Alrighto, this episode was more situational which gave us some insights about the characters & their backgrounds a bit more. I think the story will progress in the upcoming episodes but I am glad that the director is not rushing with the story by sacrificing the time needed to establish the characters properly.
This episode did focus more on Imran Bhatti’s life or to be precise; his personal life. Imran Bhatti; who comes across as a carefree person who’s always ears to other’s issues carries an emotional baggage because he has to deal with a lot in his marital life. Being married to an American & being a step-father of two; it definitely takes a toll on him because he doesn’t get a fair share of respect that he deserves. Even though he doesn’t regret marrying Cathy but he is still unhappy with the way he gets treated by his wife & kids. Imran is someone who’d never ever share his personal problems with anyone but shed off his burden by spending a time with himself while sipping a cup of coffee.
Imran definitely doesn’t know what his mother has to put up with because of his sister-in-law but at least luckily for Imran’s mother, Jamshed is there to protect her. Even though he is the main reason of his Maami’s agitation, he still knows how to take a stand for himself & his grandmother. Jamshed is still living in a fool’s paradise where he thinks things will become much easier the moment he’ll step out of Pakistan but he seems so indulged in the future that he has forgotten to worry about his present & for this he’s unable to understand that his unemployment is taking a toll on him & to some extent; on his grandmother as well. I really liked the conversation Jamshed had with his friend where she tries to make him understand how he could do well by being in Pakistan but just because Jamshed happens to have a lot of misapprehensions about American lifestyle, he chooses to ignore the advice given by her. That conversation shed a light on such basic suggestions that people convey to those who do happen to live in some sort of imaginative bubble. I must say the relation Jamshed shares with his grandmother was really sweet. The way she understands & protects him goes to show that she takes Jamshed as someone who compensates the absence of her daughter & her son Imran.
The character of Michelle still remains a mystery & I am interested to find out more about her. Even though Michelle runs such a business where every single day she has to deal with a whole lot of different people, she is still an introvert at heart who shies away from a social contact because she feels she wouldn’t fit well in that circle. It felt like Michelle & her friend are dodging their feelings for each other because even though they both had a misunderstanding, they sorted out pretty quickly because they both are used to being together. One interesting bit that I noticed was that it was the same Michelle who was being stern with her subordinate while complaining about food but the very next second, it looked like she was an entirely different person, who was easy-going & knew how to smile as well & that was only because of her best friend. I don’t know why but I feel there’s a lot more to discover particularly in Michelle’s story.
The most enjoyable scene was once again of Imran Bhatti where he staged a meeting with the ladies of Haseena parlour. Imran is someone who lives in the moment because he knows he has so much to deal with, so he seizes every single opportunity to connect with new people & desis in particular for the obvious reasons. A little light was shed on why Imran’s stuck with Cathy because of some legal issues related to his immigration, so I can’t wait to find out how he takes control of his life henceforth.
2 episodes down & the excitement is still intact. I really enjoyed the conversations in this episode & feel like I know a lot more about the characters than I knew about them in the previous episode. I just can’t wait to find out more about each one of them & their stories. Share your thoughts on this episode of Jackson Heights.
Keep Supporting,
Cheers,
Zahra Mirza.
