LAHORE-Starring Pakistani artists and background music by our very own Qurram Hussain, Mangoes: A Slice of Life has become the first Urdu drama being aired during primetime in Canada. Started as web series by two brothers, Adeel and Khurram Suharwardy, Mangoes portrays Pakistanis living in the North America in a positive and thoughtful light.
Due to its increasing popularity, the third season of the web series is picked by the Canada’s Rogers Media for the prime time slot of its Omni Television. It’s the first time in North America that an Urdu play with English subtitles is being broadcasted during primetime.
Mangoes: A Slice of Life follows the adventures, emotions and experiences of three unlikely friends, including Asha (Maha Warsi), a fiercely independent woman and psychology student from India; Sami (Adeel Suhrwardy), a sensitive, well-educated immigrant from Pakistan struggling to find a job in his field; and Rakay (Khurram Suhrwardy), a hopeless romantic – and often irresponsible – MBA student from Pakistan.
The first two seasons of Mangoes had already received overwhelming response from South Asian audiences throughout the world. And, the OST for Season 1, “Keh Dena” by legendary pop singer Alamgir and Canadian singer Kristie Yung, is still one of biggest international hits of this decade.
Picking up two years after the web series dropped off, the new episodes see dramatic developments as Asha gets engaged to be married, Sami lands a job at a corporate firm, and Rakay settles down from his loose lifestyle. Through unrelated events, the trio connects in Toronto and navigates the unfamiliar challenges of being a young immigrant in a new country.
Adeel Suharwardy is playing the lead role of Sami in Mangoes: A Slice of Life. Sami, as Adeel told, is a Pakistani who came to Canada for a greener pastures but struggled to land a job where he can reach his full potential. He has a flirty boss and an irritating colleague to keep him on his toes. Yet Sami listens to his heart and sponsors a refugee family with a promise to start a new life in Canada.
Adeel has worked closely with the film and television industry and garnered multi-platform international credits and syndicated television and digital content for international broadcast in South Asia, Middle East, Europe and North America. As a business graduate from England, Adeel has consulted and produced for clients such as the Govt. of Canada, Govt. of British Columbia, Dubai Bank, ICBC, Malaysian Tourism Board, Canadian Diabetes Association, China Airlines, Indian Film Academy Awards amongst others.
Talking about the project, Qurram Hussain said he was really impressed with how the Suhrwardy brothers wrote the story of Mangoes that jumped from being funny and light-hearted to taking some serious issues and bringing them to light.
“It’s not easy to juggle moods like that, but they did it very well, and that also gave me a chance to do music that ranges through various emotions,” he added.
Furthermore, Qurram said, that taking some big issues head-on was very brave and necessary at a time like this. “Women are showing their strength everywhere and tackling problems they have been facing for a very long time, and shows like Mangoes gives them a chance to have highlighted some of these issues so that people can have open conversations about them and learn about the problems they have been dealing with. It always great to work with people that you’re in sync with,” the Toronto-based singer concluded.
