Alif Episode 16 Story Review – Connecting The Dots

Wow, simply wow. This was an absolutely brilliant episode of Alif yet again & yes, it once again ended at such a moment where I was actually looking forward to how the conversation was going to carry on. The editors played a good game for sure. I can already feel the next week is going to be long because waiting for the very next episode is not going to be easy. Alif is a masterpiece, no matter how many times I will say it, I feel it will not be an emphasis enough because scripts, stories & dramas like Alif are a rarity in Pakistani drama world & I truly feel lucky to be able to see a drama like this. Direction, acting, dialogues, emotions, expressions, every single aspect of this drama touches your heart & it actually takes you to another world. Alif is a feeling & a beautiful one at that!

Different Side of Taha’s Personality:

Everything I said about Taha Abdul Ala in the previous review made me feel I was a bit quick to draw conclusions about him because I liked the side of his personality that was shown in this episode. Although Taha was fighting his own demons, it was actually nice to see him trying his very best to be a good & doting father to Qalb e Momin. Taha was guilt-stricken, but he was not oblivious to the deprivation Qalb e Momin felt. Taha knew that his son was just being a child, he had his demands, his wants, his needs, he was just asking for things a child is entitled to, therefore he seemed keen enough to do something in order to meet Momin’s demands. While watching these scenes of young Qalb e Momin, my mind was automatically drawn to the famous & wealthy Momin who was proud of what he had earned. A child who came from a humble background with no financial stability, where he hardly saw his wishes getting fulfilled, when he reached the age where he was able to achieve so much in such a short span of time, it gave him the confidence to an extent of arrogance that he was capable of getting everything he would want in his life. The best thing about Alif & the backstory is that everything is related & while watching every scene, you can easily figure out the purpose of why certain scenario is being highlighted. Momin’s demands of cookies, chocolates & cycle made it very easy to understand the reason behind Momin’s arrogance when he became successful & started doing well financially.

Alif Episode 16 Story Review - Connecting The Dots

The conversation between Husn e Jahan & Taha was heart-touching. It was good to see him confiding in his wife, it ensured that he was not trying to escape the life he had chosen for himself, rather he was trying to find the solutions. Taha knew that everything he was experiencing was because his father chose not to forgive him, which meant he did not hold his wife or son responsible for what he was going through. Another beautiful conversation was between Taha & Qalb e Momin where he metaphorically explained who Husn e Jahan & Qalb e Momin were. It was beautiful & just through that, Husn e Jahan once again got a reminder of the storm that Taha was dealing with which was slowly killing him inside.

Momina Connected The Dots:

Momina did not have a hard time connecting the dots. She also did not have a hard time seeing her father differently because she could feel, Sultan’s feelings for Husn e Jahan were more than what he had expressed till date. She also wanted to know whether it was love or guilt or something else which Sultan felt for her. Momina was not gullible to fall for Sultan’s half-baked truth, she wanted to know everything & this is why she decided to go ahead & sign the film. This is not just a project for Momina, it has made her curious & she wants to know everything about Husn e Jahan because Sultan chose to keep his secret.

Well, let me just say, it was nice to see Momina & Momin in one frame once again. The tables have surely turned & now Qalb e Momin sat there with humility, uncertainty & zero arrogance, whereas Momina was self-assured, she knew what she was getting into, confident & sorted. This difference in their attitude was brilliantly portrayed by both Hamza Ali Abbasi & Sajal Aly. Even before they met, Qalb e Momin found it hard to believe that Momina had agreed to do this movie, it was like he was relying on her name & kind of felt relieved that he won’t be facing financial restraints to go ahead with the movie because Momina was a brand of her own.

Alif Episode 16 Story Review - Connecting The Dots

Momina wanted to know the truth but she knew it was not going to be easy to hear it from Momin. Momina saw him differently, she knew this was the story of his mother, the question in Momina’s eyes was so evident. She knew but she was unsure why he was hiding the truth. The deal that Qalb e Momin did not finalize was another brilliant moment of this episode. Mr. Khaliq was keen to get the paintings but then just listening to everything he had to say about the paintings & Abdul Ala’s art made Momin reconsider his decision. He wants finances for his movies more than ever, he is keen, he is eager but still, it showed that his love for his grandfather stands ahead of everything that he wishes for. It was nice to see Qalb e Momin in this light too, who wants to treasure his grandfather & cherish everything related to him more than ever before. Momina also got to see a different side of Qalb e Momin, while she sat there figuring out what was happening, she was stunned to see Abdul Ala’s paintings at Qalb e Momin’s place. Her demand to get the 7 paintings was something that neither Qalb e Momin nor I as a viewer saw coming & just when I wanted to see more, the episode ended, ah!

Beautiful Episode:

Overall, it was a beautiful episode of Alif. Simply beautiful. I am glad that the story has now come to a stage where both Qalb e Momin & Momina will be getting their answers. Qalb e Momin needs to learn more about his parents, especially his mother to let go of the grudge he holds against her & I can’t wait to see that happening in the episodes to come. Sajal Aly looked absolutely gorgeous when she walked into Qalb e Momin’s house for the meeting. Hamza Ali Abbasi has portrayed Momin’s restlessness & emotional turmoil to perfection. He is just not himself anymore after losing his grandfather & where in his professional life Momin is trying to get back to work, in his personal life he is shattered & slowly dealing with his pain of surviving without his only family that he had – Abdul Ala. Pehlaaj Hussain’s scenes are also a treat to watch, his innocence is endearing & the way he delivers his dialogue fills heart with so much warmth. He is a beautiful child. Ahsan Khan & Kubra Khan were right in their element as Taha & Husn e Jahan. Alif is a brilliantly directed drama, every single scene has so much to offer & has been curated with so much attention to detail that it not only completes the picture but makes everything look visually appealing as well. The preview of the next episode was promising & I can not wait. Please share your thoughts about this beautiful episode of Alif.

Keep Supporting,
Cheers,
Zahra Mirza.

Zahra Mirza

Zahra Mirza got associated with Reviewit.pk in 2012. After moving to Australia, Pakistani content was a way of staying connected to the roots, language & Pakistani culture because it felt home. Eight years ago, review writing began as a hobby but has now turned into a passion.

25 comments

  • Wow , was the word which came out of my mouth too after watching the episode today…wow.. super .. mind blowing… i cannot describe it more beautifully than u have done.. i dont have words .. u have penned down all the feelings aptly.. mashaAllah..
    And i am in love with sajal aly
    . Kamal ki actress he and.. kubra lookd gorgeous too..

    • Thank you so much Saiqa for your kind words, it means so much to me. <3 Yes, Kubra definitely looks beautiful in Alif. I love her simplicity.

  • The way u articulate and express the emotions of all the viewers watching this masterpiece is absolutely commendable, Zahra. Your honest review and ur meticulate analysis is like a cherry on top of dramas like Alif.

    This episode of Alif had some beautiful moments to it’s credit. The scenes btw Taha and Momin were beautiful . Now seeing the bond btw Taha and Momin, I understood that how Taha’s absence affected Momin and when he didn’t get the response of his letters he wrote, he gradually got more rebellious. As u said, all these dots come together. And yes I also saw genuine love of Taha for Husne Jahan when he was metaphorically describing HeJ to Momin.

    But the thing which I am a bit double minded is the dialogue of Taha in which he says ke “Wo (Allah) mere Dil mein hai lekin mein us ke Dil mein nahi”. Now apparently giving human features or attributes to Allah is a form of Shirk. But then the other side of this argument can be that maybe Taha intended it to be in a more metaphorical way. Waiting for your opinion on this..

    • Thank you so much Ibrahim for your kind words & continuous support, it means a lot. :) Yes, it is absolutely a treat connecting these dots & understanding everything from a different perspective about the personalities of these characters.

      Yes, I think Taha meant it in a metaphorical way but I will say that these dialogues did not sit well with me either. I also didn’t really like the way he said lagta hai Allah mere samne aa ke betha hai. Ummm, no.

  • Just like awesome episode, splendid review. The most admirable thing about Alif is it’s intelligently paced. Some dramas starts on a high note, some gets interesting at mid or end but its really rare in our industry to watch a drama which is just mind blowing from very start till date, yes I am talking about Alif. And i’m sure Alif will keep its charm till the very end. I just want to congratulate all the single person involved in this masterpiece and I’m sure we’ll see more projects like this in future also. Keep supporting Alif!

    • Thank you so much Hamza. Absolutely, I also love the consistent pace of this drama. Plus with the story moving back & forth between past & present, it really offers so much & every single episode has so much to offer. Indeed, they really have created a history by bringing this drama to our TV screens. :)

  • Zahra I’m short of words I don’t know how to praise your review. Brilliant analysis,I’m in awe of your work.

  • Honest review, good part of drama is that the more u saw and the more you want to see.. It just keep me hooked to the sofa till the end and next episode teaser made it more interesting, unlike many dramas which starts loosing their grip alif wants me to see more. The calligraphy was beautiful and sajal Aly was brilliant. This girl is always full of expression..so as others.. Great story… Brilliant execution..

    • Thank you so much Hina. Yes, absolutely, every other episode of Alif leaves you in an awe & wanting for more. Sajal Aly is a gifted actor, she looked stunning in this episode. I personally love all the Islamic art pieces they have shown in this drama, it is totally my aesthetic because my father was into calligraphy too, so it speaks to me on a very different level. :)

  • Loved loved this episode.
    But Zahra I had a question. Don’t know if you heard it as well.
    But when Momina enters Momin’s house she looks at the calligraphy and says ‘momin ka dadi se kiya taaluq hai.‘
    I didnt quite understand what she meant by that.

  • The mesmerizing effect of Alif on you is quite evident as your review did not start with your hallmark “ohkay so” which is something new for me…. Brilliantly summed up review…

    • Thank you so much AJ for appreciating the review & for noticing the beginning of it too. Yes, I think I have done that before for Alif especially because indeed, every other episode of it is absolutely brilliant. :)

  • This is the bestest drama that I ever watched. I wish it could get the fame that MPTH is getting. No offence to MPTH but I am so much excited for Alif’s next episode rather than MPTH finale. Though I will watch MPTH finale also, but after watching Alif atleast twice or maybe thrice :)

  • Bohot hi zabardast drama hai.
    Bohot emotional kar deta hai ,ghar bar new episode ka intzar .afsoos k jesy drama main Sufism py banny wali movie ko rating nahi mily GI esy hi haqeeqat main b ‘mery pass tum ho ‘ ki rating is sy zeyada hai.

    Alif main him sub k liye ye msg hai k ,hum sub ki zindagi main ‘alif’ kitna eham hai ?

  • Hi Zahra, so detailed episode and very detailed review too. Taha-Husn e Jahan conversation was highlight of this episode. Felt much to see the the three family members of Taha dipping the bread in something like water and eating. Patience for little Qalbe momin was exhausted there, but salute to the lady with so much of patience, especially as she came from a celebrity background. I am sure adult Qalb e Momin has misjudgment about his mother behavior. Just a thought, instead of Taha begging everyone (as his son mentioned), why did not he started doing some labor work and then feeling guilty of not being a calligrapher, at least his family does not have to suffer so much and make him realize until they say. However i felt his regret of not being a calligrapher, its truly an artistic feeling, which can’t be wore by any employee. Because an average employee is not artistic in his work, its not their pride, but a job. When Husn e Jahan was taking out her paintings made by Taha from the wall, i was thinking Taha decided to sell them, and he will earn good from it. It was just another thought. Absolutely delighted to watch Momin-Momina meeting. Nothing to add, you described everything i could observed of. The change in both of them were very noticeable and i must say, they both excelled in this scene. I too liked Momina connecting the dots. Good to see Master Ibrahim in next episode.

  • awesome review Zahra of an awesome episode, so much happened today, in present and flashback. finally mumin and momina meet, which was long awaited, and it was worth the wait. both were outstanding in that scene, so much difference in their personalities since they last met, they were just beyond amazing. there is still so much left to be revealed related to sultan, what he did and how…whole day sultan keeps on talking abt husnejahan, he must have never expected in his wildest dreams that his truth could ever come out in front of his daughter.. Flash back scenes were also very good, ahsan was fine, and kubra was agn fantastic and so was the kid. it was clear that taha’s biggest problem was his guilt that he made his father upset, and this whole problem would have been solved if baba had reached out to them, so yes Abdul alaa was in a way responsible for their miseries.

    looking forward to the next episode.

  • just binge-watched episodes 14-16… and am oh so amazed. Followed by your reviews, it makes for a perfect journey. I couldn’t have expected such a novel to be translated in such an aesthetic manner. can’t wait for Momin to find out more. Thank you for the brilliant reviews.

  • lovely review & i also wanted the the story to go on to the next episode but sadly we will have to wait a bit longer

  • Alif ka koi muqabla nahi. Alif hr lehaaz se best hai. Hr cheez production values takk sb kuch novel k mutabiq 100% execution hai.
    Tum Mere pas kbi nahi dekha lekin jo social media ki posts se story lagti hai us se muje aisa lagta hai k drama “Zara Yaad Kar” ko zra refine script likh k dobara bna diya hai ne aur Humayun aur Aiza k fans ne uski ratings barrha di hain.
    Abi pichlay dinu Aiza ka fridays ko aik drama aa raha tha jis mein junaid khan aur Momal Sheikh aur muneeb b thy tau uski na koi story thi na kuch lekin drama top rated tha sirf actors ki fai following ki wjah se