THE WEEK THAT WAS

Mushk | Hum TV, Saturdays 8.00pm

Imran Ashraf’s screenplay is picking up pace and the characters make a little bit more sense as their motives and inclinations fall into place. After coercing her to elope with him, Saqib (Raza Talish) betrays Roshni (Sehar Khan) and sells her off to a brothel. This he does to avenge a rape attempt made by Roshni’s father (Hassan Ahmed) in the past, as a result of which his sister had jumped off a balcony and is now bedridden and in nursing care. While searching for Roshni and Saqib, Adam (Imran Ashraf) meets a coolie (Qavi Khan), has a bizarre hunch that he would get information out of the coolie and, most amazingly, he does. Next, Adam arrives at Ruby Aunty’s brothel (which according to the coolie is supposed to be so well-known that Adam doesn’t need an address). As Adam is presented with pictures of girls, he spots a photo of Roshni. Meanwhile, the sharp and totally-in-control-of-everything Guddi (Urwa Hocane) is falling for Adam, who loves Mehak, who loves Shayan (Osama Tahir), and who is being detained at the feudal lord Muqaddar Khan’s (Ahson Talish) house and being forced into child marriage. If you like convoluted and over-the-top situations and characters, Mushk is totally your play.

Bandhay Ek Dor Se | Geo TV, Wed-Thurs 8.00pm

Writer Faiza Iftikhar’s story may have taken its own sweet time to develop, but presently the writer has some complex twists and turns to keep the viewers hooked to Roshni (Hina Altaf), Maheen (Ushna Shah) and Omar’s (Ahsan Khan) love triangle. Maheen shows her strongest side to the evil Roshni, which comes as a shock to the latter. All along Roshni wanted to see Maheen end her marriage to Omar and for Maheen to be blamed for the break-up. But Maheen admits her mistake of leaving her husband temporarily and declares that she has returned to stand up for herself and her loved ones. Omar, on the other hand, continues to be completely stupid about his impression of Roshni. When Maheen’s brother Moonis (Ali Rizvi) has a talk with Omar about Roshni’s evil antics, Omar sees everything in a completely different light. His lack of brains, when it comes to Roshni, remains Maheen’s biggest disappointment and challenge in her married life.

What To Watch Out For

Ghissi Pitti Mohabbat | ARY, Thursdays 8.00pm

Samia (Ramsha Khan) gives in to parental pressure, realising that the smart thing for her to do in her current circumstances is to marry the annoying older man Khalil (Shahood Alvi). But before she goes for her second marriage, she makes sure Khalil agrees to all her conditions, which keep her independent and strong. Depicting a husband who has a roving eye for younger women, including domestic staff; how difficult it is to be married to someone who has body odour; and a wife who grits her teeth but tolerates her husband’s dandy ways and allows him to remarry among other things, this serial is breaking stereotypes of domestic television, which is not easy. But writer Faseeh Bari does it with flair. His twisty dark comedy and bold lines add to his quirky characters, making GPM a powerful show about gender roles and hypocrisy in society.

Published in Dawn, ICON, November 15th, 2020