Fawad Khan and Sanam Saeed Barzakh Review

Fawad Khan and Sanam Saeed Barzakh Review. The most anticipated and awaited drama, Barzakh finally premiered on July 19, 2024. Moreover, the show stars famous actors like Fawad Khan and Sanam Saeed. Additionally, the drama came out on Zee Zindagi Channel, and also Zee Zindagi’s Youtube channel as well. The episode is about 55 minutes long. The drama is set to air every Friday and Tuesday at 8 pm.

Quick Facts

Drama Name: Barzakh

Director: Asim Abassi

Cast Members:

Fawad Khan
Sanam Saeed
Salman Shahid
M. Fawad Khan
Khhushal Khan
Faiza Gilani
Anika Zulfikar
Franco Giusti

Watch on:

ZEE5
Zindagi’s Youtube Channel

Fawad Khan and Sanam Saeed Barzakh Episode 1: The Mad Man and the Crumbling Castle

The drama opens with a quote that states, “Respect the sacredness of the earth that you were born into, for the story of your soul is inseparable from the magic of your lands- Book of Nowhere”. Moreover, this itself is a very captivating quote. Furthermore, it suggests a connection between humans, land, and life and death. The story begins with a man and a woman in the forest.

Moreover, the man (Jafar) and the woman (Mehtab) love each other, but he leaves her, promising he will come back with a necklace of gold. Moreover, this scene sets the narrative for the rest of the drama. This is because Jafar speaks about material gains and worldly items. However, Mehtab speaks of a connection to the land and soul. She says he will never understand her, and it is true.

In addition, he starts to work many jobs to make enough money. Soon he lives up to his promise and buys her a necklace of gold. He heads to the forest to give her the necklace. Furthermore, the screen is replaced with an old man sitting on his bed, and a young Mahtab says to him “The story of our souls…”

Barzakh Summary

Moreover, Jafar’s son, Shehyar (Fawad Khan), and his son are going to “The Land of Nowhere” to attend their grandpa’s wedding, who is getting married for the third and final time.

While Jafar eats his meds, he looks into a painting, much like the forest where he first met Mehtab. He turns to his help, Scheherazade (Sanam Saeed), and asks if his bride will come. Scheherazade says that yes, she will come. Since this is his third wedding, we can assume, that Mehtab and Jafar did not end up getting married initially. So what happened between the two? And why does he have a painting of the exact spot they used to meet?

Upon entering the house, the receptionist tells Sheyar, “Welcome to Mehtab Mahal”. Kind of giving us Taj Mahal vibes? Did Jafar build this place for his love, Mehtab? Soon after Sheyar goes out to receive his older brother. However, they are attacked by angry villagers who chant “Protect your land” and throw rocks at Sheyar and his brother.

Summary Continued

At dinner time, the grandson asks Jafar what the name of his new wife is. He answers, “Mehtab”. Shehyar asks, “Another Mehtab” to which Jafar says, “Only one Mahtab”. Does Jafar plan on marrying a ghost? What makes it more suspicious is that the wedding is taking place on top of the mountain, when the moon turns red. Is there a ghost ritual going on? Based on what we have been shown so far, it can only mean that Jafar is trying to marry his old love Metab, who has died.

“The Soul Journeys through a void that has no beginning and no end. It searches for its origins, longing to return to its source- Book Of Nowhere”/ The drama takes us back in time again, to Jafar returning to the forest with the gold necklace. However, it is all dried up now with no life. Jaffar, meets a boy there, Jabbar. He asks him where Mehtab is and what has happened to the place. Jabbar takes him to the tree, where the couple used to meet, and it seems to be a resting place. Jaffar realizes that his love is dead. He holds the gold necklace and cries.

The episode concludes by showing the tree as the center of Mehtab Palace. The house cleaners work to clean the room with the tree where Metab is supposedly buried. We see ghosts all sitting around.

Our Review

Honestly, the first episode was captivating. It had just the right amount of suspense to keep the viewers captivated. The scenery, dialogue, and storyline are beautifully used. Moreover, the show depicts how are surrounded by mystical beings even though we don’t see them. These mystical beings become responsible for our humanness and our vulnerabilities. In addition, it did an excellent job focusing on the themes of romanticism, capitalism, love, and mysticism.

Abbasi picks up on the theme of capitalism and how taking someone else’s land results in bitterness between the colonizer and the actual inhabitants. So far, it seems like, Mehtab’s family was a spiritual one. However, to honor her memory, Jafar has built a place and placed her grave (the tree) in the middle of his palace. This of course interferes with the people of actually own the land. Thus, they are upset with Jafar. Moreover, it shows how the loss of a loved one and their soul oftentimes leaves us bitter and vulnerable. This is seen through Jafar, who seems to have no connection with his sons but is more focused on reuniting with Mehtab.

Is it worth the Watch?

What makes Barzakh appealing is that is it not a typical Pakistani drama that focuses on the sass bahu drama. Instead, it is a fresh new script that blends mysticism with realism. It uses the supernatural to captivate its audience both through dialogue and scenery.

In addition, the show depicts how death impacts everyone and how it stays with us throughout our lives. The death of Mehtab has left Jafar with a void that he could not fill. Not even as a father or a grandfather. This in return impacted his sons as well. We see that Sheyar’s wife is not in the picture as well. And Saifallah’s wife is also not here. Did their wives also die? While Sheyar is seen trying to be optimistic for his son, we see that Saifallah is left in a self-destructive state. He talks about how we took care of his mom in her last days. This in return also impacted how he treated his wife. In a fragile manner.

Overall, the first episode was amazing and we look forward to the remaining 5 episodes!