Shab-E-Zindagi : The Finale

There's little about this drama that impressed throughout its run.  The "zulm" inflicted on Maryam, while not unrealistic, was horribly over-the-top.  The situations brought down on her head, while understandable, failed to bring about sympathy.  The attitudes displayed towards Maryam and her children, while legitimate, didn't bring out the necessary response (from the audience).  Why?

When I think about it, Maryam (Sumbal Iqbal) reacted inappropriately to most situations she was faced with.  She was so consumed with self-pity that she seemingly forgot how to handle herself.  It became difficult to sympathize with a character to repeatedly put herself in a bad position.  Whether it was her indecisiveness towards her brother-in-law (having no regard for his wife), her unnatural acceptance of her (crazy) cousin's rishta or her indifference towards Nasir Uncle after marriage, Maryam's relationships and decisions were consistently train-wrecks.

When we last left off, Maryam had married Nasir (Nasir Chacha) who, while a nice man, could not claim to be a great husband OR a good father.  Nasir became instantly irritated with Maryam's children.  Is this all Nasir's fault?  No.  To be honest, Maryam does a terrible job of readying herself for this marriage, let alone her children.  She never allows herself to connect with her husband before introducing her children into the mix.  In the meantime, her children begin to see Nasir as an old grouch who is nothing but harsh with them - thus clouding Maryam's behavior as well.

Finally when we begin to see Maryam adjusting to her married life - BAM!  Yasir makes his re-entry.  Yasir was missing and unable to reunite with his family, but was definitely not dead.

It's here where the story takes a ridiculous turn.  Maryam barely blinks for two days before she decides that she will stay with Nasir, as he was there for her at a time when no one else was.  Logically speaking, this decision is yet another terrible one added to her list of mistakes.  While Maryam thought of no one but her children after Yasir's "death," here she makes a decision that's entirely against the well-being of her children.

While Maryam has accepted Nasir as her husband, her children have yet to accept him as their father - and not only that.  Nasir has yet to accept them as his children, which means the children are not receiving the love of a father.  Maryam has grieved for so long for her lost husband, Yasir, who was the love of her love.  Yasir, the father of her children.  Yasir, a husband who despite all his flaws was her perfect match.  And we're fed yet another one of Maryam's silly decisions to stay with Nasir, despite the fact that her children want to be with their father, her husband could die at any moment and it's unfair for her to stay with him AND even religiously she's been instructed to go back to her first husband.

I think it became hard for me to stomach that a logical man like Nasir didn't step out of the way on his own.  Despite having a rocky marriage with Shamsa, Nasir was still presented as a kind-hearted man with a solid head on his shoulders.  However, as the drama progressed, he became more and more finicky, rigid and untrusting. It became hard to understand his character at all.

Of course, as always happens in such dramas, Nasir conveniently passed away at exactly the right time, leaving Maryam open to reunite with Yasir.  While this was the most logical ending, Maryam ending up with Yasir, it was done in such a ridiculous, haphazard manner that it was hard to stomach.

Well, another drama comes to an end.  I won't miss this show at all.  I won't miss these characters.  I won't miss the bad writing or the illogical scenarios.  Unfortunately there are those dramas that come and go without leaving any sort of impact (or that have any sense).  Shab-E-Zindagi was one such drama.  If you haven't veered all the way to the end like I did, you didn't miss anything.  Give this one a miss.

Happy watching!