Haissam Hussain
Haissam Hussain is a Pakistani television and film director known for directed a number of critically acclaimed television serials such as ''Noorpur Ki Rani'' (2009), ''Akbari Asghari'' (2011), ''Durr-e-Shehwar'' (2012) and ''Aunn Zara'' (2013). H ...
. First broadcast in Pakistan by Hum TV, ''Durr-e-Shehwar'' premiered on 10 March 2012 and has been produced by
Momina Duraid
Momina Duraid ( ur, ) is a Pakistani director and producer. She is a senior producer and creative head of television network Hum TV and CEO of her own production company MD Productions. She has produced and created several series including ' ...
Qavi Khan
Muhammad Qavi Khan ( ur, ) is a Pakistani film and television actor. He has also worked in Radio Pakistan and on stage. Though now largely working in television, he has acted in over 200 films. The Government of Pakistan honoured Khan with the ...
Noman Ejaz
Nauman Ijaz (Punjabi and ur, ) is a Pakistani television and film actor, TV anchorperson, and TV show presenter. He is the recipient of several accolades including 10 Lux Style Awards, 7 Hum Awards and a President's Pride of Performance, whi ...
, and Nadia Jamil in lead roles. It ended its run on 16 June 2012, after airing 15 episodes. It marked the debut of actress Maya Ali.
The show was written and produced by the makers of '' Man-o-Salwa'', ''
Qaid-e-Tanhai
''Qaid-e-Tanhai'' ( ur, ) is a Pakistani drama serial that aired on Hum TV from 22 October 2010 to 18 March 2011. It was written by Umera Ahmad and directed by Babar Javed. The drama serial was produced by A & B Productions.
Plot
Qaid-e-Ta ...
'', ''
Malaal
''Malaal'' ( ur, , lit=Regret) is a Pakistani drama television series which premiered on Hum TV on 9 October 2009. Produced by Momina Duraid, ''Malaal'' is the story that shows how wrong decisions can affect everyone’s lives and also focuses ...
'', ''
Maat
Maat or Maʽat ( Egyptian:
mꜣꜥt /ˈmuʀʕat/, Coptic: ⲙⲉⲓ) refers to the ancient Egyptian concepts of truth, balance, order, harmony, law, morality, and justice. Ma'at was also the goddess who personified these concepts, and regul ...
'' and ''
Zindagi Gulzar Hai
''Zindagi Gulzar Hai'' is a Pakistani television series directed by Sultana Siddiqui, produced by Momina Duraid under banner Moomal Productions, which was first broadcast on Hum TV. Based on the novel of the same name by Umera Ahmad who also w ...
''. The story entails the complexities of married lives be it in today’s urban setting or yesterday’s traditional times, showed how certain issues are common in every relationship. The strong protagonist gives her martial life much patience and resolve possible. ''Durr-e-Shehwar'' was one of the most popular program of the year, it was released. The series received huge acclaim due to Hussain's direction and received praise for the performances of the lead cast and storyline.
Plot
Durr-e-Shehwar's daughter, Shandana, and her husband, Mansoor's nephew, Haider have been married to each other for the last eight years. But recently there has been a breach in their relationship due to which Shandana decides to spend some time at her maternal home in Murree along with her young daughter, Sophia.
Both Durr-e-Shehwar and Mansoor love Shandana and Sophia a lot. But Shandana envies her mother thinking that she led a comfortable and happy life with a loving husband and nothing to worry about. And thus, she often compares Haider with her father. Shandana also undergoes a stage of semi-depression and evens thinks of divorcing Haider. When Mansoor gets to know this, he gets angry with Haider. He reports this matter to his sister i.e. Haider's mother, thus, further complicating the matter. Unable to see Shandana in such a devastated condition, finally one day Durr-e-Shehwar decides to narrate her own life story to Shandana and explain that life for her wasn't as easy as Shandana thinks it to be.
When Durr-e-Shehwar had got married and moved to Mansoor's house, she faced many problems and lost all her comforts and respect that she took for granted in her father’s house. Durr E Shahwar, who’d thought that after her marriage, she’d move with Mansoor to his army allotted house, had to stay with her in-laws, away from him. Mansoor's mother was cold towards her and did not appreciate her for her good qualities. Mansoor also saw her through the eyes of his mother, and therefore disregarded all her efforts. Durr-e-Shehwar had to struggle for years to gain her mother-in-law's acceptance and also the true love of Mansoor, who had earlier neglected her on the words of his mother. Once or twice she even considered moving to her father’s house but she persisited. Through these hardships, what gave her strength was her father’s letters and advice. The greatest advice he gave her when she told him she didn’t love Mansoor, was to pretend until she did. Soon, Mansoor’s attitude changed and he took her away with her, and her in-laws realised her worth. And when Shahwar saw that the average husband and man, Mansoor was a great father, she forgave him, although she never forgot.
Hearing this story, Shandana realised the difficulty of her mother's life. This decreased Shandana's respect for her father but it calmed her and gave her morale to start a new life with Haider, with the letters of her grandfather, which she inherited from her mother.
Mikaal Zulfiqar
Mian Mikaal Patras Zulfiqar (born 5 September 1981), commonly known as Mikaal Zulfiqar ( ur, ), is a British-Pakistani actor and former model. He has appeared in a number of Pakistani television series. He has also acted in a few Indian films ...
/
Qavi Khan
Muhammad Qavi Khan ( ur, ) is a Pakistani film and television actor. He has also worked in Radio Pakistan and on stage. Though now largely working in television, he has acted in over 200 films. The Government of Pakistan honoured Khan with the ...
as Mansoor
* Nadia Jamil as Shandana; Durr-e-Shehwar and Mansoor's daughter
*
Noman Ejaz
Nauman Ijaz (Punjabi and ur, ) is a Pakistani television and film actor, TV anchorperson, and TV show presenter. He is the recipient of several accolades including 10 Lux Style Awards, 7 Hum Awards and a President's Pride of Performance, whi ...
as Haider; Shandana's husband
* Sophia Syed as Sophia; Shandana and Haider's daughter
*
Umer Naru
Umer Naru is a Pakistani television and theatre actor.
Filmography
Theatre
* The Taming of the Shrew, Globe Theatre
The Globe Theatre was a theatre in London associated with William Shakespeare. It was built in 1599 by Shakespeare ...
as Saud; Mansoor's brother
*
Syed Mohammad Ahmed
Syed Mohammad Ahmed credited as Mohammad Ahmed is a Pakistani screenwriter, lyricist, actor, and director. He is best known for ''Mystery Theater'', ''Badtameez'', '' Tum Se Kehna tha'', ''Shaista Shaista'', ''Azar Ki Ayegi Baraat'', '' Annie Ki ...
as Sami; Durr-e-Shehwar's father
*
Saba Faisal
Saba Faisal (Punjabi
Punjabi, or Panjabi, most often refers to:
* Something of, from, or related to Punjab, a region in India and Pakistan
* Punjabi language
* Punjabi people
* Punjabi dialects and languages
Punjabi may also refer to:
* Punjab ...
as Safia; Mansoor's mother
* Khalid Butt as Mansoor's father
* Kiran Haq as Fazeelat; Mansoor's sister
* Shazde Sheikh as Hafsa; Mansoor's younger sister
* Maya Ali as Mahnoor Sami; Durr-e-Shehwar's sister
* Nasreen Qureshi as matchmaker of Durr-e-Shehwar and Mansoor
* Sumbal Jamil as Farwa; Durr-e-Shehwar's neighbor in
Murree
Murree (Punjabi, Urdu: مری) is a mountain resort city, located in the Galyat region of the Pir Panjal Range, within the Muree District of Punjab, Pakistan. It forms the outskirts of the Islamabad-Rawalpindi metropolitan area, and is about ...
*
Osman Khalid Butt
Osman Khalid Butt ( ur, ; born 9 February 1986) is a Pakistani film, television and theatre actor, writer and choreographer. He is best known for his role as Wali Sohaib Khan in Diyar-E-Dil , Faaz Ibrahim in Chupke Chupke and Malik Shahzain in ...
as Hassan; Farwa's husband
*
Laila Zuberi
Laila Zuberi is a Pakistani TV actress who has worked in many Pakistani drama series and has also appeared in the 2016 film Teri Meri Love Story.
Personal life
Laila Zuberi was born on August 18, 1957 in Karachi. She is married to her cousin, ''T ...
as Mrs. Habib; Durr-e-Shehwar's friend
* Sonia Nazir as Nazia; Durr-e-Shehwar's friend
Broadcast and release
It aired in India on Zindagi under the title ''Dhoop Chhaon'', premiering on 21 October 2014.
Since mid 2020, it is available for online streaming on
ZEE5
ZEE5 is an Indian subscription video on-demand and over-the-top streaming service, run by Zee Entertainment Enterprises. It was launched in India on 14 February 2018 with content in 12 languages. The ZEE5 mobile app is available on Web, Andro ...
under the title ''Dhoop Chhaon''.
Reception
''Durr-e-Shehwar'' received mostly positive reviews throughout its broadcast; gathered praise for its storyline, direction and performances (especially of the female leads, Peerzada and Baloch). Critics praised the storyline regarding the struggles of women towards the marital relations and criticised the same for the depiction of working women as a "selfish" and constant sufferings of a girl. Hussain's direction was widely praised, with ''
DAWN Images
''Dawn'' is a Pakistani English language, English-language newspaper that was launched in British Raj, British India in 1941. It is the largest English newspaper in Pakistan, and also serves as the country's newspaper of record. ''Dawn'' is the ...
'' praised it in the words, "Using a clever balance of past, present and near past, director Haissam Hussain kept the momentum going in what might have been just another mazloom aurat (helpless woman) story."