“Mannat Murad” is one of those shows which has kept the audience talking throughout its run – and not necessarily always in a good way. While advertised as a love story, it quickly became clear that “Mannat Murad” was actually the story of a headstrong girl marrying a Mama’s boy who was unable to protect his wife from his over-protective mother and meddling older sister. While Mannat and Murad’s marriage went downhill from day one, Murad used romance to sway his wife back to his side. Throughout the episodes, most viewers have agreed on one thing – Murad does not deserve Mannat and Mannat should leave Murad at the end. Unfortunately, in the second last episode, it’s revealed that Mannat is now with child, essentially putting an end to any hope for a divorce. Starring Iqra Aziz, Talha Chahour, Irsa Ghazal, Faiza Gillani, Noor Ul Hassan, Uzma Hassan, Tipu Shariff, Ali Rehman Khan, Mizna Waqas, Ali Safina and others, the story has been written by Nadia Akhtar and directed by Syed Wajahat Hussain.
In the finale, Murad (Talha Chahour) finally pulls his socks up and stands up to his overbearing mother, Razia (Irsa Ghazal). For the first time on the show, Murad calls his mother out for her bad behavior and her harsh words and clarifies that he will not tolerate any bad words for Mannat (Iqra Aziz). For everything Murad has done – and not done -, is this outburst enough? No, not necessarily, but in the real world, it’s realistic enough that a girl who is expecting a child would happily go back with a man who has at least shown the capability to stand up for her against his (awful) family. Mannat returns to Murad’s home where Sitara and her mother sulk, moan and groan before finally returning home themselves, along with Nudrat (Faiza Gillani) and Shaukat (Hammad Siddiqui). In a sequence which is clearly meant to be a surprise – but really something audiences were waiting to see -, Fazeelat (Mizna Waqas) and Nafees (Noor Ul Hassan) get married in a very sweet sequence. In the end, everyone is happy – except for Niggi (Sana Nadir). In a real moment of heartbreak, Niggi realizes that Saad doesn’t see her in a romantic way at all and has a love interest – who has been accepted by his entire family. This is a tough pill to swallow for both Niggi and the audience…..and yet, it’s also a part of reality.
The finale is an enjoyable watch and while we do momentarily feel satisfied after watching it, after thinking about it, there are more flaws than positives. There are a lot of moments, unfortunately, that leave a lot to be desired and, in a way, harm the show more than help it. In the end, we see Mannat now happily living in her home with Murad while Razia constantly taunts Mannat and mutters under her breath. Once outside, Murad tells Mannat to ignore it, stating she knows how his mother is. Isn’t this right back to square one? Mannat is now supposed to be happy with Murad being sweet to her while his mother continues to disrespect her? One would’ve liked to see some change in Razia, some real realization. Sure, we can assume that with Fazeelat now married to Nafees, Razia may be forced to respect Mannat – but should that really have been the way? It feels as though Razia, Shaukat and Nudrat got off completely with their atrocious, meddlesome, manipulative behavior.
Furthermore, there’s a few sequences in which Niggi and Mannat discuss Fazeelat’s mental health. Niggi is often seen giving Fazeelat her medicine while everyone in the house refers to Fazeelat as “paagal.” All of that gets brushed under the rug in the end with Fazeelat marrying Nafees. Is marriage supposed to be seen as a form of treatment for mental health issues? Of course, Nafees also had his share of problems and needed to see a psychiatrist himself for his emotional fixation on Mannat – but that also is chalked up to “get him married” rather than both Fazeelat and Nafees bettering themselves as human beings and seeking treatment for their problems….which have been consistently visible.
If we discuss the positives of “Mannat Murad,” it’s that the cast has given their all to their roles. We cannot say the entire cast has not performed well – they have. It’s a different thing that the messaging of this show is all over the place and at one point, Hammad (Ali Rehman Khan) even states that instead of trying to change someone, we should accept who they are with all their flaws – even if their flaws are glaring red flags in the form of being unable to protect your partner from your own family. If there were a season two, we’d definitely want to see Niggi and Hammad’s love story unfold. Iqra Aziz and Talha Chahour’s visually pleasing pairing has been the highlight of “Mannat Murad,” along with the performances. Unfortunately “Mannat Murad” as an overall show has been more of a disappointment with its messaging – and yet, has still been an enjoyable watch.
