“Khuda Aur Mohabbat” continues its successful run, bringing in high viewership each week. With its lavish sets, beautiful costumes, heartfelt performances and meaningful dialogues, “Khuda Aur Mohabbat” is a grand viewing experience. The show stars Feroze Khan, Iqra Aziz, Mirza Zain Baig, Junaid Khan, Sunita Marshal and several others in a large, ensemble cast. Written by Hashim Nadeem and directed by Wahajat Hussain, “Khuda Aur Mohabbat” takes a different turn this week as Mahi and Farhad come face to face.
In episode 12, Mahi (Iqra Aziz) finally grows tired of living in fear and decides to meet Farhad (Feroze Khan) in person. Mahi has tried to maintain composure and appear unaffected, but internally, Farhad’s declarations of love have touched her heart, making her realize there’s someone out there who loves her to the extent to leave his entire world for her. And yet, Farhad and Mahi’s match is out of the question, a relationship that can simply never occur due to Mahi’s background. So Mahi does exactly what she thinks she needs to do – she meets Farhad and she makes it clear that she not only has zero emotions for him, but also makes a display of disrespect towards his emotions. This scene is an intense one as both Feroze Khan and Iqra Aziz are wonderful performers and their chemistry really shines in this scene, possibly for the first time since the show began, with the two wearing their emotions on their face. After Mahi, in order to protect Farhad and force him to return back to his world, declares that she doesn’t love him and wants to marry Taimoor, hurting Farhad deeply. In his state of shock and pain, Farhad curses Mahi, praying that she experience the pain he’s now experiencing, being destroyed internally the same way he has been, praying for her loss of peace for a lifetime. The two part and Mahi is deeply disturbed by Farhad’s words while Farhad sheds tears after the meeting.
While the emotions by both individuals are brilliantly displayed, the character of Farhad is becoming deeply problematic – and of course, this is not calling the show itself problematic. One should always hold their opinions regarding shows and characters until the end of the show, as characters go through a graph and can show growth by the end of the show. That being said, up until now, Farhad has been a character one could still sympathize with on a level, even though his behavior was extreme. But this curse is where things become troublesome. Are these words that Farhad will regret later and be shown owning his mistakes in uttering this curse? Or will this curse play out as Mahi’s “karma” for simply choosing a different life partner for herself?
The show, essentially, should have played out in a different way to feel authentic and logical. The greatest flaw is Farhad’s deep feelings for Mahi despite Mahi never engaging in any romantic behavior. Had Mahi engaged in a true relationship with this Farhad and led him on for her own selfish purposes, his behavior would have been understandable, believable and it would have made Mahi accountable. The problem is, that’s simply not what she did. Had it played out this way, it would have made more sense within the confines of the story. Mahi comes from such a sheltered, reserved, oppressive background and it would make sense that Mahi would come out of that environment and explore her freedom. This would have added layers to the characters as well, along with giving more depth to the romance.
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Unfortunately, at this point, one is simply left hoping that Farhad sees the error of his ways sooner than later and realizes Mahi isn’t to blame for not returning his feelings. Otherwise, this love story will come across as flat. Still, regardless of everything else, Iqra Aziz and Feroze Khan both hold up the entire episode with the entire basis focusing on this one encounter. The “curse” aside, it’s a wonderful sequence between the two with both actors putting on a great performance. This show has its troubling moments, but still manages to keep viewers engaged. Again, the way the story plays out from this point onwards will determine how its received.
I think that Farhad will have regret, which will lead him to repent and pray for Mahi and come close with god. They are both young and naive and just confused. I think this episode established the story. Now the real journey begins, both will grow.