Director#3~Exceptional work!

Momina Duraid

Being a Pakistani woman its inevitable to have a few favorites from my own country but Momina is one of the few people I truly am inspired by because of her exceptional skills! She's the queen of Pakistan's drama industry because of her epic releases and beautifully crafted animations since 2010!

Momina Duraid is a Pakistani director, She is a senior producer, head of television network Hum TV and CEO of her own production company MD Productions. In 2015, she was named among the Pond's list of Miracle Journey: The 100 Most Inspirational Women...

Momina Duraid’s direction style is filled with a deep understanding of emotions and keen attention to details. Audience can easily engage with her work and find it almost comfortable! This approach not only makes her work visually striking but also emotionally engaging. She often focuses on characters and their personal journeys, allowing for a deep exploration of their thoughts and struggles. She takes her time with the story, letting the characters develop slowly, which helps the audience connect with them on a personal level. This patient pacing is one of the reasons her stories feel so genuine and attract so much audience. She has produced and created several series including:

Ishq Murshid (2023)

Hum Kahan Ke Sachay Thay(2021)

Jafaa(2024)

Ishq Zahe Naseeb (2019)

Pyar Ke Sadqay (2020)

Humsafar (2011–12)

Zindagi gulzaar hai (2012–13)

Diyar e dil(2015) 

Sadqey tumharey (2015)

Mann Mayal (2016)

Udarri (2016) 

Bin Roye (2016)

Yaqeen Ka Safar(2017)

 Suno chanda (2018)

 Ehad-e-Wafa (2019)

These shows are among the most popular drama serials of Pakistan! Ishq murshid especially received more than 71 million views on Youtube at its first episode release.. and in January 2024 the drama crossed 330 million views on Youtube! It got a rating of 22.3 TRP, the highest for the network and third highest for the entire PTV. Similarly Mann Mayal was the highest rated show in 2016 and received the best drama serial award at hum styles award 16th edition! In 2015, Momina co-directed her first film Bin Roye under her production house Hum Films. It earned her rave reviews and became the third highest-grossing Pakistani film of all time. After the release of Bin Roye, Hum Films has distributed and produced over fifteen films both domestically and internationally.

A key part of her work is the way she incorporates cultural elements into her stories. From the settings to the dialogue, everything feels rooted in the culture she is portraying. However, she doesn’t push these elements too hard, allowing the audience to experience them naturally like portraying someone's routine on television. Her direction often presents complex moral choices, giving lessons leaving room for reflection and personal interpretation, rather than offering simple answers.

"Media was the last thing I thought I would do." Momina said at an interview and yet came to be one of the most creative directors of Pakistan. She elicits such unique style from her directions that even Indian audience is a fan! The perfect writings blended with perfect sense of editing and music is exactly how I would describe her shows!

She produced partition based drama series Dastaan based on the novel Bano by Razia Butt, the series starred then newcomer Fawad Khan with Sanam Baloch playing the title character of Bano. Dastaan received extravagant reception from critics and became one of the most acclaimed series of all time!

At 1st Hum Awards ceremony this serial was awarded Hum Honorary Most Challenging Subject Award and received five nominations at 10th Lux Style Awards, winning Best Director for Haissam Hussain Momina then produced number of series and founded her own production company Momina Duraid Productions and became the senior producer of Hum TV.

Momina's production Humsafar gained instant popularity and received an overwhelming response from critics and people all over the world. Critics regarded Humsafar as revival of drama industry. The series has a cult following with huge fan following especially in India, Europe and North America. The series lead actors Mahira Khan and Fawad Khan went on to become most popular actors in Pakistani film and television industry. Hum TV honored the craft and crew of serial giving them a special Hum Honorary Phenomenal Serial Award.

Overall people like Momina exist to uplift women into the media's highly male dominated world where now women also feel comfortable. She has a unique ability to create stories that feel both realistic and meaningful, often making our everyday lives seem poetic. Her direction is subtle, with every shot carefully planned to reflect the emotions of the characters and the mood of the scene. Her work's emotional and cultural influences will definitely be in our project and if it happens hopefully in my future projects as well!