Alif Noon

About This Drama

Alif Noon (1965–1970) was among the earliest and most beloved comedy serials in Pakistani television history, establishing the comic possibilities of the medium at a time when PTV itself was only finding its feet. Written by Anwar Maqsood and built around the extraordinary partnership of Kamal Ahmed Rizvi as Allan and Rafi Khawar as Nannha, the series derived its comedy from the collision of Allan's pompous pretension with Nannha's street-level practicality — an archetypal pairing that proved endlessly generative across its long run. The writing was sharp, the performances were impeccable, and the humanity underlying even the broadest comic situations gave the series a warmth that sustained audience affection for decades. Alif Noon was a foundational text of Pakistani popular culture, and its influence on the comedy writers who came after it is immeasurable.