THE WEEK THAT WAS

Ism-i-Yaaran | Hum TV, Mon-Thurs 9.00pm

Since angry young men born to wealth and privilege are a ratings gold mine, Hum TV decided to join the gravy train and pay a subtle homage to Danish Taimoor who made the genre popular.

Zirak Sikander (Azfar Rehman) is an unhappy little rich boy with anger and control issues and who, according to the formula, falls for a spunky middle class girl, Minha (Zainab Shabbir). Minha has her own little world, the centre of which is her love, the studious Bilal (Shahbaz Shigri). Writer Misbah Syed has made the effort to differentiate Zirak from all the other well-dressed men kicking down doors and demanding justice by making him caring and approachable at times. Azfar Rehman’s styling is terrible but he has captured the essence of a character that is unhappy despite having everything, and weaponises that feeling to dominate others.

What makers often miss is that the opposite of an angry, aggressive man does not have to be soporifically calm. The good guy, Bilal, is underwritten and Shigri does it a further injustice by underplaying it. Zirak has manipulated Minha into working for him and even forced her to accept an “advance” payment, in a convoluted plan to torment her. Who is Zirak really fooling, himself or the girl he claims he does not care for?

Behroopiya | Green Entertainment, Thurs-Fri 8.00pm

Writer Rida Bilal takes us on a journey through the broken world of Mikail, a man so traumatised by his past that his mind has dissociated into an array of distinct personas.

After seeing a broken-hearted young woman called Zara (Madiha Imam), he is immediately attracted to her and chooses her as his next “project”. Zara suffers both physical and emotional violence before she realises that she is not qualified to help her husband, nor should she live in a marriage where her well-being is constantly under threat.

As the series winds up towards a finale, we see Zara and her mother-in-law (Annie Zaidi) reveal the truth about Mikail to her parents. Mikail finally seeks treatment and may finally face his tormentor-in-chief, his cruel stepfather Qasim {Tauseeq Haider).

Faysal Quraishi gives an outstanding performance, gliding between each new aspect of this complicated character but without losing his grip on the primary subject. Strong direction, writing and performances combine to give an insight into the many societal dysfunctions that allow such people to escape accountability.

Humraaz | Geo TV, Wed-Thurs 8.00pm

Slick teaser-trailers promised a nail-biting, psychological thriller with a top star cast that should have had audiences enthralled, but what was delivered is a mid-level entertainer.

A fun game turns into a nightmare for Sara (Ayeza Khan) after she uses a stranger’s phone for a prank and the stranger, Faraz (Haroon Shahid), dies. His violent, obsessive brother Saim (Feroz Khan) knows a girl called Sara led to his brother’s death, but he has no proof. He organises a campaign of harassment and targeted abuse against Sara and her husband Ahmar (Zahid Ahmed), paying off servants and stalking the unfortunate woman. In a haze of trauma and confusing incidents, Sara and her family begin to doubt her mental health.

Writer Misbah Nausheen had written key scenes as “big reveals”, to be shown in later episodes but, unable to trust the intelligence of their prospective audience, the makers put everything in the initial episodes. The obsession with masala, money and ratings trumps a good project despite good performances from the actors.

What To Watch Out For (Or Not)

Pal Do Pal | ARY, Coming soon

Popular on-screen pairing Tuba Anwar and Junaid Niazi team up to play a happy career-oriented couple who turn into rivals as one becomes more successful than the other.

Published in Dawn, ICON, July 13th, 2025