Without any doubt, Zara Noor Abbas is one of the most sought out actresses in Pakistan at the moment.
She might be the daughter of Asma Abbas, versatile Bushra Ansari’s niece and renowned intellectual and writer Ahmed Bashir’s granddaughter, but that doesn’t mean that success has been easy for her.
From Dharkan to Khamoshi, from Lamhay to Deewar-e-Shab and lately Ehd-e-Wafa, Zara Noor Abbas has proved her mettle and continued to take her family’s legacy forward. With Zebaish, she has once again surprised the HUM TV audience with her power-packed performance that has left the audience hooked to the serial.
Spotlight got hold of this multifaceted actress who is indebted to the makers of the serial for reuniting her with her mother and aunt, casting her with her husband for the first time, whose presence on the set had its own advantages.
Zebaish reunites you with your aunt and mother after a cameo in Deewar e Shab. How does it feel considering you are part of the main lead?
When I was doing Deewar-e-Shab, I knew that although my character Feroza had little screen time, it was a major one since the whole story revolved around her. It was labeled as a cameo but for me, every pore in my body knew it was as impactful as any other character.
It was as much lead to me as the one now in Zebaish although here I am part of an ensemble cast that includes my husband (Asad Siddiqui), my mother (Asma Abbas), and my aunt (Bushra Ansari) together for the first time. When you are part of such a huge cast, every character becomes the main lead and I consider myself very lucky in that regard.
How will your character in Zebaish going to break the perception of Zara Noor Abbas, the bubbly girl next door?
To be very honest, I am not trying to break any perception as for me, the most important thing is to look relatable to my fans. They can’t relate to me if I am something that I am not and that’s why I try to go for the bubbly girl next door persona most of the time.
Each and every actress today has her own style and this persona is my own style where whenever I am required to change gears, I do. All I can do to be different is to choose scripts and do things that I haven’t done before. I am trying to work on myself as an actor and polish my skills, and learning how I can make a difference in the community as an actor and as a human being. Some might perceive me as bubbly and some might not, everyone has his or her own perspective.
With our drama industry not offering actresses anything new, we are bound to be stereotyped. What are the odds of an actress having a script that is completely off the flow of the TRP charts and the industry norms? None. With ‘formula scripts’ come ‘formula performances’ as nobody wants to experiment. And when there is no experimentation, there are stereotypes being made in society, and when that happens, there is no point in breaking the perception.
How is your character Naushaba different from Rani in Ehd-e-Wafa?
For the audience, it is very important to understand that stories these days are not driven by one character only. Zebaish revolves around multiple characters with my character Naushaba being one of them. She is a lot like Rani in Ehd-e-Wafa as they both are small-town girls who don’t belong to big cities but are positive as they love life.
However, the similarities end here as Rani got married to someone as small-town as she was whereas Naushaba will have to face a lot of things to achieve her goals. Rani was not shown the reality of the world whereas Naushaba is a three-dimensional character, whose journey brings out many shades in her character.
Babar Ali has been around ever since you were a kid; you must have danced to the many hit songs that were filmed on him. And now you are sharing the screen with him. Interesting, isn’t it?
To have someone like him on the set is just magnificent and to romance him and be his heroine is just another level of happiness. Initially, I was not that well-versed in Babar Ali’s filmography and knew what most people of my age group know about him but when my mother told me about what he has achieved in his career, I was surprised and shocked. Surprised because his behavior is so humbling and he doesn’t make you think that he is a film star who is returning to his roots. And shocked because I know he had worked with every popular actress in Pakistan, and now I will be his leading lady!
It was only after doing a Google and YouTube search that I realized that there was this grandeur behind Babar Ali. I was always a huge fan of his work but sharing the screen with him was an ‘Oh My God’ moment for me. The way he has switched from a protagonist to an antagonist is impressive, and even as a bad guy, he is now delivering hits!
And you are sharing the screen with your husband Asad Siddiqui for the first time on TV. Was it fun like something you haven’t done or nothing out of the ordinary for you?
Asad (Siddiqui) and I haven’t worked together on TV so yes, it was good to share the screen with him. He is a remarkable actor and there is so much I learned from him on the set. He has this urge to learn more and more from the director and that really helped me to understand the craft more.
He knows the importance of being on the same page with the director and taught me that during the shoot. We had no match when it came to action and reaction on-screen since our comfortability was spot-on. So yes, having my man with me while I was going through a very tough time in my personal life and learn from him was an experience I would never forget.
coming real soon only on @humtvpakistanofficial. Excited!? #ZaraNoorAbbas #AsadSiddiqui #HUMTV #HumSpotlight
Do care to explain the tough time in your life and why was your husband’s presence helpful?
Zebaish has been a very emotional journey for me as, during the final spell of the show, I was diagnosed with clinical depression. I didn’t know that I was unwell during Ehd-e-Wafa and later during most of Zebaish but after I got diagnosed, I started addressing the problem.
I shot Zebaish during a very rough time and having Asad and my family on the set was very helpful. When I wasn’t busy on set, I was home taking my online therapy classes and thanks to Almighty, I’m a lot better now. Every day there was a low and a high on the sets but thankfully, everybody was very supportive and very loving.
With Covid-19 putting everything on hold, how are you handling things?
Actually, I really enjoyed quarantine and was even thinking that when we do return to work, how we would adjust to the post-Corona scenario.
Thankfully, we have come this far but my heart goes to all those who lost their loved ones; things will get better if we take this pandemic seriously. We have to be very responsible about it; not just for ourselves but for the sake of others.
from HUM TV – Watch Dramas Online https://ift.tt/3eObIZL
0 comments:
Post a Comment