‘Kuch Ankahi’ will remind you of old-school PTV family dramas: Sajal Aly

The star-studded drama serial that reunites Sajal Aly and Bilal Abbass premiered on Saturday and social media users are already praising the forward narrative that it brings. Focused on women empowerment, Aly claimed that with its comical and emotional dialogues, Kuch Ankahi will remind users of the old school days of PTV family dramas that are still etched in people's minds.

In conversation with Fuchsia, the cast of the Nadeem Baig directorial spoke about what made them sign on to the project. For Aly, it was the fusion of Baig and writer-actor Syed Muhammad Ahmed.

“Sinf-e-Aahan was my first play with Baig sahab but even before that, since he helps Six Sigma Plus as well, he’d call me for scripts and I’d later find out that someone else was directing it. He topped the list of directors I wanted to work with. So one day, I told him to take me on one of his projects,” she quipped about how she got a role in Sinf-e-Aahan.

However, the Mom actor didn’t think she’d land another serial with the director in the same year. “When he asked me, i said ‘duh, why is that even a question?’ Also, its written by Mohammed Ahmed. I love him. Meri unse behad muhabbat, ishq, dosti hai. It was a dream come true for me,” she said.

Aly went on to recall how she’s been a fan of Ahmed before she even pursued acting professionally. “I first met Ahmed sahab at a set. My mom was doing a project somewhere and he saw me there and told me that he was writing Umrao Jaan but I was too young for it. I was at the age where, you know, you think you can do anything but I really was very young. So after all these years, finally doing a script written by him means everything to me,” she sighed.

About the storyline, Aly said there are seldom such dramas where the storyline feels close to heart. “We’re talking about women empowerment and this project has so many women at the centre of the story with their own individual narratives. We’re not just supporting each other in the script but even on the set. All of us, Vaneeza, Mira, Qudsia, we’re all there for each other. The feeling when you actually, genuinely support women is the best feeling and that comes out in its best form in the serial,” she exclaimed.

While the Khel Khel Mein actor was hesitant about sharing much about her character without revealing too much, she just said that it's an “incredibly special” one for her and it has given her immense strength. About returning to a comical serial after doing rather emotional and serious storylines, Aly said that the serial doesn't have “on-the-face comedy” but a more satirical touch of humour.

“I love comedy but this isn't on-the-face comedy. This is the kind of old-school PTV family drama that you still remember. You’ll cry, you’ll laugh, and you’ll celebrate with us. It’s a lot of emotions together,” she said.

Sethi, who said she rejected 5 dramas since Paristan, also echoed the same. “I rejected 4-5 projects this year because they were, well, just not great. The feel of this project is Anwar Maqsood meets Haseena Moin meets Syed Muhammad Ahmed. It’s a comedy, its satire, its light and yet it has an emotional tenant to it,” she said while asking GenZ to google who the first two are.

Aly will be next seen in Jemima Khan and Shekar Kapur’s What’s Love Got To Do With It? About future projects, she hinted at doing things beyond the screen and perhaps expanding into a direction unknown right now. “We’re privileged for sure but we also have a responsibility. I wish to do more and start debates, and conversations while keeping up with entertainment,” she said.

Sethi also spoke about the friendships she made on the set of Kuch Ankahi, something that has been a rare occurrence in her showbiz career. “I’ve barely ever hung out with someone after the shoot was over. It was only Adnan Malik and Ali Safina, but now I’ve made friends with Sajal, Nadeem and Vinnie (Vaneeza Ahmed) and we hang out all the time,” she said happily while adding that such emotional connection also replicates on set and she wishes more production houses adapt to positive work environments.

Sethi, who plays the eldest sister Samiya, shared details about her resilient character. “She’s someone with a lot of quiet strength but that's not visible in the beginning.

The host questioned that often when portraying a bold female character, drama serials go all out with an extreme on-the-face representation; one that doesn't align with most independent women out there. About such misrepresentation on screens, Sethi said that she was very conscious of that not happening in Kuch Ankahi and emphasised that the dialogues, although less, carry so much weight that there's no place for exaggerated reactions.