First of all, my apologies for both being out of the loop generally and missing last week’s review. I am still travelling but watching this week’s episode of Dillagi mad me feel bad enough for poor Mohid to open up the laptop and get typing.
That’s right, I actually feel a little sorry for Mohid. The first three episodes set his character up as a typical “alpha male”, he plays with guns, people are afraid of him and he seems to be afraid of no one. His mother is convinced that he can do anything and he is convinced he can win Anmol’s love, with a little strategy and lot of bravado. Superficially at least, he might remind you of any one of the ‘Goondas’ and arrogant men that haunt our screens in the guise of heroes except he is constantly having his overconfident bubble either popped by an unimpressed Anmol or completely deflated by his supposed right hand man Dastagir . With a friend like Dastagir there really is no need for enemies. Despite his well-meaning hero worship, Dastagir is a walking disaster machine for Mohid.
In episode three Dastagir mistakes Anas for Anmol’s fiancé and gets Mohid to frighten the poor guy off. Annas is a sensitive type who doesn’t like walking in the rain let alone being confronted by a dangerous looking man brandishing a gun so it’s no surprise when Annas and his hysterical mother break of the engagement to Anmol’s younger sister. Mohid is left in an even bigger hole than before. Not only has Anmol’s sister lost her fiancé but now people are talking about her character. Once again Mohid tries to make things right and once again he manages to screw up royally offering to fix things by offering Dastagir as a replacement groom. Cruel and unfeeling mothers seem to be the norm in drama land and Anmol’s mother is no exception. Frightened and weary of Mohid’s constant interference she asks her daughter to consider him as a serious rishta. Anmol however is a little smarter than the usual bholi larki and plans her attack rather than her escape.
Anmol not only tells Mohid off but says she will marry him despite being in love with someone else , that she will leave him the first chance she gets because “ jang laree jaati hai but Mohabbat kee jaati hai “ . To my surprise this makes Mohid back off, however strong his love for Anmol is, even he knows his limits. After all his strong arm tactics and manipulations he managed to redeem himself with this one act. It never occurs to beychara Mohid that less might have been more , that if he had underplayed his hand and followed normal respectable channels he might have succeeded with a practical girl like Anmol .Humayoon Saeed is playing this role this role to perfection.. .( it still burns to say so … but the I have to remember he took a picture with me ) .He looks the part and his expressions convey all of Mohid’s confusion and desperation at suddenly finding the most important event in his life spinning out of his control.
My favourite character is Anmol. I love how unafraid she is, in a world where women, especially single women are told to be afraid of everything she makes for a refreshing change. But like all the classic heroines her greatest strength is also her weakness, so instead of getting on with her life, in a fit of overconfidence she grabs the idiot form the library and asks him to marry her. Now here is my problem, I can understand Anmol rejecting Mohid but instead of going for a sensible match she jumps into a marriage with someone she knows nothing about. Anmol is just as dabang as Mohid. She may not be as emotionally illiterate as him but she is also following her gut reactions and undervaluing the strength of patience, planning and consideration. Mehwish Hayat makes for a fabulous Anmol and her handle on the dialogues is excellent. Mehwish looks beautiful and for once my eyes were not on the heroine’s wardrobe but on her character as a whole.
This drama has a strong supporting cast which is slowly working its way to the fore. I am waiting (desperately) to see more of Saba Hamid; one of the biggest attractions of this play. I want to know the backstory of this family and how Mohid’s mother handles Anmol, who is just as strong and opinionated as her. Uzma Hassan as Mohid’s sister had a lot more to say as this week and most of it was negative. I can see she is this family’s spoiled, protected princess and she is already hostile towards her prospective Bhabi. This may have something to do with her own secret love life which looks to be turbulent from the teasers. Meanwhile Imran Ashraf continues to be the funniest part of this serial .He has been given a great role and is playing it with subtlety and great timing. How can the same actor be so gut wrenchingly awful in a serial like Gul e Rana that I was rooting for his characters sudden death but look brilliant here? I guess a good script from Faiza Iftikhar and a good director like Nadeem Baig make all the difference.
The one complaint I do have is that although there is little to know chemistry between the cast at Anmol’s house. Maybe it’s me, but the usual sisterly, motherly comradeship between the three women seems cool rather than warm. All that family banter and discussion doesn’t show the same streak of affection that I saw in AunZara. This is in stark contrast to the great feeling of connection I see in Mohid’s family. Mohid, Dastagir and his family all look as if they care for each other.
Again No complaints about the last two episodes, all have been entertaining, smoothly edited, fast paced and easy to watch. Dillagi is always a relaxing to watch and review because it’s well made. Sorry for the long review but cannot resist adding a word about next week’s promo, which looks action packed. It looks like Dastagir manages to wreck Anmol’s instant wedding to the idiot from the Library and Anmol turns up at Mohid’s house in full bridal regalia. It looks like an episode of confrontations.
written By Sadaf
