Television enthusiasts, huddle close.

January is beginning to feel like a breath of fresh air. Many dramas and soaps are set to release and some are already gracing our screens. This gives us, the viewers, our precious freedom to choose.

The elephant in the room remains: will local productions push the envelope and experiment with poignant stories or will we have more of the same? If the first month of the year is an indication of what is to follow, I believe this will be a good year.

If you are on the lookout for what to watch, sit tight and I will give you a rundown of all that you can enjoy – and more (set to release) this spring.

Mohabbat Ki Aakhri Kahani

Set to release soon, this drama revolves around the theme of family bonds. The cast composition for this play, penned by the veteran writer Zafar Mairaj, is promising. We will see Alizeh Shah sharing the screen with Sami Khan and Shahzad Sheikh.

Will this play have a trite story that has already been done to death or will it offer something different? Let’s see how it pans out. For now, we have the OST sung by Asrar Shah and Hadiqa Kiani to hold onto.

Release Date: 12-01-2023

Mere Ban Jao

Released only recently, Mere Ban Jao is a drama serial that attempts to address a host of social issues in one go. The drama itself is a spin on true events that highlight the impacts of social media on our lives.

As novel as the concept sounds, the plotline seems clichéd. We see a love triangle starring Kinza Hashmi, the new pretty face on the block, Zahid Ahmed and Azfar Rehman.

While the intention seems to be noble, love triangles are a worn-out arc. Only an episode in, one cannot shake off the thought that either our drama industry is either running out of ideas or is too afraid to experiment.

Release Date: 11-01-2023

Kuch Ankahi

The plot revolves around Agha Jan’s ancestral house where he lives with his three daughters. Agha is not willing to share the property with his sister.

His second daughter, Aliya, is working day in and day out to settle the outstanding claims against the house. The story takes an amazing turn when Salman, a young real estate agent, enters their house as a tenant.

This play has already received rave reviews. Finally, we have an opportunity to watch something different other than the usual love triangles. Let’s hope this play turns out to be a blockbuster. It does have a novel storyline and an interesting lineup of actors.

Release Date: 07-01-2023

Kacha Dhaga

The story revolves around the life of a young girl named Arishma. She falls in love with her classmate Hamdan. She expresses her love for him. Arishma’s father does not initially approve of Hamdan because he belongs to a different socio-economic class. Later, swayed by Hamdan’s efforts, he grants his permission for the union but Hamdan walks away right on the eve of the wedding, claiming that he had wanted to get married only to seek revenge. Arishma, left heartbroken, moves on in life and marries Harib instead.

Then, in another twist, Hamdan reappears in Arishma’s life. Despite everything, she never loses hope and faces everything with courage. The reappearance of a former lover seems to immediately grab the attention of the viewers. Will this story rake in the moolah for its producers? Let’s wait and watch.

Release Date: 02-01-2023

Grift

The story revolves around the character of Anesha, played by Saniya Shamshad. She is the wife of Muraad, portrayed by Ali Abbas.

The twist comes in the form of Roohi, portrayed by Momina Iqbal. Roohi is depicted as a selfish girl who intends to marry Muraad because of her financial needs.

Two women after the same man; again a love triangle and one including a ‘gold digger.’ Are you experiencing déjà vu? I’m sure it won’t be the last time.

Release Date: 01-01-2023

Tairay Bin

The story of this romantic drama revolves around the duo of Wahaj Ali and Yumna Zaidi in the roles of Murtasim and Meerab. It seems to showcase a serious topic.

Murtasim is an egoist and a toxic masculine character. He is aggressive and passionate about everything. On the other hand, Meerab is an unconventional girl who has not learnt to bow down to patriarchy. Her parents have brought her up in a way that she speaks her mind.

The characters are poles apart but bound in a romantic relationship. Some sparks are sure to fly. Will they set the cash registers ringing?

Release Date: 28-12-2022

Tairay Bina Maen Nahin

Tairay Bina Maen Nahin is pivoted around the story of the protagonist, Noor-ul-Ain who is played by Sonya Hussain. She passionately loves Murtaza, played by Shahzad Sheikh who is also madly in love with her.

Although Tehniyat, portrayed by Aiza Awan, also loves Murtaza, she is also best friends with Noor-ul-Ain. The moment Noor-ul-Ain learns that Tehniyat and Murtaza are in love, she decides to sacrifice her love for Teniyat in order to save Murtaza’s life.

The trite story is about two women in love with the same man. Again, the viewers probably crave something different and novel at this point and have had their fill of love triangles and holier-than-thou ladies willing to sacrifice their love for the sake of friendship.

The tried and tested formulae continue to rule.

Release Date: 27-12-2022

Hook

Again a love triangle in which of the men dies because he is in love with the protagonist, Haya, played by Kinza Hashmi. His elder brother seeks revenge for his death from Zayan (the third corner of the triangle) and Haya.

The story of the obsessed lover always garners acclaim and TRPs and a recent winner is Kaisi Teri Khudgarzi. Love triangles are always a winner and when suspense and revenge are added to the combination, it makes for an addictive drama fix.

Release Date: 21-12-2022

Muqaddar Ka Sitara

The brilliant narrative of this drama is about the societal issue of treating marriages as the panacea for all problems.

The story starts when Safdar, a Pakistani-American well-settled man, gets his spoiled son married to his friend’s well-educated daughter, Hadiya. The plotline is expected to take many turns and twists.

Release Date: 19-12-2022

Mujhay Pyar Hua Tha

Mujhay Pyaar Hua Tha is a love triangle between Maheer, Saad and Areeb. Saad has always been in love with his cousin Maheer but when he fails to confess it to her, life takes a different turn; and Areeb enters the frame. Despite the triangle, the play may be a winner because it casts talented actors like Hania Aamir.

Release Date: 12-12-2022

Mairay Damad

This play revolves around Shagufta Ejaz who is a lawyer by profession and has four daughters, all married. The trials and tribulations faced by her in ensuring a safe, healthy and happy home for each of her daughters are captured in this play.

This reminds the viewer of the play Meri Betiyan with Mohammad Ahmed playing the helpless father. Again, an oft-repeated theme.

Release Date: 08-12-2022

Aik Thi Laila

As the name suggests, the show is about a girl named Laila (Iqra Aziz), who goes missing. Instead of catching the person responsible for her disappearance, many, including her ex-fiancé and the police accuse her of eloping.

The same people then become suspects in the case that Inspector Saad (Yasir Hussain) is seemingly trying to crack open.

This is a mini-series which lends a certain element of freshness to this production after the long drawn-out TV serials we generally view on television. Short and riveting. Should be a great watch.

Release Date: 01-12-2022

Noor

Pakistani actress Anmol Baloch who also acted in Siyani reappears in Noor, a play about two girls who accidentally get switched at birth thus changing their fortunes. Baloch features in the series as Noor - the good-natured lead character, a smart young girl who seeks fairness and justice for the people in her community. Her character is seen as the polar opposite of the girl whose parents were from a wealthier background.

The play is directed by Ilyas Kashmiri and produced by Merajuddin. In it, Anmol Baloch plays a role diametrically opposite to her first play, Siyani which may be interesting for her fans.

Release Date: 07-11-2022

Zindagi Ek Paheli

Zindagi Aik Paheli is a riveting tale of three sisters Mehnaz, Maliha and Faiza and the way their life changes after their father experiences a substantial financial loss. Things begin to go downhill as Mehnaz is asked to compromise on each step.

With household tensions mounting by the moment, Maliha decides to step up for her family. This reminds us of Zindagi Gulzar Hai with the difference that in that play, the father disowns his daughters and they learn to fight back.

In this case, the circumstances are different but parallels can be drawn as again, it is a play involving three sisters and how they fight to survive in a patriarchal society, after suffering a huge setback. A story of resilience and compromise that appears to be doing well.

Release Date: 31-10-2022

Farq

This play revolves around a young girl, Irsa (Sehar Khan), who marries a man twice her age, played by Faysal Quraishi, for money. He has a daughter, played by Saba Shah.

This oft-repeated theme highlights the element of materialism in society. The protagonist ends up realising that money can never buy happiness, satisfaction or contentment.

Release Date: 31-10-2022

Baypanah

The story of Baypanah revolves around two young girls named Gul and Rushna. Eshal Fayyaz and Kanwal Khan play the lead roles. Rushna (played by Eshal Fayyaz) is an uncaring and selfish girl, and Gul (played by Kanwal Khan) is a sensitive and quiet one. Rushna makes a little mistake that completely ruins everything in the family.

The play has been produced by Momina Duraid. Like many other plays, most recently Darrar, it juxtaposes two completely different characters to highlight the difference.

However, the characterisation is rather simplistic and misses nuance. Instead of portraying characters as black and white, which leads to a predictable plotline, our writers need to work on adding layers to their characters.

The writer is an educationist and can be reached at gaiteeara @hotmail.com.