THE BEST OF PAKISTANI ENTERTAINMENT - 2020 EDITION

While 2020 was ‘mesmerizingly’ mocked for Mehwish’s red cheeks post THAT thapar in this year’s blockbuster hit ‘Mere Paas Tum Ho’ or for Nisha stealing her sister’s ‘happily married’  life in ‘Jalan’, the year has been no alien to the lux of Lollywood! Though 2020 was a slow year for the entertainment industry in general, with productions being halted due to lockdowns and outbreaks, there were still some break out hits! Here’s what we loved in 2020!

Churails

Asim Abbasi’s feminist detective show featuring four women operating an agency that exposes philandering hubbies praiseworthily penetrated Indo-Pak tensions brimming since the start of civilisation. While Bollywood filmmaker Anurag Kashyap tweeted, ‘Had no clue this was directed by Asim Abbasi. Adding to my watchlist’, The Indian Express commented ‘the real strength of the series comes from getting up close and very personal with the women’. Critics may classify it a flop for its temporary ban, but hey, it bounced right back, didn’t it?

 VELO Sound Station

Launched in November 2020, VELO Sound Station is a juggernaut of a show directed by legends Bilal Maqsood and Yasir Jaswal. Like some of other wildly popular musical programmes we’ve loved in the past, VSS covers studio-recorded performances by both veteran and budding musicians - except (HELLO!) these are recorded live. Cleaerly Pakistanis can’t get enough music in their lives!  Now be prepared to electrify yourself with Aima Baig’s ‘Bijli’, Atif Aslam’s soulful ‘Kadi Teh Hans’ or Umair Jaswal’s electrifying ‘Gagar’

Ehd -e - Wafa

Hum Network’s homage to friendship left viewers bittersweet -only because it came to an end, and of course subsequent screenings were canceled due to COVID-19. So what if some random filed a petition against the serial for slamming politicians? Eventually the star cast boasting Ahad Raza Mir, Osman Khalid Butt, Ahmed Ali Akbar, Alizeh Shah, Wahaj Ali, and Zara Noor Abbas left Twitter in tears. ‘No one can stop their tears after watching this scene. Friends are life,’ tweeted a love-struck fan.

 Coke Studio 2020 - Season Opener

‘Na Tutteya Ve’ featuring six artists - Meesha Shafi, Sanam Marvi, Fariha Pervez, Zara Madani, Wajiha Naqvi, Sehar Gul Khan - celebrated ( uhh, finally ) the powerhouse women of Pakistan’s music industry. Critics claimed the opener could have accorded a transwoman - Pakistan’s only acceptable sexual minority - representation, but hey we’re not complaining. Something solemnly beats nothing, and this song simply left us skipping our heartbeats!

 ELO

This short film on suicide and mental health created by graduates of PAF-KIET became the first of its kind to gain global recognition on Disney+. Syed Saad Farrukh - the scriptwriter and protagonist - clearly deserves some more credit for his 28 minute long masterpiece! If you watch nothing else, this year, do watch this!