THE WEEK THAT WAS

Mere Humnasheen | Geo TV, Fri-Sat 8.00pm

Khajista (Hiba Bukhari) is determined to become a doctor and make healthcare more accessible to women in the memory of her mother whom she lost as a child. Apart from her conservative family, her greatest obstacle is her fiancé, the arrogant, reactionary Darakhzai (Ahsan Khan). Khajista swears never to let her family down and is allowed to go to medical school where she meets an array of new friends and colleagues, including Dr Hadi (Shehzad Sheikh). Will Khajista be able to keep her promise and realise her own aspirations?

The good news is that producers are making the effort to move out of urban centres and saas-bahu turf wars and choosing scripts that explore rural settings across the country from Khyber Pakhtunkhwa to rural Sindh and Punjab. These recent dramas highlight issues varying from feudalism, access to education to water scarcity.

The bad news is that some of these shows are laden with lazy, even offensive, stereotypes with not a single regional actor to lend cultural authenticity. The terrible accents employed by the cast have been the subject of widespread criticism on social media. These trivial controversies distract from what is essentially a good story about a woman’s journey of self-actualisation, yet serve as a reminder to producers of the importance of honouring cultural settings, and paying attention to detail.

Badshah Begum | Hum TV, Tuesdays 8.00pm

The continuing reign of this compelling serial is a reminder of the value of well-sketched characters and a strong plotline. The succession struggle for the gaddi, or throne, of fictional Piranpura is both deadly and dirty. Just as Pir Shah Mir (Hamza Suhail) is about to announce a shocking change in status of the legendary Badshah Begum, the newly anointed Jehan Ara (Zara Noor) is bitten by a snake. Hakim B (Saman Ansari) is the villainous puppet master who is manipulating the neglected son, psychopathic Pir Murad Shah (Abul Hassan), to do her bidding.

This serial offers viewers an intricate picture of the feudal mindset. The fatherly approach of Pir Shah Alam may sound benevolent, but in reality facilitates a system of rape, torture and murder of murids. The ignorance, fear and poverty of the murids combine to endow the Pir family an almost divine right to rule. This sheer, unchecked arrogance fuels the family’s fight for power, driving them either to success or destruction with every new twist.

Fraud | ARY, Saturdays 8.00pm

Middle-class Nisar Sahib’s (Mehmood Aslam) hopes for a better life for his daughters make him turn down his nephew Nael’s (Adnan Samad Khan) proposal for his daughter Maya (Saba Qamar). When the wealthy Khawar family accepts Maya for their son Tabrez (Ahsan Khan), Nisar feels his prayers have been answered but his wife sounds a warning note: why should such affluent people choose a daughter-in-law so beneath them in status?

In a parallel track we see Shaan’s (Mikaal Zulfikar) marriage destroyed by his manipulative stepmother (Asma Abbas). From the teasers, we know Tabrez is a trickster who will abandon Maya, but what then? Adnan Samad, Saba Qamar and Mehmood Aslam impress from the first frame, reeling viewers in to what has been a slow start.

What To Watch Out For (Or Not)

Pehchaan | Hum TV, Coming Soon

Thrillers are the rage this season and the teasers for this upcoming serial hint at a mystery. A once-loving couple sees their relationship break down into abuse and neglect. A wife demands a divorce and then disappears. Hiba Bukhari, Syed Jibran and Mirza Zain Baig star in this upcoming show.

Published in Dawn, ICON, May 29th, 2022