With the new batch of shows finally seeping in (Firaaq, Jackson Heights, Main Bushra, etc.) plus the return of Geo dramas, Pakistani television just got a little more exciting.
To kick it all off, Firaaq's premiere was this last Saturday - and what a premiere it was! Taking the place of "Laa," a let-down of an effort in all regards, expectations were simply "Anything would be better than this." But what a first episode!
Coming from director Aabis Raza, who has given us shows like Zard Mausam and Kankar, this show is not one to be left behind in regards to wringing our insides with emotion. With this drama, we see a prominent theme: broken relationships affect present relationships.
Uzma Gillani plays "Maa Ji," a dominant, unhappy, over-bearing woman who controls everyone in her household - and irritatingly so! After her 2nd marriage to Haider (Mazhar Ali), Maa Ji loses her son Shams (Junaid Khan). We can only assume that he was unhappy with her decision to remarry. As a result, Maa Ji focuses all her energy (and anger) on her remaining child, Paiman (Sanam Saeed), who can only be described as beaten-down, taunted and void of any control over her own life, though she is brimming with ideas and desires. What is refreshing is to see her positive relationship with Haider, her step-father.
On the other end, we see Shams and his relationship with his wife Sara (Cybil Chaudhary), an American-born and raised Pakistani. While Cybil's accented Urdu can be distracting, the character of Sara and Cybil's performance is rather endearing. You feel for her. Shams told Sara of his disinterest in having children before marriage - but as it happens in reality, Sara's feelings towards children changed and now she wants nothing more than to have children with Shams.
It's here that we're introduced to two other major characters. Sara discusses her problems with Rumi (Noor Hassan). I'm yet to figure out if Rumi is simply a close friend of Shams & Sara or if he's a blood relative (cousin). Either way, he plays a positive influence for Sara, urging her to find a way to mend her marriage with Shams. And with that, enter Amroz (Mohib Mirza). Amroz is a psychiatrist who tells Sara that the root of her problems in her marriage is her husband's relationship with his own mother. He tells Sara that in order to have positive future relationships (children), she must first fix past broken relationships.
Sara ventures out to meet Maa Ji, a meeting that goes horribly wrong. Maa Ji does not react as expected and gets angry (though Paiman is happy to see her sister-in-law), calling up Shams and telling him to keep his wife under control. And so ends the first episode.
The performances in this show are all very natural so far, barring Uzma Gillani's acting, which is a little over-the-top at the present moment. Sanam Saeed is perfect as Paiman - a scene to be noted was the tussle between mother and daughter at the dinner table over a "dirty" dupatta. Junaid Khan is well-suited for the role of Shams as well. And as I said earlier, while Cybil's accent is grating, she still manages to be likable. As for the rest, time will tell. This was a Junaid-Sanam-Cybil show all the way in the first episode.
I'm expecting good things from this one! What do you all think?
Happy watching!
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