Sajal Ali (Urdu: سجل علی, born 17 January 1994)[1][2] is a Pakistani actress and model who predominantly works in television and films. One of Pakistan's highest-paid actresses,[3] Aly has received several accolades including five Hum Awards and a Lux Style Award out of thirteen nominations. She was honoured with Tamgha-e-Imtiaz by the government of Pakistan.[4]
She began her career with Geo TV's sitcom Nadaaniyaan (2009) and later on appeared in leading role in soap opera Mehmoodabad Ki Malkain (2011). She took on to supporting roles in several television productions and had a breakthrough and critical success with the thriller Nanhi (2013) which earned her first nomination of Lux Style Award for Best TV Actress. Further praise came for her portrayals in the family dramatic Sannata (2013-14) and Khuda Dekh Raha Hai (2015) for which she received Best TV Actress nomination at the Lux Style Awards.
Aly since done some variety of work and is best known for her head strong portrayals of Dr. Zubiya Asfandyar in Yaqeen Ka Safar (2017), Sassi in O Rangreza (2017–18), Momina Sultan in Alif (2019), Rabia Safeer in Sinf-e-Aahan (2021) and Aaliya Agha in Kuch Ankahi (2023) all of which her performances were better received and the first two of these earned her the Hum Award for Best Actress Popular and Best Actress respectively.
Early life and family
Aly was born on 17 January 1994 in Lahore Pakistan. She has one sister Saboor Ali, who is also an actress and one brother.[5] In 2017, her mother, Rahat died of cancer.[6] Speaking on it during an interview she said, "Whatever happened next is still a blur. The day my mother died, this very lounge was filled with people. I have no clue how I found the strength to get through it all, but I did".[7]
Personal life
Despite persistent rumours of dating her co-star and actor Ahad Raza Mir since they worked in 2018 series Yaqeen Ka Safar, both did not publicly speak about their relationship.[8][9] They got engaged on 6 June 2019, in an intimate ceremony and posted a picture on Instagram handle with the caption, "Here’s to new beginnings".[10][11] Aly married Mir on 14 March 2020 at Abu Dhabi with close family and friends by their side.[12][13] The speculations regarding their separation surrounding after the actor's absence from various occasions.[14] In March 2022, the couple were legally divorced.[15][16]
Her first role in 2015 was of submissive girl dominated by her mother's ideologies in Sabiha Sumar's directed Khuda Dekh Raha Hai, earned her another nomination of Lux Style Award for Best TV Actress.[30][31][32] Later that year, she made her second on-screen appearance with Agha Ali after Khuda Dekh Raha Hai in Kashif Nisar's directed Kis Se Kahoon,[17] where she portrayed a young college student who faces the hurdles there courageously. Her next role was in Siraj-ul-Haque's directed love-triangle Tum Mere Kya Ho as a young caretaker of a widower's daughter.[17][25] Her portrayal of a women rights activist opposite Feroze Khan in the romance Gul e Rana earned her further praise.[28] Despite mixed reviews, the series was highly rated like her previous collaboration with Khan, Chup Raho. For her performance she received her first ever award, Hum Award for Best Actress and a nomination of Best Actress at 15th Lux Style Awards.[27] Aly then appeared in Anjum Shahzad's directed romance-drama Mera Yaar Miladay opposite Faysal Quraishi which couldn't get wider response.[25]
Established actress and career fluctuations (2017–present)
In 2017, Aly appeared as a troubled and resilient medical student opposite Ahad Raza Mir in Farhat Ishtiaq's written Yaqeen Ka Safar which was based on Ishtiaq's novel Woh Yaqeen Ka Naya Safar.[33] Her performance in the series is often ranked among one of her best and earned her Hum Award for Best Actress, Hum Award for Best Actress Popular and a nomination of Best Television Actress at the 17th Lux Style Awards.[34][35] The same year, she made her Bollywood debut starring opposite Sridevi in Mom.[36] The film emerged a box office success with Aly’s performance as a of victim of sexual assault unanimously receiving praise.[37] Rahul Desai of Filmfare found Aly to be "great in maintaining the coldness of her character".[38]
In 2019, Aly was praised for her first role of the year of a struggling actress Momina Sultan in Geo Entertainment's spiritual romance Alif where she appeared opposite Hamza Ali Abbasi.[46] The series earned her a nomination of Best TV Actress at the 20th Lux Style Awards.[47] The little praise came from her portrayal of a university graduate with nightmare problems in Farhat Ishtiaq's written romantic thriller Yeh Dil Mera, which broadcast on Hum TV.[48]
Her first role in 2022 was of a female cadet from Pakistan Military Academy in Nadeem Baig's directed Sinf-e-Aahan alongside an ensemble female cast. The series earned her Best TV Actress - Critics' nomination at the 22nd Lux Style Awards.[52] In 2023, she appeared as a hardworking real estate agent in Syed Mohammad Ahmed's written Kuch Ankahi in her second on-screen appearance with Bilal Abbas Khan.[53] The same year, she made her English-language film debut with the British romantic comedy What's Love Got to Do with It? in a brief but pivotal role. It was produced by Jemima Khan and directed by Shekhar Kapur. Writing for Wionews Shomini Sen liked the movie and opined, "Aly delivers a restraint performance".[54] The film earned $11.1 million.[55][56]
Aly’s web series titled The Pink Shirt opposite Wahaj Ali is set to be released soon on Zee5. The project is directed by Kashif Nisar and written by Bee Gul.
Media image
Aly is considered one of Pakistan's highest-paid actresses.[57] In 2021, she featured in Eastern Eye top 50 Asian Celebrity list ranked at seventh is the only Pakistani actress in top 10 and in 2023, she was ranked at seventeen.[58][59] Aly is in the list of top 10 most followed Pakistani actress and has over 10 million followers on Instagram. In 2023, she has appeared in Eastern Eye's Top 30 under 30 Asians list ranked at sixteenth.[60] She serves as a brand endorsement for several products such as Tecno,[61]Veet and Realme.[62]
^Certain award groups do not simply award one winner. They acknowledge several different recipients, have runners-up, and have third place. Since this is a specific recognition and is different from losing an award, runner-up mentions are considered wins in this award tally. For simplification and to avoid errors, each award in this list has been presumed to have had a prior nomination.
.png){kind=small}
