Wahaj Ali

Wahaj Ali (Urdu: وہاج علی, born 1 December 1988) is a Pakistani actor primarily known for his work in Urdu television. Ali made his acting debut with the series Ishq Ibadat (2015) and has established himself as one of the leading television actor.[2][3]

Wahaj Ali
Ali in 2022
Born (1988-12-01) 1 December 1988[1]
Lahore, Punjab, Pakistan
EducationNational College of Arts
Occupations
  • Actor
  • Producer
Years active2015–present
Spouse
Sana Farooq
​
(m. 2016)​
Children1

Ali gained critical acclaim for playing Bangladeshi freedom fighter Shafi Imam Rumi in Jo Bichar Gaye (2021). In 2023, Ali earned wider recognition, especially across the South Asian continent, for his portrayal of Murtasim Khan in Tere Bin. His other notable work include: Haiwan (2018), Ehd-e-Wafa (2019), Ghisi Piti Mohabbat (2020), Ishq Jalebi (2021) and Mujhe Pyaar Hua Tha (2022-2023).[4][5]

Early life and family

Ali was born on 1 December 1988 into a Punjabi Muslim family in Lahore, Punjab.[6][1] His father worked in the government, and his mother was a teacher.[7] The only child of his parents, Ali is a business graduate, with a specialization in finance.[8] His parents wanted him to take the Central Superior Services (CSS) exam and join the civil service, but his inclination was towards acting.

Ali then earned his Masters in Multimedia Arts from the National College of Arts.[9] He met his wife, Sana Farooq, during an internship program on Samaa TV and married on 2nd March, 2016. The couple had a daughter in 2017, Amirah Ali.

Career

Early work as theater actor and TV producer

Ali began his career as a theater actor in 2007 before joining a TV channel in the news and programming department.[10] From 2009 to 2011, he worked as an assistant producer at Samaa TV. Since 2011, Ali onwards has been a producer at Geo TV.

TV debut and success (2015–present)

Marking his television debut as a leading actor in 2015 with the drama Ishq Ibadat, he went on to play lead in several notable television serials, including Hari Hari Churiyan (2017), Dil Nawaz (2017), Mah-e-Tamaam (2017), Dil-e-Bereham (2019), Bharam (2019) Fitoor (2021), Ishq Jalebi (2021) and central role in a social drama Dil Na Umeed To Nahi in 2021 as well.

Ali characterized the pivotal role of Shariq Habib in the ISPR show Ehd-e-Wafa in 2020. He received critical acclaim and favourable critiques for embodying the character of Bangladeshi freedom fighter Shafi Imam Rumi in the period drama Jo Bichar Gaye in 2021.

Ali’s portrayals as Ahad, a man in challenging situations in Bikhray Moti, the happy-go-lucky Rizwan in Ghisi Piti Mohabbat, the irascible Basim in Ishq Jalebi, an amateur Jimmy in Dil Na Umeed To Nahi were praised from both critics and audience.

Ali’s career was propelled further with his intricate personification as gloomy but winsome Saad Hussein in ARY Digital’s romantic drama Mujhe Pyaar Hua Tha opposite Hania Aamir and especially due to his portrayal of Murtasim Shahnawaz Khan in Geo Tv’s record breaking romance drama serial Tere Bin opposite his previous co-star Yumna Zaidi from Dil Na Umeed To Nahi. Post his sweeping fame, Ali depicted the equivocal anguishes of a layered character in Geo Tv’s mystery-thriller miniseries Jurm where he exhibited the appearance of the charming convict Daniyal and garnered fitting commends.

In June 2023, he made his Lollywood debut with an anthology film Teri Meri Kahaniyaan co-starring Mehwish Hayat directed by Nadeem Baig which was released theatrically on Eid al-Adha, and met with mixed reviews. He is currently personifying the role of a cricket player Junaid in a newly-launched channel Green Entertainment’s social women-empowerment drama series 22 Qadam, opposite Hareem Farooq.

Also seen in ARY Digital's drama titled Mein where he's portraying Zaid Shahwani, which is penned by Zanjabeel Asim Shah, under the direction of Badar Mehmood and production by Big Bang Entertainment, opposite Ayeza Khan. The first episode received mixed reviews and Ali’s performance was well-received.[11]

Upcoming

Ali’s web series titled The Pink Shirt opposite Sajal Aly and Nazish Jahangir is set to be released soon on Zee5. The project is the directorial of Kashif Nisar and is written by Bee Gul.

Filmography

Films
Year Title Role Notes Ref.
2019 Superstar Young Salim Malik Special appearance
2023 Teri Meri Kahaniyaan Asad Segment: "Aik So Teeswaan" [12]

Television
Year Title Role Notes Ref.
2015 Ishq Ibadat Sahil
2016 Mera Dard Na Janay Koi Bilal
Wafa Hashir
Gila Sanwal / Ramis
Ahsas Zohaib
2017 Zoya Sawleha Faris
Mere Dil Mere Musafir Hasan
Hari Hari Churiyaan Ali
Dil Nawaz Fawad [13]
2018 Haiwan Maan [14]
Mah-e-Tamaam Taqi Lodhi [15]
2019 Dil-e-Bereham Tabish
Bharam Maarif Ali
Ehd-e-Wafa Shariq Habib [16]
Haqeeqat Asif Episode: "Daghabaaz"
2020 Mera Maan Rakhna Mohid
Bikhray Moti Ahad
Ghisi Piti Mohabbat Rizwan "Riz" [17]
2021 Ishq Jalebi Basim Hussain "Petha"
Fitoor Hamza Sadiq
Dil Na Umeed Toh Nahi Jamshaid "Jimmy"
Jo Bichar Gaye Shafi Imam Rumi [18]
2022-2023 Mujhe Pyaar Hua Tha Saad Hussain [19]
Tere Bin Murtasim Shahnawaz Khan [20]
2023 Jurm Daniyal Mujib
22 Qadam Junaid Malik [21]
Mein Zaid Asif Shahwani

Web series
Year Title Role Notes Ref.
2020 Doodh Patti Salaar
2021 Digestive Showtime - Yorker Ammar Saleem Short film
2023 The Pink Shirt Umer Post-production [22]

Telefilms
YearTitleRole Channel
2016 Bitiya Hamaray Zamanay Mein Fahad Geo TV
2020 Love Siyappa Shahabuddin

“Shobi”

Special appearances
Year Title Role Notes
2022 Team Muhafiz Reza (voice over) Animated Series

Accolades
Year Ceremony Category Work Result Ref
2019 ARY Social Media Awards Best Newcomer Male Haiwan Won [23]
2021 1st ARY People's Choice Awards Favourite Jodi (with Ramsha Khan) Ghisi Piti Mohabbat Nominated [24]

References
  1. "Birthday wishes pour in for actor Wahaj Ali". Daily Pakistan. 1 December 2022. Retrieved 11 December 2022.
  2. Maliha Rehman. "The Icon Interview - Wahaj Ali: 'Im in no hurry'". Dawn. Retrieved 23 December 2021.
  3. "Exclusive - Wahaj Ali goes into details about his choice to portray victim on-screen". Daily Pakistan. Retrieved 28 April 2023.
  4. "Check out here how the drama serial 'Tere Bin' is ruling Twitter". MMNews.tv. 3 February 2023. Retrieved 29 March 2023.
  5. "Murtasim's Fandom Gets Tere Bin Unprecedented Success". Samaa. Retrieved 19 May 2023.
  6. "Wahaj Ali, the versatile actor, celebrates his 32nd birthday". Bol News. 1 December 2020. Retrieved 10 December 2021.
  7. "Wahaj Ali". Social Diary. 23 October 2018.
  8. "Ehd e Wafa's Wahaj Ali | Part II | A Sensitive Soul | Rewind with Samina Peerzada". YouTube.
  9. "Profile on LinkedIn". LinkedIn.
  10. Shabbir, Buraq (31 May 2020). "From theatre to television to films". The News International. Retrieved 22 August 2022.
  11. "'Mein' Episode 1: Netizens Give Mixed Reviews". Bolnews. Retrieved 8 August 2023.
  12. "Wahaj Ali and Mehwish Hayat come together for 'Teri Meri Kahaniyaan'". Express Tribune. 22 May 2023. Retrieved 17 June 2023.
  13. Salman, ifrah (29 October 2017). "Dil Nawaz; an intense story of a powerful love and the supernatural temptress". HIP. Retrieved 31 October 2017.
  14. Instep (28 October 2018). "5 must-watch Pakistani dramas". TNS - The News on Sunday. Retrieved 20 January 2019.
  15. "Mahe Tamam's Last Two Episodes Will Leave You Astounded!". hellopakistanmag. 14 July 2017. Retrieved 10 November 2017.
  16. Khan, Sheeba (30 September 2019). "Ehd-e-Wafa: The newest drama on the block". The Express Tribune. Retrieved 17 March 2021.
  17. "Ramsha and Wahaj reunite for Ghisi Piti Mohabbat". The News International. 23 July 2020. Retrieved 20 July 2021.
  18. Hurmat Majid (23 February 2022). "Jo Bichar Gaye: A masterclass in storytelling". Cutacut. Retrieved 19 May 2022.
  19. Duaa Naeem (17 January 2023). "Fans are loving Wahaj Ali in drama Mujhe Pyaar Hua Tha". DND. Retrieved 7 July 2023.
  20. "Netizens believe the 'chemistry is chemistrying' in Tere Bin after watching Murtasim flirt with his wife". Images Dawn. 2 February 2023. Archived from the original on 7 February 2023. Retrieved 7 February 2023.
  21. "'22 Qadam' seems to be a breath of fresh air in Pakistani dramas". Daily Times. 27 April 2023. Retrieved 4 July 2023.
  22. "Fan favourites: Sajal Aly, Wahaj Ali to star in Indian streaming show, 'The Pink Shirt'". Express Tribune. 15 September 2023.
  23. "ARY Digital Social Media Awards 2018 Complete Winners List". ARY Digital. Retrieved 22 December 2019.
  24. "1st ARY People's Choice Awards Nomination List". ARY Digital. 10 March 2021. Retrieved 22 January 2022.
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