A lot happened – Azar started working again, Naani left for London, Laila is on the verge of getting engaged to Adeel, Vicky is trying to come to terms with his latent feelings for Laila, Faraz has started shooting for his film, Annie is definitely interested in Mikaal, Arfa likes Mikaal as a possible son-in-law, Faree-D has her eye on Annie as a prospective daughter-in-law, and Malika Rani announced her political candidacy – but somehow, somewhere, something was lacking. The narrative didn’t flow as smoothly, the comedy seemed forced, and the situations appeared too contrived … in short this was a strictly ok episode.
In trying to analyze why this episode didn’t work for me, the one major reason that stands out was the focus on Laila and Vicky. Unfortunately this is the most non-happening pair amongst all the hundreds of pairs in this series. Their track has been dragging on for so long that I have lost all interest in the are-they, are-they-not interested in each other, or when-will-they realize they love each other not the other randomers around them. I just hope they come to a decision, one way or the other, and act on it ASAP, so that we can all breathe a collective sigh of relief and move on with the rest of the story.
Topping the list of the pairs I DO want to see more of are Naani and Bhanji. Naani’s is such a refreshing character – an ultrachic, independent woman, whose knows her mind and nothing will stop her from getting there. Samina Ahmed is superb as the classy Naani. And where is Mr. Bhanji? Waiting for Naani in Europe? Why do I think Faraz knows more than he’s letting on?
The other pair that is kinda sorta coming together now is the Mikaal-Annie pair. I like the sparks between them. Shehzad Shaikh is good, but still not quite there as the uber-cool superstar Mikaal. Navin Waqar is a lot more convincing and confident in her role as Annie.
Nothing really stood out in this episode. Behroze Sabzwari’s entry failed to make an impact. Saima Chaudhry’s pyar ki nishani act felt very flat, and so at the end of it all I was left with the by now routine gripes: Why does Annie not buy new clothes, her mom clearly has gone shopping for herself, kuch beti ka bhi khayal kar leti… Why does Faree-D not stop wailing, and why O why can she not change out of those boots/tights combo…
I hope the narrative picks up pace when the Chaudhry clan lands in Faisalabad and the weather there forces Faree-D to change her getup. Also hope Taka and Sukhi will be there in Faisalabad to liven things up. Finger crossed for the next episode!
Written by SZ~ [email protected]
Follow me on Twitter: SZ_DramaPakistani (@sz_dp)
