So after a long long wait (2 years?) we finally were ready to air Pakistan Idol. The hoopla around who the judges were going to be, Utho Jago Pakistan’s over excitement and what seemed to be Geo TV’s only priority during December paid off. We all knew Mohib Mirza would be the host and most people correctly guessed that Hadiqa Kyani and Ali Azmat would be 2 out of the 3 judges. The surprise factor however was Bushra Ansari and I’ll leave it up to you guys to decide whether the judges were rightly picked. As to the contestants, let me state clearly here that I’m not at all going to be reviewing the way the contestants  have sung or presented themselves in the last 13 episodes. No names will be mentioned, at least not until after episode 16, at which point we will see the top 16 contestants. Hence, this review will not be long or winded (hopefully).

Episodes 1-10, in my opinion were brutal. Don’t get me wrong, I very much enjoyed the singers and their acts. It was great to see such passion and devotion from all the singers from different cities. A lot of them (who did not make it) were also very funny. My bone of contention is with the judges and their attitudes. I realize there is a format to this show that starts from American Idol and goes onto Indian Idol. The expectation is that the judges are going to be very strict and perhaps rude and there may be one mediator. The problem with Pakistan Idol judges was that in episodes 1-10 ALL of the judges were rude to the singers they didn’t like. In their defense, some of those contestants should probably not have been there. However, none of them had the right to humiliate and degrade the contestants like they did upon rejecting some of them. If the format of the show is to be rude, then the format needs to be reworked. They are supposed to be tough and fair, not kill people’s confidence on live TV. At points it seemed like a lynch mob. The ones that they liked, they loved, some that they rejected, they were actually polite about it, but the rest was horrible. What gives Ali Azmat the right to tell someone they should never ever sing again? What gives Bushra Ansari or Hadiqa Kyani the right to tell people there is no reason for them to be at Pakistan Idol auditions and they need to pack and leave? There is a proper and encouraging way to say no. This isn’t a drama series rather a reality show and they seemed to be playing with peoples’ feelings and enjoyed it. I could care less about Geo TV’s ratings because they aren’t valid anyways since there is no proper way to gauge Pakistan TV’s rating system. I know the judges had a tough job, but in my opinion, insulting those who didn’t sing well, was not the way to do their job.

Episodes 11-13 were a complete 180 degree turn around though. 24 contestants left and since now all the judging is up to the people of Pakistan and their votes, the judges seemed relaxed and when someone didn’t sing to their standards, they were actually encouraging and motivating. Also in these 3 episodes I was absolutely amazed at the singers. Pakistan has talent!! These youngsters sang songs from Reshma, Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan, Noor Jahan, and Kishore and they were all fantastic! They all seemed like they were having so much fun and there was so much energy that I had a lot of fun watching it. My favorite parts were the beginning of episodes 11 and 13 where 8 different singers were singing together. The positive energy and excitement, coupled with the fantastic music and singing was great…even the judges were having fun and seemed to thoroughly enjoy it. Ali Amat finally seemed relaxed and looked as if he wanted to be there. Clearly my favorite episodes were 11-13.

The one constant though, throughout episodes 1-13 was Mohib Mirza. This guy can host and he did complete justice to his role. The level of emotions, excitement, and energy he brought to the show was something not many could have done. He genuinely seemed to be having fun and that made all the difference in the show. Great Job Mohib!!

I’m waiting to see what happens Sunday and which 4 out of the 8 who sang today go on to the next round.  I will try to review this on a weekly basis going forward.

Let us know what your thoughts are on Pakistan Idol.