“Dulhan” is a thriller of sorts and is a show that keeps viewers interested. Written by Adeel Razzaq and directed by Adeel Siddiqui, “Dulhan” stars Sami Khan, Faizan Khawaja, Sumbal Iqbal and Mashal Khan in lead roles. The story revolves around Amal, a woman who ends up married to a man who abandons her while another pursues her relentlessly despite not being her husband. The story progresses in this episode as Amal and Mekaal come face to face again.
Episode 12 begins with Amal (Sumbal Iqbal) and Annie (Mashal Khan) coming face to face when Annie ends up at the boutique to look at the outfits for her wedding to Mekaal. The two girls seem to bond somewhat (how much can one really bond with a loose wire like Annie?) and Annie even seems to like Amal. However, when Mekaal comes to pick Annie up, Amal realizes she has forgotten her phone and runs it out to her, then realizing Annie’s fiancé is Mekaal….who is Amal’s run-away husband. There’s something likable about Annie while also being one of the most irritating characters on the show. Annie is confident, outspoken and knows how to put Mekaal in his place (and keep him on his toes). And at the same time, she’s a very evident level of unstable. She is fixated on Mekaal, despite knowing he’s a flirt and has betrayed her in more than one way and, to add to that, she’s also incredibly possessive and suspicious. Mekaal has not given her any reason to be suspicious of Amal, a girl she has literally just met. But Annie immediately begins questioning Mekaal on whether he knows Amal. One could call this intuition and certainly no one could call Annie naïve or dim – she’s a smart girl – , but her jumping to this conclusion is an overreaction….even if it may be true. Mashal Khan is doing a great job of playing this character with the brashness that the role requires.
Sumbal Iqbal really makes her presence felt in this episode as Amal, a woman sandwiched by two men – men she wishes she could forget, but continuously comes face-to-face with. While Amal has now switched jobs to get away from Shahmeer, she discovers quickly that the switch may have been in vain when she puts two and two together and realizes Mekaal is the son of her boss. Sumbal performs extremely well in showing how helpless Amal feels after this revelation. She wants nothing more than to quit her job and run away, remaining hidden from both Mekaal and Shahmeer. But her financial situation and household environment do not allot her this luxury. She does not even have the leeway to search for another job and so, she realizes that she is simply trapped and expected to put her feelings aside for the sake of survival. It’s heartbreaking to see her stuck in this predicament. Sumbal Iqbal has the ability to show exactly what her character is feeling in her expressions and she is growing more as an actress as time goes by. Unfortunately for Amal, her situation is about to go from bad to worse.
Shahmeer (Faizan Khawaja) and Mekaal (Sami Khan) decide to bury the hatchet and move on after Mekaal and Annie’s marriage is announced. But Mekaal has a condition – that Shahmeer and Mekaal will both stay away from Amal. But can Mekaal himself live up to his end of the deal? Shahmeer is shocked when he sees Amal at the boutique when he goes to pick up Annie and runs to confront Mekaal. But Mekaal is very calm, cool and collected over the matter – but how? And why? He instructs Shahmeer to keep up the deal and the two will stay away in order to keep the peace. But Shahmeer’s concerns are valid that Amal’s presence will now be interwoven in their lives and could be dangerous. The bizarre part of this entire scenario is that after seeing Amal at the boutique with Annie, Mekaal goes on to suggest to his mother that she bring Amal home to help her work on the wedding preparations.
Dulhan Episode 11: Sami Khan’s Mekaal Stands Out As He Realizes His Feelings For Amal
Mekaal’s intentions are all over the place. What is his endgame exactly? He wants his marriage to Annie postponed, but how is that supposed to help him? What will more time buy him? Why does he want Amal in his house to be, not only directly in his face, but also on a platter for Shahmeer? Sami Khan is fabulous in this role, keeping viewers on their toes as Mekaal takes them through a zig-zag of emotions. There’s a lot about Dulhan that could be predictable and even not palatable at times, but it’s the character of Mekaal and the fact that Amal is not a push-over that makes the story interesting. These characters have been written in a way where they are unpredictable. Faizan Khawaja is doing a good job as Shahmeer as well, playing the intense role well. Still, “Dulhan” is not a perfect show and there’s a lot hat could go wrong if the “redemption” angle is forced rather than naturally progressing. With Amal and Mekaal now under one roof, the story is about to take an exciting turn.
