Watching a Pakistani drama finale in theaters is has only been an option for grossly successful Pakistani dramas in the past, such as “Pyarey Afzal” and “Mere Paas Tum Ho.” Joining those ranks is “Ishq Murshid,” which not only premiered its finale in theaters, but also had sold out shows with many left only wishing for tickets. However, it cannot go ignored that with the past several episodes, “Ishq Murshid” lost grip on its narrative with its editing subpar, scenes feeling disjointed and its male lead acting out of character. With the finale now out for the general public, did the finale make up for past digressions? “Ishq Murshid” stars Bilal Abbas Khan, Dur E Fishan Saleem, Noor Ul Hassan, Omair Rana, Salma Hassan, Hira Tareen and others in a story written by Abdul Khaliq Khan and directed by Farooq Rind.
In the finale, Shahmir (Bilal Abbas Khan) visits Shibra (Dur E Fishan Saleem) to ask for forgiveness – but she is unwilling to move past his callous attitude, which caused her father’s death. This is, of course, valid. Shahmir willingly left Salman in jail, despite having the pull to have him released. In his decision to let the law run its course and avoid corruption, he allowed the corrupt to murder his father-in-law behind bars. Would any girl be able to forgive that decision? Fortunately, Shahmir is not thick-headed and recognizes his major misstep. He visits Dawood in jail and the two share a powerful moment where, after many years, they have a real conversation and actually listen to each other – and Shahmir realizes Haroon (Adnan Jafar) is the one who murdered not only Salman, but also his mother. In a scene which allows Bilal Abbas Khan to truly show off his emotional side, Shahmir visits Haroon and delivers justice by poisoning him, retribution for the way he had poisoned Zubeida, his mother. Bilal Abbas Khan’s tears post his action and his breakdown finally shattered that tough exterior Shahmir had been putting on, allowing the broken young man to come out. Again, it’s Dawood who comforts Shahmir with love. But in the end, Shahmir chooses to leave that throne to Dawood, the man who always wanted it, but in return, Dawood loses his son. Dawood has always loved his son and we now know that while he was unfaithful to his wife, he wasn’t the reason (directly) that she died. This does give us room to sympathize with him, however Dawood lost his son the moment he chose to continue plotting against Shibra. Omair Rana has been a wonderful addition to “Ishq Murshid” and his chemistry with Bilal Abbas Khan in any show has always created magnetic scenes.
Of course, Shahmir and Shibra are reunited at the end when Dawood lets go of his ego and asks Shibra to return to Shahmir to “save him.” As for the reunion itself, it’s a wonderfully shot moment, but feels terribly incomplete as well…..ironically representative of the show. Shibra and Shahmir’s romance has been the highlight of “Ishq Murshid” and while we did not need fan service, we did deserve a proper reunion for these lovebirds. What we did get was beautiful, sure, but we have to be honest. The sequences felt as though they had been shot as separate potential choices, the director thought “let’s use them both” and then just edited them together. This has been the case with much of the show in the 2nd half, coming right back to that disjointed editing and lack of flow in the script. Still, Bilal Abbas Khan has been the heart and soul of “Ishq Murshid,” Shahmir and Fazal Baksh jointly showcasing his impeccable acting – and though there were weak spots here and there, this has been the moment to shut down naysayers who doubted Bilal Abbas Khan’s talent. What a star. Dur E Fishan Saleem has been an absolute natural as Shibra and this role truly felt as though it were made for her. She fit perfectly into the role of the girl next door with an aura that’s so strong, it makes a man want to change for her. This has been Dur E Fishan’s year with “Ishq Murshid” and “Khaie.”
Ultimately, “Ishq Murshid” is a show about finding one’s self and discovering who the person is within. Shahmir was always made for politics, set up to take over the “throne.” But it was politics which ultimately took away his mother’s life – and had Shahmir continued on the path of politics, it would have stripped away at his soul, at who he truly has always been on the inside….which is his mother’s son. The concept has been excellent, a man born with a silver spoon in his mouth realizing that he does not want a part of his world and chooses, instead, to join the world of the woman he loves, finding happiness in simplicity. It’s genuinely wonderful. If only the sequences had been better executed, there had been better writing and less filler episodes, one could have called “Ishq Murshid” a love story for the ages to join classics before it. Unfortunately, as it stands, “Ishq Murshid” will be remembered for its beautiful lead pair and their chemistry much more than it will be remembered for strong storytelling. With a promised season two, can we expect better writing, direction and editing moving forward? We have to hope. We will certainly miss Shibra and Shahmir!