What happens when two spoiled rich kids fall in love but their parents turn out to be enemies?
That is the central question driving Khwabon Mein Mili, the new HUM TV drama written by Kifayat Rodani and directed by Ali Masud Saeed. The high-budget drama, complete with song and dance sequences, young stars Aashir Wajahat, Adnan Raza Mir, Aena Khan, and Ameema Saleem and could theoretically appeal to Gen Z, but it is ultimately too clichéd.
How it Started
Two powerful businessmen Iftikar (Adnan Jaffar) and Iqbal (Faysal Rehman) arrange a marriage between their heirs Adnan (Adnan Raza Mir) and Samira (Aena Khan). But Samira is already in love with Shah Alam. The plot transverses time, class and half-baked family politics.
Adnan Raza Mir plays Adnan, the dutiful son who has studied overseas and is taking over the family business. Adnan is still recovering from the trauma of seeing his parents argue when he was a child and dealing with the fact that his father remarried Amna Malik. His emotional maturity is the same as a ten year old.
Meanwhile Samira and Shah Alam act like pre teens obsessed with each other and do not care about anything else. Flashback to Iqbal’s youth reveals him as a love struck young man begging Bushra (played in the present timeline by Naveen Naqvi) for the hand of his beloved Sharmeeli. Bushra cuts him down, mocking his poverty and telling him to remember his place in the social order.
The fathers conspire to have their children meet organically by arranging a mock job interview where Samira will be interviewed by Adnan. It is hate at first sight as Samira has already met Adnan and labelled him a tharki who harassed her at a café. Things go from bad to worse after an awkward job interview.
Shah Alam (Aashir Wajahat)is a professional musician with a feudal background. His mother Bushra emerges as the ultimate egotistical villain in both the current and old timelines.
Recklessness and selfishness are traits that her son may have inherited from her.
Runaway Romance gets Reality Check
In this week’s episodes Shah Alam and Samira are star crossed lovers who ditch their fiancés to run away together.
Shah Alam, a feudal heir and musician whisks off his girlfriend in his sports car when her father refuses the match. Where do they go? Not a courthouse or a molvi but a sleazy hotel outside the city. The love-struck couple gets decked up in complete wedding outfitd (after all Shah Alam says they need to have pictures to post). How thoughtful! This thoughtfulness vanishes when it comes to their parents and fiancés.
While Shah Alam and Samira are getting into their picture perfect outfits, Samira’s father has a nervous breakdown.
Samira’s father Iqbal (Faysal Rehman) is panicked when he discovers that his naïve daughter has left the city to marry Shah Alam. He desperately tries to call her but to no avail. He runs to Shah Alam’s house where violence prone Bushra (Naveen Naqvi), Shah Alam’s mother, threatens to gun him down and offers zero sympathy or concern. His anxiety doubles. He bounces from relative to relative, finally calling the police and tracking down their location based on phone numbers. Where they are is even more concerning. A seedy hotel out of the bounds of the city.
The selfishness of this couple knows no limits as they sneak around him dressed in their bridal finery with not even a shadow of remorse. They are so immersed in their cringeworthy romance that they even talk about replacing each other’s parents with ghoulishly Freudian apathy. “I can’t replace your father,” says Shah Alam, “but I’ll be there for you.” In what world is a romantic partner supposed to compare himself to your father?
On the other hand, Adnan (Adnan Raza Mir) is a kind, considerate partner. He respects Samira’s boundaries. Every time she brushes him off, he is understanding and even makes excuses for her. Instead of honestly telling him that she is not interested, she continues to string him along even while she is on the run with Shah Alam. And this is the heroine that we are supposed to be rooting for? Adnan has a gut instinct something is wrong. He can sense she is not fully invested but continues to give her the benefit of the doubt.
The drama finally reaches its climax as the couple is about to tie the knot. Iqbal makes one last ditch effort to save his daughter. He calls their lawyer and reveals the truth about how Bushra forced him to grovel on his knees for her sister’s hand in marriage. Wow! That was easy. Why did he not do this in the very first episode? Impulsive and immature as ever, Samira storms out of her wedding into the great unknown. She wanders through parks in her bridal outfit, weeping.
Unfortunately, Iqbal meets the same fate as many TV dads: heart attack caused by daughter. His best friend Iftikar (Adnan Jaffar) finds out he is in the ICU and rushes to support him with ever responsible Adnan. After all this is his future father in law. Imagine their surprise when they see Samira and Shah Alam enter the hospital dressed to the nines. This is the best scene of the drama. Samira’s character finally shows growth and we get to see her embarassed for the trauma she put her family through. Shah Alam, remains petulant self interested and only focused on himself. He does not even ask after Iqbal’s health. Samira begins to see how selfish he truly is and how selfishly she was behaving.
All of this is in contrast to Adnan who is being a grade-A good guy. He supports the family through the emergency and, though he has his doubts about Shah Alam, he still goes out of his way to bring Samira a change of clothes. Yes, she was still wearing a shimmery sharara.
Can we hope that Samira finally got a reality check? Just like Adnan we are hoping for the best.
“Khwabon Mein Mili” airs every Saturday and Sunday on HUM TV.
