I watched this because after Pani Jaisa Pyaar (which I watched despite strong objections from the rational side of my brain…yes it was that good), it is an unwritten rule that I must watch at least the first episode of any Sarmad directed drama .Oh and the heroine looked rather fresh and pretty on the face book page for Daagh.I had my reservations neither Mera Yakeen nor Ashk had panned out quite as expected, on top which this is an A&B production which despite making great dramas like Roag ,Qaid e Tanhai and MZZBN seemed to have gotten stuck in a certain style . Well I am so glad I did not miss this little gem, though I still reserve final judgement, as far as first episodes go this was just perfect.

The story revolves around basically four sets of interconnected families. It sounds complicated but by the end of the episode I knew everyone and understood the motivation of each character, not an easy feat. Umaima played by the Meher Bano,whose pretty face I mentioned earlier , wishes to study further but after her B. A is complete her authoritarian father played by veteran actor Firdause Jamal will not hear of it and insists she marry his sister Sajda’s uneducated shop keeper son Mushtaq.The atmosphere in Umaima’s household is stifling ,anyone else might rely on Allah’s mercy in this day and age but Mr Haseeb  (Firdause Jamal) is weighed down with the responsibility of three daughters.Even her mother can see little beyond her husband and uses some dreadfully cliched line about mothers of daughters having to be fearful. There were a couple of lines like that throughout the episode but I’ll be magnanimous and look the other way because  the overall tone of was not of doom . Fahad Mutapha (Fahad Sir for you Ghaida ) plays Murad, already studying for his Masters and chased like a rabbit by a fox by his marriage minded khalazaad cousin Deeba(Sana Askheri) . Sana Askheri looks lovely and I am hard put to think what Murad might have against her till her mother reveals her daughter’s obsession with make up and Indian Movies but lack of interest in any sort of education. However Murad’s mother can see her one great qualification , the huge dowry she will bring with her. Throw in to this mix Murad’s sister Rehana who is happily married to Irfan but after three years of marriage is still childless,and whose mother in law feels Muraad would be good match for her daughter and the stage is set.

For a novice Meher Bano has done really well, I just loved watching every scene of her’s . Not using too much makeup, she looked the age and part of an intelligent young woman trapped by her parents lack of imagination and circumstance, Her performance was both controlled and nuanced ,she loves her parents and wants to show them that she is not the burden they think . Fahad Mustapha and Sana Askeri made me laugh out loud with an “andey ka halwa scene” straight out of the Bollywood movies Deeba watches. In the good old Bollywood days a girl could catch the hero with some ridiculous dish of ‘ Adrak ka halwa, ‘ but aaj kal kay larkey have too many nakhrey.Murad says he will throw up because he hates eggs and complains to his mother about the stalker like behaviour of Deeba in front his smirking sisters .Neither sister likes Deeba and Rehana seems more than happy for Murad to look at her sister in law as an option because despite a loving husband the viewer can feel her insecurity.Yasra Risvi really caught my attention. she didn’t have that many scenes but her expressions and body language conveyed it all.

This was a well made intelligent first episode which set up all the main premises without cumbersome dialogues or dragging scenes.,not a second wasted. So far so good , I am looking forward to next week and keeping both sets of fingers crossed that this does not degenerate into some sort of depressing Indian soap redux. Sarwat Nazir ,the writer, has Main Abdul Qadir Hoon (one of my all time favourites) to her credit but there was also Umm e Kulsoom which although successful I could not fathom despite being an earnest Faysal Qureshi fan. I am going to be optimistic and hope that, like the best dramas which deal with social issues it allows it’s characters to rise above their situations and find a way out of the roles society has thrust on them. So watching and waiting with an open mind.

Written by  Sadaf~