Ranjish Hi Sahi - A Summary of Thoughts

I have been consistently behind on this drama for the last month.  I finally had the opportunity to catch up to the latest episode (episode 11).  Before we get into that, I just want to talk about what makes this drama worth watching.

When this show first began, I watched episode 1-6 on a week-by-week basis, wondering what it was that would make Samia Mumtaz and Faisal Rehman sign this show.  Not only that, but also Saba Hameed and Maya Ali, who were playing "supporting" roles.  What about this show seemed so great to them that they wanted to be a part of it?  The relationships were so timid, characterizations were so awkward (especially the extremes in the daughters), the dialogues were mildly unnatural.  Honestly, I didn't understand it.

However, as the show progressed, I slowly found my questions being answered.  Was this a show worthy of the talents of these actors?  YES.

Ultimately, what we're seeing in "Ranjish Hi Sahi" is the story of "the other woman."  So often, we see the other woman as a villainous, manipulative creature who has an aim of money and prosperity, giving no thought to the feelings of others.  In this drama, we're given the rare opportunity to see our "other woman" as a good, decent human being with her own responsibilities, dreams, desires, hopes and problems in life.  And Samia Mumtaz plays this role perfectly.  Not only is our other woman an upstanding citizen in society, she is also a loving mother, a working woman and a woman battling illness, leaving her to worry about her daughters well-being and what will happen to them after she's gone.  "Yamna" is a sincere woman who finds herself wanting love and support at a time when society frowns upon it.

On the other end, Faisal Rehman plays a Kamal Hassan, a man torn between two women down to a tee.  He's a man still in love with his college sweetheart; however, life has moved on and he's now trapped in a loveless marriage with grown children.  When he sees the opportunity to once again reunite with his college sweetheart, who is in need of support, he wants nothing more but to grab that opportunity.  However, his entire financial future and "old age guarantee" is bound to his wife and children.  How will he be able to balance these relationships?

Maya Ali and Sana Javed play Yamna's polar-opposites daughters.  While Hiba (Maya Ali) is enthusiastic, confident and argumentative, Tooba (Sana Javed) is cowardly and timid.  Both girls dote on their mother and are comfortable in their lives.

When the first few episodes aired, it seemed as though the drama would paint Kamal Hassan's wife as an entirely negative character - an overbearing, cold wife.  However, when Bilqees finally made her appearance, we realized that this woman (played by Saba Hameed) was a mature older woman with only the desire to hold on to her husband, her children and to keep her family together.  While her antics seem extreme and hurtful, would any woman in this situation react differently?   As the drama progresses, we see that she is also a victim of this situation.

Coming to episode 11 - the audience is given a huge shock at the turn of events.  For those who haven't yet started watching this drama, I will refrain from giving away any plot twists.  However, after the occurrences in episode 11, the show has taken an entirely different turn and it will be interesting to see how Hiba and Tooba deal with life from here onwards, as well as how Kamal Hassan deals with his first family and his own demons.

When this show first began, I would not necessarily have recommended it to anyone.  I considered it "good background noise" while cooking, cleaning and performing other household chores.  However, now I will confidently say that the writing for this show has progressively become stronger and I would whole-heartedly recommend this to drama viewers.  The acting by Samia Mumtaz and Faisal Rehman is beautiful.  I'm positive that after the recent twist, no matter how upsetting, this show will now deliver some great power-packed performances.

Happy watching!