THE WEEK THAT WAS

Mohabbat Meri Gumshuda | Hum TV, Concluded

Syme (Khushhal Khan) and Zubia’s (Dananeer Mubeen) struggle for love, comes full circle, as their families finally accept their relationship. There should not have been any serious obstacle between the young lovers, their families were friends and neighbours, with similar backgrounds; but bad timing, foolish mistakes and overweening egos had pulled them apart.

Author Rahat Jabeen justified every turn and motivation for her protagonists, and gave us that rare thing — an actual character arc of growth and maturity for both the villains and the heroes. Khushhal Khan has played some intense roles recently, but kept a light, gentle touch with Syme, capturing the sweetness and sincerity of love, rather than the usual glorification of obsession and dominance. Dananeer Mubeen was surprisingly good as the fragile teenager who hardly understands the meaning of love but grows into a sensible, considerate young woman.

Good performances, a well-constructed plot and a director (Shahid Shafaat) that understood the assignment made this a regular highlight of the viewing schedule.

Sakoon | ARY, Thurs-Fri 8.00pm

The recent spate of intelligent heroines with personalities of their own could not go unchallenged for long. So we now have Anna (Sana Javed), the empty-headed beauty from Hyderabad. While there is nothing wrong with showing a sheltered, naïve, not-so-brave person, writing a female lead with no personality except in relation to the men attracted to her is almost criminal. Sana Javed also fails to give her character any depth or charm beyond ethereal looks and the ability to patiently suffer, without disturbing her make-up.

Wealthy Raza (Khaqan Shahnawaz) and his cousin Hamdan (Ahsan Khan) attend a friend’s wedding in Hyderabad, and the impulsive Raza falls in love with Anna. Anna is engaged to her insecure cousin Usama (Adnan Samad), who is constantly trying to humiliate and control her. While Anna and Raza’s romance begins to bloom, Hamdan worries whether the immature Raza can be relied on when both families will likely oppose the match. Misbah Nausheen has written a very commercial script that has immediately captured the mass audience despite the slow pace and lack of dimensional depth.

Jannat Se Aagay | Geo TV, Fri-Sat 8.00pm

Tabassum (Ramsha Khan) used to be a lower-middle class girl content with her simple life and love, Farooq (Talha Chahour). Her obsession with the famous morning show host Jannat (Kubra Khan) lands her a job as a nanny to the star’s children. While Tabassum insinuates herself into every aspect of the busy woman’s life, she also starts stealing and cheating because she covets Jannat’s lifestyle. She cannot not see that Jannat’s success has come at the cost of many sacrifices and a lot of pain.

Jannat’s husband is cheating on her, she has lost many friends and even her career has begun to nosedive. Kubra Khan and Ramsha Khan are an absolute delight to watch in this 7th Sky Entertainment production, capturing every note of disappointment, egoism and regret that Umera Ahmed has meticulously written for them.

Kubra, in particular, goes above and beyond as both hero and villain of her own story. Jannat can see the appalling change in Tabassum’s personality, but willfully refuses to understand her own role in alienating those around her and the responsibility she has. Materialism, ambition without ethics and the worship of shallow displays are the values that Jannat’s morning show promotes. No wonder then that, as her biggest fan, Tabassum has picked them up.

What To Watch Out For (or not)

Namak Haram | Hum TV, Coming soon

Imran Ashraf is an expert at playing intense young men with a chip on their shoulders, and the teasers promise this will be another role tailor-made for him. Sarah Khan and Babar Ali round off the cast.

Published in Dawn, ICON, November 5th, 2023