“Dil Na Umeed Toh Nahi” continues to pull in viewers who want to watch intelligent, well-written, meaningful television. Written by Amna Mufti and directed by Kashif Nisar, “Dil Na Umeed Toh Nahi” focuses on human trafficking in its different aspects and what its victims endure. Starring Yumna Zaidi, Yasra Rizvi, Wahaj Ali, Nauman Ijaz, Omair Rana, Kashif Mehmood, Noor Ul Hassan, Samiya Mumtaz and many others, this show goes from strength to strength each week.
Post Sumbal and Savera’s escape, the proceedings on “Dil Na Umeed Toh Nahi” slowed down a bit with the characters growing accustomed to their new surroundings and absorbing their newfound freedom – which also comes with the risk of getting caught once again. With Sumbal convinced that she will, in fact, get caught again, she decides to visit her village with Jimmy and the two seek out their families. There, they meet Rafiq, Jamshed’s childhood friend (who abandoned him in the city) who informs them that Jimmy’s mother lost her senses long ago and no one knows where she is. Jimmy breaks down hearing this while Sumbal seeks out Rafiq to uncover her own family’s whereabouts. She’s informed that her father and grandmother passed away, while her mother left the village with Sadia and her youngest daughter. This village, now a place of farmhouses and new developments, no longer holds anything for this duo, their relationships having left the village shortly after Jimmy and Sumbal’s disappearance. It’s difficult to watch these two characters come to this understanding, avoiding returning home for so long in the fear of what they may find – and their worst nightmares coming true, the truth that they no longer have their loved ones to come back to. Both Yumna Zaidi and Wahaj Ali are brilliant in these sequences and it’s becoming more difficult to “review” their performances, running out of words to praise this dynamic acting duo.
The real pick-up moment of this episode is with the focus shifting to Naseem’s story, finally tying Naseem in with the rest of the characters. Her story has been one slightly shrouded in mystery with viewers wondering how her life is connected to the others – and now we find out. Naseem and Najma (Samiya Mumtaz) work together to help Naseem escape while Sherwani (Kashif Mehmood) stands “guard” outside their door while Qazi (Noor Ul Hassan) is out of town. Sherwani is the sort of man who evokes many feelings of anger, but the audacity of a man to infringe on an entire family’s privacy in this way. However, Naseem manages to run away, making her way to “freedom,” escaping to Dubai to join a cricket camp. Unfortunately, it’s immediately apparent that Naseem’s “cricket camp” is a front, a way to lure young girls in to a trap. Before Naseem can come to any harm though – or even realize what has happened – the police break into the office and Naseem finds herself face-to-face with our mystery man himself, Zulfi (Omair Rana).
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At this point, “Dil Na Umeed Toh Nahi” is giving us surprise after surprise. While Zulfi’s identity has slowly been revealed to the audience in bits and pieces, a man joining the “business” to find his own sister and, most likely an undercover cop, more information is coming to light. It appears that Nauman Ijaz’s character is also involved in this situation somehow, working with Zulfi. Omair Rana performs wonderfully in this episode, showing how much conflict Zulfi goes through on a daily basis, always switching between two faces – the one he shows his mother and the one he shows the world. This is a broken man and Omair Rana makes it feel convincing. Overall, it will be interesting to see how Naseem’s story continues to play out from this point onward. Will Zulfi come to her rescue – or is she still in danger?