I’m going to go out on a limb here, ok maybe my pointy finger, and say this was a good episode. To elucidate, I present the five Ps of this installment: pacing, Peer baba, product placement, property and paper wedding. Pay attention class you will be tested.
Pacing: Overall they picked up the pacing from last week which was a relief. There was a lot of pretty grief to fill many buckets (sigh, have to hand it to Sanam, she makes crying look practically ethereal and possibly effortless) and prescriptions of petty theft that you could draft a primer on evil in-laws. Stereotypes reinforced and checked off.
Peer baba: I called it! I predicted the Zalim saas and staircase last week so am patting my amateur Peer Baba powers. Thankfully it didn’t quite play out as I predicted, but I guess I am in on the trend on the season, hmm maybe I need to watch my tongue, or rather typing.
Product placement: Ok I can’t believe they missed an opportunity for the perfect perfume product placement! Mikaal Zulfikar we will buy your khusboo in droves. Despite my quickening heart rate at seeing Mikaal again (as well as a genuine and bankable marketing opportunity – Call me!) wasn’t that scene overly played out? What could have been a very tender moment was over explained which lessened the impact.
Property: And now to the most vile, though fairly predictable part of the episode equating women as property to be bartered and traded in this patriarchal game of Monopoly. It was frankly quite disgusting to see Daddy dearest seriously consider his vakil’s counsel and suggest that Zeeshan marry Romaisa, all in the name of family honour, more like keeping in all in the family.
This entire thought process of elder son or younger son? Who will be more secure with our jayadaat really made my bile rise. While all the family members (house help included) were moving the pawns around for best possible gain, not once did anyone say that Romaisa would never agree to this.
Though honestly, where is Romisa going? She even retracted her court case much to Khala’s consternation and is practically left to her in-laws mercies. If you can have her sign away her one shot at independence, why the need for the paper wedding?
Paper wedding: Also all this explaining away of this marriage as just a nikaah and paper wedding is quite despicable and thankfully Zeeshan says pretty much all that I wanted to when he says Mujhe is ghar aur masher par afssos ho raha hai ki bewa aurat apne bal bute par nahin ji sakti…Although he does know we are talking about Romaisa here right? He’s really attributing more intelligence to her than has been proved thus far.
Though am giving her brownie points (she has to eat something after all) for figuring out that locking the lock on the door is a better strategy than chair at the door.
While Daddy dearest was right to point out to Zeeshan ki aisa shaadiyain hoti rahti hain (case in point) However, I puke on the person who wrote that Utraan-inspired dialogue by Daddy dearest which to paraphrase, went something to the tune of Nabeel used to give you his cast offs so that you would take care of them.
I think Adeel was trying to hold back some of his own rising bile and his performance was on point. It helped that he’s got the moral high ground dialogues here. Now I know why he was chosen though –there is no nobler and more upright looking man than Adeel Husain to play these conflicted roles. Let he who is without Shukk be the first to cast a stone ….
Baz aukad cheezain logon se zayada keemti ho jaati hain…clearly is the moral of this family’s one track tale. I suspect fireworks ahead in the battle for the jayadat which in case nobody noticed isn’t really going anywhere.
Ok, test time folks: Spot the number of Ps in this review! Answers due in the comments.
MM (aka A musing Muslim)
