Thank you DB for introducing me to this serial – I had never even heard the name till you mentioned it in a recent post. My curiosity piqued, I decided to “trial” it (thank you Annie) and now find myself intrigued.
Describing it in broad brush strokes, this is the story of a feudal landlord and his three sons: Bilawal, Sujawal, and Shumail, played by Asad, Aijaz Aslam and Mohib Mirza respectively. Bilawal is a spoilt feudal, more attracted to wine and women than his soft-spoken, decent, and very rich wife Yasmin, ably portrayed by Resham. Sujawal is the responsible middle son, taking care of his father’s vast financial empire, and very much in love with his bride Husn Bano, played by an extremely annoying Natasha Ali. Shumail, the youngest one, is radically different from his other two brothers. He lives in the city, is a film and theater student, and dreams of making films. He is in love with Sobia, Mehwish Hayat, a fellow film student. Unlike him, however, Sobia is from a much humbler background. Her parents cannot pay her expenses, compelling her to look for alternative ways of financing her education.
As can be expected of our desi dramas, each character has to undergo a variety of trials and tribulations. In the city, Sobia, has found a very creative way to pay for her education: a loan from an advertising executive, who wants her to model for his agency and be his escort on weekends. Sobia is depicted as a realist, with no romantic illusions about her background. She knows her present social status will not help her achieve her heart’s desire: to complete her education and be rich. To her, therefore, the ad exec’s offer appears as an answer to her problems. What she does not seem to realize is that the terms of this arrangement are not really hers to dictate. Moreover, what about Shumail? Does she not know that Shumail is also rich and could pay for her education? Or, is she so insecure in their relationship that she has kept her family background a secret from him?
Introducing a twist to the Shumail/Sobia angle, Episode 3 ends with Bilawal’s death in a car accident. The grieved parents now have to not only come to terms with their son’s death, but also try to figure out how to keep Yasmin in the family. She is not only loved, but also an immensely rich woman. Whether they can convince Shumail to accept her as his wife, and keep her fortune within the family, remains to be seen. Janoo, the servant, Shamoon, is an undefined character as yet, but from the pre-caps it seems like he will play a significant role later on.
Though nowhere near the standards of a Humsafar or a Sanjha or a Mora Piya or even Jalpari, it most definitely lacks their finesse and pizazz, I still found Dil to Bhatkey Ga an interesting watch. Asghar Nadeem Syed’s story is compelling, Haseeb Hasan’s direction is strictly okay. The production values, read cinematography, sound quality, the use of the OST, the editing, all could be a lot better. Natasha Ali would have better off paying a bit less attention to makeup and focusing more on acting. Asad was good in his cameo as Bilawal. Aijazz Aslam as Sujawal is ok . Resham is very good as the subdued Yasmin. Mohib Mirza hasn’t had much to do so far, but he does look too old to be a student, same is the case with Mehwish. But I guess since that part of their life is not the focus it doesn’t matter.
Most annoying here were the numerous scenes of Bilawal and his dancing girls. That he was a louse was established immediately so there was no reason for those scenes. Similarly Husn Bano prancing around for her husband, we know this is her modus operandi then why harp on it? Not moving the story forward, these were a sheer waste of time. Finally, though I enjoyed what I saw, I was watching it alone and on YouTube. This is most certainly not a story that can be watched when surrounded by extended family or with children around. I do hope Geo changes its timings keeping the mature content in mind.
Writtenby SZ ~
