In recent years, Pakistani shows have earned a name for their exceptional portrayal of diverse genres. Whether it is a family drama, romance, tragedy, spiritual journey, psychological thriller, or comedy-drama, Pakistani shows have made their place. Apart from their strong storyline, another aspect that sets them apart from other shows is the character development. Although some of the shows are indeed problematic in their representation of characters, often portraying toxic masculinity and misogyny as a normal trend, some of the shows have excelled in their character development.
Let Us See The Magical Art Of Character Development In Pakistani Shows:
1. Khirad from Humsafar
Probably one of the most memorable characters in Pakistani shows, Mahira Khan’s Khirad began with the conventional representation of women in most Pakistani shows- timid, meek, dependent and without a voice of her own. However, as the show proceeds and she finds herself in the most dire circumstances with her husband Ashar accusing her of infidelity because of a cunning plan laid out by her mother-in-law, Khirad is forced to see life’s cruel and harsh realities.
Fast forward to some years, and we see an independent Khirad who is now working and sustaining herself and her daughter. Unfortunately, her daughter’s sickness brings her back to the threshold of her husband for financial help. This is where the distinction between a fierce independent woman and a heavily reliant on male figure woman clashes. Khirad is not as she was before. She has built a life for herself and is free from the domination of any male figure. However, circumstances make her return to her earlier life, but Khirad does not beg for Ashar’s money.
There is an aura of strength and self-esteem with which Khirad faces Ashar. She is not scared to tell him about his responsibilities as a father. Even after the two slowly reconcile, Khirad does not bring back the buried incidents; instead, she acts maturely and lets her daughter enjoy her life with her father for a while. A thread of love connecting Khirad to Ashar eventually makes her go back to him. However, you cannot say she is still the same meek person as before.
2. Rakshi from Pehli Si Mohabbat
Rakshi’s character has been analysed through her changing relationship with Aslam. However, one of the strongest character developments in the show, Rakshi, went through it with her mother’s acceptance. Her father married a woman, which is lawful and morally correct; however, that woman is a courtesan, and Rakshi is adamant about not accepting her as her mother because her father went against her wishes, and the added taunts and torments from the neighbour make it even worse for her.
Aslam’s brother and a few other neighbours come to Rakshi’s house to ask her dad to leave the neighbourhood because he has somehow polluted it by bringing a courtesan. Tied and blinded by the shackles of these opinions, Rakshi despises her stepmother. Things take a turn for the better when her stepmother protects her from the accusations of a seemingly reputable woman in the community. Rakshi learns how a person’s soul defines their character, not the societal assessment with prejudiced ideas.
3. Shahzain in Ehd-e-Wafa
Although the entire series was a kind of coming-of-age, it portrayed the character development of Shahzain quite well. From an egoistic man who had no hesitation in using his own people in whatever way possible to pursue his own means. Eventually, he becomes a corrupted political leader and wins an election by manipulating the situation to fit in his favour. Only towards the end does he realise his mistake and apologise to everyone.
Shahzain cannot be said to be an antagonist of the show, as from the beginning, he was a good friend who was ready to take risks for his companions. However, his anger issues and egoistic perspective, much of which was due to how his grandfather brought him up, made him into a morally dead person. Shahzain reflects many of us who get spoiled by our upbringing and end up being self-centred.
4. Arsal and Jiya from Suno Chanda
Arsal can be called problematic for his me vs London scenario that he made Jiya go through, but hear me out. If you compare Arsal from Season 1, where he had no consideration whatsoever for Jiya’s ambitions and used to make fun of her for planning to go to London with Shehryar, to him in Season 2, where he was ready to leave his whole family behind and move with Jiya to London just to support her for her further studies, Arsal definitely went through a lot of development and became highly mature.
There might be skewed ways through which he wanted to see if Jiya would leave her dream for Arsal, but he never really would have gone ahead with the idea. He just wanted to see how much Jiya actually loved her. Call it a bit foolish, but we all act like this, especially when we are ready to leave behind everything for a person.
Similarly, Jiya developed from a silly and childish girl to someone who began to understand people around her and prioritise her family over other things. In my opinion, she became even more mature than Arsal as she silently digested his harsh behaviour towards her. You may call her weak for rejecting her plan to go to London because of Arsal’s tactics, however, she outgrew the earlier Jiya, who was entirely focused on just one aspect of her life. In reality, life demands us to pay attention to the relations attached to us. Jiya did the job quite well.
5. Mahir From Dobara
Mahir was introduced to us as someone unnoticed and unappreciated in his life. His step-mother and step-father misbehaved with him and his biological parents were busy with their new families. Mahir was neglected, and on top of that, he lost the love of his life because of his circumstances, none of which were actually his fault. However, his marriage with Mehru brought some changes in his life. He became an extremely good stepfather for children who were his age.
Undoubtedly, he married Mehru for her money, but there was always an innocence underlying his actions. Also, towards the end, he realises he cannot betray Mehru and eventually returns to her. Mahir became what his parents could not, and he moved above his circumstances and past traumas to take action for what was right.
Conclusion-
These were some of the characters we could fit in this article. Many more memorable characters went through massive development during the series.
Which ‘Character Development in Pakistani Shows’ Is Your Favourite? Comment Down Below!
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