THE WEEK THAT WAS

Ishq Tamasha | Hum TV, Sundays 8.00pm

With his signature romantic undertones and rain-drenched title, Danish Nawaz’s latest directorial venture certainly looks better than his last one.

The story by Misbah Noreen is about a middle-class family where the angelic Mirha (Aiman Khan) suffers her wicked aunt’s (Saba Faisal) mistreatment. She also takes the blame for cousin Rashna’s (Kinza Hashmi) frivolities around biker-boy admirer Arham (Faizan Khwaja) whom she has never met. Arham is the spoilt and indulged younger brother of the suave, well-to-do Mehrab (Junaid Khan) whose chance encounter with Mirha leaves him with her fee voucher when he is invited to her college as a guest speaker.

The beautiful OST is sung by Sanam Marvi and Sanwal Esakhelvi.

Nibah | ARY, Thursdays 8.00pm

No matter what Sofia (Amina Sheikh) says or does, disgruntled husband Shaheer (Asif Raza Mir) refuses to understand that his children (from hell) are the ones destroying his second marriage. While Sofia’s sister, mother and colleagues continue to torture her with snide remarks about her marriage breaking up, her father (Mohammed Ahmed) steadfastly stands by her.

The blame-game wouldn’t drag more than an episode if someone just traces the mobile number and finds out that it was Shaheer’s evil son who made the disruptive calls to Sofia’s ex-husband to get her in a pickle.

WHAT TO WATCH OUT FOR (OR NOT)

Mere Bewafa | A-Plus, Wednesdays 8.00pm

The story is about love and deceit. Beautiful, young wife Azra (Sara Khan) loves and cares for husband Shahmir (Aagha Ali), despite the typically mean and abusive in-laws. Throw in a deceitful best friend (Zhalay Sarhadi) whom Azra loves and trusts. The bestie showers attention on the couple and even takes them out for their wedding anniversary dinner. A shocking twist in the story comes when, instead of his wife, Shahmir gives an anniversary gift to the bestie.

Slicker direction by Sakina Samo would have made the situations more plausible.

Published in Dawn, ICON, March 18th, 2018