Feroze Khan has given us countless hit drama serials throughout his career. The famous or infamous actor, depending on who you ask, is one of the biggest names of our time. With award-winning shows like Khaani and Khuda Aur Mohabbat 3 under his belt, audiences certainly pay attention whenever he is attached to any project.

However, last year was quite a scandalous one for the actor. With allegations of domestic violence and him being labelled the face of toxic masculinity, Khan’s career seemed to have taken a great hit, when there was a call for boycott regarding his film Tich Button.

So, with all this drama circling him and his last project Habs ending almost a year ago, all eyes are now on Geo Entertainment’s Khumar, his anticipated comeback to television. Let’s discuss.

The show is produced by Abdullah Kadwani and Asad Qureshi from 7th Sky Entertainment, it is penned by Maha Malik and directed by Ali Faizan.

Story

The story of Khumar is a rather simple one. It’s an age-old story of societal class differences and how these differences are detrimental to relationships, particularly interclass relationships.

The first episode follows Hareem, played by Neelam Muneer. A girl from a humble background who is an ambitious wedding planner. All Hareem cares about is her work and her wish to create better opportunities for her family. On the other hand, we have Faiz — played by Feroze Khan — a guy brought up in a family of upstarts.

Faiz’s parents are played by veterans Behroz Sabzwari and Hina Bayat, two filthy rich parents who don’t shy away from a crass display of their wealth. Faiz on the other hand, is not like his parents and appreciates the simplicities of life. A major part of this first episode is Faiz’s behaviour causing arguments between him and his mother.

Hina Bayat is already deliciously evil as the matriarchal character in the show. Feroze seems to have lost some weight over the past year and that added a boyish charm to his appearance, something we haven’t gotten from him in a while. Adnan Samad as Faiz’s friend Nasir also makes an impression.

Feroze as Faiz

Faiz seems like a breath of fresh air character for Feroze who, in the past, had diverted to more serious roles. Not to say that Faiz doesn’t have the depth to him, his character portrays the class divide and how he values simpler things.

He is a silent benefactor for Hareem, helping her career as a wedding planner while also paying for her brother’s education. His dynamic with Adnan Samad’s Nasir, a childhood friend, is also fascinating and is sure to develop in the coming episodes.

A rift is already forming between the two friends on issues of class. However, their friendship will truly be put to the test as both hold feelings for Hareem and it’s bound to come out soon.

Hareem, in all of this, seems to only care about her work and her parents. So these two guys are about to cause major problems for her. We cannot wait to see this triangle’s story unfold.

Some Positives

The production design on the show is to take note of. The wedding set in the opening scene is meant to showcase Hareem’s talents as a wedding planner and the production team did not let the character down. The home décor in Faiz’s home is also incredible and showcases his family’s wealth.

A story as simple as this needs a great cast to portray it and Khumar has that in spades. Characters seem natural and lived in from the beginning. Khan’s character is also given some great inner monologues that he does a fine job with. All the microaggressions used by the rich against the underprivileged were also extremely well-written.

One critique to be had is the extensive use of the OST in almost every scene of the episode which quickly got tiring. Nonetheless, the show is off to a great start. Feroze Khan fans you will be eating good, and we cannot wait to see how this story unfolds in the coming weeks.