THE WEEK THAT WAS

Khudsar | ARY, Mon-Fri 9.00pm

Zubab Rana has become quite the expert at playing spoiled, pretty girls whose materialistic ambitions often become the rope they hang themselves with, and in this show she is the titular Khudsar, Shazma.

Shazma has one cousin, Zeeshan (Humayun Saeed), in her thrall, but when she learns of a wealthier proposal, she pivots towards the new man. What is perhaps more interesting are the sidetracks — Shazma’s brother (Rizwan Ali Jaffri) is in love with his boss and Shazma’s sister (Sehar Afzal) is a software engineer who is having difficulty finding a suitable rishta (marriage proposal).

Writer Asma Siyani writes simple stories that revolve around easily relatable family issues, but the fast pace and structured nature of her plots makes them an easy watch. For example, there is an uncle whose only aim in life is to marry his one daughter into the family, and a sensible, educated girl is considered a liability over a pretty, vivacious one. What the show lacks in nuance is made up for in the easily digestible morality lessons and the way each actor has taken their role seriously.

Saltanat | Hum TV, Mon-Fri 9.00pm

This is a familiar tale of the woes of having four daughters and one controlling son-in-law. The Sultan of this Saltanat is Shah Nawaz (Humayun Ashraf), who is consumed with blackmailing and manipulating his unfortunate in-laws. Shah Nawaz makes sure none of his other sisters-in-law gets married, in case he loses importance or the money train to his household loses steam.

While such stories are relatable, what irks is the reinforcement of the myth of helplessness and victimhood around poor households with daughters. Mohammad Ahmed plays the resigned father, who will not say he is unlucky to have daughters but shows it in every action, while Saba Faisal plays his foolish, trusting wife.

An often-underrated actor, Humayun Ashraf is the driving energy of the show, followed by Usman Javed, who plays yet another negative role. As with any serial, as the characters develop, we should see some positive energy grow in the victims too.

7 Days in Coney Island | Green TV, Fri-Sun 8.00pm

Director Mehreen Jabbar is back on form with a beautifully made series about a group of Pakistani Americans who live and work around the community of Coney Island, or Little Pakistan. Like her previous work, Jackson Heights, there is no softening of the many difficulties of adapting to life in a foreign land.

Salik (Hussain Asif) Is a waiter/delivery boy at a local restaurant, who is busy judging the (in his eyes) overly liberal Pakistani American youngsters from their clumsy Urdu. He has a crush on Ghazala, whom he pursues in a naïve, filmi,but inappropriate way. The clash of culture and class is flawlessly summed up in their interaction. Ghazala is an educated, independent woman (a psychologist/therapist) in the throes of a divorce from her white husband, but Salik sees her as a romantic dream because she is pretty and kind. At this point, Salik is foolish and his acute loneliness makes him a vulnerable, almost empathetic figure. Ghazala does respond to one man, Salman, who is obviously of her educational and class level.

Spare, effective dialogues from author Yasir Shah and Mehreen Jabbar’s ability to connect the tracks and the emotions of the characters, so the audience can understand the story without lengthy explanations, make this mini-series a must-watch.

What To Watch Out For (or not)

Tum Mere Kiya Ho | Hum TV, Coming soon

Get ready for a new young couple from Hum TV, as Adnan Raza Mir stars with newcomer Ameema Saleem in Tum Mere Kiya Ho.

Published in Dawn, ICON, April 28th, 2024