From learning accents to on-field training events, 'Sinf-e-Aahan' cast talks show

The star-studded female cast recalls experiences of shooting the much-hyped series

Contrary to the usual Pakistani drama serials, Sinf-e-Aahan brings forth a motivational story of five courageous women fighting against all odds to conquer their dream of joining the armed forces. With just three episodes out, the serial has already proved to be a fan favourite.

Showing five headstrong, passionate, and opinionated women adamant about joining the Pakistan army, Sinf-e-Aahan encourages women to stand up against convention. It relays a message of dissent and disagreement with social constructs that inhibit you from becoming what you want to be.

The star-studded cast comprises Sajal Aly, Yumna Zaidi, Ramsha Khan, Kubra Khan, Syra Yousuf, Ramsha Khan, Dananeer, and Tashiya Yahali Kalidasa. For most of them, a major reason to join this project was the people they’d share the screen with and the message they’d deliver to young girls. Three of them, Ramsha, Syra and Dananeer appeared for an interview with BBC Urdu and shared their experiences of working together on this military-backed project.

Ramsha Khan plays the role of a struggling farmer’s daughter from Balochistan, Pariwesh Jamal. Her father, unlike her mother, is supportive of her educational needs and career choices despite hailing from a tribal setup. "While I loved the character, I said yes to the role as soon as I found out that Pariwesh is fond of shooting. Not that I like it, but when I tried my hand at shooting I could hear my heartbeat,” shared the Shehnai actor. “And of course, when I found out that Sajal, Syra, Kubra, Yumna and Dananeer are all part of it, it would've been foolish of me to refuse.”

Speaking about her character, Ramsha shared that, “Pari's journey was very inspiring for me. She wanted to join the Pakistan Military Academy (PMA), and while many people may not know this, when you join the army as a cadet, you are given some money as a stipend, and so it was necessary for her to contribute to her family’s financial situation while pursuing her father’s dream.”

Pariwesh also demanded the actor to speak in a Balochi accent in order to stay true to her personality. Ramsha shared that she was initially scared of misrepresenting people, but the cast playing her parents are originally from Quetta and she learned and adopted the accent from them, spending time during breaks to perfect it.

Another leading actor, Syra, playing a Christian girl Aarzoo Daniel, returned to the silver screen after a long hiatus from acting. She shared how a call from the director Sana Shahnawaz convinced her to join back. "I got a call from her sharing details about the storyline, the narrative, and characters, and as she kept speaking, my interest rose, and I decided that is definitely a promising role to take.”

Playing a minority belonging to lower class strata in love with their landlord’s son, the character of Aarzoo is tragic but beautifully written. Referring to the tragedy of her character's life, Yusuf shared, "Aarzoo’s character is very important to me because she represents minorities and brings forth their very real problems. She has to choose a guy to marry from within their community and even if she does that for her family, she wouldn’t be happy herself.”

“And I think it is not only relatable to people, but they can also understand that people are often bound in painful relationships and Aarzoo teaches them to get out of it, or at least try to,” asserted Syra about why she took the role.

On the other hand, Dananeer, famous for her 'pawri' video, made her TV debut with Sinf-e-Aahan. While netizens criticised the choice of casting a social media influencer, fellow actors supported her. She shared that she had no intentions of acting in a drama or a film whatsoever until this opportunity presented itself. “When I read the script, I fell in love with Sidra’s well-written character. It resembles my own personality with humour and all. I doubted it, but after going back and forth several times in conversations with my parents, I decided it was too good of an opportunity to pass on.”

About her experience of shooting with one of the biggest names, she said, “It was unrealistic. It still is. The whole cast, individually, is an inspiration to me, and it is an honour for me to work with them.” Responding to the criticism she received, she simply owed it to Allah and her plans. Syra and Ramsha, however, asked everyone to wait till her part on screen comes up, and then people will “automatically stop spewing hate.”

One infamous fact about the serial is that all of these women received military training and participated in physical and mental training, including shooting. Recalling being trained and scolded by real soldiers during the shooting of the play, the actors laughed and said that the most difficult task for them was to “pass the salute test.”

Ramsha shared that after repeated failures and overcoming fears of height and guns, when everyone passed the test, Dananeer, the youngest of them all, burst into tears. “The real fear was of the officers taking the test. When we had to salute with our eyes looking into their eyes, we used to forget everything,” Syra added with a chuckle.

Upon seven girls working together, the interviewer posed a stereotypical question on how they got along. Syra gave a blunt response saying, “It is only a challenge when you make it one. We see it as leading actors sharing space, enjoying our company, and giving our best efforts.”

“We all became good friends and have made memories we’ll cherish forever,” said Dananeer with the two artists agreeing with a wide smile.

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