Pakistani dramas are loved by millions all over the world. Our dramas have a huge market in all the countries where the populace can understand Urdu and this high consumption is evident by the number of views we have on these dramas. But like all the departments in Pakistan, entertainment is also highly censored, restricted, and practiced by a few people who have a monopoly over content.
Pakistan has three big channels and their content departments generally decide what stories will run on television. Combined with the system of rating and YouTube views, the evolution of content has been stagnant and unfortunately, we have a repetition of concepts over and over again. If one formula becomes a hit, all other drama makers jump on the bandwagon and start making similar dramas. We all have seen how the last decade was all about women getting slapped left, right, and center. These women would forgive the men in the end “due to the goodness of their hearts”.
After a lot of uproar and criticism from the public, the drama makers have evolved and instead of showing a strong and independent heroine like Kashaf Murtaza from Zindagi Gulzar Hai or Aliya from Kuch Ankahi, they have decided to make women rude and badly-behaved while heroes have turned into mushy-messed becharas who lack a genuine spine.
Here is how the new trend of rude and misbehaving heroines is getting strong:
Meerab From Tere Bin
Meerab from Tere Bin is a mega-hit character and it pushed Yumna Zaidi’s career to an unprecedented peak. Yumna is one of the finest in Pakistan and she has shown how she gets under the skin of characters in dramas like Dar Si Jati Hai Sila, Dil Na Umeed To Nahin, and Pyar Ke Sadqay. She gave her 100% in Tere Bin too and Meerab was the talk of the town. Meerab was shown to be a strong-headed and confident girl but in many instances, she was just plain rude. Yes, Murtasim ended up being a rapist and he should never have been white-washed but before that mind-boggling episode, Meerab kept being rude to every other character including Murtasim who was a loving husband before things went into a ditch.
Mubashira Jaffar From Mein
Mubashira Jaffar is another favourite character of many due to her opposition in the drama being too boring and draggy. Ayeza Khan played Mubashira Jaffar in Mein and her principles traits were her rudeness and scheming. She made it all look stylish and many loved her for what she was. She is another example of showing empowerment by making the character super rude.
Ayra From Mein
Ayra was another woman from Mein who was a parallel lead and she was as evil as Mubashira was but in a slightly different manner. She looked stupid at times by the stunts she used to pull and she was rude to everybody including her lovng husband Zaid when she had knowingly married him that his father was the reason for her only brother’s death.
Zarnab From Gentleman
Zarnab is a strong-willed and independent woman played by Yumna Zaidi. She is a journalist who is not scared of anyone but we saw her slapping Munna Iqbal in one scene and he obviously takes it easily. Why can a strong heroine not be strong without slapping around people? But yes, Gentleman has just started and things can get better from here on. Also, the person getting slapped here is a gangster so maybe we can tolerate Zarnab’s behaviour for now.
Eman From Radd
Eman is another character with some serious behavioural problems. She was rude to her own family, then went on and caused Zain’s nervous breakdown as she did not provide him a chance to explain. She then married without her father’s presence which was straight absurd and now she is being rude to her husband’s uncle who is not really a villain. She never really takes feelings of those around her into consideration and does things on a whim.
Minna And Husn Ara From Jaan Se Pyara Juni
These two are actually competing on who will come out on top of the rude scale. Both the actresses have performed the characters very well but they were once again written to be this way. Minna is very direct and very rude to everyone and never shows any grace. This is also true for Husn Ara who is very beautiful but lacks the grace that every decent person should have.
Now, let’s move on to the second part of this new trend. As opposed to our heroines who are extremely rude, our heroes are extreme becharas and everyone is walking over them all the time. These are our recent becharas who were borderline annoying for viewers:
Munna Iqbal From Gentleman
So, Munna is supposed to be a “gangster”. Gangsters kill and abduct people, they are known for extortion and violence but not our Munna. He will be a bechara and will get slapped by a woman in front of everyone and will not retaliate.
Zaid From Mein
Oh brother! This guy was marketed as the cool, suave and stylish person with power. What he actually turned out was a bechara pro max who had zero spine and everyone from his dad to both his wives and even his sister would drag him around by the collar.
Saad From Mujhe Pyaar Hua Tha
Wahaj Ali once again played a spineless character and he was the ultimate bechara. The love of his life made sure to make his life hell and he let that happen. She kept meeting her old lover and he never could object. They did not show a violent person which is good but the man could have stood up for himself once or twice.
Salaar From Radd
Another bechara we are witnessing is played by Sheheryar Munawar in Radd. At least in his case, there are circumstances that made him into a bechara but he is another on-screen bechara we have and he needs to be rescued. Once again as it is currently on-air so things may change in future.
Shehram From Jaan e Jahan
The makers wanted to show Shehram as a super positive character which was nice but he was too good at times. The guy was being pushed around by his brother, poisoned by his step-mother and could not claim the love of his life. So, a Bechara e Azam for sure!
So, what do you think about this new trend of bechara heroes and vampy heroines? Share your thoughts!