“Mushk” stars Imran Ashraf, Urwa Hocane, Momal Sheikh and Osama Tahir in lead roles. Written by Imran Ashraf, directed by Aehsun Talish and airing on Hum TV, there’s a beautiful old-school vibe to the show that has immediately made it visually appealing. Adding to that, the story has been well-written (so far) and is different from what viewers have grown accustomed to seeing. Now three episodes in, the story picks up where it left off last week as viewers realize Shayaan never abandoned Mehek, but was technically imprisoned for showing loyalty to her.
Shayaan (Osama Tahir) has been shown as a victim of backwards customs when he’s promised to his much younger cousin for marriage. When he fights his Taaya (Aehsun Talish) against this marriage, obviously thinking about Mehek and his young son, he is locked up as punishment. This brings us to present day where Shayaan has escaped after months of imprisonment and is trying to make his way to Mehek’s home – though his escape is short-lived and he is once again caught and put back in jail. Osama Tahir is giving a convincing performance as Shayaan and it’s nice to see how his character has changed from past to present.
While Zulekha (Zara Tareen) has simply come off as “jealous” of Mehek up until now, viewers are made aware of the reason for her negative attitude in episode 3. She has been the victim of a womanizing, cheating husband, played by Hassan Ahmed, who was not only emotionally abusive, but also physically abusive. Zulekha was seen as weak and helpless due to her gender and “place” in society. And yet, now her husband is bed-ridden and completely reliant on Zulekha, which is an interesting way to flip the situation. It’s almost an inner fight of humanity that begs the question – is it ever right to mistreat an individual who is completely reliant on the kind nature of their caregiver? Or did his behavior earn him a place on the receiving end?
Regardless, the scene that unfolds between Zulekha and Guddi (Urwa Hocane) is almost nonsensical and blame falls entirely on Mehek (Momal Sheikh). Due to the way Mehek has introduced Guddi, for some ridiculous reason, Zulekha has translated this to mean Guddi is to work as the help in the house. When she asks Guddi to make tea for her and Guddi refuses, this erupts into a heated exchange where Zulekha throws Guddi and the baby out of the house. Mehek is left in tears as Munna handles the situation by saying he will get the baby back. But couldn’t this entire situation have been avoided had Mehek introduced Guddi as a needy friend rather than a “majboor ladki’? That would’ve established a relationship and made it clear that Guddi is an equal, not to be mistreated. Instead, now Mehek will be seen scrambling to get her child back in the next episode. Urwa Hocane is giving a strong performance as Guddi so far. What role will Guddi play now that she has been thrown out of Mehek’s home and knows her truth?
http://thebrownidentity.com/2020/08/25/mushk-episode-2-shayaan-escapes-and-makes-his-way-back-to-mehek/
Adam is a gem of a character and is played wonderfully by Imran Ashraf. As of right now, Adam has been relegated to the background, a small character that pops into 1-2 scenes an episode, makes his presence felt and then bows out. The audience is aware that Adam is genuinely in love with Mehek and will go through any lengths to come to her aid – as seen by his search for diet coke, falling sick in the process. With Mehek approaching Adam for help next week, it will be interesting to see how this angle unfolds when Adam discovers the truth about Mehek’s marriage and baby. “Mushk” is presently the most captivating show on Pakistani television and one that I wait for with excitement each week.
