THE WEEK THAT WAS

Noor ul Ain | ARY, Saturdays 8.00pm

Sarmad Khoosat is back with a poor girl-rich boy love story. Imran Abbas plays the dorky Khizar who is smitten with Sajal Aly who plays the level-headed Noor, and both are effortless in their roles. Khizar’s no-nonsense mum, Marina Khan, is the antagonist who wants him to stand on his own two feet.

Noor, a middle-class girl with her head firmly on her shoulders, is steadily falling for him. A heavily-kohled Iffat Rahim plays Noor’s chanchal Chachi who has enough troubles with a bed-ridden husband but has sincere advice for Noor. Khizer’s blunders in his quest for Noor’s attention are endearing and funny.

The light-hearted screenplay by the young writer Edison Idrees Masih is a refreshing break from soppy female novel-writers regurgitating domestic shenanigans. The OST which seems inspired by the award-winning Ambarsariya (Fukrey, 2013) is very hummable.

What to watch out for

Mere Bewafa | A-Plus, Wednesdays 8.00pm

Sakina Samo’s new directorial venture Mere Bewafa on A-Plus promises an emotionally-charged love story with Sara Khan and Aagha Ali in the lead. The couple has been in the news recently for their engagement and for their gangster-themed music video Mein Wohi Aashiq. There is bound to be some intriguing on-screen chemistry in the serial. Inayat Hussain Bhatti’s multi-talented grandson Aagha Ali has also composed, written and sung (with Aima Baig) the OST Duhaiyaan for the serial.

Published in Dawn, ICON, March 4th, 2018