The words “Pakistani web series” had been thrown around a lot in the past year or so. Some of the most popular names in the Pakistani entertainment industry, both in front of and behind the camera, had been working on some highly anticipated web series for quite some time, that were aiming to be released on an Indian OTT platform. However, the sociopolitical tensions between India and Pakistan as well as the global situation in 2020 had seemed to cause a question mark on the fate of these projects.
Well, those projects are going to be out soon on Zee5. And with the kind of extremely positive and welcoming response their first looks have gotten, it only reiterated the fact that Pakistani audience is craving for some well-made digital content that is not bound by the typical tropes and limitations of Pakistani television.
Nabeel Qureshi jumps on the bandwagon
Director Nabeel Qureshi, producer Fizza Ali Meerza and their team have established themselves as one of the most authentic Pakistani voices of the Pakistani entertainment industry. With projects like Na Maloom Afraad, Actor in Law, and Load Wedding, they have always tapped into the stories and characters that a common person in Pakistan relates to the most. And now Nabeel Qureshi alongside his team will be taking his vision from the big screens to the digital space as he announces the plans for his next venture.
Talking exclusively to Galaxy Lollywood, Nabeel said that the plot of the web series will be based on the Lyari gang war. The show has been written by the men who wrote the script for the critically acclaimed Laal Kabootar, Ali Abbas, and Basit Naqvi. He also revealed that the production of the web series will begin very soon. Interestingly, this time the project will be co-directed by Nabeel Qureshi and Fizza Ali Meerza who up until now has been involved as the producer/writer for the projects. Moreover, she will also serve as the producer and the project will be produced under the Filmwala production banner.
And that’s not all. Nabeel revealed to us that he plans on releasing the web series on a Pakistani OTT platform. The details of which platform will that be, have not been disclosed yet but this web series truly will be Pakistan’s first major web series that will get its release on a Pakistani platform.
The Karachi connection
Karachi has always been Nabeel’s home turf. So, his decision of basing his first web series in Karachi comes as no surprise. What is interesting is the topic of the Lyari gang wars because despite it being one of the major realities of this metropolitan city, it has never been represented by any film or a drama in a major way.
Pakistani audiences have always been an appreciative audience for web series and films based on the topic of real-world crime and gang wars. It is definitely going to be interesting watching a web series on this topic that will also be representative of Pakistan’s own reality.
With the announcement of this web series, Nabeel Qureshi has three major projects lined up for release. First is the Fahad Mustafa and Mahira Khan starter Quaid e Azam Zindabad, then there is Ahmed Ali Butt’s Fatman, and third is this yet to be titled web series. Stay tuned to Galaxy Lollywood for all the updates.
