This post is written by Zaina Mobeen, though I had a hand in it too, since I kept throwing ideas her way (which she ended up writing down). But honestly, all the credit goes to Zaina—not just for pulling everything together, but for putting up with my endless suggestions without blocking me on WhatsApp. That alone deserves a medal!
It started with a chaotic Zoom meeting; Lahore’s record-breaking smog had made the schools shut down, and we were practically forced to take our genre selection plans virtually. We all joined, and Anmol exclaimed she was cleaning her room as we waited for Anaya to hop on. When she finally did, I enthusiastically screamed, “Hellooo! Hellooo!”—only to be met with eerily silent air. Cue Zaina’s laughter. Turns out, Anaya’s mic wasn’t working.
After a sickeningly long moment of lip-sync charades, she fixed it, and we were finally ready to dive into The Great Genre Debate.
We began by researching genres and debating what would be easier to manage while still creative enough. The front-runners? Dramedy and Coming-of-Age. It felt too soon to commit, so we left it floating in uncertainty. Fast forward to our second Zoom meeting—a tad more productive, but the indecision still loomed. After a few minutes, Anaya’s mic finally decided to work, and, with a dramatic sigh of relief, she chimed in, “Coming-of-Age sounds very interesting!” Anmol, of course, nodded enthusiastically, adding her solid “Yeah, I think it’s a great idea!” With that, the decision was made, and our genre was set—Coming-of-Age, with all its messy, beautiful, and hilarious potential.
During all this brainstorming, Zaina casually mentioned a few movies that fit the Coming-of-Age genre, and of course, the first movie that blurted out of her mouth was Clueless. Me, without skipping a beat, said, “That’s what we are right now!” Which, honestly, made Zaina laugh harder than it should’ve, especially when I confessed I didn’t know what Clueless was. So, Zaina went on to mention Wake Up Sid, and being the desi crew that we are, Me, Anaya, and Anmol quickly jumped in with a chorus of, “Oh yes, that would be so fun! I love that movie!” It was like an instant lightbulb moment.
That’s when we decided to text Sir Zia for advice. Naturally, Zaina couldn’t just send a message without overthinking it first. She wrote her text, then sent it to our group (Anaya, Anmol, and Me) for our “expert review.” We had a few suggestions, so she tweaked it—again and again—until it felt just right.
After what felt like a group editing session for a Pulitzer Prize-winning text, Zaina finally hit send.
Sir Zia replied faster than expected with a message that was as insightful as it was nerve-wracking: “Coming-of-Age sounds intriguing. Dramedy can be tricky to pull off. It’s up to you in the end.” His words were a gentle nudge wrapped in a challenge, and, as if putting a seal of destiny upon it, Coming-of-Age won. The vibe was all perfect: raw, relatable emotions with room enough to sprinkle in some humor. We felt relieved and slightly terrified.
We buzzed with ideas, each and every one of which was more exciting than the last, making the situation seem to strike just the right balance of challenge and creative freedom. But before we could start scripting and shooting, reality brought us back down to earth. First, forms to fill, then execution. Now we’re steaming with excitement and nerves. Did we make the right genre choice? Will this play out to be all that we dream it will? Only time can tell.
For now, we shall hold onto optimism.
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