So, here’s the deal … every week I post a review of Mataa-e Jaan and every week the review/episode is ripped to shreds – it is a given by now, standard operating procedure if you will… and frankly speaking, I’m totally fine with it. Since, for me, it’s still one of the better serials around. I don’t know about anybody else, but I can tell you unequivocally, that I’ve had it up to here with the saas-bahu dramas or the other favorite theme: the victimized, abused, exploited, or in short – the mazloom aurat. Yes, agreed, Mataa-e Jaan is flawed, and I’m not blind to its faults. There are problems with specific aspects of it, but the overarching story compels me to not dissect it so much that I miss the forest for the trees. For me, this serial remains one of the more compelling ones that I am watching these days. It has faces that are not on morning and evening, and it is aesthetically appealing. I do not end each episode with a headache because of all the crying and screaming. The overall acting is good, actually excellent at times, and despite the fact that there are intertwined tracks, the narrative remains cohesive and coherent, and moves at a rapid pace – excellent direction by MJ. So yes, for me, Mataa-e Jaan totally rocks – and this episode was no different.
With this latest episode, a central track, Ibaad and Haniya’s love story, concluded its run in New York as the newly-married couple returned from their idyllic honeymoon in Carmel, and Ibaad left for Pakistan. Knowing what is to come, I oh so wanted to stop Ibaad from getting into that taxi. Adeel Hussain is doing a great job as Ibaad. In Chicago, Yamina and Adam’s life together reached its point of no-return and Yamina left for New York to recuperate physically and heal emotionally as she spends time with her sister. I appreciate the way Yamina remains strong, despite all that has happened to her in such a short span of time. In Pakistan, Uzair was his usual oh-not-so-charming self, asking Hajra to choose between being his wife and being Ibaad’s mother. Honestly, I wanted to reach out through my screen and give the man a serious whack or two. Usually it is the desi mothers who are going on and on about what would people think, or how they would face the world, but here we see the egotistical father so enamored by his given word, to his brother in this case, that forget about his son’s happiness, even his wife’s loyalty is being brought into question. Hina Bayat and Javed Shaikh are stellar as Mr. and Mrs. Uzair.
Watching the precaps, it seems like we are to be thrown a curveball once again as the story takes a trajectory different from its original print version. As a rule, I’m not a fan of novels being turned into dramas, but I have to hand it to Momina Duraid and Farhat Ishtiaq for keeping me hooked, first with the twists in Humsafar and now with the turns in Mataa-e Jaan. Looking forward to next week!
Written by SZ~ [email protected]
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