With the onset of private television channels and the race for TRPs, every year so many dramas go on the air on these Pakistani channels which follow a certain formula to attract ratings. Since the writers are so focused on the guidelines given to them by the production houses they most often find it difficult to pen down convincing storylines that would serve some purpose and make sense. There are also those instances when the writers mess up completely while attempting to achieve too much. There have also been times when in an attempt to be ‘different’ the dramas ended up being pointless altogether.

Although these dramas most often have what it takes (star power, great production values, a melodious OST) to attract the masses, they are totally meaningless when it comes down to content. The main purpose of a drama is to provide entertainment but that does not mean that entertainment and logic cannot go hand in hand. Penning down stories that leave the viewers clueless and giving them an ending that makes these stories even more worthless is a practice that has unfortunately been followed by even the best production houses and writers in Pakistan. Since these dramas attract the masses therefore they are most often stretched as well which is why they go even further downhill. After watching 20 episodes plus serial, the viewers are left wondering what the purpose was behind the drama. Even the entertainment value of such dramas dies down after a few weeks which is why they are neither the best dramas nor the worst ones since they might have some good performances and some positive aspects to them as well. Overall, however, these dramas simply can be put in one category and that is of dramas that serve no purpose!

Here is a list of those Pakistani dramas of 2020 which might have been entertaining for a few weeks but overall they served absolutely no purpose which is why after a while those viewers who prefer watching quality entertainment were disappointed with these dramas.

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Sabaat

Writer: Kashif Anwar
Director: Shahzad Kashmiri
Producer: MD Productions
Channel: HUM
Main Cast: Sarah Khan, Mawra Hocane, Ameer Gillani, Usman Mukhtar.

Sabaat had high production values, a star cast, and even a talented director but even then it turned out to be one of those dramas which do not serve any purpose. When Sabaat’s OST was released, viewers were even more eager to watch the drama since this soundtrack suggested that it was going to be a meaningful drama. In the first few episodes, the only attraction for most of the viewers were supporting characters played by Muhammad Ahmed and Seemi Raheal. The main character which got more screen time than any other was Miraal and that was one of the most shallow and poorly etched-out negative characters we have seen in recent times. After showing the viewers just how negative Miraal was and focusing entirely on her right from the beginning, in the end, the writer simply gave her a happy ending hence proving that there was no purpose of showing all the plotting and planning.

In the beginning, the script was so dodgy that the viewers were led to believe that Sabaat would perhaps highlight mental health issues. When Usman Mukhtar was introduced as a psychiatrist, most of the viewers rightfully thought that for a change they would get to see a person from a different profession take the lead. This character however ended up being the plainest and annoying one. The writer also tried to show an independent woman but this track also kept the viewers wondering right till the end. While most viewers celebrated Anaya’s victories, they were extremely disappointed when she easily forgave Hassan after Miraal asked for a proper apology on his behalf. All the tracks in Sabaat had potential but none of these tracks had a definite direction. It was almost as if the writer had no specific purpose in mind while penning down the script. It was just another typical drama with a below-average script that was presented as if it was something new and unique! Sabaat’s script was also highly inspired by dramas such as Zindagi Gulzar Hei and Hamsafar.

Tera Ghum Aur Hum

Writer: Maimona Aziz
Director: Azeem Sajjad
Producer: Moomal Entertainment & MD Productions
Channel: HUM
Main Cast: Zain Baig, Hajra Yamin, Azekah Daniel, Shajeer Uddin, Humera Bano, Azeem Sajjad, Bina Chaudhry, Raja Hyder, Rashida Tabbassum.

Tera Ghum Aur Hum started off on a promising note even though this was yet another drama with a love triangle but the male lead Ali in particular was introduced as an intelligent man who knew exactly what he wanted. The character played by Hajra Yamin was never appealing and the one played by Azekah Daniel has been shown in Pakistani dramas innumerable times. Even then for many weeks, Tera Ghum Aur Hum provided quality entertainment until the writer decided to make this sane hero go berserk! All of a sudden he started making the most ridiculous decisions starting with his second nikkah. The drama completely went downhill from that point. The script stopped making sense altogether, the pace slowed down and the OST was overused to stretch the scenes.

The viewers watched Hajra’s character Mahi suffering right from the beginning and most people only watched the show till the end to watch her happy ending. The ending however was nothing short of shocking because this character was completely relegated to the background and somehow Sara (the negative character) got a happy ending! Tera Ghum Aur Hum’s ending made it a drama that served no purpose. What was the point of showing all the negativity when in the end the villainess was going to magically turn into the heroine! This was one of the weirdest endings which basically defeated the purpose of the drama altogether. It was almost as if the first 15 episodes were written by someone else and after that, the story was simply dragged by adding meaningless sidetracks and misunderstandings.

Dil Ruba

Writer: Qaisera Hayat
Director: Ali Hasan
Producer: MD Productions
Channel: HUM
Main Cast: Hania Aamir, Mohib Mirza, Shehroz Sabzwari, Syed Jibran, Marina Khan, Ghana Tahir, Nabeel Aijaz Zuberi, Saad Azhar.

Dil Ruba was another drama with a clichéd storyline that had no purpose. Generally, such storylines have a specific purpose if nothing else. Mostly the purpose of such dramas is to show how the greedy and selfish females get punished in the end. While the writer followed the usual storyline as shown in many such dramas, the ending made this drama a completely meaningless exercise. In the end, the girl who never valued relationships and put materialistic gains before her own parents and siblings was somehow exempted from everything, and the blame was put entirely on the men she had relationships with.

In an attempt to give a ‘different’ ending to a typical story, the writer took away the essence of the story. After showing how Sanam made the most foolish decisions and treated relationships like disposable commodities, the writer chose a happy ending for her but only after taking all the responsibility off of her shoulders. What was the point of showing Sanam treating her family and even her own child so ruthlessly when in the end she was going to be turned into a bechari?

Jo Tu Chahay

Writer: Qaisra Hayat
Director: Ilyas Kashmiri
Producer: MD Productions
Channel: Hum TV
Main Cast: Imran Abbas, Alizeh Shah, Zarnish Khan, Ahmed Taha, Nargis Rasheed, Areej Mohyudin, Naima Khan.

Drama serial Jo Tu Chahay was pretty much one of the hyped-up plays before it began. The viewers were excited to see the fresh pair of Imran Abbas and Alizeh Shah. Although the age difference between the two was also spoken about it still seemed promising. Soon after the drama started airing, the audience realized that this drama had no substance whatsoever. It was a story revolving around the most typical family politics in the most typical manner.

The writer Qaisra Hayat did try to impart a few messages related to being grateful and thankful to Allah for all that He blesses one with, those few messages got lost because of the overpowering negativity that covered the chunk of the episode. This entire story was based on cousin marriages and their longing to have one. Each one of these cousins were interested in each other and it seemed there was nothing else in their lives that they would dream of. The fact that the drama was titled ‘Kun Faya Kun’ initially did make people wonder why it was chosen in the first place, especially for the project that did not have anything special or substantial to offer. Imran Abbas himself ended up calling this project ‘faarigh’, therefore what more of testimony do we need to believe that this drama actually served no purpose at all!

Bandhay Ek Dor Se

Writer: Faiza Iftikhar
Director: Ali Faizan
Producer: 7th Sky Entertainment
Channel: Geo Entertainment
Main Cast: Ushna Shah, Ahsan Khan, Hina Altaf, Saba Hameed, Saba Faisal, Samina Ahmed, Noor ul Hassan.

Writer Faiza Iftikhar is one of the best drama writers the Pakistani industry has ever seen. This is the reason drama buffs actually look forward to her projects because they are certain that she is going to bring something exciting and refreshing to the table. However, it is unfortunate that Bandhay Ek Dor Se, despite having an ensemble cast failed to deliver any special purpose to the viewers. It is a very typical storyline based on family relations and to push the typicality to the limit, she also added the typical love triangle where a guy is married to his cousin without his consent and ends up chasing after his dream girl.

The dream girl Roshni has no qualms chasing after Omar, a married man and she is leaving no stone unturned to make sure that he ends up divorcing Maheen. Hina Altaf has done good work in the past but in this drama serial, her acting, as well as character, is intolerable. Ahsan Khan failed to fit in the character who is in his 20’s. Ushna Shah is the only positive thing about this drama but she alone obviously can not save it, nor can she compensate. Not to forget, the slow pace is another aspect that tests your patience. The viewers had high hopes with Bandhay Ek Dor Se, however, it soon became obvious that this drama actually serves no purpose and wouldn’t have made much of a difference if it wasn’t produced, to begin with!

Mera Dil Mera Dushman

Writer: Mirza Asim Baig & Humera Safdar
Director: Syed Ali Raza Usama
Producer: Six Sigma Plus & Next Level Entertainment
Channel: ARY Digital
Main Cast: Alizeh Shah, Yasir Nawaz, Noman Sami, Laiba Khan, Anum Tanveer, Naveed Raza.

Mera Dil Mera Dushman ended up garnering a lot of viewership and popularity because despite having an overdose of family politics and conspiracies, it was well executed, at least in the beginning of the drama. The editing, direction, and even the acting were on-point which actually made people follow it. However, it turned out to be another drama that ended up testing the patience of the audience. Not only it was dragged but the way the entire story unraveled makes one question the purpose this drama was serving.

Mera Dil Mera Dushman was also promoted heavily by both Alizeh Shah and Noman Sami because the two were supposedly dating and they wanted to take advantage by creating hype. The story had a cringe-worthy track which showed Zafar, a man in his 50’s paying Maira’s family to get married to her, a girl who was a quarter his age. Alizeh Shah’s acting was blood-boiling too and the entire drama became a laughing stock because of how poorly it was handled as the episodes progressed. The fact that the producers and the entire team failed to graciously end at the right time was a big mistake made by them.

Tarap

Writer: Nadeem Siddique
Director: Misbah Syed
Producer: MD Production
Channel: Hum TV
Main Cast: Hiba Bukhari, Babar Ali, Syed Jibran, Saleem Mairaj, Laiba Khan, Faiza Gillani.

Drama serial Tarap also started on a strong note with the story revolving around the lives of two girls who were exploring the paths of their lives without much guidance or support from their brother and also a grandmother. Zunaira especially ends up being a victim of conspiracies and gets married off to a widowed man twice her age who also happens to be a father of two children. All of this happens because Zunaira fails to open up her mouth and let her family know what actually happened. Her brother who takes pride in being a man of principle ends up ruining not only his own life but his son’s life, his sister’s life as well as the lives of everyone around him.

Tarap had a lot of potential to be a good drama, however, the weak protagonist and frustrating scenarios of Zunaira unable to save herself made it a tad bit unrealistic. It seemed as if the only thing that the writer focused on was Zunaira’s forced helplessness whereas all she needed was to muster up the courage and speak once to save her life. Zunaira chose to suffer but not say anything to defend herself, this story definitely served no purpose at all.

Jalan

Writer: Sidra Seher Imran
Director: Aabis Raza
Producer: Big Bang Entertainment
Channel: ARY Digital
Main Cast: Minal Khan, Emaas Irfani, Areeba Habib, Fahad Sheikh, Hajra Yamin.

It won’t be wrong to say that drama serial Jalan is the most controversial drama of this year. This is the reason it got banned and unbanned twice and people have wholeheartedly spoken against the theme of the drama. Drama serial Jalan became under severe scrutiny right after the promotional teasers were released which showed a girl chasing after her sister’s husband. When the drama began, everyone already knew what they were going to witness, because of which the viewers made sure to raise their voice against the questionable subject covered in this drama. Drama serial Jalan has all the flavors that any below average drama has, a cold-blooded gold-digger Nisha who has no issues pushing her sister Misha to death so that she can take her place in Asfand’s life.

Now that Nisha has tasted this life, she is ready to go back to Ahmer, her ex-fiance whom she rejected because of his status. This drama has also shown a doormat in the form of Areej who literally put up with her husband’s emotional abuse for years before sticking up for herself. Ahmer who had no issues treating his wife like a doormat is now head over heels in love with her because she chose to show him a mirror which reiterates the fact that he was nothing but a loser with zero self-respect and a big ego. Jalan is currently airing and to see Nisha’s antics is not only monotonous but absolutely boring too. This drama has definitely served no purpose whatsoever and showing a victim committing suicide and leaving her newborn at the mercy of the world was another track that did not sit well with the viewers.

Mohabbat Tujhe Alvida

Writer: Abdul Khaliq Khan
Director: Barkat Sidiki
Producer: Barkat Sidiki & Zayed Shiekh
Channel: HUM
Main Cast: Sonya Hussain, Zahid Ahmed, Mansha Pasha, Javed Shiekh, Sajida Syed, Angeline Malik, Mizna Waqas.

Well, we all know the actual purpose behind the making of this drama – copying Judai of course! But is that really an actual purpose? We think not! The confusing storyline of the drama, unconvincing plot twists, overacting of even the best actors, and the futile attempt to change a film into a complete series make Mohabbat Tujhe Alvida a drama which makes you wonder what the makers were thinking when they came up with the storyline. What is the purpose of showing a woman selling her husband and another woman so willing to ‘buy’ him? If the purpose was to show that women should not be selling their husbands then you will all agree that it was a pretty lame reason for penning down such a story.

If making the man look like the bechari was the purpose then the writer failed badly at that too since there isn’t a single scene where you actually feel for him! Actually, any mature person would find it really difficult to take this drama seriously. If the purpose was to make people laugh, then Mohabbat Tujhe Alvida fails at that too, since it is definitely not a light-hearted comic play.

All these dramas basically go to show that how important it is for the writers to write stories with a specific purpose in mind otherwise even those dramas with the biggest stars which have more than 20 episodes end up being pointless and purposeless. Which one of these dramas did you follow? Do you also feel these dramas served no purpose whatsoever? Feel free to share your views.

Fatima Awan & Zahra Mirza

Pakistani drama industry is unlocking new levels of success, popularity, and achievements with each passing year. This is the reason more, and more dramas are being produced, and almost all kinds of issues and stories are being explored and brought to the table in a hope that they’d entertain as well as create awareness among those who choose to watch these dramas. Pakistani drama viewers have become quite vocal about the kind of content they like and things they do not really enjoy watching much.

Just like every other year, a lot of dramas were produced. Where some dramas did really well because of the appealing storyline and great characterizations, there came along such dramas that did not really have much to offer. A lot of factors contribute to making any drama worst, such as weak storyline and direction, poor characters, and over-the-top acting. This year, Pakistani drama buffs came across a lot of such dramas that were worst and had all those flavors in them that contributed towards their failure. Some dramas ended up becoming a laughing stock and others, despite having viewership failed to actually show substantial content.

Here is a list of Worst Pakistani dramas of 2020:

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Jhooti

Writer: Ali Moeen
Director: Syed Ramish Rizvi
Producer: iDreams Entertainment
Channel: ARY Digital
Main Cast: Iqra Aziz, Ahmed Ali Butt, Asma Abbas, Madiha Rizvi, Yasir Hussain, Paras Masroor, Tauqeer Nasir, Mariyam Nafees.

When Iqra Aziz announced her next project after Ranjha Ranjha Kardi, the viewers had a reason to be excited since she played her role so well in Ranjha Ranjha Kardi, and her fan following multiplied as a result of that. Ahmed Ali Butt was also going to be a part of a prime-time drama serial for the first time therefore that was another reason why Jhooti was one of the most awaited plays this year. This was also going to be Iqra and Yasir’s first drama together. The title of the play wasn’t promising but the interviews of the cast suggested that this drama might highlight a social issue. Jhooti however proved to be another one of those dramas that bank heavily on the negativity of the main protagonist. Not only this, right from the get-go the situations that were shown in Jhooti were highly unconvincing. It was presented and written like a sitcom but it was supposed to be a serious drama.

Jhooti also came under severe criticism when the main protagonist Nirma lied about being beaten by her husband in order to get a divorce. The viewers rightly found this disturbing because the writer made a mockery of something as serious as domestic abuse. The ending of this drama was just as ridiculous as the basic storyline and the script. This ending was just as typical and run-of-the-mill as the drama itself. This drama was as shallow, pointless, and boring as its title!

Ishiqiya

Writer: Mohsin Ali Shah
Director: Badar Mehmood
Producer: Big Bang Entertainment
Channel: ARY Digital
Main Cast: Feroze Khan, Hania Aamir, Ramsha Khan, Gohar Rasheed, Shabbir Jan, Seemi Pasha.

Ishqiya was the perfect example of the fact that even a star-studded cast cannot save a poorly scripted drama. This was another drama this year that was neither entertaining nor logical. It had some of the most absurd characters and the treatment given to the script made it even more absurd. Those of us who watched this drama are still haunted by the OST since it was overused to the maximum so that the scenes could be stretched. Hamna, the character played by Ramsha Khan has to be the most wooden and weird character we saw in Pakistani dramas this year.

Hania Aamir’s character in the drama could have been appealing if Romaissa wouldn’t have been shown as a strange mix of bubbly but terribly dumb in some ways! Most of the characters had no idea what the other person was going through as if they were living in their own bubble. So much so that even when Hamna looked like she was going through hell, Romaissa pretended like she couldn’t see what her sister was going through. Hamza’s revenge plan was just as ridiculous as the rest of the drama and only the die-hard Feroze Khan fans would have been able to sit through the absurdity!

Jo Tu Chahay

Writer: Qaisra Hayat
Director: Ilyas Kashmiri
Producer: MD Productions
Channel: Hum TV
Main Cast: Imran Abbas, Alizeh Shah, Zarnish Khan, Ahmed Taha, Nargis Rasheed, Areej Mohyudin, Naima Khan.

Jo Tu Chahay was titled ‘Kun Faya Kun’ initially and the original title alone was so promising because the emotional nation that we are assumed that the writer must be bringing something super substantial because of which she chose such a meaningful title; turned out the writer was playing a prank and ended up successfully fooling the viewers out. As the story of Jo Tu Chahay progressed, it became a lot more evident that it was about a whining nagging girl who despite having her grandmother’s support just couldn’t find herself a reason to be thankful. Mashal was the bone of contention between the entire family.

In simple words, it was a typical ‘mohallay wala cousins wala pyar’ sort of a story where each and every cousin was trying to get hooked to one another. Arman wanted to marry Mashal. Areesha wanted to marry Arman. Bisma wanted to marry Hashir. Burhan wanted to marry Mashal. Mashal wanted to marry Hashir. In the end, Hashir and Mashal, throughout the drama who always emphasized the fact that they were each other’s brother & sister ended up getting married ta-daaa! No wonder why in an Instagram Q&A session, Imran Abbas himself called this project ‘faarigh’, we totally agree with you Imran!

Deewar e Shab

Writer: Aliya Bukhari
Director: Iqbal Hussain
Producer: MD Productions
Channel: Hum TV
Main Cast: Sarah Khan, Shahzad Sheikh, Shehroz Sabzwari, Kinza Hashmi, Nausheen Shah, Zara Noor Abbas, Asma Abbas, Bushra Ansari, Iqbal Hussain.

The last episode of Deewar e Shab aired on March 21, 2020, and even after 8 months, we’re still trying to figure out the purpose of this drama and the meaning behind its story? Isn’t it amusing that the drama which had a good 40 episodes failed to deliver a clear cut message and also failed to create an impact through the million characters that the story revolved around? There were so many characters that if tackled properly, it could have been an engaging journey but the poor direction drowned the ship.

It won’t be wrong to say that the very first 5 episodes of Deewar e Shab were very interesting but after Nagina’s daughters grew up, the story lost the appeal it had. The story of two brothers and their children also was so boring that it made the viewers scratch their heads trying to figure out what the writer was longing to show. The ending of this drama was so abrupt and the main character of Khayyam, played by Shehroz Sabzwari still failed to find the peace that he was looking for despite getting enough chances to live life the way he wanted. Deewar e Shab’s story was based on one of the finest works of Urdu literature but the execution was disastrous!

Kahin Deep Jalay

Writer: Qaisera Hayat
Director: Saima Waseem
Producer: 7th Sky Entertainment
Channel: Geo Entertainment
Main Cast: Imran Ashraf, Neelam Munir Khan, Hammad Farooqi, Nazish Jahangir, Saba Faisal, Ali Ansari.

It won’t be wrong to say that the viewers were actually excited to see Neelam Munir Khan and Imran Ashraf after their mega-hit serials Dil Mom Ka Diya and Ranjha Ranjha Kardi, turned out they were excited for no good reason because Kahin Deep Jalay became Kayi Dil Jalaye because their fans were thoroughly disappointed and their blood was boiled! This drama had your typical ‘sazishi bhabhi’ whose hobby was making mountain out of a molehill. It was interesting to note that the writer tried to make Shameela the ultimate villain but her negativity was overpowered by the stupidity of the supposed ‘masoom’ characters who chose not to say anything to help their situation.

Saba Faisal played the role of Khadija who loved her children more than anything but despite seeing their sufferings, she decided to observe ‘mourn vrat’ because she felt it was too difficult to speak up and put Shameela in her right place. This drama was quite frustrating on its own but what took it to another level was Imran Ashraf’s bad acting. It was obvious that Imran Ashraf tried to break free from the ‘Bhola’ spell but it became evident that not only he was trying too hard, but he was failing miserably as well. Imran Ashraf tried to show Zeeshan’s character as a very emotional person but it ended up looking annoying. This entire drama was frustrating to watch and became one of the worst that we came across this year.

Mein Na Janoo

Writer: Noora Makhdoom
Director: Furqan Khan
Producer: MD Productions
Channel: HUM
Main Cast: Sanam Jung, Zahid Ahmed, Affan Waheed, Komal Aziz, Waseem Abbas, Huma Nawab.

Who could have thought that some of the wisest actors in the industry would choose to be a part of the disaster that was Mein Na Janoo. This was the most meaningless, absurd, and poorly acted-out play this year. Right from the beginning Sanam Jung’s performance, Affan Waheed’s white-washed look, and the pathetic storyline made the viewers question Zahid Ahmed and Sanam Jung’s choices in particular. The viewers were left wondering why Sanam Jung decided to make a comeback with such a pathetic drama. Not only this Sanam’s overdramatic performance made the viewers question her acting skills. Even Affan Waheed’s performance was so disappointing in some scenes that the emotional scenes looked comical. Zahid Ahmed even apologized for being a part of the drama and accepted that he had not made the right choice!

Most of the viewers gave up on this drama after a few weeks and those who watched it right till the end got to see the most pathetic ending to a drama serial this year! Mein Na Janoo was the worst in terms of script, execution, and performances. It was a complete train wreck right from the first episode till the last one! This was a drama that did not even have enough substance to cross 15 episodes but it was on air for 37 weeks.

Muqaddar

Writer: Iqbal Bano
Director: Shehrazade Sheikh
Producer: 7th Sky Entertainment
Channel: Geo Entertainment
Main Cast: Faysal Qureshi, Madiha Imam, Ayesha Gul, Ali Ansari, Haroon Shahid, Sabeena Farooq.

Muqaddar was another drama this year with some of the most sought-after and versatile actors yet it was sadly the worst drama of 2020 which was not just poorly written but also highly misguided. Just like all the other dramas on this list, Muqaddar never had anything to offer. It is truly unfortunate when an actor of Faysal Qureshi’s stature does not only become part of such a drama but even promotes it as a ‘love story’. Not only this, even someone as talented as Faysal Qureshi seemed to be trying too hard; the accent was fake and the performance wasn’t impressive. Madiha Imam, who is usually so sensible while choosing the projects she works in disappointed everyone by playing a character that started off as interesting but turned out to be quite twisted.

At the end of the day Muqaddar was another dusri biwi storyline but with a really ugly twist. Every time the viewers thought they had seen the worst of this drama, the writer shocked them with another ugly twist! The ending of this drama was the final nail in the coffin. The person who had all the characteristics to be a villain was conveniently turned into a hero with his second wife (whom he had kidnapped and forced into marriage) running a charity with his portrait hanging in the background! As far as twisted storylines go, Muqaddar definitely took the lead this year.

Thora Sa Haq

Writer: Adeel Razzaq
Director: Ahmed Bhatti
Producer: iDreams Entertainment
Channel: ARY Digital
Main Cast: Ayeza Khan, Imran Abbas, Mashal Khan, Saba Faisal, Behroze Sabzwari, Firdous Jamal.

This was not the first time that Ayeza Khan and Imran Abbas starred in a drama with the most typical storyline. Thora Sa Haq however is the worst drama these two have been seen in together. Imran Abbas and Ayeza Khan both somehow end up being part of the most clichéd storylines and unfortunately every year the quality of dramas they work in seems to be deteriorating. Both these actors know that they have the star power to make their fans tune into their drama therefore even though Thora Sa Haq was a sickening sob fest, it was a popular hit. This was another drama in which Ayeza Khan cried from the beginning right till the end. It was also one of those many dramas in which Imran Abbas played the role of the forever clueless hero.

Thora Sa Haq’s story was another doosri biwi story presented on screen in the way it has been shown so many times before as well. Ayeza Khan played the bechari wife and Mashal Khan played the crazy one who married this man even though she found out that he was already married. Thora Sa Haq used the same old tactics to get attention from the viewers which have been used so many times before and sadly enough such dramas get the ratings, therefore, the makers continue to churn out such absurd plays.

Daasi

Writer: Misbah Nausheen
Director: Mohsin Talat
Producer: MD Productions & Moomal Entertainment
Channel: HUM
Main Cast: Mawra Hocane, Adeel Hussein, Faryal Mehmood, Kamran Jilani, Hina Khawaja Bayat.

Dassi was Adeel Hussein’s comeback play and Mawra Hocane also played the leading role in it. Both these actors are quite choosy about the dramas they decided to act in yet they chose to be a part of one of the most badly written and executed dramas this year. Daasi’s script failed to impress completely and both the leading actors gave the worst performances of their career in the drama. This was one of those dramas which did not even get viewership like some of the other dramas on this list. The only thing viewers were thankful for when the last episode aired was Mawra’s neatly styled hair since most of the views thought that her hairstyle was the most annoying aspect of her look for the drama. Some of the scenarios in the drama were presented in such a dodgy manner that even those viewers who watched all the episodes couldn’t find the answers to some of their questions.

The slow pace, disappointing performances, and some of the most illogical and overdramatic plot twists made Daasi the worst Pakistani drama of 2020. It is unfortunate that an actor such as Adeel Hussein who has been part of some of the most notable dramas of the past decided to make a comeback with this drama. His fans expected better from him and from the two topmost production houses in the industry.

Zebaish

Writer: Bushra Ansari
Director: Iqbal Hussain
Producer: MD Production
Channel: Hum TV
Main Cast: Bushra Ansari & Family & no others.

The entire cast and crew of Zebaish deserve a standing ovation for giving us a drama so bad this year that it somewhat made us forget about the pain and stress caused by Covid-19 because there’s not even a single episode of Zebaish that would not make you laugh. Writer Bushra Ansari deserves full credit for doing Pakistani drama buffs such a huge favor and the rest of her clan also should be praised for acting so bad that it makes you laugh like hyenas. Drama serial Zebaish is written by Bushra Ansari, to showcase the character of Shahana, played by her as well, as a ‘Mahanta ki moorat’. Shahana has done so much and has given her everything to others that in the latest episode when she had to flee to save her life, she only had one maxi dress at her disposal.

All the experienced actors such as Asma Abbas, Asad Siddique, Bushra Ansari, Babar Khan, Zara Noor Abbas have acted so bad that it makes you wonder they themselves were not in a serious mood while shooting this project. The story was somewhat alright but the bad execution and poorest direction by Iqbal Hussain have taken away an ounce of interest people could’ve developed in the story. All the actors have overacted to their heart’s content and their exaggerated expressions send shockwaves in your brain. Within this drama, all the actors are competing with each other to win the award of who can over-act the most; leading the race are Zoya Nasir and Zara Noor Abbas, followed closely by Asma Abbas and Babar Ali. Bushra Ansari has looked her prettiest in this drama but even her expressions are a treat to watch because of being so loud and equally bad!

Meherposh

Writer: Misbah Nausheen
Director: Mazhar Moin
Producer: 7th Sky Entertainment
Channel: Geo Entertainment
Main Cast: Ayeza Khan, Danish Taimoor, Zainab Shabbir, Ali Abbas, Sania Saeed, Rehan Sheikh, Ismat Zaidi.

This drama was promoted as the next big thing because this was the very first project of real-life star couple Ayeza Khan and Danish Taimoor after their wedding. Ayeza Khan had mentioned in one of her interviews that she would love to work in a typical love story with Danish and would want her first movie with him to have such sort of a script. Ayeza must’ve thought that the movie could wait, therefore the script that had such twists and turns must have intrigued her. Meherposh ended up being such a flop that you would barely find both Ayeza and Danish promoting it on their social media handles. The misfortune of Mehru started at the very beginning and still continues. Mehru got divorced because her husband Naeem thought she was characterless. Mehru also decided to commit suicide. Mehru was taunted and her reputation was tarnished.

This drama showed all the things it should not have in regards to a girl getting divorced. From Shahjahan’s mother to her friend Neha’s mother during her wedding function, Mehru was treated as an outcast because she got divorced? Shahjahan has loved Mehru with all his heart, so much so that he ended up marrying Mehru’s younger sister only to prove how much he loves Mehru. Just when you think it couldn’t get any crazier, Shahjahan who acted like a ‘bheegi billi’ in front of Mehru ends up becoming a ‘jungli sher’ in front of his wife Ayat because he can not stand her? Someone, please ask why didn’t he refuse to get married in the first place when he knew he’d end up ruining Ayat’s life. The way Ayat & Shahjahan’s mother comes up with plans & conspiracies against Mehru is absolutely disgusting. Meherposh is the kind of drama that one should do everything to erase from their memories. Also, not to mention, the lack of chemistry between Ayeza & Danish sticks out like a sore thumb too!

Raaz e Ulfat

Writer: Maha Malik
Director: Siraj ul Haq
Producer: 7th Sky Entertainment
Channel: Geo Entertainment
Main Cast: Yumna Zaidi, Shehzad Sheikh, Komal Aziz Khan, Daniyal Afzal, Gohar Rasheed, Hina Bayat, Arisha Razi Khan, Seemi Pasha.

There is no denying the fact that Raaz e Ulfat has garnered a decent amount of viewership over the course of its run but the overall storyline is not only weak but fails to deliver any purpose to the viewers who are watching it. The story of Raaz e Ulfat revolved around the girl Mushk who came from a very conservative background but because her parents put their trust in her, they decided to give her the freedom she yearned for, in a hope that it would help her achieve the academic goals that she was after. The story took a very typical turn and Mushk ended up falling in love only to eventually hate her parents for the values they strongly believed in and taught her as well.

Raaz e Ulfat also happens to be one such drama which has openly shown a homosexual character and there have also been certain conversations between supporting characters such as Sehba and Nomi where they spoke about the illicit things they have been involved in as a couple when they were dating. This drama has openly shown Sehba and Nomi doing drugs and consuming alcohol. Mushk is now married to a widowed father of two and a brother to a mentally incapacitated girl Mohini and in almost every single episode, Mushk is fed that she should feel lucky to have hit a jackpot in the form of Ismail Miyan! The drama is going to have a typical Hum Dil De Chuke Sanam end where Mushk will choose Ismail Miyan over Irtiza. This drama has also elaborated how when in love, the common sense and logic behind right and wrong go out of the picture. Mushk is married to Ismail but is once again meeting Irtiza behind her back, exactly how she used to go behind her father’s back to date Irtiza!

This completes the list of worst Pakistani dramas that aired in the year 2020. We can already tell that some of the dramas that aired recently will soon make it to the list but we did not add them because we only added dramas that have been on the air for more than 10 weeks or ended in 2020. Which one of these dramas did you follow and found unimpressive? Share your views.

Zahra Mirza & Fatima Awan