Credits
7th Sky Entertainment Presentation
Producers: Abdullah Kadwani & Asad Qureshi
Director: Syed Wajahat Hussain
Writer: Saima Akram Chaudhary
Without much further ado, let’s review this episode.
10 Things I Love About the Drama
Chaudhry and Sons is one of the best dramas I have seen, ever. It surprised me every single time.
1. From a trope to a masterpiece
Parents ran away to get married and now the next generation will fall in love… This is a very popular desi trope, and one that isn’t my favourite. But Saima Akram Chaudhary takes this trope and turns it into one of the best rom-coms ever. It is written brilliantly, it is smart and sharp and so effing hilarious.
2. Real, Living, Breathing Characters, not just cardboards
Every character has a story and an arc. They aren’t there just for props.
- Tashi was once dumped by Sabahat. Now, he is over-aged and desperate to tie the knot, but nobody likes him.
- Naeema has the sole purpose in life: to please her Tau ji and take credit of Sheeba’s work.
- Sheeba is the quintessential devrani who wants a separate house
- Shakir is perpetually annoyed with his wife and son, hoping that Naeema wouldn’t spoil Billu further, and that Billu should become something.
- Sabir, the animal lover who enjoys watching animal documentaries.
- Malka Begum, a fiercely protective grandmother with a sharp tongue. Even being a guest at the Chaudhry house, she never minces her words.
- Dildar Chaudhry, who’se favourite line “Gaadi labbe na labbe, speed ek sau nabbe” is the perfect line to tell us who he is: larger than life, grand, flamboyant.
- Dr Salma: Dildar Chaudhry’s Once Upon a Love Story, she also plays a pivotal character in convincing Dildar Chaudhry that he should let go of his ego and his traditions for his family’s happiness.
- Professor Bakht: All he wants to do is bring Dildar Chaudhry down, even if it is by expelling Billu Chaudhry
3. Performances
The performances of this drama are on point.
Imran’s swag and his lost-in-love expressions…
Ayeza’s royal attitude…
Irsa Ghazal’s part-Urdu part-English lines…
Sohail Sahab’s “Pleasure, pleasure!”
Noor ul Hassan’s jugten on Billu…
Asma Abbas’s incessant efforts to please Tau ji…
Madiha Rizwi’s perpetually annoyed expression…
Saquib Sumeer’s love for animals…
Yasir Nawaz’s desperation to get married and settle down…
Sami Khan’s little don-like threats (upar se bhola, andar se aag ka gola)…
Everything was just excellent.
And then there is:
Hammad Shoaib who was a delight to watch after his many grey roles like Deewar-e-Shab and Shehnai.
Zoya Rehman (almost no change in her demeanour from other dramas), but she blended in with others just right.
4. Pop culture references
From teasing Billu “Eda tu Imran Ashraf” to consoling Pari “kyunki Mere paas tum ho”, from mentioning Khuda aur Mohabbat to listing all the movies this cast is involved in, the team has smartly included pop culture references throughout the series, and it was so much fun.
5. Comedy at its best
To say that this drama was hilarious, would be a huge understatement. Every episode of this drama was filled with haha moments. Even though I tried to compile a list, I fail to include every single one. Even in the last few episodes, when the story had turned grim and sombre, it had its light moments and witty one-liners.
6. The grandfather grandson friendship
- Billu’s constant
“Yo dada, that’s not the flow dada.”
- Billu hugging his grandfather lovingly saying:
“hamari dosti ko nazar na lagana, Amma”
- Billu’s phone’s password is a combination of his and his dada’s birthdates.
This duo has been one of the most entertaining and most endearing duos of all time.
7. Malka Begum and her achhi Pari, pyari Pari
Malka Begum, a fiercely protective grandmother with a sharp tongue. Even being a guest at the Chaudhry house, she never minces her words. But she is also a very long grandmother. She can never tolerate to see Pari upset. The way she says “Achhi Pari, pyari Pari” and hugs Pari just warmed my heart every time. She might make fun of Pari, her naivete and her lack of interest in studies, but boy does she love her granddaughter with all her being.
8. Dildar Chaudhry & his two bahus
Naeema always shows that she is the one doing all the work, and Dildar Chaudhry always endorses that. But then, he says things like:
“Shabbo, tu bari ki shopping kar dena. Attache mein Naeema khud hi bhar legi.”
“Shabbo, tu khana bana dena. Chulha Naeema aap hi band kar legi.”
“Shabbo, tu chai bana de. Naeema cup mein dal legi.”
“Bechari kaam pe nazar rakhte rakhte thak jati hogi.”
It’s times like these that we all know that he knows, he knows what Naeema is doing. But instead of making a big drama out of it, he simply gives sarcastic comments which seem so genuine that Naeema never realizes it. This was one of the most likable things of this drama.
9. Ayeza’s wardrobe and styling
From her nagin zulfein in the first 13 episodes, to her straight mane; her styling was always on point. In episode 14. Pari gets her straightened to look like her mother Sabahat Chaudhry. Ayeza looks good with curly hair and with straight hair, both. She looked so delicate and fragile in her nagin zulfein. And she looks stunning in straight hair. She’s so pretty. I love how she changes her whole self for every project. I have not seen her don the same look for two projects. Love her styling.
10. Imran’s (Billu’s) wardrobe and styling
Whether it is his patched jackets or colourful hoodies or tattered sweater or sparkling red sherwani, Billu’s styling reflected the man that he is–flamboyant, extravagant, colourful, loud, cheerful, unashamed of who he is.
~
Shabana Mukhtar
