With changing times, the tastes of the audience also change. There was a time when Pakistani drama audience gave their attention to more realistic stories and looked for nuanced, grounded performances by seasoned actors. However, there is a change in the trend now. The success of this year’s Ramazan drama hit Fairy Tale is proof that Pakistani drama audiences crave light-hearted content that feature talented young cast.
And the super mega success of a show like Tere Bin, which isn’t any different from a standard Pakistani melodrama, that features a couple with chemistry so powerful that it trumps over all the illogicalities of the narrative yet again affirms the audience’s need to watch beautiful people living out a dreamy and dramatic love story on screen at the end of a day.
Hum TV has taken the best of both these worlds and mixed it beautifully in its latest offering Muhabbat Gumshuda Meri. Written by Rahat Jabeen and directed by Shahid Shafaat, the musical love story features young stars Khushhal Khan and Dananeer Mobeen in lead roles. Its first episode aired this week and judging from its pilot the audience is definitely in for a ride that promises both the magic of first love and the anguish of living in a society that doesn’t always support the idea.
First Glimpse of Muhabbat Gumshuda Meri
The story revolves around Zobia (Dananeer Mobeen) and Saim (Khushhal Khan), two youngsters in their early 20s who have been friends and neighbors all their lives. Saim is a carefree young man who dreams of having a successful music career while Zobia is the pampered youngest child of a joint family expecting her to live her life like the good, obedient, mashriqi girl her older sister Rushna (Noreen Gulwani) is.
However, Zobia is like any youngster who wants to be free from the restrictions her family have placed on her to at least be able to hang out with her friends or just go out shopping on her own. The teasers of the drama have told us enough that the story will show the two friends falling for each other and how their love will be challenged by the zaalim samaj. Will the two young lovers make it or is there fate meant to end in tragedy? Only time will tell.
The Refreshing Romance Between Dananeer and Khushhal
Undoubtedly, the best part of Muhabbat Gumshuda Meri is the chemistry and the dynamic between its two leads. Khushhal and Dananeer share a comfort between them that translates beautifully onscreen in a very natural and breezy chemistry. The way Saim and Zobia behave with each other, be it in their childish bickering that turns to concern for each other within seconds, is solid proof that these two characters have known each other for all their lives so it’s only obvious they are comfortable in each other’s space.
As the drama takes place in Islamabad the shots of the city’s natural beauty and serenity is captured well in frames. The vibe is youthful, the characters are dressed appropriately as per their ages and the social class they belong to. The first episode of Muhabbat Gumshuda Meri has a solid, engaging pace and stays true to its promise of being a musical drama with a song to start proceedings.
A New Take on A Tiring Storyline?
Naturally, a Pakistani drama cannot exist without having its female lead surrounded by the most unsupportive family. Zobia’s family has all the tell-tale signs of being extremely suffocating in the future. With all the emphasis they put on Zobia growing up and putting restrictions on her it wouldn’t be a surprise if the future episodes will dial it up by the hundred. Teasers show us that Zobia will ultimately rebel against her family, and frankly we don’t blame her.
While it is extremely refreshing to watch a young guy and a young girl be friends with each other, it was a bit off-putting when Saim’s friends had one look at Saim and Zobia together and already concluded that the two are in “love”. For a group of friends that includes both boys and girls and judging by the social class they belong to it was quite out of character for them to immediately pair up Saim with Zobia, a girl they hadn’t even met before that night. Can two people just not be friends? It’s 2023 people! Why is the young Gen Z acting so typically old-fashioned?!
The Verdict
Regardless of the minor gripes, Muhabbat Gumshuda Meri hits all the right notes in its first episode. Characters and their dynamics have been established well, the right care has been taken to keep the visual vibe of the show as un-melodramatic as possible, and most especially the episode has the audience hooked to Saim and Zobia’s relationship from the start. Khushhal and Dananeer’s chemistry is a winner and for sure when the drama goes into its romantic phase, this couple will be winning hearts all over. We are definitely seated for this ride!
