21 weeks and (47 episodes later), the drama serial Qayamat has finally come to an end. But the end could have been much better. Before I move forward, I have to state that it will be unfair if Ahsan Khan doesn’t win an award for the ‘Best Actor’ next season. The way he got into the skin of his character ‘Rashid’ was brilliant. There was not even a single occasion where Khan fumbled or went off track.

Amid tough competition, Qayamat started out on a phenomenal note with a strong premise, backed up by strong writing and performances. However, somewhere after episode 15, it all came crashing down. The way the episodes jumbled up, it seemed more likely that several writers were appointed midway to experiment and drag the story until it lost its purpose.

The Finale Episodes

Thankfully the last two episodes of Qayamat had quite a few moments of relief. Ifrah (Neelam Muneer) succeeded in seeking revenge; she cleverly sidelined Nadra (Zainab Qayyum) and made Urooj (Sidra Niazi) marry her father Fayyaz (Noor-ul-Hassan). The wedding sequence was shot perfectly; the timing and expressions of Mukhtar (Shabbir Jan), Nargis (Saba Faisal), and Rashid (Ahsan Khan) were perfect.

Rashid got the taste of his own medicine as he was beaten up badly by Pari’s (Sana Fakhar) ex-boyfriend. He recalled his bad deeds and sought forgiveness from Ifrah for all the injustice he did with Samra (Amar Khan). He forced Ifrah to marry Jawad (Haroon Shahid) to which she refused. Ifrah forgave everyone and decided to lead a happy life.

Why men aren’t held accountable for their wrongdoings?                                                                                       

The problem lies here, why do we make an anti-hero the hero of the drama? Rashid was an alcoholic, an abuser, he slept with other women and was responsible for killing his wife. In the end, he apologized and got a clean chit. Does the writer have any idea how problematic this notion is? This had a direct impact on Jawad, he was projected as a good guy, sacrificed the love of his life and turned out to be a loser. He deserved a better character arc. The entire nation was hoping for a ‘Jawad – Ifrah’ reunion but sadly that didn’t happen. 

The Big Drag

I am clueless as to why did the writer dragged the script so much. There were numerous unnecessary scenes like Pari’s comeback. It seemed completely forced. It was a cakewalk for her to fool Rashid again with the same lollipop and get away so easily. The equation between Fayyaz and Afiya (Kinza Malik) was portrayed so beautifully; but once she was diagnosed with a chronic heart issue, the writer wasted no time in ending her track abruptly. It felt as if Afiya was the bad luck in Fayyaz life; the moment she died Mukhtar realized his bad deeds and gave him all his due property and money. Also unnecessary was the plot point that showed Fayyaz as the most wanted widower. First, the house help forcefully wanted to marry him; then Nadra started dreaming of a better future if she married Fayyaz. There was also a school principal who was interviewed by Ifrah. Had these filler episodes been reduced, Qayamat would surely have been a flawless blockbuster. Besides the script, everything was perfect especially the performances.  

The performances were the saving grace

To depict a complex character like ‘Rashid’ is not everyone’s cup of tea and I doubt if any other actor could’ve portrayed this part as superbly as Ahsan Khan. His expressions and body language were the hallmarks of the enterprise. Amar Khan delivered yet another knockout performance. She is one daring actress who isn’t worried about the screen time to show her versatility. Her track ended in episode 14 but the impact she left was huge. Neelam Muneer’s act was strictly average. Her sequences with Samra were good but once she became Mrs. Rashid, God knows what happened to her expressions. Somebody should tell her that acting and screaming are two different things. She looked robotic and tried hard to prove her point. Noor-ul-Hassan was terrific. Saba Faisal did a wonderful job. Zainab Qayyum was a delight to watch. Haroon Rasheed was remarkable.

Final Word

Qayamat worked but in parts. It’s high time that the producers and most importantly the channel to get rid of the unnecessary melodrama in order to fetch top trending and TRP’s. I really wish Geo Entertainment would have chopped the excessive episodes to make the drama more tolerable. 

After sharing a very sizzling onscreen chemistry in Hum TV’s Mushk, Imran Ashraf and Urwa Hocane’s couple is all set to be back in Badzaat.

Badzaat, will be directed by Koi Chand Rakh famed director Siraj Ul Haque and is based on a script by Misbah Nausheen who has wowed her audience with Ishq Tamasha and Meherposh recently. The upcoming project will be a 7th Sky Entertainment production for Geo Entertainment.

According to sources, the cast of the drama is in the process of being finalized but will see Urwa Hocane and Imran Ashraf in the lead as Anabia and Wali respectively.

While talking to Galaxy Lollywood exclusively, writer Misbah Nausheen shared, “Badzaat is a very modern story, in fact it won’t be incorrect if we call it a little different from the usual plotting and scheming “saas bahu” dramas that are seen on all channels. Badzaat isn’t any run of the mill story and does not involve any love triangles at all.”

Adding further, Misbah shared, “Imran Ashraf plays the character of Wali who happens to be the son of a dancer (tawaif) and isn’t much happy about it as he considers it as an insult. Imran Ashraf ‘s character will not only be powerful but for a first for him as well.”

Talking about Urwa’s character, Misbah shared, “Urwa plays the character of Anabia, an innocent girl who gets entrapped in a very difficult situation without any fault at all.”

Urwa Hocane has very recently played a wide range of different characters including the cunning Guddi in Mushk and the titular character of the current on-air drama “Neeli Zinda Hai.” We’re sure the couple will definitely sizzle in Badzaat as well which is all set to go on the floors in the first week of July.

As much as we’ve waited for the Sajal Ahad and Ahad Raza Mir starrer web series to be out, the trailer has proven that it was worth every minute the fans spent waiting for it. The trailer is out now and like promised it is gut wrenching and very thought provoking, something that will definitely pull at your heart strings and make you teary eyed.

The trailer, features Sajal as Sara, a Pakistani and Ahad Raza Mir as Vishal, an Indian. The two together portray a story of two families that have been similarly affected by the strife between the two countries, aptly put, divided by hate, united by grief.

The trailer shows Sara and Vishal aggressively campaigning for their fathers who lost their lives on the borders. Both Sara and Vishal are shown to believe that their fathers fought for their countries and were martyred only to realize in due course that they have been nurturing hostility and enimty for people who have been suffering alike.

As expected Sajal and Ahad Raza Mir come off as absolutely brilliant in all scenes. Powerful performances from the cast hold the audience spell bound. We have always admired Haseeb Hassan’s expertise as a director and with Dhoop Ki Deewar he has only consolidated the fact further.

Dhoop Ki Deewar, directed by Haseeb Hassan, written by Umera Ahmed will premiere on Zee5 on 25th of June. Here’s wishing that this series turns out to be as brilliant as its trailer.

Fingers crossed!

Sonya Hussyn’s is a name that needs no introduction. The actress is one of the finest Pakistan has ever produced, someone who knows her characters all too well. Over the span of her career Sonya Hussyn has delivered amazing performances in both films and television leaving the audience spell bound with her acting prowess. Be it Moor, a masterpiece of a film or her dramas Meri Gurya, Aisi Hai Tanhai or the recently concluded Saraab, Sonya Hussyn has played her characters all too well. Not only that, the actress has always ensured that her projects battle a social issue, highlighting causes that are otherwise considered taboos in the society.

Sonya recently announced her next project in an Instagram post. According to the post, Sonya’s next is a drama directed by Adnan Sarwar and will see the Moor starlet playing the role of a police officer.

Talking to Galaxy Lollywood, Sonya Hussyn shared that her upcoming drama has been inspired by the female officers of the Punjab police and that she had met and studied SP Ayesha Mirza countless times to research about the project.

“Adnan Sarwar has always inspired me so when he called me saying he wanted to work with me, it was like a dream come true. As a cherry on top, it was a script by Umera Ahmed, who writes less but writes powerfully, so the project basically came to me on a platter,” shared the Moor starlet.

Talking about the storyline of the project, Sonya shared that it would be a very mysterious story that would revolve around solving a difficult case. “At the same time the story will focus on the personal ups and downs of SP Sarah while she navigates her way through the law and order conditions. Basically its about how my character, playinga police officer who can command has to address the ups and downs in her life as well,” added Sonya.

Alongside Sonya, the upcoming drama, which is still being shot with a working title, stars Usman Peerzada and Juggun Kazim in pivotal roles. “Juggun Kazim just bursts with energy on set. It has been a ball working with her and an absolute honor working with Usman Peerzada,” said Sonya adding that Adnan Sarwar used to say that she and Juggun together on screen had two queens in one frame.

The drama is still being shot and will go into post production soon. Here’s wishing Sonya Hussyn all the best for her future project. We’re sure she’s going to rock this one as well.

Who doesn’t know Iman Aly? The gorgeous diva has been the face of LUX, the brand ambassador of top brands and one of the most famous models and actors of Pakistan. Even though Iman doesn’t have a very solid social media presence and a huge number of films or dramas to her credit, it is noteworthy that the actress has some solid body of work to her name including the soul shattering Khuda Ke Liye, Bol and the very artistic Mah e Mir.

Iman Aly will next be seen alongside Farhan Saeed, Feroze Khan and Sonya Hussyn in the Qasim Ali Mureed directorial Tich Button. However, did you know that in the span of her career, Iman Aly has turned down major blockbuster films including Punjab Nahi Jaungi and Jawani Phir Nahi Ani. Iman also turned down the main lead in Bol, the character played by Humaima Malick. Aly shared that she had major reservations about that particular character which is why she turned down the lead and agreed to play a small character in the film.

In a recent interview with Vasay Chaudhry, Iman made the above revelations alongside sharing the reason that she turned down major blockbuster films including Punjab Nahi Jaungi, Karachi Se Lahore, Jawani Phir Nhi Ani, Na Maloom Afraad, all of which turned out to be major blockbusters.

Although jokingly, Iman Aly shared with Vasay that she had most films for the sake of her friendship with the producers/directors and turned down many because she didn’t like the writer or any other person in the film. Iman shared that she turned down Na Maloom Afraad and Jawani Phir Nahi Ani because it was ”boys ki film”. Aly also added that the reason for turning down Punjab Nahi Jaungi was that she felt the write had deceived the very character of the lead he had written. “The writer writes well about Punjab and its technicalities but there were reservations about the character’s development,” said Iman adding that although when the film released, changes had been made in that particular character but her reservations still stood strong.

For Karachi se Lahore Iman said that she didn’t understand the character offered to her, “it didn’t make any sense to me,” were her exact words.

Iman also shared that she had written three scripts herself about various genres but she still had to find someone who would be interested to produce. Alongside the shocking revelations about turning down major films, Iman Aly also shared how she didn’t find herself or her face beautiful enough to have pictures taken of her. The actress added that she felt that people should be okay with the way if one doesn’t like his/her face enough.

With his history of making controversial statements and his over the top antics during his show, which often cross the limits of morality, Aamir Liaquat’s expulsion from Express TV does not come as a surprise.

The news was confirmed to Galaxy Lollywood by high-placed sources, without citing a concrete reason. However, Aamir Liaquat’s recent antics during his show, Jeeway Pakistan, and the number of controversies he has been involved in were a premonition about Liaquat’s fate at Express TV.

Last month, Aamir Liaquat’s name was brought into news after his alleged third wife made an appearance in front of the public stating she had been cheated over by the televangelist repeatedly. Although the controversy died down a premature death, it did strike a blow on Liaquat’s reputation at the channel.

Adding more fuel to the fire was Aamir Liaquat’s behavior with Saboor Aly during his show. Aamir Liaquat was a little too flirtatious with Saboor Aly on an episode of Jeeway Pakistan where Saboor had been a guest with fiancé Ali Ansari and his antics made the actress clearly uncomfortable.

Although Saboor tried her best to ignore and be patient, Aamir Liaquat was not discouraged unless she lost her cool.

Aamir Liaquat kept staring at Saboor and made unnecessary remarks upon which Saboor finally burst out stating that she wanted Liaquat to look at her with respect and modesty.

Aamir Liaquat’s expulsion from Express TV might certainly come off as a blow to the televangelist after repeated controversies that he has been involved in, tarnishing his reputation beyond repair this time, perhaps.

In a rather tragic turn of events, Farhad Humayun, the founder and drummer of the iconic Pakistani band Overload, passed away today, on Tuesday 8th June 2021 at the age of 42.

Farhad had been an icon with a musical career spanning over two decades. On the work front Farhad Humayun had been running Riot Studio, a recording studio and live gig venue in Lahore.

The news was announced by Farhad’s official Facebook page.

Although the post did not state Humayun’s cause of death, it is a well known fact that the Overload musician had suffered from a brain tumor that had persisted ever after multiple surgeries.

Following the unexpected and rather sad turn of events, Pakistani celebrities have been sharing heartfelt tributes for Farhad and reminiscing what a pure soul he had been.

Singer Umair Jaswal shared a heartfelt message for his departed friend,

Singer, musician Ali Zafar shared a beautiful tribute for his friend Farhad,

Singer and actor Junaid Khan also shared heartfelt message for the departed soul.

Actor Aijaz Aslam also shared hus condolences over a tweet praying for Farhad Humayun

Actor Adnan Siddiqui shared how shook he was with the terrible news

Singer and friend Atif Aslam also expressed his grief in a tweet, expressing how Farhad’s legacy would continue to live on.

Actress Hania Aamir too sent peace and strength to Farhad Humayun’s family.

Ahmad Ali Butt reminisced about the times spent with Farhad.

Musician Sahir Ali Bagga too expressed his sorrow over Farhad Humayun’s sudden death.

Singer Meesha Shafi too shares hee sentiments over her friend’s sudden departure.

Farhad Humayun was laid to rest in Lahore and is survived by a mother and two sisters.