Natasha Kundi Alif has to be one of the most profound dramas in the history of Pakistan, and it’s safe to call it a masterpiece.
GEO Tv aired its last episode and I’m really sad that it’s over.
Written by one of the most celebrated writers of Pakistan, Umera Ahmad, Alif is a spiritual journey of individuals with their lives intertwined with one another.
It’s one of the most unique dramas ever written.
From its storyline to its dialogues, everything revolves around God and the spiritual struggle of characters drowned in a metaphorical sea of sins.
Starring Hamza Ali Abbasi, Sajal Ali, Kubra Khan, Ahsan Khan, Saleem Miraj, Saleem Saifi, Manzar Sehbai, Osman Khalid Butt, Yashma Gill, Nida Mumtaz, Sadaf Kanwal and many more, Alif is a story of Qalb e Momin (Hamza Ali Abbasi) a well-established film maker and Momina Sultan (Sajal Ali) a struggling actress.
Momina friend, who is also Qalb e Momin’s assistant, recommends her to give an audition for Momin’s upcoming film, but during the audition, Momina refuses to dress immodestly, which is the demand of the character. There is an exchange of strong, heated words that leave an unpleasant taste between the two leading characters, Momina and Momin.
Momina is desperate to find work as she has to pay for her ailing brother’s renal treatment, but not desperate enough to wear immodest clothes.
She finally gets an acting job in a Hollywood movie but by the time they pay her advance, her brother passes away, leaving her parents and herself distraught.
Momina is in love with Faisal Khan (Osman Khalid Butt) who wants to marry her but requests her to leave the film industry as it’s looked down upon.
Momina refuses his proposal.
Faisal marries someone else but never forgets Momina.
A parallel story takes us to the yester years where Qalb e Momin is a little boy who writes letters to his deceased father Taha (Ahsan Khan) who marries a top-notch actress Husn e Jahan (Kubra Khan).
Husn e Jahan is at the peak of her career when she visits Turkey for an acting job accompanied by her makeup artist, Sultan (Saleem Miraj).
She falls in love with Taha, a spiritual dancer and calligrapher.
Taha’s father Abdul Aala (Manzar Sehbai) is a calligrapher who bases his work on Islamic art, as so do many of his previous generations.
Calligraphy runs in the family until Taha dares to paint Husn e Jahan, creating a stir in the family business as painting living beings is frowned upon by Muslims.
As an opponent to Taha-Husn e Jahan union, Abdul Aala abandons the couple.
Taha and Husn e Jahan struggle financially after their marriage.
They can’t give their son, Qalb e Momin, the future he deserves.
Taha feels guilty for painting Husn e Jahan and realises the shame he has brought to the family, and this brings his talent of calligraphy to a permanent halt.
He feels buyers cannot see the spiritual touch in his work anymore.
A severely depressed Taha abandons his family and passes away mysteriously.
Momina reaches the heights of fame after her Hollywood venture. She even wins an Oscar. Her demand increases nationally and internationally.
As Qalb e Momin is struggling spiritually after constant arguments with his grandfather, Abdul Aala, he slowly becomes dissatisfied with film making. There comes a time when he wants to make a spiritual film secretly based on the life of his mother, Husn e Jahan. Many critics and sponsors disagree to this venture as they feel it will not bring them business.
Qalb e Momin casts Momina for his film as he sees Husn e Jahan in her. He feels spiritually connected with Momina while other people in the industry believe he casts her because she is famous and his film will do a lot of business.
Momina agrees to do the film after seeing how Qalb e Momin is adamant to cast her.
Being an avid fan of calligraphy, instead of charging money, Momina exchanges her acting talents with calligraphy art made by Abdul Aala.
She recognises his paintings while visiting Qalb e Momin’s residence and quickly settles for a few paintings instead of a monetary benefit.
At first Qalb e Momin feels she will sell them, but seeing that she is extremely serious, he settles for this deal.
Momina’s mother (Lubna Aslam) is constantly suffering with the loss of her son. Moving to a new house doesn’t help. We see her constantly chatting with her son while all this time he is dead.
Sultan (Saleem Miraj), Momina’s father, plays an extremely important part in the execution of Husn e Jahan, Taha and Qalb e Momin’s story. He is the real reason behind a monumental twist in the drama.
Another very important role is of Master Ibrahim played by Saife Hassan. He is a calligrapher and Abdul Aala’s only connection with Pakistan when Qalb e Momin is a young boy living with him. Husn e Jahan is struggling with her mother (Nida Mumtaz) who wants to put her back in films. While producers do not wish to cast Husn e Jahan anymore because she’s old and outdated, Husn e Jahan’s mother wants her to marry a rich man for her own personal gains. Husn e Jahan with the help of Sultan, fakes a suicide and runs away to Turkey.
Sultan is all along in love with Husn e Jahan but this love is more of respect than romance. He helps her in every thick and thin of her life.
Every actor in this drama has acted phenomenally. I can’t say one was better than the other. It’s just perfect. Haseeb Hassan has done an amazing job with the direction.
Alif is a show that will go down with the greats, the classics. It’s a show that will be appreciated for generations to come with its ability to connect with the viewer on a personal level, in a way that’s beyond religion and the general ideas of right and wrong. It’s a show that forces the audience to think – who was right? Who was wrong? Is there a clear answer or are we all, as human beings, just striving to do our best? The show leaves a haunting feeling, one that’s both sad and hopeful at the same time. Saturday has a “Alif”-sized void to fill.
Sophie Qureshi—Masala.com
