The kernel of ‘Pukaar’ is simple; a girl gets trapped in a rigid haveli dappled in patriarchy. The drama’s got a lot going for it, what with Yumna Zaidi and Zahid Ahmed headlining a Six Sigma Production. The first few teasers looked impressive, and what I’ve picked up is a suitcase primarily packed with a story keying in on oligarchy within haveli culture.

*warning spoilers*

The first episode was a little slow, with the opening scene of Samra (Yumna) entirely unnecessary

Alright, so this is basically what’s happening in ‘Pukaar.’ Samra (Yumna) is someone who speaks her mind and in unapologetic. Fahad Sultan (Saad Qureshi) is the rich boy with a heart who’s in love with her and has his proposal rejected.

It pretty much goes back and forth from there and drags just a little with the two potential lovebirds fighting

…with Samra fighting her feelings for him, and Fahad being a lovestruck puppy who redeems himself after he saves Samra’s father from a robbery.

What catches my attention and ultimately holds it is the stark difference in life between Samra and Fahad – Fahad hails from a haveli, and conversations with both his parents give us a taste of how eery his background is

Fahad’s already unfurling himself as a bit of a creep tbh, what with him sneaking into Samra’s room on her birthday to ‘surprise’ her (more like give her a heart attack), and warning her indirectly to not disobey his family name when she calls him out.

The music is very grand and has tones that would soothe any cinephile’s ears, making up for the slowness of the first episode

I shazam-ofied the song of the trailer because honestly, it was SO beautiful, and I got ‘Promises To Keep’ by band ‘Audiomachine’ (you’re welcome). The background score is breathtaking, and although it’s clearly lifted, it works. My only concern is that I hope the track isn’t overused because then a case of diminishing returns kicks in if it’s constantly ringing in my eardrums.

Zahid Ahmed isn’t in the first episode *sigh* but how Samra collides with him and ends up confined to Fahad’s haveli is riveting

Zahid is the protagonist, and what we know is that he does fall for Samra – who he is and how he’s thrown into this delightful plot might just make this drama really, really great. The promo for episode two was also really fantastic – Fahad will be the first man within his Sultan clan to marry outside of the family, essentially to someone they deem as ‘ordinary.’

Watch this space for episode two’s recap! Have you seen the first episode? What did you think?