Fawad Khan’s excellent reputation precedes him. Thanks to his interesting projects in Pakistan and in India, he enjoys a massive fan following around the globe. That is precisely why despite not being active as an actor in the Pakistani industry for a long time, his star power hasn’t decreased. Fans have been desperately waiting for the Zindagi Gulzar Hai actor to make a proper comeback.

So, when it was announced that he would be hosting 23 News’ brand new online game show Our Guess Tonight, the show was able to garner attention thanks to the superstar’s association with it. After all, if it was something Fawad Khan was choosing to do, it must be something substantial.

Unfortunately, that has not been the case. And despite the show releasing a new episode every Friday, it hasn’t managed to wow the audience.

The format

The name Our Guess Tonight is a wordplay on two words – guess and guest. The format of the show is this: the host Fawad Khan is joined by two guests every week through a video call, who play a guessing game. The guest who guesses the maximum number of answers in the given time wins. Quite simple and straight forward.

But it is not the show’s format itself that is any cause of concern. It’s the other more technical aspects of the show that make the show not seem worthy of someone like Fawad Khan’s caliber.

The issues

For instance, with a name like Fawad Khan attached to the show, the producers had the chance to go big – financially speaking. However, judging from the show’s production value, or the lack of, that’s not what’s happening here. So far, all the episodes have Fawad host the show from one room; his styling in the show is also quite basic. Fawad Khan is blessed with good looks and throughout his career, he has always dressed to impress. So, whether how he appears on the show is his own choice or the channel’s, it is difficult to say.

Online shows are quite challenging as it is. Due to the lack of proper internet connection, there is a disruption in the audio and video. As a result, communication is more or less lost between the participants. However, it is just not the technical issues that make the show a rather bland affair. It is Fawad Khan’s hosting itself that makes the audience wonder if he is even interested in doing the show in the first place.

Fawad is no stranger to reality shows. He has been judging Pepsi Battle of the Bands for three seasons now. His presence in that show has been praised by the audience. Maybe because it is due to Fawad’s own roots as a singer of a rock band, as well as his history of being a runner-up of the show’s original season back in 2002, but Fawad in Pepsi BotB is markedly a different person than Fawad in Our Guess Tonight.

Interesting guests

Considering the nature of the game show, the guests speak more than the host. But while the guests are seen passionately participating in the game, Fawad appears quite impassive. Take the first episode for example, which had two of the biggest stars of Pakistan, Sanam Saeed, and Fahad Mustafa, as the guests of the show. They were trying their best to play the game, despite minor issues like delay in the voice. In fact, Sanam Saeed, who also won the game, seemed much more committed to the game show than Fawad. It seemed like it was she who was hosting the show and not Fawad.

Apart from these two, the show has hosted other big names like Waseem Akram and his wife, Shaniera Akram, Humayun Saeed and Adnan Siddiqui, Bilal Lashari and Ali Azmat, etc. Needless to say, none of the guests felt like they didn’t want to be a part of the show.

A comparison

Fawad’s former fellow band member Ahmed Ali Butt also hosts an online game show Kasoti Online every week. His show as compared to Fawad’s, however, feels much more engaging. It has a proper intro, quirky background music, and interesting editing that makes the show visually more appealing. Not to mention Butt’s funny commentary that shows at least he is making effort in hosting the show. Additionally, his show isn’t just a game show; his guests talk about things other than the game, unlike Fawad’s show where they get right to the game after the introduction.

Fawad Khan is known to be an introverted person. In fact, it is a part of this superstar’s charm who has won the hearts of countless people by his calm and collected demeanor. However, when it comes to hosting a game show, either virtual or in a live setting, it is up to the host to make sure the entire thing comes together seamlessly and in an entertaining way. And maybe it is due to the format of the show itself or technical issues but Our Guess Tonight just doesn’t seem to be a good match with Fawad Khan’s energy.