THE TUBE

Sadaf Haider Published February 11, 2024

THE WEEK THAT WAS

Khai | Geo TV, Wed-Thurs 8.00pm

This action-packed thriller shows us that mass market entertainment does not always mean we have to sacrifice quality. Channar (Faysal Quraishi) and his father Duraab Khan (Khalid Butt) murder Zamda’s (Durre Fishan) family in cold blood, and force her to marry Channar. Zamda agrees, acting cowed and subdued, enduring rape, while she waits for her chance at revenge.

Zamda is not able to kill anyone outright but looks for opportunities and personal divisions, destroying the criminal family from the inside. Channar’s eldest son, Barlas (Shuja Asad) eliminates his cousin Pamir (Nabeel Zuberi), so he can marry Pamir’s fiancé. Barlas is initially hesitant but eventually murder comes naturally to him, as he witnesses his father and grandfather seize whatever they want without caring for human life.

Faysal Quraishi is best in his moments as the confused father who never expected the violence he reserved for outsiders to turn inwards to his own family. Great performances from Khalid Butt, Shuja Asad, Hina Bayat and Javed Jamil make this a riveting watch. Durre Fishan keeps us hooked as the determind avenger. Writer Saqlain Abbas and director Wajahat Hussain deserve credit for managing the delicate balance between humanising the negative characters, without excusing their deeds.

Main | ARY, Mondays 8.00pm

Director Badar Mehmood and Author Zanjabeel Asim have perfected the art of packaging a story with little substance into an adrenaline ride of confrontations that garner ratings.

Zaid (Wahaj Ali) is manipulated into marrying socialite Mubashara (Ayeza Khan) by his Machiavellian business magnate father Asif (Shehzad Nawaz). Mubashara is a self-centred egotist but desperate to avoid another divorce, so she agrees to Zaid marrying the girl he really loves, Ayra (Azekiah Daniel).

What could have been a story about self-reflection and maturity for all the protagonists has devolved into the usual hackneyed plot-turns and sexual assault that are a staple of this director’s repertoire. Ayeza Khan plays her part well, but Wahaj Ali seems to have been phoning it in. Shehzad Nawaz is the stand out with a strong performance, overshadowing the stars whose roles are reduced to superficial lifestyle statements about wealthy elites, making this an empty potboiler.

Standup Girl | Green Entertainment, Fridays 8.00pm

Kabir (Daniyal Zafar) is a talented rap artist whose work has been stolen and is suffering from writer’s block. He wants nothing to do with his super-wealthy political family and their role for him, choosing to live a lonely, basic life, barely scraping by till he can write again.

He meets Zara (Zara Noor Abbas), a wannabe stand-up comedienne who looks down on her nana’s family for being part of the traditional ‘bhaand’ culture of Punjab. Prickly, introverted, self-centred and independent, neither Zara nor Kabir are particularly likeable but somehow they work their way into our hearts.

Excellent writing from Awais Ahmed and Adeel Afzal, in director Kashif Nisar’s skilled hands, gives us a window into a reality we often choose to ignore. The necessity of prioritising Western educational norms, and consequent devaluation of traditional culture, has created a gaping valley of ignorance between generations. Zara is condescending and irritated by her loud, unrestrained relatives, because their performance art is backwards and “vulgar”. Her comedy has an English name, “stand-up”, that evokes liberal, modern ideas and so is cool and acceptable.

Zara Noor and Daniyal Zafar prove what good actors they are with some outstanding, detail-oriented performances. Sohail Ahmed, Saqib Samir, Tamkenat Manzoor and Adeel Afzal provide the laughter in their wonderfully quirky roles.