Nadia Khan’s drama reviews landed her in hot water again this week after she mocked Sajal Ali’s performance in an episode of the HUM TV show Zanjeerain.
On an episode of her show Kya Drama Hai, originally aired on July 4, Khan criticised Sajal’s acting in episode 18 , much of which is spent showing her character running — initially away from the house she was staying at and later from armed miscreants.
Khan found it strange that Rabia would cry “ Koi hai? (Is someone there?)” while being shot at and she told the audience as much by mimicking Sajal’s on-screen sprinting, much to the amusement of the show’s host Mukarram Kaleem.
Now, some of her industry colleagues want to know why she would do that and if there’s such a thing as taking criticism too far.
Maya Ali said on Tuesday that there was a difference between mocking someone, mimicry and the constructive criticism a senior actor should be giving.
She said Sajal had “done countless projects, represented Pakistan on international platforms and earned recognition for her outstanding performances”.
But even if she hadn’t, Maya contended, “Every artist deserves respect for their hard work and talent. Chasing ratings should never come at the cost of someone’s dignity.”
Veteran actor Saba Faisal had a tougher tone , asking if Khan’s behaviour was appropriate for social media.
“Nadia, you’re not in your living room, you’re on social media. Why are you talking about artists like that and who are you to criticise an artist like the one and only Sajal Ali?”
The harshest critique , however, came from writer Saima Akram Chaudhary, who said Khan needed to seek professional help.
Chaudhary said Khan had ruined “a script I had poured my heart into” and lamented that she can sit on TV and judge and ridicule other people.
The writer likened giving Khan a platform to “giving a matchstick to a monkey”.
Khan did not take this lightly and responded with an Instagram story of her own on Tuesday.
She said she had taken Chaudhary’s advice and had been diagnosed with “truth syndrome”, something better known as “practicing free speech and calling out bad writing”.
Khan said there was no cure for her honesty, but suggested a remedy for anyone impacted by her ailment, “Write better scripts and fix your production errors.”
Chaudhary shot back later, saying the easiest role for an actor to play was that of an “honest critic”.
She said the hardest role was accepting the same honesty aimed towards one’s own work and that free speech was a two-way street.
This is not the first time Khan and her drama review show have come into the spotlight. The show’s critique of Main Manto Nahi Hoon was also questioned by some, with the drama’s lead actor Humayun Saeed saying he doesn’t take it very seriously.
