THE WEEK THAT WAS

Raqeeb Se | Hum TV, Wed-Thurs 8.00pm

Finally, the cool-as-a-cucumber Hajra (Sania Saeed) gets ruffled up, when Ameera (Iqra Aziz), the chirpy but sly daughter of her husband Maqsood’s (Noman Ijaz) old flame Sakina (Hadiqa Kiani) declares her passionate love for Maqsood to Sakina, and a shocked Hajra overhears. Hajra’s realistic daughter Insha (Faryal Mehmood) rebukes Hajra at the ridiculousness of slapping Ameera, after allowing Sakina and Ameera to share a roof with them in the first place. When Insha questions Maqsood about the circus in their home that he is solely responsible for, he silences her by telling her how Abdul (Hamza Sohail), her boyfriend with whom her nikah was solemnised, is cheating on her. Maqsood remains indifferent about Ameera’s feelings, Sakina wants to leave Maqsood’s house but Ameera won’t budge. Bee Gul’s unconventional story may have taken its time to develop, but now we know what director Kashif Nisar, who is known for picking offbeat but powerful storylines, has up his sleeve. Worth watching if you like mature stories around complex relationships.

Fitoor | Geo TV Thursdays 8.00pm

This is a typical Sky Entertainment factory-type filler production with its own audience that has an insatiable appetite for chauvinistic men and evil women breaking marriages by digging out secrets from the past. Just when Dilnasheen (Hiba Bokhari) thought she had her older, rich, borderline-cheater husband Haider (Faysal Quraishi) twirled round her chubby fingers, her husband’s evil divorced ex/cousin Mehmal (Kiran Haq) finds out just what she needs to destroy Dilnasheen’s marriage with Haider. So this boutique must be really popular where Dilnasheen, Mehmal and Ramsha (Zoreh Ali) — the sister of Hamza (Wahaj Ali), Dilnasheen’s man from the past — are shopping separately at the same time. Ramsha seizes the opportunity to tell Dilnasheen what a materialistic so-and-so she is, and accuses her of dumping her brother for a wealthy man. Of course, Mehmal eavesdrops and when a disturbed but dressed-to-kill Dilnasheen leaves the boutique, Mehmal invites Ramsha for coffee, and the rest is pretty predictable.

What To Watch Out For

Chupke Chupke | Hum TV, Every day 8.00pm

With a Haseena Moin vibe to it, Samia Akram Chaudhry’s story, directed by Danish Nawaz, super-entertained us throughout Ramazan. Nawaz has a flair for subtle romance and Chaudhry’s bewildering variety of characters completely drew us into everyday situations around two families with quirky relationships. The highlights remained new entrants Aymen Saleem as Mishi, Arsalan Naseer as Hadi and the stunning Ayeza Khan’s performance as the lively, wacky Meenu, as opposed to her usual frozen-face roles. Audiences in Pakistan and across the border loved the happy ending in the final episode, which was full of surprises, romance and lots of hand-holding between Meenu and Faazi, making Ayeza Khan and Osman Ali Butt the hottest screen couple at the moment. If you have missed it, YouTube it because people can’t wait for Season 2.

Published in Dawn, ICON, May 23rd, 2021