It was announced that actor Sajal Aly will be playing the lead role, but the confusion began when Mahira Khan’s name appeared on a few sites.

When our team dug into the matter, we found that Mahira’s name was circulating for a possible role in a remake of Pakeezah – the 1972 Bollywood classic.

The actor neither denied, nor confirmed the project.

However, the Nation citing its sources reported that the Humsafar actor has been roped in to fill the shoes of Meena Kumari in a Pakistani remake of the blockbuster.

As for Umrao Jaan, Sajal will be featuring in the TV series alongside Humayun Saeed, who featured in The Crown, and Ahad Raza Mir, who was in Resident Evil.

Hamid Hussain, one of the producers, told Variety that the series adaptation relies heavily on the original Urdu version of the novel, unlike the film adaptations that had taken creative liberties to fit the story into a film narrative.

What is Umrao Jaan Ada?

The novel, written by Mirza Hadi Ruswa in 1899, is known for its portrayal of the culture and society of the 19th-century Indian subcontinent. The story revolves around a courtesan and poet.

It has had several film adaptations on both sides of the border. Hasan Tariq directed Umrao Jaan Ada (1972), with Rani in the title role, in Pakistan. In India, Muzaffar Ali’s Umrao Jaan (1981) starred Rekha, while JP Dutta’s 2006 adaptation Umrao Jaan starred Aishwarya Rai Bachchan. The novel also inspired two 1958 Indian films – SM Yusuf’s Mehndi and Nakhshab Jarchavi’s Zindagi Ya Toofan.

A local TV adaptation was aired on Geo TV in 2003 and an Indian TV adaptation played on the Doordarshan Urdu channel in 2014. Indian composers Salim-Sulaiman adapted Ali’s 1981 film as a stage musical Umrao Jaan Ada – The Musical in 2019

The show is said to feature a “second strong female lead” from the novel. It is currently in development and is expected to head to a major streamer.