The year 2012 is drawing to a close, so this should be an appropriate time to talk about the dramas that left their mark on our minds and those with which we attached great expectations but they turned out to be very disappointing. The good thing about this year was that there were far more hits than misses. The year 2012 gave us some very entertaining and engaging plays. In fact when I sat down to make a list of these plays; it was almost awe-inspiring to know that Pakistani dramas are regaining their vitality. Here is a list of dramas which in my opinion were big hits and some of them were so impressive that they are sure to stay with us for a very long time. Quite interestingly, many of the mega hit plays of 2012 were based on novels.

1. Hamsafar:

Any drama discussion for the year 2012 should start from Hamsafar. There are many people who believe that there was nothing outstanding about Hamsafar, it was yet another story of make-ups and break-ups. That actually is right to some extent but that does not change the fact that Hamsafar was one of the most watched dramas in the past decade or so. Not to mention how so many of us waited for the new episode to go on air every week. When Hamsafar went on air, Saturday nights really were Hamsafar nights. I remember feeling frustrated when Ashar refused to listen to khirad and the misunderstanding continued for years. Hamsafar was engaging and engrossing, the characterization was spot-on and all the actors were well-suited for their role. Personally, the ending did not appeal to me much and I would have liked to see Ashar beg and plead more before Khirad finally went back to him.

The play Hamsafar aired on Hum TV, it was based on a novel written by Farhat Ishtiaq, directed by Sarmad Khoosat and produced by Momina Duraid.

2. Maat:

Maat started in 2011 but ended in Feburary 2012, so technically this would count as a play for this year. This was another play that kept me glued to my TV screen and I found myself rooting for Aiman just like so many other people out there. Amina Sheikh totally nailed her character as Aimen and no one could have played the greedy, selfish Saman better than Saba Qamar. Honestly speaking, the ending of Maat was much more satisfying than Hamsafar. Unlike hamsafar,In this particular case I really felt like the man (Faisal) also paid for his wrongdoings.

One more thing worth mentioning here is that after the success of Maat, many of the writers started writing plays on the same lines and a never-ending line of dramas portraying sibling rivalry started. The viewers have had enough of this concept now and it is actually very refreshing to see two sisters enjoying a normal healthy relationship in our plays. It is sad when the writers start following a formula and kill the originality of dramas.
Maat aired on Hum TV, It was an adaptation of Umera Ahmed’s play. The play was directed by Amna Nawaz Khan and produced by Momina Duraid.

3. Ek Nazar Meri Taraf:

I am sure this is another play that was watched by many and barely needs any introduction. Alishba Yusef’s portrayal of Siffat is still fresh in the minds of many and there are so many of us who cried with her. Ek Nazar Meri Taraf was the story of a young widow, who is forced to go in a never-ending period of Iddat by her mother in law. Siffat’s life takes an even tragic turn when she finds out that her dead husband Haider was cheating on her. The writer Zanjabeel Asim Shah tried to raise and answer many questions regarding the position of a widow in our society and showed that a widow has as much of a right to move on with her life as anyone else.

Ek Nazar Meri Taraf was another play that kept me coming back for more and although there were times when I grew weary of watching Siffat cry, at the same time I eagerly waited to see her happy ending.
Ek Nazar Meri Taraf aired on Geo, entertainment. It was written by Zanjabeel Asim Shah, directed by Owais Khan and produced by Media City.

4. Tishnagi:

Tishnagi definitely counts as another hit on my charts. It aired on Express Entertainment, a channel that is not watched as widely as many of the mainstream channels but I remember stopping to watch Tishnagi while switching channels and it had me hooked instantly. The refreshing thing about this play was the acting and the direction in particular. Tishnagi was the story of a young girl Manahil, who marries the love of her life Nabeel without the consent of her parents and later she is faced with some very troubled times. What I enjoyed the most about this play was the flow of the story and the characterization. But I must add that as the play drew to an end, it somewhat lost it’s charm and the ending was anything but satisfying. Overall, it made for good entertainment and stood out at least for me.

Tishnagi aired on express Entertainment. It was written by Faiza Iftikhar, directed by Babar Javed and produced by A & B productions.

5. Durr-e-Shehwar:

Durr-e-Shehwar was not just another play; it was a work of art. Given the fact that majority of our plays deal with marital issues, it really was nothing short of a feat that Durr-e-Shehwar got so much attention even though it was another story of a troubled marriage. What made Durr-e-Shehwar stand out was its balanced approach, the inspiring dialogues (we will never forget the father daughter conversations, the letters) and the message it put forward. All the actors did a commendable job, it was brilliantly scripted and directed to perfection and the most talked about play of recent times. Hum TV definitely deserves credit for giving us plays like Hamsafar and Durr-e-Shehwar.

Durr-e-Shehwar was written by Umera Ahmed, directed by Haissam Hussain and produced jointly by Six Sigma and MD Productions.

6. Mata-e-Jaan Hai Tu:

Mata-e-Jaan hai Tu was another play that was followed religiously by many but there were many viewers who felt that Sarwat Gillani and Adeel Hussain were not exactly the best choice for playing Aabi and Haniya and failed to relate to the romance between the two. Personally, it took me sometime to warm up to Haniya and Aabi but once I did it turned out to be quite a rollercoaster ride of emotions. I have to admit though that my interest in the play lessened in the last few episodes because of Aabi’s “mysterious” disappearance. Mata-e-Jaan had a certain freshness about it that cannot be denied. The OST of the play was extremely melodious sung by Bilal Khan but unfortunately it failed to get the attention it deserved.

This play aired on Hum TV. It was directed by Mehreen Jabbar and produced by Momina Duraid.

7: Shehr-e-Zaat:

This is one of those plays that don’t need any introduction and since it recently ended, it is still fresh in our minds. Shehr-e-Zaat had to be the most thought provoking and the most talked about serials of 2012, just like Durr-e-Shehwar. Some people may disagree with how the overall message was presented on screen but the fact remains that it was a serial that many people found extremely inspiring and left a deep imprint of viewer’s minds

Shehr-e-Zaat aired on Hum TV. It was written by Umera Ahmed, directed by Sarmad Khoosat and produced by Momina Duraid.

8. Thakan:

Thakan was another play of 2012 which got massive viewership. The play revolved around Sadaf; a girl who works day and night to provide for her family but does not get due recognition. Saba Hameed played Sadaf’s mother who because of her insecurities refused to give her daughter the love she deserved. I must say that I lost interest in Thakan somewhere along the way because of the repetitiveness and the fact that Saba Qamar was playing a somewhat similar role in Yahan Pyar Nahi Hai at the same time too.

Thakan aired on ARY digital. It was written by Faiza Iftikhar, directed by Amin iqbal and produced by A & B productions.

9. Bilqees Kaur:

Bilqees Kaur was another extremely gripping play of 2012 with some amazing performances to it’s credit. The characterization was spot on and it was acted out beautifully. Bushra Ansari won our hearts as Bilqees and the story had some very interesting twists and turns. Most of the people were very disappointed with the ending and there were some loop holes in the script as far as the time period etc was concerned, minor details that many people thought did not go in line with an otherwise excellent script.

Bilqees Kaur aired on Hum TV. It was written by Faiza Iftikhar, directed by Adnan Ahmed and produced by Momina Duraid.

I must add one thing here, that the numbering does not mean one drama was better than the other. There were many other plays in 2012 that were widely followed but I do not think they were mega hits. I followed some of them and did not follow others. But here is a list of those plays and I will leave it for you people to decide whether they were hits or not and also share with us how you felt about these dramas.

Kafir
Yahan Pyaar Nahi hai
Meri Ladli
Behkawa
Jahez
Mere Qatil mere Dildar
Zard Mausam
Annie Ki Aye Gi Baraat
Kuch Pyaar ka Pagalpan

Now for the dramas which I thought were complete disappointments and need to be mentioned in particular because I for one had great expectations from these plays.

1. Mere Dard ko Jo Zuban Miley:

Yes this play deserves to be on top of the list because I had faith in this play right till the end but MDKJZM turned out to be a lost cause. It was play with so much potential, we had some loveable characters played brilliantly by some very talented actors and the direction was good too but the story went completely haywire and it turned out to be the biggest miss of the year!

2. Mera Saeein 2:

The viewers had enormous expectations from this sequel since the prequel was a big hit. But unfortunately the sequel had nothing new to offer.

3. Sanjha:

Sanjha was another play which could have been the next big thing, the reason being that the storyline was completely different and it introduced some great newcomers. Sanjha could have been very effective in raising awareness about human trafficking but the story completely lost it’s focus after the first few episodes and the play failed to deliver.

4. Maseeha:

Maseeha was definitely a huge miss. A weak storyline, flawed direction and characters that left you perplexed made Maseeha one of the worst plays that aired on Hum Tv in 2012.

5. Mujhe Roothne Na Dena:

The primary reason I looked forward to this show was that I wanted to see Komal Rizvi act and the first few episodes did keep me glued. But, gradually I completely lost interest and I honestly felt that this was another play which could potentially be one of the good plays. It touched some important issues like that of children who are abused at a young age and the way girls are exploited in our society but Komal Rizvi, who should have been the star of the show left me with the feeling that she should just stick to singing. The play took one ugly turn after another and turned out to be a disaster.

The idea of writing this piece was that we should be able to talk about the plays that went on air in 2012. I hope this article will help you take a trip down the memory lane and give rise to an interesting discussion.

Fatima Awan.