Pyar Deewangi Hai Unveils Neelum Muneer in a Challenging Avatar

An influx of new dramas, flaunting ensemble casts and piping hot stories are all set to hit our screens, including Saba Qamar’s ‘Fraud’, Saboor Aly’s ‘Nehar’, Danish Taimoor’s ‘Kaisi Teri Khud Gharzi’, Feroze Khan’s ‘Hubs’ and Neelum Munir’s ‘Pyar Deewangi Hai’.

After a Ramadan packed with rom-coms and pure comedies like ‘Hum Tum’ and ‘Chaudhry and Sons; the list appears to be quite tempting for all drama aficionados. The competition appears to be high this drama season and one particular plot that has caught our attention seems to be ‘Pyar Deewangi Hai’, starring the debutant, Shuja Asad, and Sami Khan, alongside Neelum Muneer.

A hint of Netflix’s ‘You’

Directed by Aabis Raza and written by Misbah Ali Syed, the drama boasts veterans like Javed Sheikh, Gul-e-Rana, and Saba Faisal in the cast. From what we have seen from its teasers and an episode released last week, Pyar Deewangi reveals a love story marred by toxic relatives and gruesome murder.

The plot revolves around a blossoming romance between Rabi, essayed by Neelum Muneer, and her paternal cousin, Mateen- essayed by Shuja Asad. The early promos showcased a feisty Neelum and her fiancé, lost in the bliss of discovering each other as life partners. But then entered a furious-looking Sami Khan, with his big, thick spectacles, and snatches away Neelum from the midst of her daydream love story. This signified that our villain is one possessive, fanatic lover- like we have seen in stories such as Ishq Hai and Inkaar.

On the contrary, the next promos show Neelum miserable and in deep anguish. Apparently, she gets married to her beau only to lead a challenging life, where her mother-in-law, essayed by Gul-e-Rana, ensures she is subjected to mental torture. She abhors Neelum’s character for being fair and beautiful, while she feels insecure for having dark skin. Later, she also shames Rabi for her inability to bear a child.

But it seems that the toxic mother-in-law is just the start of her worries. Another promo shows Neelum in the court of law, being tried for murdering her husband. She screams that she is innocent and it is apparent it will be a tough time for her character to prove she is not a criminal. So who is behind the messy murder mystery? Will it be Sami Khan or her vamp of a mother-in-law that will frame her?

We are betting that it is the former who will be framing the heroine and will put Neelum behind bars. The first episode has foretold enough about Sami Khan’s character as Daud, who is our heroine’s maternal cousin and a university lecturer while Rabi is also a student. He witnesses her candid meetings with Mateen and harbours an innate desire to marry her. However, he is a silent muser who is burning deep down from the pain of seeing her beloved cousin with someone else.

The plot also has a hint of the Netflix series ‘You’. Sami Khan is flaunting that madly-in-love, Joe Goldberg attitude who keeps tabs on his love interest, stalks her, and probably won’t even mind killing someone for the sake of achieving what he wants. Sami’s other drama Inkaar too had a similar storyline where Imran Ashraf stabs the love of his life, portrayed by Yumna Zaidi, so she is unable to marry Sami Khan. We then see the female protagonist fighting for justice and bringing her attacker to book.

In both You and Inkaar, the heroine becomes the victim and has a toxic lover. How will ‘Pyar Deewangi Hai’ be different? We are curious to watch how Aabis Raza and Misbah Ali Syed have planned the plot.

A challenge for Neelum Muneer

It’s too early to draw any judgment about ‘Pyar Deewangi Hai’, before the unveiling of its ultimate narrative. But one thing is for sure it must be a challenging role for Neelum.

It’s an avatar she hasn’t portrayed yet in her recent projects and is bound to make her stand out as a victim who is tortured and later, accused of murder. She last played the role of Shijrat in Mohabbat Daagh Ki Soorat and is basking in the glory of her latest cinematic endeavor ‘Chakkar’ where she plays a double role.

In the promos of her recent drama, there is not a single scene where she is not being emotionally and physically abused. Usually, victims who undergo extreme mental and physical anguish often lose their mental health, as we saw in Hum Kahan Kay Sachay Thay with Mehreen’s character. How will Neelum’s character survive while fighting for justice? The drama surely has left us intrigued.

However, at the same time, we are assuming that Pyar Deewangi Hai will be attracting all the noise, for both good and wrong reasons as it seems like one depressing story but the only thing that can surpass this fact will be the actors’ acting, directorial twists, and a strong plot. While some might enjoy the mystery in the love triangle, others are bound to question the blatant exhibition of cousin marriages and abuse in a marital relationship. How will the story be amongst critics and drama buffs, let’s wait and watch!