What’s great about “Kuch Ankahi” is how it plays out in a natural way. It’s reminiscent of family drama films in both Hollywood and Bollywood, stories which not only focus on the individual stories of each family member, but also focus on family dynamics within the home itself. While the pace of “Kuch Ankahi” is slower than what we have grown accustomed to, this is fantastic storytelling and reminds us of PTV shows in the 80s, a time when Pakistani television was in its golden years. Starring Sajal Aly, Bilal Abbas Khan, Mira Seti, Mohammed Ahmed, Irsa Ghazal, Vaneeza Ahmed, Babar Ali, Adnan Samad Khan, Sheheryar Munawar, Asma Abbas, Ali Safina, Qudsia Ali and others, the show has been written by Mohammed Ahmed himself and directed by Nadeem Baig.
In episode 9, Samia (Mira Sethi) has come clean to Aaliyah (Sajal Aly) over the phone call and Saif’s secret life. Aaliyah is initially calm and asks Samia what she wants to do, an action that strikes the audience as odd considering Samia is not a woman of action and would sacrifice herself in a moment. However, Aaliyah pulls through a few minutes later, discussing the situation with Agha Jaan (Mohammed Ahmed), Shaista (Irsa Ghazal) and Sofia (Vaneeza Ahmed). While the entire family is on the same page, furious at the deception, it’s Shasita who continues to make excuses for Saif and insists that the marriage preparations move forward. In this discussion, Shaista has a heart-attack.
While we, as viewers, would rather avoid this dragging out of the Samia marriage angle, this somber turn provides audiences with some great emotional moments. The discussion between Agha Jaan and Tanvi (Babar Ali) is a great one, as well as the bonding moments between Aaliyah and Samia. The way Salman (Bilal Abbas Khan) steps in to help Aaliyah’s family is not only sweet, but also serves as a great building point for Salman and Aaliyah’s relationship. Aaliyah has always had to be strong for her family and now, in this moment, Salman is there to support her. They clearly never imagined that they would come together like this after their rivalry, but it’s beautiful to see how their relationship is slowly changing. Sajal Aly and Bilal Abbas Khan are doing a wonderful job with their characters and performances.
There’s another storyline that really captures our attention and that’s the one focusing on Deepak, the son of the house help. Deepak has been assaulted by the tailor he worked for and is unable to confide in anyone. However, at the end of the episode, after being scared of Shakeel (Adnan Samad Khan), Deepak confides in Sofia in a discreet way. The trauma of this situation rings loud and clear and we find ourselves as horrified as Sofia feels in that moment. This is a heavy storyline and it will be interesting to see how they handle it moving forward. The child actor who plays Deepak, Falak Shehzad, deserves a round of applause this week for his performance.
Overall, “Kuch Ankahi” continues to impress. There are so many characters in this show, but the “flow” of the show keeps viewers engaged and interested while also giving each actor enough scope for the role to be worth their time. We can only hope Samia’s marriage chaos winds up soon, so focus can be placed on other interesting arcs – such as Tanvi and Sofia, Aaliyah and Salman and, of course, we’d love to really get to the bottom of Azfar (Sheheryar Munawar) and Sehrish’s (Alina Abbas) feud.