Khoob baney gi jab mil behthein gein deewaney do… You can’t go wrong with pairing two wacky celebrities who’ve judged Pakistan Idol and created quite the buzz. Having not watched Pakistan Idol myself, I really didn’t know how these were on the sets but HSY brought them together and other than that, these two guests pretty much took over the show. Bushra Ansari was the first guest- draped in a bright red sari complete with red lipstick, nail color and bangles, Bushra rendered HSY speechless. After all, what’s a fashion designer to do when such a fashion disaster walks up to him and that too on his show? I almost felt sorry for him.
Bushra spoke about her tryst with singing, her colorful personality (surprize, surprize!) and her fond memories of being part of the hit trio with Anwar Maqsood and Moin Akhar. The next guest was Paaney as Bushra called him- Ali Azmat. Ali spoke about his feminine side after being on Pakistan Idol with Bushra Ansari and Hadiqa Kiyaani– hum behnein hein aapas mein saari… mein bhi aurat hi ban chuka houn… He spoke about the declining music industry in Pakistan which is one of the reasons he hasn’t produced any new labels. It was interesting to hear his take on iTunes and the fact that releasing music on iTunes will not suffice since a huge chunk of his followers are still accustomed to audio tapes/ cds. I liked his analogy for aisa thori hai ke nalka khola aur paani aaya to express how artists struggle with depression.
The bad boy of music is now a father of two but he claims his transition was a forced one. The comfort level between these two (despite their age difference) was quite evident with the constant nok- jhok… Abhi bhi yeh chance maar rahi hein… Kharbuzay ko dekhkey kharbuza rang pakarta hai… Ali admitted that his image on Pakistan Idol was one created by the director and editors for the sake of ratings- he was prompted to be bataameez! When asked about their stance on social media, Bushra admitted that she sparingly uses it on which Ali commented- sachi baat bataye na, aapko computer use nahin karna aata hai! Ali has taken a sabbatical from twitter since he feels he pissed off enough fans with his outspoken tweets and random musings.
Next was the competition rounds- Love or Don’t Love is fast becoming a breeding ground for controversy. Bushra replied H.A.T.E to a pic of Meera but later explained that it was not her but rather her image that puts her off. When it was Ali’s turn, he responded with a Love, NOT to Sahir Lodhi, Salman Ahmed and Asif Ali Zardari- I was expecting HSY to pry about his rift with Salman Ahmed but for some reason he let it pass. Ajnabee Kaun Ho Tum had Emu and Javed Sheikh call in. Bushra Ansari got an opportunity to express her musical side and I was disappointed that HSY didn’t think to ask Ali Azmat to sing. The last round was playful and one of Ali’s response that stood out was about PML ka functional nishaan to which he answered Lota!
A much better episode than last week but I couldn’t help myself thinking what was Sheru’s contribution in making this episode a success? The guests pretty much kept the conversations flowing with their incessant use of Punjabi, their witty one-liners and shared memories. HSY was content taking a backseat and I think it’s high time he finds himself a good writer who will help him add some value to the conversations with upcoming guests. What did you think?
Yours in watching,
Kanwal Murtaza
