In the 1990s Pakistan TV produced some excellent drama serials which have no match till date. One of them is Alpha Bravo Charlie – which was based on the lives of military men.
Produced by ISPR and directed by Shoaib Mansoor, the play revolved around the lives and times of three characters, Faraz, Kashif and Gulsher (also known as Alpha, Bravo and Charlie respectively) and their friendship. Another character was Shahnaz, a confident, educated and bright young lady, who plays an important role in the lives of these three friends.
Shoaib Mansoor picked up the cast very carefully, as all three men were either associated with the military or had some military background in their real life too. The plot, acting and production were all brilliant and the actors put up an amazingly well performance and won the hearts of the viewers who still remember the play vividly. If you watched the play in the 90s, watching it again will certainly make you feel nostalgic.
The ending was however, sad, as Gulsher, one of the army men died in Bosnia where he had been deployed.
It is said that the streets would go empty and TV lounges filled, when the play was aired. The cast however did not perform in any other play together. The drama was aired in 1998 and the cast members have now moved ahead in their lives.
Abdullah Kirmani, who played the role of Captain Kashif, moved to UK after he had to leave the army because of medical reasons. Faraz and Shehnaz are also abroad but Gulsher(Qasim) is still serving the Pakistan army.
Pakistan Today got in touch with Faraz Inam (Captain Faraz) to revive the old memories of Alpha Bravo Charlie.
Faraz is currently based in North America upgrading his professional competencies by working in an international Financial Institution.
Talking about the experience of acting in Alpha Bravo Charlie, Faraz said all four of them had never thought of becoming professional actors because they never deemed themselves worthy of possessing such skills; the skill of acting.
“Credit actually goes to Shoaib Mansoor who identified us four for these particular characters and made us part of the ABC experience. As all of us had other careers to pursue, so we bid farewell to acting and moved on in life. I personally believed that it’s better to fade away in the memories of people on a good note”, he told Pakistan Today.
He further said it’s the greatness of the well-wishers who after all these years have still remembered them and want to know more about them. “I am indeed humbled to see their love and respect for me and the rest of ABC cast”, he said.
Responding to a question, Faraz said after ABC was aired in ‘98, he wanted to return to the country and continue his banking career there but never then got the right opportunity. However, he said, he has stayed close to the motherland and remained in contact with his well-wishers.
“I may be out of Pakistan but Pakistan is never out of me”, he said.
When asked about his favourite moment of Alpha Bravo Charlie, he said: “I enjoyed riding horses in Mona Depot. That was fun. But my personal favorite was Abdullah’s (Kashif) operation in Siachin. I was supposed to play the role of the helicopter pilot who rescues him from that mountain top. However, my real life professional obligations restricted me from going to Siachin on a three month stint for the play.”
Talking about his future plans and whether he will do another play, Faraz said he worked in ABC for a purpose and that purpose was to project the right image about the defence forces, the image that they rightly deserve.
“If I am offered a role in a drama or film through which I feel I can fulfill a personal objective or there is a meaningful message to relay to the audience, then I’d certainly give it a thought”, he concluded.
BEST WISHES And best of luck!
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