Naeema Butt and Emmad Irfani cross paths in London

Express Tribune

23-02-2025

Naeema Butt filmed a hilarious exchange with Emmad Irfani in an Instagram Story shared Thursday. The Kabhi Main Kabhi Tum stars crossed paths in London, where Naeema channelled her infamous character Rubab as she accused Emmad's Adeel of treachery once more.
"I'm here in London right now, and guess who I just found," Naeema said to the camera, before turning it to reveal a smiley Emmad accompanied by his wife and fashion designer Maryam Shafaat. "What are you doing here, Adeel? With another woman?"
"Love in London," Emmad cheekily responded, laughing. Shaking her head, Naeema mimicked him in faux disdain. "That's the film's title. We're here in front of Buckingham Palace," Emmad said.
The two attracted popularity for their masterful portrayal of the ambitious Adeel and the headstrong Rubab in the Fahad Mustafa and Hania Aamir starrer. Depicted as foils of the cast leads, Adeel and Rubab undergo a turbulent marriage fuelled by their individual flaws and bad decisions. Even now, audiences laud the Emmad and Naeema's performances as the malicious characters.
In an interview with BBC News Urdu in September, the two spoke about the impact that the love-to-hate characters have had on their lives. "It doesn't matter much that [Adeel and Rubab] are a hated couple. What matters is how truthfully we portray the script," Emmad said.
"I've been getting a lot of love and so is Rubab," Naeema said. "I think I can count the negative texts I've received about how people hate Rubab or that they want to slap her. But it's not that much."
When asked about the logic behind Adeel's fidelity to everyone's wives but his own, Emmad said, "Only Farhat [Ishtiaq] ji can answer this question. But given my own knowledge of the character, I feel that Adeel's overt superiority complex is influenced by his inferiority complex.
"He's been pampered by his family since childhood, so there's this societal pressure to be the best, look the best, earn the best. It's like the survival of the fittest for him. So he has ingrained in himself that he must do everything on its own. It's beyond self-love. Narcissism, if you will. He's a very complex character," Emmad concluded.
Naeema, on the other hand, mentioned that fans' hatred of these characters sometimes translates to love. "I have received comments telling me that they used to like Rubab but not anymore, though they would also thank me for playing her well. So I'm like, wow," she said.