Politics with a touch of unapologetic entitlement, a heroine who’s not afraid to speak her mind (like most 2024 Pakistani drama heroines), an entitled, angry young man of a hero (like many 2024 Pakistani drama heroes), a potential mother in-law who knows how to play politics, ahem, like ALL 2024 Pakistani drama mothers in-law? So then… scroll down for our Iqtidar question…
What’s new about Iqtidar?
Well, for starters, it’s only the first episode, so a voice calls out to go light on the narrative. It is after all, the beginning of what might seem like a ‘seen before’ story. But then, Saman Shah essayed by Rubina Ashraf, plays it slightly different as she takes Mehru (Anmol Baloch’s) advice to change political strategy. She’s not your typical mother in-law trope, even though she seems like one at the onset. She seems to possess a finer intellect, taking advice from a young Mehru, despite being chastised in public.
The Cast
Shahnawaz Shah played by Ali Raza is interesting to watch. His sense of self-importance as a young political player who’s blatantly corrupt and loves the power he yields is marginally different because, thankfully, he wasn’t surrounded by an army of weapon toting, trigger happy men. Although, perhaps these might surface later so don’t count your luck too fast. However, we have yet to see Ali Raza in such a role, and because of the diversly opposite personalities between him and Mehru, we’re already anticipating their face-off.
Mehru played by Anmol Baloch lives in a joint family. She and her sisters are manipulated by a phuppo who’s surprise, surprise, true to her “phoppo” title. Phoppo and daughter Urooj love to treat Anmol and her sisters as household help – Cinderella just got a Pakistani drama remake But wait on, this Cinderella, aka Mehru will not put up with the step sisterly treatment. She’s a working woman, and one who’s quite outspoken.
Rubina Ashraf as the all powerful political player seems sharp and insightful. She’s not about to slip into your typical mother in-law garb, we hope there’s more to the character than what we’ve seen before. But for now, her onscreen presence is enough to remind us of her ability to play an array of characters with remarkable ease.
Storyline Predictions
To add to the storyline are Shahnawaz’s spoilt brother, we saw a glimpse of that one, a cousin who’s dying to marry Shahnawaz and will serve well as the future “vamp’ or ‘other woman’, once Mehru and Shahnawaz find each other. We assume Zain, Shahnawaz’s brother will cause trouble in political land for the Shahs’. We also assume that Mehru and Shahnawaz will have sparks flying very soon, and it won’t be of the romantic kind to begin with. One lives in a political fortress and the other, a regular planet earth inhabitant like the rest of us – but of course, Mehru will fight for justice and all we can say is, it’s going to be intense! Forgive us for revealing the storyline, but this is pure conjecture, not to be misconstrued with the actual storyline of which we have utterly no clue. But if our predictions aren’t entirely on the mark, we need to revisit our Pakistani drama crystal ball, because well… it has many dramas of experience to vouch for. But…surprise us drama makers, because, we would love to be proven wrong!
What’s Hopefully “New”
It is good to see Anmol Baloch in more assertive mode after Shiddat. However, we hope the independent girl character our dramas are currently pushing on to audiences is essayed with a degree of subtlety. Similarly, Iqtidar had some nod moments when Shahnawaz’s party’s political jalsas were being discussed, which made it relatable. The onscreen pairing – Ali Raza and Anmol Baloch should be an interesting watch. Ali just rounded up Noor Jahan which was a superb watch so audience expectations are high. Also, Rubina Ashraf’s character as the female protagonist who’s seemingly unbeatable and totally in control should be fun to watch, especially since women are now taking over these traditionally male-oriented roles.
And that’s it for Iqtidar folks. We’d recommend a watch for the first few episodes to see where the story takes us. Like we said, one episode down is too soon to decide on the skip or stream bit. So let’s give it a few more! If you’re watching Iqtidar, drop us a comment and tell us what we missed.
Iqtidar is written by Huma Hina Nafees and brought to life under the direction of Fahim Burney. Presented by Multiverse Entertainment, this drama features a stellar cast including Anmol Baloch, Ali Raza, Emaan Khan, Ahmed Randhawa, Rubina Ashraf, and more. Iqtidar is airing in Green Entertainment.
