Marriage tends to be at the center of South Asian adult life – and even earlier. Somehow the success of an individual’s life tends to be based on their success at marriage, being happily married or just being married at all. However, what happens when a person winds up married to a woman he does not want to be married to and the woman he loves re-enters his life? This is the scenario which takes place in “Tere Bina Mein Nahi,” though it’s technically even more complicated than that. Starring Sonya Hussyn, Aiza Awan and Shehzad Sheikh in lead roles, Bushra Ansari, Munazza Arif and Khaled Anum play supporting roles in this show written by Maha Malik and directed by Ali Masud Saeed.
In episode 18, Noor (Sonya Hussyn) has successfully placed herself in between Murtaza (Shehzad Sheikh) and Tehniyat (Aiza Awan). With Noor and Murtaza planning on getting married and Tehniyat in the know, the problem moving forward is…..how? The problem is an interesting one, because when we look at it ethically, it’s disgusting. But when we look at it on face value, wasn’t this marriage set up with this chaos being inevitable? Noor and Murtaza are childhood sweethearts who always intended on marrying one another. It’s only Noor’s professional ambitions which got in the way – and even that, there was no logical reason for Murtaza’s mother and sister to be in such a rush. It’s obvious that Noor and Murtaza would still have feelings for one another and Murtaza’s mother only made things worse by approaching Tehniyat….Noor’s best friend. The idea itself is a sick one, one that put both Tehniyat and Murtaza in an uncomfortable situation. Asifa (Munazza Arif) and Sajid (Khaled Anum), along with Murtaza’s mother (Bushra Ansari) are wholeheartedly to blame in this entire mess. They did not care for the problems their children would face in the future, but only cared about the idea of marriage.
At present, Noor’s plotting is made easier by the fact that Murtaza and Tehniyat do not share a relationship….and this is where “Tere Bina Mein Nahi” is currently losing points. Murtaza’s sister and mother are advising Tehniyat to fight for her marriage, fight for a husband who “belongs” to her and prove her “love” for him. What marriage? What love? What feelings? If Murtaza has been cold and distant, Tehniyat has been equally so, drawing a clear line between them from day one. Can anyone blame her? Absolutely not, it’s understandable that she would be uncomfortable. But then what is she fighting for? And yet, any obedient daughter can understand Tehniyat’s predicament, her desire to keep her parents happy and not inflict her sadness upon them. On the other hand, Noor and Murtaza fail to recognize that their problems before marriage still exist now. They’ve temporarily put this to the side, but the fact remains that Noor looks down on Murtaza’s career ambitions and joint family system. Can that problem disappear?
What makes “Tere Bina Mein Nahi” compelling are the performances. Everyone is doing an excellent job, particularly Sonya Hussyn and Aiza Awan. Both ladies are right in their own place, their emotions valid and the portrayals of those emotions on point – and, of course, they are both beautiful. Shehzad Sheikh has a hard role to portray, because Murtaza is a man toying with two women. This is the role of a weak man, a man who cannot do right by his wife, his girlfriend or his family – and so, it’s commendable that we feel anything for Murtaza. On a level, we can all recognize the cliched way this story will end with Murtaza eventually realizing his wife’s “goodness” and returning to her. However, what we can hope for is sensitive treatment while the story plays out in an engrossing way.