Man Jali is the latest offering from Six Sigma Entertainment. With a strong cast, including a fresh pairing of Mikaal Zulfiqar and Mehwish Hayat, this serial has elicited quite a bit of interest from our readers, several of whom requested we review it. So here it goes…
Having watched the first episode, I’m at a loss as to what to review. I could talk about the parts that worked and/or didn’t work for me, but in terms of the story, there is nothing left to discuss. Not because I couldn’t understand it or follow it, but because Geo has very obligingly posted the whole story on its website, leaving nothing for me to engage with as a viewer. Read the paragraph below and judge for yourself:
“A story of a man named Wahab Ahmed who lives with his wife Zareena Ahmed and two daughters Tooba and Gurya. Wahab Ahmed is a corrupted man involved in illegal activities, interested in another woman named Meena but portrays himself as a very pious & religious person. His wife gives an impression that she is happy but in reality she is not. Tooba the elder daughter works in a call center while the younger one is in 12th grade. They are unaware about the real face of their father. Tooba’s cousin Ramis and Toobi seem to develop an interest in each other but Wahab Ahmed doesn’t seem to like Ramis. The story has some interesting twists and turns with Tooba getting forcibly acquainted with his drunk cousin Zavyar, Wahab marrying Meena, Ramis getting brutally beaten up by Wahab’s men. In the end tables will turn and things will be brought to justice and Wahab Ahmed and Zavyar would have to pay for their evil deeds and Tooba will get married to Ramis.”
After this excruciatingly detailed description, I’m not sure as to what the producers, Six Sigma, and Geo expect their viewers to follow for the next three plus months. All I can say is that if the serial fails to garner an adequate viewership then they should take a long hard look at themselves in the mirror. The story might be much more nuanced and well-written than is very clumsily described here; Nadeem Baig’s direction might have managed to make the serial rise above what appears to be a very mediocre storyline; and the actors might have given the performance of their lives – it simply doesn’t matter. Given the number of quality serials on air these days, this bizarrely unattractive summary is not going to garner viewership.
My irritation and annoyance aside, I did watch the episode, and all I can say is that this was a very average opening. Sajid Hassan is such a fantastic actor but to see him wasted in similar roles serial after serial is really sad, and the same goes for Saba Hameed as well. Mehwish Hayat is the big draw for most, after her very successful Mere Qatil Mere Dildar, but I have to say I was unimpressed. She might be good later as her role develops, but so far, sorry – couldn’t buy her act.
Basically, nothing excited me or piqued my interest in this opening chapter. The only thing that did stand out was the three and half minute song in the rain sequence. Sung by Mehwish herself, it’s a beautiful song, and I have absolutely nothing against dancing or rain or some such, BUT, I failed to see the justification for putting this overlong scene in the first episode? Just because Khirad twirled in the rain (that too for only a few seconds!) and we loved it, does this mean that we are now to be subjected to Humsafar inspired sequences in every new serial that comes along??
P.S. I have copy- pasted the synopsis from the Geo site (http://www.harpalgeo.tv/details.asp?id=202) and bear no responsibility for the typos…
Written by SZ~ [email protected]
Follow me on Twitter: SZ_DramaPakistani (@sz_dp)
