By Maliha Rehman
“Tere khushboo mein base khat mein jalata kaisay
Pyar mein dube hue khat mein jalata kaisay
Tere hatho ke likhe khat mein jalata kaisay”
Written by Rajindar Nath Rehbar, rendered timeless by Jagjit Singh, this ghazal which pays ode to eternal love is the inspiration for the title of a drama which, in contrast, has started off by making one disbelieve in notions of love.
The drama’s narrative is uplifted by its aesthetics. Saqib Khan directs a script written by Amna Mufti, navigating beautiful nooks and crannies of the city and adding a lilting, pleasing background score to the scenes. It would form the setting for a very romantic story had it not been for the protagonist, poet Ahmed Zaryab and his dalliances. He is an acclaimed poet with a considerable mostly female fan-following, possessing the art of expressing feelings and emotions through prose but not really a sensitive soul in reality. He is an accomplished flirt, a perpetually disgruntled husband and generally the sort of character that may induce the TV audience – particularly the women – to shake their heads disdainfully and mutter, ‘Men!’
Ahmed Zaryab is married to a surgeon, has two children, but of course, he is not happy with his domestic life. He is much more in his element sitting in a library, sipping tea all day, talking to his two friends – the brilliant Saleem Mairaj and Rashid Farooqui – and flirting with Penny – Sidra Niazi, floating about in a sari and acting very well – a beautiful poetess disheartened by her husband and very obviously smitten with the unreliable Zaryab.
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Zaryab gets more chances to utilize his flirting abilities when he comes across Husna, a young college student who invites him to be the guest of honor at her institute’s mushaira, and that he proceeds to enamor with his wit and thinly veiled compliments. His wife, meanwhile, rushes about life, balancing work, home and children while fending off his caustic commentaries when they are at home together.
It’s a very interesting story and uplifting it are performances by some of the country’s finest actors. Adnan Siddiqui is Ahmed Zaryab, effortlessly playing the self-centered, good-looking poet with a weakness for beautiful women. No one else, I feel, could have been as believable in the role. Adnan has the innate style for carrying off Zaryab’s wardrobe of well-tailored suits and the voice and the persona to play the poet, surrounded by a group of admirers, whiling away the hours with a book in his hand, speaking in elaborate verses. This drama marks Adnan’s return to TV drama acting after three years and it is a relief that he didn’t subside towards cookie-cutter roles of ‘big brothers’ or ‘angry fathers’ like many of his peers. This drama, this role, seems to be well worth the wait.
Nadia Jamil is, also, making a return to TV after a very long time. She plays Adeela, Ahmed Zaryab’s unfortunate wife and the initial two episodes don’t have too many of her scenes. However, she emotes her general exhaustion and her resignation with her husband very well. One can tell that as the story progresses, Nadia will have many more scenes – and one particularly looks forward to her, hopefully, throwing out her no-good husband from the house.
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Shining on screen in the first two episodes has been Kinza Hashmi as the young, impulsive, often hilarious Husna. She doesn’t know much about Urdu but is majoring in it because she had scored abysmal marks in other subjects. She has a penchant for eating samosas at the college canteen and while she couldn’t care less about poetry, she does want to be seen on TV, and excitedly takes part in a mushaira on Ahmed Zaryab’s invitation, reciting a poem in a stilted, toneless voice! Rushing from college to home, joking with her friends, being cheeky with her teacher and mother and quickly getting enamored by the amorous, older poet, Kinza is a treat to see on TV. Kinza has hitherto been mostly seen on TV playing the typically pretty young heroine – this drama proves that, given the chance, she can be so much more!
The performances, the very artistic screenplay and the music in the background all come together to tell a story that draws you in. At one point in the teaser to the drama, Nadia Jamil is shown staring dismally at a bundle of letters tied up with a red silk ribbon – possibly the khushboo mein basay khat written to her by her husband back when they were in love.
But human emotions can be fickle and while love itself can be beautiful, giving you joy for some time, it fades. Just like the sweetest smells enveloped in letters from long ago.
What do you think?