zoya eventually works upon her motive & earns the respect of not only Dr. Ahmer but all her colleagues as despite having a serious job of taking care of childern with illness, she brings in the life & positivity to her surroundings.

Dr. Sheena who has been friends with Dr. Ahmer for a long time idealizes him as her perfect partner but she gets the idea that Zoya is also getting interested in Dr. Ahmer. This paves the path towards a love triangle. Sheena always gives Zoya a hard time but she finds Ahmer always supporting Zoya. Sheena now understands that Ahmer never intended to have a committment to her, then marries her classfellow. After seperating from her husband Sheena still hopes that Ahmer will take her as his wife because she hates seeing herself losing in front of young Zoya. Ahmer’s continuous support to Zoya then becomes a liking & later takes a form of emotional attachment towards her because he couldn’t help getting attracted to Zoya’s positivity & her lighthearted take on life. Ahmer always feels conscious of their age difference but overcomes the fear because he hears Zoya’s confession to Sheena about how much she loves Dr. Ahmer as she couldn’t resist falling for a charismatic person like Dr. Ahmer.

It’s now the time when they both are aware of each other’s feelings when Zoya’s father suffers a loss in the business & is physically fragile. Without her father’s consent Zoya tries to sell off the home so that she can help pay off the loan that her father has garnered. Ahmer who had always strived for getting the house back happily purchases it just to find out that the girl who he hated for taking his home away from him was none other than Zoya. Ahmer then reads a letter his Baba writes to him before dying in which he confesses how leaving his own family daunted him so therefore he wanted to do good by his granddaughter as a compensation because he could never provide a shelter to his own daughter. This way he would rest peacefully that he at least gave a roof to his only granddaughter. Dr. Ahmer comes to term with the fact that Baba was a person who only believed in benefitting those he loved therefore Ahmer accepts Zoya wholeheartedly not only because she was Baba’s granddaughter but also because he loved her.

The Brilliance of Dhoop Kinare:

I must say while watching the drama, the only thing I couldn’t stop raving about throughout was the usage of proper & accurate Urdu. I kept on wondering that no doubt Pakistani drama industry has progressed in terms of technicality & technology but we have also taken a back turn in the basic things like simplicity, the accuracy of Urdu & those brilliant heartfelt stories which leave you awestruck because of their excellence. I couldn’t help noticing how easily such a simple execution could strike a chord & make a drama memorable. No doubt the progress our industry has shown these days has its pros & cons but sadly the quality of entertainment has been left far behind. After watching Dhoop Kinare I do hope that our current lot of actors work on their accent & pronounciation of our language & use just as much Urdu as they can because it was a treat to listen to. The drama-makers must consider projects like Dhoop Kinare as a standard that they have to & they must deliver & I am sure our industry will redeem itself overnight!

All the side characters had just an important role to play in this drama as the main characters. As much as I enjoyed Dr. Irfan’s conversations, I loved the relation Zoya shared with her father. As much as Fazeelat’s raised voice to put forward her concern about Zoya was enjoyable, seeing Anji’s father as a stern & disciplined businessman but a soft-hearted father to her was a treat to watch too. All the characters were just perfectly portrayed by the actors & I must say I loved almost all the conversations because they were simple but carried a million meanings within.

I loved how Anji was ears to Zoya’s innermost feelings & how Zoya pushed Anji towards Dr. Irfan. Dr. Ahmer found a trusted friend in Dr. Adil who always helped him in changing his perspective towards certain things. Another aspect that went to show how straight forward Zoya was, were the confrontations she & Dr. Ahmer had. No one actually could’ve dared speaking to Dr. Ahmer just like that but it was only Zoya, who knew she had to convey her feelings to let the other person know how hard it was to keep up with the trials they put Zoya through. I must say I never thought that the actors back then had cared much for the fashion but it came by as a pleasant surprise to see all those ladies as proper fashionistas with short hair, matching earrings & up-to-date outfits of that era. Even though they all came across as very simple, each one of them had a fashion sense for sure.

Each & every actor enacted their character perfectly & I couldn’t believe how effortless Marina Khan was as Zoya. It was like she was born to act because she gave a life to her character. Rahat Kazmi was undoubtedly at his best & he portrayed the character of Dr. Ahmer with brilliance. & I must give a special mention to Sajjid Hassan for performing Dr. Irfan with so much ease. Each of his scenes were like a rollercoaster ride & he singlehandedly instilled the humour quotient in the drama. No wonder why this drama became everyone’s favourite because it certainly deserved to be. I am glad I took my chance & invested my time in Dhoop Kinare because yes, nothing can ever beat the magnificence of this drama.

Share your views about & memories that you have of Dhoop Kinare.

Keep Supporting,
Cheers,
Zahra Mirza.

Wallah! The first thing I said when I started watching the episode was OH MY GOD & that is because of Bushra Ansari. ENOUGH SAID!

Moving onto the eliminations. Another surprise was revealed that from now on the danger zone would consist of 2 contestants instead of three, so that means more pressure on the contestants & their supporters. I’m definitely sad at the elimination because I certainly wanted one from a couple of others to get eliminated but nevermind.

The first duo that came in for their result for was of Rosemary & Abdul Rafay Khan. By listening to Mohib’s revision, it seemed that Rosemary also got picked on some of the weak points in her performance but yes hers must’ve been a tinsy bit better than Abdul Rafay Khan because she was safe obviously & well deservingly.

The second duo that got it’s results was of Kashif Ali & Zamad Baig. One is Kailash Kher the other is Rafat Fateh Ali Khan so yes, we lack versatility from them & for this reason one of them went to the danger zone which was Zamad Baig.

The last & the third duo that faced the results was of Ali Asad Zaidi & Mohammad Shoaib. It was the best moment of the whole episode to see both of them being safe.

Then it was a time for the segment which was dedicated to Zamad Baig & his family. It was sweet to see him meet his parents after 3 good months. Happy times for Zamad Baig. I think by this time it became a little too obvious as to who’d be going home.

It was now the time for the final announcement regarding Zamad Baig & Abdul Rafay Khan. Yes, it was Zamad Baig who was safe leaving Abdul Rafay Khan behind & eventually eliminated.

Obviously the judges felt sad with the fact that his journey ended & they had some really nice things to say about him. I think Hadiqa Kiyani certainly has a role to play in his elimination because yes, it goes back to the song that was allotted to him.

Anyways, I wish him all the luck, success for his bright future because he certainly has a long way to go. Share your opinions about the elimination tonight.

Keep Supporting,
Cheers,
Zahra Mirza.

How many of you have watched the movie “Back To The Future”? Anyone remember how Marty McFly used to react when someone called him “chicken”? Well, Shaam is no different when someone does not trust him he makes sure he goes out of his way to change that person’s shukk into yakeen. I wish he believed in putting the same amount of effort into convincing the other person of his innocence. Shaam’s unreasonable behavior reminded me of Marty, who unlike our hero had a time machine which showed him the future so he found out beforehand where this habit of his could land him! Shaam has no time machine to do that for him so he will continue following his “instinct” which is not always right. Shaam has gone from divorcing Sehrish to pleasing her. I have no idea why an intelligent girl like Sehrish is going along with her mother in law’s ridiculous plans.

The pregnancy news was a lie (thank God!) so when Shaam “officially” finds out that everything was staged, he will probably go back to Saniya! I didn’t think that it was possible to make a bigger mess out of the story but I have been proved wrong. Tonight’s episode was very pleasing visually but other than that even the funny sitcom effect is quickly wearing off. Hurray!! So Saniya’s mother knew about the nikkah all along. Now if Samira Fazal is listening, it would be nice if we get to see how Ali feels about these latest developments because there can be no way in the world that he does not know about everything that has transpired. Ali was a nightmare husband and a terrible father but the fact that he left Roomi with Saniya when he had the choice of keeping him went to show that he cares about his boy. So, he must have called at least to stay in touch with Roomi.

Marriage is a sacred bond between two sensible individuals which is taken very seriously in our set up but this play has turned marriage into a gudday guddi ka khel for sure! I find Shaam’s mother’s attitude highly unreasonable but at least we know now who Shaam takes after! Not thinking before you take huge steps that can have serious repercussions runs in the family.

Shaam should understand now why Sehrish turned into a very unreasonable person when she found out about Saniya and Shaam’s past because even a woman like Saniya has completely changed now that she has to share her husband with his first wife (not someone else). Saniya’s conversation with her mother was very interesting; her mother seemed very sure that Saniya never really got over Shaam and that was the reason why she did not think much before marrying him. I am not even going to go into the details of the about turns that all the characters have taken this time around because it would be like saying the obvious. It almost felt like the writer wants the viewers to feel for Shaam at this point but I am finding it very difficult to feel for him at all. He knows that Sehrish is not expecting (for obvious reasons) but he is playing along only because he wants Saniya to realize that she was wrong. Hasn’t he done all this before too? He has already forgotten all the lessons her learnt from his previous mistakes? Shaam needs to stop blaming his first and now second wife for all the wrong decisions that he has taken in the past and those which he is taking right now. All he needs to do is to make up his mind and take action – is it really all that difficult? All the other characters in the play need to grow up!!!

Tonight’s episode was not the least bit entertaining. It was a visual treat but nothing made sense. What else can one expect from an episode which starts with a dialogue like “ap aj kahan soyen gay”…everything that happened in the entire episode revolved around this dialogue!!

Don’t forget to share your thoughts about this latest installment.

Fatima Awan

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

Keep Supporting,
Cheers,
Zahra Mirza.

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

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

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

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

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

Fatima Awan

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

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

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

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

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

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

Keep Supporting,
Cheers,
Zahra Mirza.

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

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

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

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

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

Keep Supporting,
Cheers,
Zahra Mirza.

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

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

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

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

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

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

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

Keep Supporting,
Cheers,
Zahra Mirza.

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

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

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

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

Fatima Awan