A great deal happened in this recent episode but most of it was not too convincing. There was character development and some unexpected reality checks. These developments could have been shown gradually, Affan’s sudden change of heart and instant admission of guilt, Mehru’s decision, and even Shano’s track could have been handled more convincingly. This was definitely not the best episode of Dobara even performance-wise. All of a sudden I found everyone’s performance forced. Had this episode been executed better, everything would have made more sense. There was always a light side to Dobara even when things were really serious but right now this light side does not go well with the seriousness of the drama. This was however an ‘important’ episode in terms of development and perhaps a little too fast-paced! Mahir’s character continues to be a mystery; will he finally value Mehru now that he knows how much she cares for him? Even though Dobara’s script tends to be illogical and misleading every now and then, it has never been as unconvincing as it was tonight. The ‘timing’ of some of the scenarios was far from right. However, some of the dialogues tonight were well-written, especially the ones covering Mehru’s life story.
Mostly Unconvincing
This episode opened with Mehru’s family showing her a lot of love and acceptance as a ‘reward’! The sudden change in phupo and Sehar’s behavior made sense since they were the ones who plotted against Mahir but the fact that Mehru did not question this change even for a second did not make sense at all! Sehar’s calm and cool attitude was a clear hint but somehow Mehru just shut herself down and decided to stick to her decision! Her confusion made sense but the fact that she was not questioning any of this even though Mahir gave her a clear hint was highly illogical! I was actually left with a lot of questions after watching this episode such as, why did Mehru choose to tell her son about his father now and not earlier? There was no plausible reason for it since Mahir was out of her life and Affan was happy with the present situation.
Hidayatullah’s first marriage and his fixation with his first love reminded me of Raqeeb Se! The letters and the fact that he was open about it with his wife were so Raqeeb Se although, of course, this is not the central story in any way! It was interesting how Mehru summed up her married life; this could perhaps be one of those things which many girls who are forced into arranged marriages at a young age could relate to. This was also the first time that Mehru openly confessed her love for Mahir in front of Affan and perhaps in front of the viewers as well. So far, it was difficult to tell whether Mehru actually loved Mahir or she needed him in her life to comfort her since she was so lonely before he came into her life. Even though this conversation was really well written, the timing did not work for me. I felt as if this situation was added into the scenario to ensure that when Mahir comes back Affan accepts him.
Mahir and his father finally met in this episode but the circumstances were not ideal! However, through his family, Mahir found out everything that Mehru had done for his family and she did not even mention it to him. The most interesting part was Mahir assuring his father that he was not going to let Mehru down. Zameer and Minal’s track had the potential to add something tangible to the story but sadly the writer so far has not made the most of it.
Final Remarks
Honestly speaking, I did not have an issue with the writer using a done-to-death scenario to create misunderstandings between Mahir and Mehru but after watching this episode, I am convinced that there could have been better ways of making Mahir fall in love with Mehru and also Affan accepting Mahir because I feel that is where we are headed. The business and Zameer’s intentions would have been a more intelligent way of taking things forward. If Mahir has a sudden change of heart then I wonder why the viewers were shown his negative side – as I said earlier, Mahir is still a mystery and personally, I like that about his character. I feel that there was no need to make the story or the situations overdramatic at this point since the drama had enough going for it. The preview of the next episode was predictable! I hope that Dobara ends before it goes further downhill.
