I am sorry but this drama has taken the most ridiculous turn ever. Seems like the writer was really bored so she barfed this story all over the pages, without any insight & without any know-how of penning down a proper story with some real & honest characters.

Just because Haya shooed Awazar away in the first scene when he threw a tantrum at her for speaking to Mustafa, Awazar has had a quick realization that just because some girl told him off & hurt his peanut ego, he now can’t live without her & wants to get her just because for a moment she didn’t nappify him. I wish Sofia had done the same thing so that Awazaar would’ve stayed in his limits. Just because she literally spoon fed him all along these years while she was married to him, he is now taking her for granted.

Awazar has fallen so much in love with Haya that he feels Sofia is nothing but just a ‘ghalti’ between them? Why is it that the victim Sofia has all of a sudden become a villain Sofia? I heard Awazar saying ‘Allah ne mujhe ijazat di hai dusri shadi ki’, which made me think that Awazaar appko Allah ne justice karne k liye bhi kaha hai dono biwiyon k saath! All of a sudden Awazar now wants Sofia to just vanish from his life so he can enjoy his life with a Pakistani wife in Pakistan with his Pakistani mother in his Pakistani home eating Pakistani pakwaan, wearing Pakistani shalwar kameez & Pakistani chappal. So, my point is, when he was SO Pakistani, why did he get married to an Indian in the first place? Just so easily he thinks he can throw Sofia out like a Tea-Bee, so what gave him a right to destroy 4 years of her life?

Maham of Shukk as Ruby of Slowly Slowly, hmmmm, déjà vu anyone? Why’s it that this lady always acts like an agony aunt who is reminding every single girl about how her husband’s falling short of his responsibilities & is taking his wife for granted? I think she really needs to do better. All this while, Sofia came across as a wife who was so over-protective of her husband & to be honest, before his 2nd marriage Awazar never gave her a reason to doubt or question him, so when did Sofia feel a need to share her marital imperfections with her friend, who is now rubbing it all over her face?

Looks like every single character in this drama is either rubbing themselves on others or is living in a fool’s paradise. Awazar hated the idea of pretentious breakfast to make Bee Jaan happy when he was angry at Sofia for speaking to Mustafa, so didn’t he forget that he himself is making Haya pretend to be all happy & carefree in front of his Bumble Bee all this while? Bumble bee hated seeing Sofia buzzing around her Beta Bee, so why wasn’t she worried when he came to USA & didn’t even bother visiting her for 4 good years? I mean this thing is beyond my understanding that Bumble Bee hated seeing a colleague getting candid with Awazar, why didn’t she question him before about who he was working with & who he was friends with? Don’t tell me that Bumble bee thought her Beta Bee had no linkups with any girls in Amreeka?

Nothing in this drama is making sense. Haya; who in the first 5 seconds of the episode came across as someone who knew how to stand up for herself later became someone who was ready to lead a life on someone else’s tukray? She is now waiting for an approval of Sofia so that she can continue living in a zinc-clad jannat of hers with her thakkela Awazar? I mean PHULEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEZ!

Keep Supporting,
Cheers,
Zahra Mirza.

This episode of Laa was slow as compared to all the other episodes that have gone on air so far, since it did not manage to engage me the way all the previous episodes have, I couldn’t help but notice some of the loopholes in the direction and the narrative. The story took an ugly and unexpected turn today when Dilawar found out that Daniyal is his brother. Everything happened really fast but I must say that the scene in which Dilawar shot Laila could have been shot in a much better way. Surely someone like Dilawar is used to killing people or is he really a chooza seth? He looked terrified when he shot Laila like he had never hurt a fly in his life. Until now Laa did not give me much to complain about; I ignored the repeated coincidences, I have enjoyed the filmy feel of the play till now and a few loopholes here and there did not kill the overall feel of the play for me because Laa gave me something to look forward to every week and it has been very entertaining. This episode however was slow for my taste and much of what we saw in it made little sense. Firstly, a person like Dai Maa who has blood on her hands is not in a position to question her son for having an affair/affairs. I did not get how she concluded that one of Dilawar’s girlfriends must have told Laila what kind of a character he had. People like Dilawar take pride in having girlfriends and even mistresses, it comes with the status sadly.

Daniyal recalled being at Laila’s house when she went to visit her family but he was never shown in that particular scene in the last episode. In fact two minutes before that scene he was shown sitting with his father in Lahore and tonight he delivered the money to Laila’s house and went straight to the hospital which would mean that Laila’s family lives in Karachi or some place near Karachi. In addition to that Daniyal had more pressing issues at hand at that time with his father sick! Maybe I missed something, if anyone out there was able to make sense out of these two scenes please do enlighten me.

Laila’s character was getting more interesting by every passing episode, I would definitely want to see more of her. We got to find out more about the double life that Laila has been living all these years. Daniyal’s mother wants to hold on to her son therefore she is on a mission to find him a wife but his father on the other hand wants his son to find out who his mother is so that he can be at peace. Daniyal’s father has faith in him; he knows that he will still come back to them even after finding out who his real mother is.

Daniyal’s life has taken a turn for the worse because he has been framed by Dilawar (perhaps). The viewer’s didn’t get a chance to see why the police thought that he was the one who shot Laila but I am guessing that Dilawar must be behind this latest development. Daniyal and Hina will come face to face once again in the next episode but in the wrong circumstances. Laila and Dilawar are the only two people who know that Hina is Daniyal’s mother, Laila is fighting for her life and Dilawar would want Daniyal to be behind bars for the rest of his life.

Although this episode was strictly okay especially when I compare it with the sort of entertainment Laa has provided us with till now because the loopholes in the direction and narrative were too obvious this time around. The story still has tons of potential; if Laila survives, she will tell Hina the truth and Hina will fight her son’s case.

Do share your thoughts about tonight’s episode.

Fatima Awan

Tonight’s episode was majorly about Sajeela and her desires ; Sajeela thinks that she has the ability to conquer Haider’s heart again but she has completely forgotten that how pitilessly and cruelly she crushed Haider’s feelings under her feet and left to live a happy life with Mazhar. As time is the best healer and teacher; Haider’s wounds got partially healed because Aiman came in his life but Sajeela learned new lessons in her life; Mazhar was a coward, gutless and merely a fraud for whom she left her family and a loving Husband and now that their relation is no more, she wants Haider back in her life. She thinks of Haider as a toy or puppet with whom she can play whenever she want but this time, Haider is firm and knows exactly what to do. I literally enjoyed watching  spark and glow on Aiman’s face when she saw Haider ignoring Sajeela.

Sajeela tried every possible way out to convince both Haider and Bibi that she is feeling sorry for what she had done in past. Haider didnot pay heed to whatever Sajeela said and Bibi treated her the way she deserved to be treated.  Sajeela developed the feeling of insecurity after noticing Aiman’s closeness to Haider and for that she attempted to plant seeds of doubt in Aiman’s heart.

Aiman was left in a doubt for a moment but she recollected herself ; To assess the level of affection and more than that, to make herself feel satisfied that she is important for Haider, she called Haider for lunch. After all those sad times, Haider found  a companion in the form of Emma. In her presence, he forgets everything and at the very time Emma becomes his whole world. Despite of the age difference, they had something common; Deprivation and Starvation – Deprivation of living a happy and peaceful life, starvation of love and affection and when Haider and Aiman are together those empty spaces in their hearts fills up immediately.

Shaheer tried to propose Aiman but Aiman,being in love with Haider , can’t even think of marrying someone else and for that, she completely ignored Shaheer. Poor Shaheer kept on trying and luckily, he met Haider. Eventually, Shaheer found the light at the end of tunnel when he came to know that his father is friends with Haider and Taufeeq. Rakeeb ko Chayai ? Rakeeb ke khaatir daari kaun karta hai yaar.. ! .. Sajid was so right, Haider was blessed with such a big heart that he even welcomed the one who wants Aiman in his life and more than that, Haider knew that before.

Sajeela kept on insisting Almaas that she wants Haider back in her life. Almaas, being practical woman, put all the facts and figures in front of Sajeela but she was in no mood to hear anything that is giving even a single glimpse of Almaas denial.

Preview of next episode seems very interesting ; I am not going to tell that what will happen next but gear up yourselves to watch some emotional drama next week.

Share your thoughts on this episode.

Rabia Basharat.

The team of Woh is back with a sequel titled Woh..Dubara. I have been looking forward to this sequel because the prequel proved to be a complete package; it was entertaining and different. Angeline Malik is the captain of the ship once again and the sequel has been written by Syed Atif Ali. I remember when the prequel was on air Syed Atif Ali was not sure if this new genre of drama will click with the viewers or not, I am glad that the play got the attention and viewership it deserved and the experiment did not fail.

Woh..Dubara has also been shot in the same house where the prequel was shot. The house is still haunted by the demon who has now taken over the body of Faisal’s daughter Saba. Zubair (Shahood Alvi) along with his wife (Yasra Rizvi), child Ali (Bilal Khan) and brother Umair (Ali Abbas) move in the haunted house. He knows about the tragedies that took place in the house but chooses to ignore everything that happened because he thinks that it is not going to effect him or his family in any way. Umair is due to get married to Emaan (Sana Askari) very soon that is the reason why they moved in this house in a rush. All the family members in the house are very close to each other. Even the housekeeper of the house (Sultana Zafar) is treated like a family member because she has been with the family for a very long time. Emaan and her mother (Seema Sehar) however are bad news as Bua rightly puts it. Emaan is headstrong and unreasonable and her mother encourages this behavior. Zubair’s wife on the other hand is willing to compromise because she wants Umair to be happy.

In this episode the demon seemed to be inspecting the members of the household one by one so that it can chose its victim. Ali is the first one who sees the demon and is now “friends” with it. The strange happening in the house are ignored by everyone. The main protagonist in the show this time around is going to be Sana Askari, I hope that she will give us the same stellar performance which Arij Fatyma gave in the prequel. The cast is very strong, one thing I love about Angeline Malik’s plays is that the scenes are always short and to the point and I have faith in the writer Syed Atif as well.

Overall, this was a fast paced first episode which introduced the characters in a very good way. The camera work and picture quality was upto the mark and it definitely gave me something to look forward to. If you want to watch something different, entertaining and of course chilling then Woh…Dubara will definitely fit the bill.

Fatima Awan

Our hero maybe out of sight but it will take a miracle to get him out of Shazia and Mehreen’s mind! Mausam has a very weak storyline and the direction is anything but impressive. There is no build up and no climax, the twists and turns come and go without leaving any impact on the viewers. The story moves forward gradually without giving you much to look forward to. I have totally failed to connect to the characters. Saman’s character had tons of potential but the writer killed that potential when she decided to make her holier-than-thou and I don’t understand why all these sidhi sadhi ladies in our dramas have to speak so slowly. Being simple and being dim-witted are two completely different things. Next time one of the drama writers wants to etch-out a simple girl’s character I highly recommend that they add a little bit of intellect to that character too. Smart girls can be nice too, you don’t have to be brainless to be nice! I was shocked when Saman decided to go to the parlor because that actually showed that she really did think that a visit to the parlor will change her destiny! She has tried Biryani and a new hairstyle, I wonder what is next. Magic wand anyone? What was even more shocking was the chance meeting between Hashir’s mother and Saman. I wish Saman and Hashir’s mother would have met somewhere else because it was hard to believe that someone like Saman can afford to go to a parlor Hashir’s mother goes to. Women like Nigar are very conscious about the parlor’s they go to and they are always places with the highest rates. Girls like Saman usually go to a parlor in their locality because they are not that expensive and are accessible.

Shazia got insulted from Mehreen and Nigar left right and centre but the girl is totally besti proof. Nothing these women say effects her, in fact we never even see her giving anything anyone says a second thought even. Shazia is definitely in contact with Faisal and they are upto something behind Saman’s back. Girls like Shazia enjoy keeping men wrapped around their little finger, she did not marry Faisal but she would not want him to get over her either! I hope that we see Shazia paying for everything she did because she does not deserve to be forgiven.

Saman’s mother in law’s character was the only nuanced character in the play but that has changed too ever since she sold Saman’s jewelry. Anita Campher is a brilliant actress but this time around she went over board; her accent is too loud and annoying. Mehreen is a very smart girl, I wonder why she was not able to guess what her father had been upto something when he clearly stated that he talked to Nigar about Mehreen’s friendship with Hashir. That was another conversation that completely fell flat. There is zero chemistry between Shazia Naz and the actor playing her father in the drama.

The misunderstandings in the drama are being stretched beyond limit, the story does not have much to offer and the characters are unimpressive to say the least. I hope it ends soon (wishful thinking)!

Do share your thoughts about tonight’s episode.

Fatima Awan

“Tum bachi nahi ho, shadi shuda ho, aik beti ki maa ho…stop dreaming!”  I love the way this drama gives its viewers a chance to rethink all the clichés and double-standards that exist in our society. Once a girl gets married, she is supposed to dedicate her life to making her marriage work, nothing else in the world matters. The second a girl gets married she should stop dreaming because that is the start of practical life; stop dreaming about being happy…Is that really fair or right? Bee Gul’s script forces you to question all the preconceived notions about married men, women and marriage in general. Is marriage just a social obligation or more than that? Is a woman only a wife and a mother after marriage or does she have a pehchan of her own too? And if a woman loses her pehchan as an individual after marriage why doesn’t the same hold true for the man as well? Why does the society expect the woman to deliver and the man is not questioned because as long as he provides for his wife and kids he can get away with everything. Pehchan rejects all the stereotypes which we have been seeing in our dramas for a very long time now. It is refreshing in its own unique way. Laila has stopped looking for excuses for Mansoor’s less than attentive behavior, she knows that there is no point in hoping that one day things will change for good and she most certainly is done with putting up a show for her mother.

“Jis rastay pe tum chal rahi ho, us rastay pe chalnay wali aurat ko hamare masharay mei jis naam se pukara jata hai, janti ho?…..Buhat achi tarah janti hun, magar ap jaise mard ko kis naam se pukara jaye yeh nahi janti!!”…so true and so ironic! They are so many names for women who cheat on their husbands, who fail as wives because our society loves to label and judge women but what do you call a husband who cheats on his wife and who fails to make her happy? Although this episode like all the previous ones was loaded with powerful dialogues that cast a spell on you; the sort of conversations that stay with you long after you have heard them but my favorite scene in tonight’s episode was the final confrontation between Mansoor and Laila. Laila may think that it is her financial independence that has given her the courage to stand up to Mansoor but something tells me that it is not just that. There are many financially independent women like Kukoo who think they are incomplete without a man but Laila knows that she has an identity of her own, which she can only safeguard if she goes away from Mansoor. Laila also knows that she gave this relationship her best but Mansoor failed as a husband; he failed to give her the love she deserved. Laila would have happily let her husband be her new pehchan had he given her enough love to earn that status. Men do not get respect, love and everything else that comes with a marriage simply by entering into nikkah with women, they also need to work hard to earn all that. Mansoor warns Laila again and again that without his pannah Laila is vulnerable and weak but Laila knows better. Sohail Sameer has outdone himself as Mansoor, he has been brilliant throughout the play. Whoever selected him for this role deserves special appreciation.

“Tum buhat masboot ho Kukoo, tum ne mujh jaise admi ka bhoj saha hai…Mansoor Jaise admi ka stress saha hai!” Khurram and Kukoo both failed each other and they decided to be honest about it when they parted ways. Khurram explained his relationship with Kukoo brilliantly. He was always like a spoiled child and Kukoo like his mother, maybe that is the reason why he never wanted a child of his own! A child does not know that he has duties too but he only expects the mother to be there for him whenever he needs her. Similarly Khurram forgot that this marriage was a two way road, he did not realize that one day Kukoo may get very tired of all this and turn to someone else for the kind of love Khurram never gave her. Khurram always got what he wanted from his relationship from Kukoo but he never gave much consideration to Kukoo’s wishes. He never even tried to understand her. He knew what she wanted but his own happiness was much more important to him. Khurram is not perfect in any way at all but at least he was man enough to admit his mistakes and he forgave his wife for what she did. Mansoor on the other hand still thinks that he did nothing wrong. Kukoo felt liberated after Khurram left, it looked like she was eager to move on.

Kukoo and Laila both have an opportunity to start afresh; how are they going to make use of this opportunity, remains to be seen. Will they be able to find their pehchan without a man? Will Laila be able to stick to her decision? I can’t wait to find out. Pehchan has been a masterpiece till now, it is refreshing, enlightening and very well executed. Bee Gul and Khalid Ahmed make a superb team, I hope we will be seeing more plays from them in the future too.

Do share your thoughts about yet another impressive episode of Pehchan.

Fatima Awan

I remember watching ‘We’re Family’ while I was doing household chores & that movie seemed boring & never-ending. The reason for why I am talking about the Bollywood movie here is that a story which was told in 2 hours had a capability of looking dull & dragged, so just imagine how puuuurfect would’ve been the idea of stretching it till 18+ episodes.

I am really not understanding the point of not ending this drama at a izzat-able note. To be honest, I was expecting that this would be the last episode but the moment I saw a numbering to it in the beginning, it just ruined my whole mood. Practically & honestly, they are left with nothing, absolutely nothing to show but they are just now torturing us to tell us how attentively they’ve copied the story of Step Mom & We’re Family. They’re punishing us for the sin we haven’t committed. They’re bothering us so that we can’t sleep peacefully at night just because we all, in a manhoos-ghari thought of giving this play a go.

I mean, to be honest, I never thought any such dialogue would seem to be a riddle to me in this plain & dull drama, but Khala Masooma has proved me wrong. Honestly, I confess & I surrender that I never understand what she says, why she says it & what does she mean? For once, she is trying to make Dua understand that she’s a soteli ma to Jazib’s kids, then she is reminding her of her duties, then she is trying to make Dua realize that she will always be like an external entity to this family & then she is telling Jazib to understand Zara’s perspective? My only question is, what is Khala Masooma doing in this drama apart from pulling off this hawas-bakhta expression on her face? & why is she so important?

Zara has accepted Dua ages ago & sorry to say even now I am waiting for her to leave this family & world alone. She is actually losing all the sympathy votes, which she might’ve earned, one by one. Zara has accepted Dua & as a gesture, she gifted her a suit, added her in a family photo, so what’s left to be settled?

On Khala Masooma’s not so Masoom ghuzarish, Jazib thought he’d shower the unnecessary love on Zara & now when that’s settled, can someone ask Khala Masooma why’s she hell-bent on making her daughter’s life miserable? Dua seems pretty happy & settled in her life, but seems like Khala Masooma has got nothing better to do, so she is just passing her time with the constant nagging reminders of an unseen complexity of Dua & Jazib’s relation. Dua has proven herself to be a very wise & mature young girl & she definitely doesn’t take it after her mother because Khala Masooma is….

In the next episode’s preview, Zara demands spending time with Dua? Hasn’t she done that already? She has been with her ever since she moved to Jazib’s place, so what was she doing all this while? Hasn’t Zara spent enough time with Dua at home already that now she feels spending a time in a restaurant will solve all the non-existent mysteries of her life? Please, I request Hum TV to cut this drama, chop out the scenes, edit the ending & end this drama ASAP or else I’ll pray that Khala Masooma haunts you all in your dreams.

Keep Supporting,
Cheers,
Zahra Mirza.

Man.. ! .. What a breathtaking episode it was !  I must say that tonight’s episode was one of the best episode of Pyarai Afzal . Sometimes, we reviewers fall short of words and this is what that is happening to me today still, all I can say is that it was not less than a roller coaster ride- Ride filled with emotional drama and intense feelings. Sohai Ali deserves an applause for what she did and how she transformed herself from roti dhoti bahu to Yasmeen, who is of happy-go-lucky nature and knows what to do,when to do and how to do ; Tonight’s episode was solely dedicated to her.

Maang rahi thei k sunday ko 27 tareekh na ho .. ya phir 27 ko sunday na ho.Lubna revealed the truth infront of Farah that everything that happened lately was nothing but a plan – a plan to compel Farah to confess her love for Afzal. She clearly told that it was the part of her treatment and everything that happened as Farah’s reaction was exactly opposite to what they expected.

Mujhe batao aakhir Afzal hai kaun or kis ka hai ye Afzal ? Lubna was sick and tired of trying so she finally decided to give-up and have one-to-one conversation with Farah.  Farah’s doubts got vanished when she came to know that Lubna’s association to Afzal was another one of her tactic to solve the matter.

Ye khat nahi hain Yasmeen.. mohabbat ke aik gumnaam Kahani hai.. Afzal was sheer disappointed with everything that is happening and as he knew that Farah is going to get married now, he decided to give up on her. Afzal nay bachpan mai khuwaab dekha tha ..pura nahi hoa to yeh bhi nahi bataya ka kya dekha tha. His eyes were telling the truth -Truth that was buried deep inside his heart since his childhood. Farah was the girl for whom he longed all his life and now that Farah is becoming a part of someone else’s life , he had no right to keep anything associated to her. Keeping that in mind, he asked Yasmeen to burn every piece of those letters that were written by Farah, apparently. Tumhain Kasam hai Afzal, chahay uss k gham mai jaltay rehna magar inn khatoun ko kabhi mat jalana. Yasmeen didnt want Afzal to lose his hope and as she was not even aware of reality so she decided to fight – Fight for Afzal , fight for whom she came all the way from Karachi to Hyderabad, fight for her loved one.

 Neend aa rahi hai mujhe .. or neend ke goli khayai baghair aa rahi hai.. Maulvi Saheb was completely shattered and broken when Pyarai Afzal left him. With a thought that Afzal will go back to Karachi, he wasnot ready to forgive him when he came back. And as, he got convinced that his son is staying with them, despite of all differences, he can have much awaited peaceful sleep after a long time now.

Jaag jao Farah ..Iss keemat par kabhi mat sona k tum ne kayyoun ke neendain haraam kar di hain.. With an adamantine thought in her mind, Yasmeen went to Farah because all this while she clearly discerned and remarked Afzal and Farah’s feelings for each other and for that, she was obstinate that Farah was the one who wrote letters to Afzal. She was firm that this time Farah won’t be able to deny the fact. But how would Farah be able to accept as she never attempted to write to Afzal; She was egoistic and there is no way for emotions and ego to stay together and in case of Farah, Ego overpowered her emotions always.

 Mohabbat agar cricket hoti tou mai jeet gaya hota.. It was not a matter of days or months; he had those intense feelings for Farah from the day he learned the meaning of true love. Walking through the lane of memories, Yasmeen figured out the resemblance in the writing pattern of letter and Afzal’s diary and that solved another mystery.

Yasmeen planned to solve the matter as soon as possible and for that she decided to go to Farah’s. Mai aaj bhi chali jaoun gey.. mujh par bay adabee wajib ho gaye hai.. Now that Yasmeen knows everything, how can she live under the same roof with Afzal.

Best sequence of tonight’s episode was the confession conversation between Yasmeen and Farah. It was deep,full of emotions, intense and with every new dialogue my concentration on the show increased a hundred times more than previous one. It was when we came across thousand shades of emotions – Yasmeen’s despair of losing Afzal, the sorrow of rejection ,the grief of not being his priority, Farah’s content of knowing that Afzal is madly in love with him, the felicity to know that she never lost Afzal and he was and will be hers always and most important of all the grief of not accepting her  true feelings and love for Afzal. Her tears spoke her heart out.

Afzal did not accept that he was the one who wrote letters and as soon as he came to know that Yasmeen was at Farah’s place, he got full of rage..Kyu gaye thein wahan tum..On being asked by Afzal, Yasmeen clearly told him ” Maulvi uncle k coconut waalay bisuitoun ke khaatir.. or tumhari ammi ke khaatir.. unn ko Farah mai tum dikhtay ho.. ”  Yasmeen knew that these were few last moments of her with Afzal as his fiance, she knew that she was never his parents choice and like Afzal, they strongly wanted  Farah in place of Yasmeen ,still they welcomed her openheartedly. With all that in her mind, she decided to put a full stop to this never ending mystery.

This show turned out to be one of its own kinds and I can proudly say that it was irresistible to be avoided; I am so going to miss this show as next episode will be the last one… :(

Share your thoughts on tonight’s episode.

Rabia Basharat.

Ohkay so, Shanakht, new drama of Hum TV, written & directed by Amna Nawaz Khan is off to a good start. I thoroughly enjoyed the first episode because I didn’t find any loopholes in the execution & the story so far. The story of Shanakht has touched a very sensitive topic of Hijab & the difficulties Muhajjaba’s (ladies who wear Hijab) have to face. At first it might come across as a bit unpleasant to see how they have shown the derogatory remarks that people put forth about someone’s choice of Hijab, but then if we look at with an open mind, they have showed it just perfectly as to how people become judgmental towards other’s choices. I think this story will inspire us all in a different way & I can’t wait to find out how.

The story is about households of two brothers Ahmed & Amjad (Mohsin Gillani). Ahmed & Shireen (Shamim Hilali) have a son Hashim (Noor Hassan) who happens to be interested in Quratulain/Annie (Maya Ali), who’s a daughter of Amjad & Huma (Sabahat Bukhari). Annie is their first born & she has a younger sister Kashaf (Sadia Faisal). Both these families are very close-knit & they believe Hashim & Annie’s marriage will further strengthen the bond between them.

What appealed to me throughout the episode is Annie’s character. Even though she is a centre of worry for her mother & people around her just because she chose a path that goes parallel to the society they move in, she is something more than that. She is talented, she is intelligent, she is wise, she’s groomed, she’s mature & most of all, she is trying to lead a life in a certain way which appeals to her. People around her might be judging her just because she chose an added piece of cloth to cover her head, but what I liked about her character is that despite all the objection she faces every now & then, she is sticking to her decision & that shows that she’s also strong headed but rightly so.

Huma definitely blames Annie’s friend Ayesha for transforming her into a ‘mulani’ but fortunately for Annie, her father Amjad is very supportive. Huma’s perfect idea of a daughter is definitely Kashaf, a care-free teenager, who Huma might never feel ashamed of because she’s just as modern & liberal as her mother. Even though Shireen loves Annie & knows that Hashim has always liked her as well but she also feels a bit sceptical thinking Annie’s choices do not go in accordance to their social class & circle, but despite all that, Ahmed still believes that Annie’s too precious to let go off because firstly Hashim likes her & secondly, she herself is a very nice person.

In this episode, every now & then the issue of Annie’s hijab came into limelight, where it was shown that Huma accepted it the hard way that her daughter has chosen to cover to her head, she definitely gave her a tough time in the beginning. Even though Hashim has always had a soft corner for her & likes her a lot but to some extent he also doesn’t respect her choices, therefore he kind of ridicules her idea of going to university on her own because she feels Hashim is still a na-mehram to her. Annie herself knows that her family will flip out because she revisits those harsh words she had to face when her mother found out about her decision of wearing a headscarf.

Finally, as for Huma & Amjad, they wanted Annie & Hashim’s relation to officially begin but were kind of hesitant being a girl’s parent but luckily for them, Shireen & Ahmed were thinking on those lines too & they planned that the best gift they could give to Hashim on his upcoming birthday would be an announcement of his engagement to Annie. I think for everyone, this engagement will bring in a lot of joys but for Annie, who is already struggling with the candidness Hashim shows towards her, she will face some hardships when Hashim will try to treat her like a mehram & will expect the same from her.

So far, so good. I really enjoyed the first episode & I hope the pace & the execution of the story stays the same. Even though I have no complains so far but one thing that really bothered me was Sabahat Bukhari’s haircut. I think she is also becoming a ‘Curious Case of Benjamin Button’ where she is finding it hard to accept that the number of her age is ascending, hence the failed attempts of looking younger. I really wish she accepts the truth & starts staying true to her age, which would really suit her. Noor Hassan has acted really effortlessly & for a change, that looks really nice. Maya Ali looks sweet & I am glad she changed her dialogue delivery. She is definitely looking good as Annie. Can’t wait to see more. Share your thoughts on the very first episode of Shanakht.

Keep Supporting,
Cheers,
Zahra Mirza.