CARACHI: Over the years, Pakistani viewers have become resigned to the fact that they will always have to watch the same scenarios play out in every drama: family politics, love triangles and lots of crying. As 2023 turned out to be the year Wahaj Ali who managed to wow the public with Jo Bichar Gaye And Ishq Jalebi the previous year, it looked like the actor would also be resigned to the same storylines that plagued us. That’s until episodes 1 and 2 of Jurm broadcast on weekends.
The crime thriller aired on Geo and was written by Shah Yasir and directed by Mehreen Jabbar. It has a talented cast with Wahaj Ali and Durefishan Saleem leading, Daniyal and Ayla, sharing the screen with Atiqa Odho, Muhammad Ehteshamuddin, Tooba Siddiqui and Zhalay Sarhadi. The crime thriller follows a newly married couple who have planned a romantic evening. Flashbacks reveal that Daniyal is the son of a millionaire and likes to be left alone. It is traveled by the popular and bubbly Ayla, daughter of a single mother. The two end up getting married and the family spares no expense when it comes to big festivities. It’s the perfect fairy tale. That is, until tragedy strikes.
Their romantic evening was to end with a Kashmiri tea from a chai dhabba of Ayla’s childhood, before her parents separated. But the couple are suddenly held at gunpoint and their driver is dragged into the bushes and looks dejected. But we don’t know what the thieves want. They don’t run away with valuables and steal the car. After a struggle ensues, Daniyal is left bloodied and beaten and the robbers leave with Ayla. Was it an assault gone wrong? Or is there something more sinister going on?
The drama is anything but slow-burning. It takes Jurm the entire duration of episodes 1 and 2 to reveal who the culprits are and a heartbreaking tragedy. But that’s not what makes the drama so interesting. As the family and the police try to make peace together about what really happened, truths that should never have been revealed. We learn that Daniyal had a very strained relationship with his parents. His father put him down, and his mother cared more about her cat party ladies than her son’s happiness. As the drama unfolds, each character becomes even more suspicious than the other. And in the middle of the investigation is a young journalist Ashley (Maha Hasan), who manages to discover truths that no one else knows.
In just two episodes, Jurm attracts its viewers. The family idiosyncrasies, the divide between rich and poor, and relationship issues shown in the drama are closer to real life than we thought possible. The cast of the drama deserves credit. No one could have played a controlling, angry millionaire better than Muhammad Ehtashamuddin. He is constantly angry, has no room for nonsense and it is easy to believe that his affective unavailability could have harmed his son. We can’t imagine anyone playing the emotionally fragile and questionable herbal tea drinking socialite better than Atiqa Odho.
The drama is also well-written, with each character having their layers unraveled and making viewers realize that we have similar people in our lives, leaving us wondering if they’re as shady as the ones we see on screen. Is Daniyal as wonderful as Ayla thought he was or is there a darker side to him thanks to his messed up family life? And is Samina (Tooba Siddiqui) more than just an assistant who has more say in personal affairs than you might think? Was the tragedy that struck Ayla premeditated or just a tragedy?
With Episode 2 ending on a cliffhanger, we can’t wait to see what’s to come in the following drama!
