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    Where is Marrina Khan?

    Written by: Dr. Dushka H. Saiyid
    Posted on: April 13, 2015 |

    Unlike most celebrities, agrees to an interview without any fuss. As on screen, so in real life, she has an unpretentious and bubbly personality, who doesn’t quite fit the mold; it might be because of her mixed parentage, a Pushtun father and an English mother. Almost thirty years have passed since she burst onto our television screens, a lissome, insouciant girl with a shock of raven black hair, cut unconventionally short.

    She was an athlete in school, with little interest in school plays, and even less in academics, but her mother was a film and television buff, and that exposed her to the world of acting. She had accompanied her friend, who was acting in a play, to the television station, and caught the eye of the legendary director Shehzad Khalil. He was auditioning actors for Nishan-e-Haider and looking for a fresh face, and she fit the bill. She made her debut on television as the love interest of Rashid Minhas, and later also did the mini-series Ahsaas with Shahzad Khalil. When the casting for Tanhaiyaan was taking place, Hasina Moin had reservations about Her suitability as Sania, but it was Shehzad Khalil who pushed for her. She took the country by storm as the innocent and vivacious younger sister of an anxiety prone, smoldering Zara, played by Shahnaz Sheikh. She waxes eloquent about the brilliance of Shahzad Khalil as a director, and describes him as “a great human being”, and shows me a picture of her dancing with him at her wedding in ’89.  A week later he was no more; a sudden heart attack had deprived her of her mentor, and Pakistan of a highly gifted director, who was only forty-three years old and at the prime of his career.

    Dhoop Kinare, another very popular serial followed, but this time directed by Sahira Kazmi, with Rahat Kazmi in the lead male role. She declares that Sahira Kazmi’s directorial style was very different from that of Shahzad Khalil, but when you saw the finished product, her finesse as a director was impressive. In Dhoop Kinare her cult like following reached new heights. She had the lead female role as a young trainee doctor, who gets involved with her much older boss. Maybe her involvement with Jalil Akhter, at the same time that Dhoop Kinare was being shot, helped her act on screen the intense emotions she was experiencing in real life. She also did Tum Sey Kehna Tha, and Nijaat with Saira Kazmi, but it was the latter that she “loved” doing.

    The question that nags me is, why has this star of the 80s and 90s disappeared from our television screens? She is surprisingly direct and candid: she woke up one morning, about fifteen or sixteen years back, with the realization that she was not enjoying acting any more. She attributes her disenchantment to the changed circumstances in television productions: lack of professionalism and the absence of a good team. She declares that, “if you can’t have an intelligent conversation with the team, then it’s frustrating”. She ruefully recalls that the quality of plays and directors went down, and the Pakistan Television (PTV) stagnated, while the private channels have no system, and the level of cast and crew is poor. Actors have become dominant, creating an imbalance, while “in my time, the Director was the master of the ship”.

    She and her husband, Jaleel Akhter, had saved some money and decided to direct. They did a romantic comedy, Ghar To Akhir Apna Hai for NTM, which was a success. A cooking show for NTM followed, which had about 50-60 episodes. The husband and wife team then produced Umeed-e-Seher, a romance about a kid who is about to join the Pakistan cricket team and discovers he has cancer. Indus ran it as a serial of half an hour each. In the late 90s she took to directing, and did a number of serials and long plays. Very recently she again did a career shift when A&B (Geo productions) offered her a job, and she was happy to take up the challenge. Her latest venture into acting has been under the direction of Mehreen Jabbar, that she thoroughly enjoyed. It is part of a project in which six telefilms will be made in Pakistan, and another six in India, all by different directors.


    As the new year begins, let us also start anew. I’m delighted to extend, on behalf of the Embassy of the People’s Republic of China in the Islamic Republic of Pakistan and in my own name, new year’s greeting and sincere wishes to YOULIN magazine’s staff and readers.

    Only in hard times can courage and perseverance be manifested. Only with courage can we live to the fullest. 2020 was an extraordinary year. Confronted by the COVID-19 pandemic, China and Pakistan supported each other and took on the challenge in solidarity. The ironclad China-Pakistan friendship grew stronger as time went by. The China Pakistan Economic Corridor projects advanced steadily in difficult times, become a standard-bearer project of the Belt and Road Initiative in balancing pandemic prevention and project achievement. The handling capacity of the Gwadar Port has continued to rise and Afghanistan transit trade through the port has officially been launched. The Karakoram Highway Phase II upgrade project is fully open to traffic. The Lahore Orange Line project has been put into operation. The construction of Matiari-Lahore HVDC project was fully completed. A batch of green and clean energy projects, such as the Kohala and Azad Pattan hydropower plants have been substantially promoted. Development agreement for the Rashakai SEZ has been signed. The China-Pakistan Community of Shared Future has become closer and closer.

    Reviewing the past and looking to the future, we are confident to write a brilliant new chapter. The year 2021 is the 100th birthday of the Communist Party of China (CPC) and the 70th anniversary of the establishment of diplomatic relations between China and Pakistan. The 100-year journey of CPC surges forward with great momentum and China-Pakistan relationship has flourished in the past 70 years. Standing at a new historic point, China is willing to work together with Pakistan to further implement the consensus reached by the leaders of the two countries, connect the CPEC cooperation with the vision of the “Naya Pakistan”, promote the long-term development of the China-Pakistan All-weather Strategic Cooperative Partnership with love, dedication and commitment. Mohammad Ali Jinnah, the founding father of Pakistan said, “We are going through fire. The sunshine has yet to come.” Yes, Pakistan’s best days are ahead, China will stand with Pakistan firmly all the way.

    YOULIN magazine is dedicated to promoting cultural exchanges between China and Pakistan and is a window for Pakistani friends to learn about China, especially the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region. It is hoped that with the joint efforts of China and Pakistan, YOULIN can listen more to the voices of readers in China and Pakistan, better play its role as a bridge to promote more effectively people-to-people bond.

    Last but not least, I would like to wish all the staff and readers of YOULIN a warm and prosper year in 2021.

    Nong Rong Ambassador Extraordinary and Plenipotentiary of
    The People’s Republic of China to the Islamic Republic of Pakistan
    January 2021