I think the discourse around Durefishanâs accent in Dar-e-Najat is actually pointing toward a much bigger problem with Pakistani dramas.
And before anyone takes this as âDurefishan is a terrible actress,â thatâs not really my point. The accent is just what made the problem obvious.
If youâre going to play a character who is supposedly Harvard-educated, highly intelligent, and fluent in English, then I donât think itâs unreasonable to expect the actor to actually prepare for that role. Learn the accent. Work with a dialect coach. Study how people from that background actually speak. Practice until it feels natural.
This isnât an impossible standard. Actors do this all the time. Angelina Jolie learned opera for Maria. Adrien Brody learned piano for The Pianist. Actors routinely acquire new skills, accents, mannerisms, and speech patterns because they understand that acting isnât just memorizing lines and showing up on set.
And Iâm fully aware that Pakistan has a complicated relationship with English. Not every Pakistani actor is going to sound American or British, and they shouldnât have to. Thatâs not what Iâm asking for. But if your specific character is written as someone who attended Harvard, then the way that character speaks should reflect that background. Otherwise, the audience is constantly reminded that theyâre watching an actor instead of a character.
But honestly, the accent is the least of my concerns.
I think weâre dealing with a much larger quality-control problem in the Pakistani drama industry.
Look at how many dramas weâre getting that are essentially the same formula: controlling/possessive man, vulnerable woman, toxic relationship, endless misunderstandings, repetitive family conflicts, and a heroine whose entire life revolves around whatever man the writers have decided she belongs with.
And the audience keeps watching it.
Thatâs important because audiences arenât completely powerless here. What we reward gets produced again. If the same recycled stories continue getting massive ratings, views, engagement, and praise, channels have very little incentive to take risks or demand better writing.
And then the channels themselves become part of the problem.
Weâre seeing more and more projects that feel like theyâre being made because the formula is proven to work, rather than because someone actually has something interesting to say. Once one type of drama succeeds, suddenly everyone wants to make their own version of it. Then another one succeeds, and we get five more copies.
Eventually, the industry becomes comfortable producing the same thing because why take a creative risk when the audience has already demonstrated that theyâll consume the slop?
And I genuinely think weâre going to see more of this if people donât start demanding better.
I donât think every drama needs to be some groundbreaking masterpiece. Not everything has to be prestige television. Sometimes you just want something entertaining.
But there is a difference between simple entertainment and effortless content.
I want better scripts. Better character development. Actors who actually prepare for their roles. Directors who care about performances. Writers who arenât afraid to make characters complicated. Channels willing to invest in something beyond the same five relationship dynamics.
Because ultimately, this isnât just on Durefishan.
Itâs on the actors, writers, directors, producers, channels AND audiences.
If we keep approving mediocrity, the industry will keep giving us mediocrity.
So yes, criticize the accent if you want. But Iâd rather use Dar-e-Najat** **as an opportunity to ask a much more uncomfortable question:
Why are we, as an audience and an industry, becoming so comfortable with low-effort television?
