Come Ramazan and the Ramazan drama charade rolls out unabashedly, knocking off a few hours of spirituality and possibly, adding another cup of chai to the all you can eat and drink happy hour that lasts much longer than the hour. And if eating pakoras at Iftari wasn’t enough, the all you can eat buffet at Iftar is now matched by an all you can watch dramas onscreen as prime time television delivers not one, not two, but often three or even four Ramazan drama serials, everyday, every evening – the pressure is real – not just on creators to weave an entertaining story line, but for audiences to watch – after all, someone’s gotta do it!
But in this world of Ramazan special editions, we mistakenly believed that more is better. The capitalist mentality set in, how can it not with Trump ruling the world (but one can argue, this happened much before Trump), much like preparing the world for what’s to come – and, as tactfully as I’d like to put it, but quanitity overtook quality to a point where watching a Ramazan drama was infinitely more painful than waking up at 4 am for Sehri – at least the anda-paratha and that precious cup of chai rewarded the pious. But what promised land or ahem – reward lay before the Ramazan drama audience? A lead cast that was under monumental pressure to turn every action into a laugh moment, (and often didn’t even know how their character woud end up in the final episodes, other than married, of course!). P.S. the drama was still being scripted, a writer who was writing well into the 20th day of Ramazan, conjuring up a madcap story as he or she read online reviews, (often scathing ones), on the same, and an audience, dear audience, lovers of Pakistani dramas, who had to make sense out of the make-believe world of Ramazan dramas – a heroine who was offensively outspoken, or frustratingly submissive, a young couple force-fed the unforgettable and unforgivable positives of joint family living, an ensemble cast that pushed hard to enact the fun in funny, hitting it right at times, and missing the point at others and of course, the competition for viral views as each drama competed with the other on which one eventually takes off to win the Ramazan Drama trophy with the highest views. If there was an award show dedicated to Ramazan dramas, there would probably be about 2 or 3 winners out of about 20 possible contestants – the rest, scratched off my list. Perhaps that is why they wouldn’t nominate me in the jury and why there’s never actually been a Ramazan drama award show – now there’s an idea to toy with HUM TV. Seeing that you always field at least one Ramzan drama every year, take the lead!
But this is not about Ishq Jalebi, or Fairy Tale, or Suno Chanda or even Chaudhry & Sons – the Ramazan dramas that possibly made the cut for audiences, even when they didn’t (always a disclaimer, note my dysfunctional relationship).
This is about Dekh Zara Pyar Se. And as the title suggested, I did. And as I sat down to watch the first few episodes, I kid you not, I approached the watch with as much trepidation as a first time skydiver who’s wondering if the parachute would open when pulled, or the batsman who walks out to the crease on the last ball, 4 runs to win and wondering if the bowler will throw a wide and save the day. If you’ve been a Pakistani drama audience, you are both the skydiver and the batsman, hoping that this one scores… finally! You bear scars from a parachute that nearly didn’t open, or a clean bowled on the first ball, as in, the drama failed to drama and the laughter turned to tears (not khushi kay mind you) as episode upon episode turned into a ‘not so laughing matter’ – Ramzan dramas are meant to elicit laughter, magic moments and subtle messaging with some prize romance thrown in and when they don’t, it’s no laughing matter. Unfortunately, so many Ramazan dramas have done the latter, that the average Pakistani drama viewer balks at the prospect of watching yet another one.
But… watch I did. (Yes you can say, she never learns, but then, a girl’s gotta do what a girl’s gotta do).
But, back to the watch – I wondered how much pyar I was required to cough up when I watched Dekh Zara Pyar Se? Would it be me watching for the pyar of Yumna Zaidi and Hamza Sohail. Because well, that’s a promising lead couple. Would it be me watching because of Romaisa Khan and Momina Muneer, serving up young feel, Gen-Z relatable on-screen moments, or would it be me watching for the pyar of Saima Akram Chaudhry and Ali Hassan – a formidable writer-director team that should be able to deliver a banger – so to speak. Or – will it be me watching for the pyar of Pakistani dramas in Ramazan, trying desperately to enjoy, because post iftar dramas are a thing we do, the ritual more than the substance in the ritual – and because that’s what you do unless it’s Jeeto Pakistan on your watchlist – more drama for sure and this time, the comedy is real? These were some of the heavy thoughts that clouded my Ramazan drama watch, sigh, and I can tell you, one has to be a braveheart to step into the wild – many times bitten and hence shy world of Ramazan dramas.
But here’s what happened after the first few episodes. Read on, because this is where the real story begins. The rest was just me navigating my Ramazan drama trauma, and thank you for reading!
Rumaila and Zoraiz are (thankfully) the MAIN characters in the story. Their interactions take centre stage and we get to see cute moments, a playful exchange of dialogue and might I say, that signature charm a drama hero casts over the audience which was ably matched by the endearing and equally charming responses from our heroine. These two have managed to strike a balance between independent, empowered young people who know their mind as well as vulnerable, open to a relationship but not necessarily seeking one, mindset – the perfect blend of likeability in a character and that too, with amusing dialogue interplay that wooed audiences into a dream world we’re always waiting to be swept into onscreen – but have rarely been. Take for instance, Zoraiz bantering with Rumaila throughout their road trip, making no secret of his liking for her, questioning her choice to get married and yet, playing within the boundaries, not overstepping his conversation or interactions. The scripting, light hearted yet meaningful, performances, nuanced and intentionally subtle, hit just the right spot in a story that revealed itself to be cleverly penned and just as sharply executed.
The screenplay teased – when we waited to see when Rumaila would catch sight of Zoraiz and discover he’s her dadi’s tenant, with near miss moments, till later, when the precise reveal was also a prize Kodak moment as she races out the front door, head turned, face not visible and finally turns around to come face-to-face with Zoraiz. Then later, the moment Rumaila punches in Ali’s number on her phone and discovers it’s Zoraiz – the revelation matched audience expectations to the tee – a reval that was as sudden as surprising and also, much earlier than we expected. Dekh Zara Pyar Se has a lot more up its sleeve than merely playing along with Rumaila and hiding the secret till the final episodes – it is possiby Zoraiz who will not know till the end, and this very plot point turned the tables on a cliched story line to push the envelope and defy the drama prediction genies – take that, said Saima Akram Chaudhry, there’s more to the story than you thought. Keep watching!
And then there are the colourful characters that add flavour to, rather than take away from the main story – yes, that was a thing in many Ramazan dramas where the laughter failed to laugh and ‘funny’ characters and joint family living were force-fed to viewers, almost as a condition – almost demanding a price – if you want to watch the lead couple then watch this first. But no, Dekh Zara Pyar Se hasn’t done that yet and so, even as we find Wareesha and Kashan’s exchanges amusing, and as Sushila’s confidence makes us smile, dadi and her retired jailer persona and attitude towards life seems to gel in with the rest, almost as if this is what comedy was meant to be, not the slapstick version we had often seen played out in recent years.
Dekh Zara Pyar Se has fielded some incredible plot points too no doubt. For example Rumaila not knowing who she’s getting married to and Zoraiz missing seeing his prospective while his dada believed he had. Then dadi viewing the CCTV footage of her tenants as well as walking the jailer talk at home, but what made it all click was the engaging storytelling that allowed not just creators to take the creative license to deliver ‘out-of-the-box’ moments, but also, audiences, handing them that creative license because well, if the story is penned cleverly, we’ll buy anything in the world of Ramazan dramas – but mind you, this can go horriby wrong – that term – ‘penned cleverly’ is no light matter – not every creative team can pull it off, so don’t mess with the rules unless you’re a skilled storyteller, and Dekh Zara Pyar Se seems to be getting it right so far.
This Ramzan drama has miraculously toned down its approach on toxic characters – surprise – there aren’t any. From Sushila spying for dadi, to Wareesha scolding Rumaila for making dadi ill, the interactions are lowkey funny or relatable, conversations start and wrap up as they do in real life without lingering into unnecessary negativity, and characters hold subtsance as does the plotline – conflict does not have to arise from injecting a toxic vaccine into one or more characters and wow, what a breath of fresh air that is. The conflict in fact is quite real and it’s palapable. It’s in Rumaila trying to come to terms with the fact that she’s standing face to face (and possibly in love) with the man who caused great heartache and embarassment to her in life and possiby also responsible for her nana’s ill health and subsequent death. It’s in Zoraiz not knowing what will hit him when Rumaila finally comes clean. It’s in Rumaila’s dadi and nana’s families being daggers drawn with each other. It’s in Rumaila’s broken relationship with her parents and Zoraiz’s experience of growing up without his. And even as we know the healing will come from their shared loss, it is the storytelling and how we reach that destination that’s both thrilling and moving to watch at the same time.
A word on performances. Hamza Sohail and Yumna Zaidi are giving Pakistani drama viewers and fans a time of their life. From the unaffected photshoot to that dreamy road trip, both actors have shown they can slip into character, making us totally believe that what you see is what you get – Hamza who? And Yumna? We’re living in the world of Zoraiz and Rumaila and loving it. Ramesha Nawal playing Sushila and Mustafa Rehman essaying Kashan are hitting the right notes – the comic timing is just right and speaking of comic timing, if there was ever a slight doubt in your mind that Bushra Ansari couldn’t reinvent herself or nudge a healthy dose of laughter, even more so in fact, she just reminded us why she is in fact, the queen of comedy as the retired jailer who still believes in her power and dominance. Romaisa Khan is perfecting her acting skills with every new project and this time, it is her subtle performance, not overplaying Wareesha, keeping it relatable; in her wardrobe choices, body language, tone and expression that has made this character come alive in the most endearing ways. Momina Muneer as Sukaina has appeared briefly albeit, cemented her character as the thoughtful one between the three friends and we hope to see more of her.
The situations in Dekh Zara Pyar Se, though often comical, even exaggerated at times, are also relatable, and that’s what draws the fine line between subtle messaging and comedy. Dadi’s tenants taking her to the hospital is such a desi tenant moment, one we’ve seen played out in mutiple households, mine included. It is both endearing and sends out a quiet message in today’s shifting world of family dynamics where ageing parents or grand parents are often living without their immediate family, yet take on tenants who become like family. Wareesha and Mala dividing responsibilites for tending to their dadi’s healthcare and simultaneoulsy, seeking a day job, was again a relatable and uplifting moment – independent young women who feel their responsibilites at home too is the relatablility Gen Z was seeking in our drama stories, and I think they found it here.
In a world that’s cluttered with limitless drama stories, star-studded casts and big banner promotions, one wasn’t expecting Dekh Zara Pyar Se to hit it big – remember, Ramazan dramas have a history with us, especially yours truly and my earlier trauma overload perhaps gave you insights into the why and how of it. A part of me asks, with trepidation, and also playing devil’s advocate – am I giving in too easily to Dekh Zara Pyar Se? So disappointed am I with the recent brigade of Ramazan dramas that anything that’s half decent, that just makes it to the 14th episode minus a big eye roll from me, is something to celebrate? Am I settling rather than asking for the best?
… Genuine thinking pause.
Nah, says an inner voice. By not gatekeeping reveals, being confident that the story has so much more to offer, by not posing heroines as self righteous, rude, impudent, unecessarily outspoken young women, yet knowing their minds and being in charge of their sensibilities, by giving us a hero who aligns with our finer sensitivities – respectful, funny and charming (though I might have something to say with his reservation about Rumaila’s published photoshoot, but more on that another time, we’re keeping it positive for now), and by giving us a family that is nearly as dysfunctional as ours, (yes, be honest and I dare you to take a long hard look at yours), if not always just as funny, Dekh Zara Pyar Se is telling Ramazan drama creators, yes, it can be done. If only you tell an honest and wait for it… ‘not performative’ story and believe it will find its way into audiences’ hearts, the way it should – this one is getting it right so far.
Dekh Zara Pyar Se is penned by Saima Akram Chaudhry and directed by Ali Hassan. The Cast includes Yumna Zaidi and Hamza Sohail in the lead with Rumaisa Khan, Momina Munir, Bushra Ansari, Arshad Mehmood, Vaneeza Ahmed, Saleem Shaikh, Mustafa Rehman and Ramesha Nawal among others.
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