Film: Ghabrana Nahi Hai
Release Date: 3rd May, 2022
Director: Saqib Khan
Review by: Hassan Hassan
After watching “Ghabrana Nahi Hai”, and leaving the theatre, carrying amused thoughts, the man behind films like “The Bourne Identity” and “Mr. & Mrs. Smith”, Doug Liman, crosses one’s mind, with the following words, “Almost anything can be justified as a style of filmmaking if it works.”
This is a film that surprises you with a myriad of flavours in such a way that you don’t mind enjoying it when it transforms from a female centric romantic social comedy to a heist affair. Pakistani cinema, with its pandemic-ridden drought of two years, couldn’t have asked for a better masala entertainer than “Ghabrana Nahi Hai.”
The Plot
The story follows Zubaida aka Zuby (Saba Qamar) and her fight and journey as a headstrong Faisalabadi daughter to a blue-collar lower-middle class father who loses his all life’s hard earned property to a rogue, powerful land-grabber Bhai Miyaan (Nayyar Ijaz) who is assisted by his strong network that includes a corrupt, yet charming cop (Zahid Ahmad). Zubaida is joined by her amicable cousin Vicky (Syed Jibran) on this journey. Zubaida’s confidence and charm make her the attention of almost every eye. Our heroine, however, is fixated on her goal and everything else is secondary.
With this narrative at heart, there are various elements woven around that ultimately concentrate into a solid screenplay that manages to grab your attention till the very end credits, perhaps analogous to Bhai Mian’s strong hold on Zubaida’s property.
The Execution
The strength of Ghabrana Nahi Hai lies in its tight and well written screenplay helmed by Saqib Khan and Mohsin Ali. This could be easily dubbed as Mohsin Ali’s best cinematic work. It’s indeed exhilarating that the lull period of the pandemic was utilised by the makers by coming up with a strong screenplay and well written dialogues. The film’s success would be, in a considerable proportion, attributed to this department for sure. This, combined with sharp and intelligent direction, and a cast where every actor performs upto the mark makes the film a thoroughly well-made cinematic experience.
Collaborations That Work
The collaboration of a cinema-owner-cum-producer (Jamil Baig) with a seasoned producer (Hassan Zia), the film is a demonstration of what the public, and local cinema business needs – entertainers that also have a brain.
Saqib Khan, as a debutant director, seems to have captained this ship with palpable command from the first to the last frame. His art direction team is another department that works splendidly with their attention to detail. There are countless subtle hints and moments in the film, which, if you notice, make the film even more amusing. Vicky’s character when he receives Zuby at the train station wearing a “Be mine” T shirt with love emojis, Zubaida’s choice of wardrobe from monochromes to bright, embellished and feisty ensembles when she seems to be in love, a scene depicting her failure where there is a poster on achieving goals, reconsidering plans and never giving up with a decor piece of “LOVE” in capital letters beneath it, Zahid and Jibran’s rooms and their wardrobes depicting their respective characters’ natures – these are just a few examples of such subtleties.
Well-Rounded Characters
While the film is female-centric, with Zubaida’s character at the centre stage, the men surrounding her, including the fearsome Bhai Mian, have their own grounds and emotional quotient. Each character has its vulnerabilities and strengths that make them unique in such a way that viewers may come out of the theatre with their favourite.
Stealing the limelight is the silver screen debutant Syed Jibran who, with his impeccable comic timing and innocence, makes you root for him. Jibran’s body of work on TV has been mostly serious roles and his role in Ghabrana Nahi Hai is surely going to bring him many accolades both in cinema halls and award seasons.
The baritone, Zahid Ahmed, with his strong screen presence proves his mettle as a love stricken corrupt cop, who always has an intelligent plan to save the day. Although he appears to deliver some of the assertive dialogues with extra enthusiasm, most of his act is balanced and well performed.
Playing the character of a strong Punjabi woman who is adamant to prove herself could not have been done better by any of Saba Qamar’s contemporaries. With Kamli in the pipeline, she is undoubtedly amongst the most bankable female leads in Lollywood, alongside Mehwish Hayat and Mahira Khan.
Nayyar Ijaz, a living legend, is one actor the industry is proud to have. He is the Shafqat Cheema of new age Pakistani cinema and his Bhai Mian is just another feather in the legend’s cap.
Apart from the three main male characters, the rest of the supporting cast isn’t given much space to perform. In a stark contrast to Hassan Zia’s commendable Wrong No 2, Ghabrana Nahi Hai has Afzal Khan Rambo and Saleem Mairaj, who are rather underutilized. The two, however, are entertaining and effective in whatever space is assigned to them.
More Positives
The editing team, though, has done a splendid job in keeping the screenplay tight. There are certain places, which if chopped, could have made the film shorter and crisper. The background score and sound design are further strengths of the film in making it a crisp experience.
Lackluster Music
However, save for the romantic and sad number, the music by Shuja Haider leaves much to be desired. The first and end credit songs were particularly off, not to mention how poorly they were choreographed.
The Verdict
Despite not being the absolute best of what Pakistani cinema has produced, Ghabrana Nahi Hai is surely one film that you can spend your hard earned bucks on, without any fear, if you want to be entertained with your family (or even alone) and leave the cinema hall content.
Rating: 4/5
