Written by: Hareem Zafar
Posted on: February 19, 2018 | 
| 中文
Gone are the days when Pakistani television viewers were impressed by clichéd storylines and saas-bahu conflict. The television industry has evolved to produce hard hitting drama serials with gut wrenching storylines. Akhri Station (Last Station) is one such drama, spun around the troubled lives of seven women, which raises questions about deeply rooted social issues.
Under the umbrella of ARY Digital Network, written by Amna Mufti and directed by Sarmad Khoosat, Akhri Station is a seven episode miniseries based on real life stories. After being involved with dramas like Udaari and Rehaai, Kashf Foundation has yet again roped in an experienced director and writer duo, to communicate the tales of these women. While the women belong to different social classes and are of different ages, they are united by fate. The drama will be shedding light on issues such as sexual assault, HIV, forced prostitution, drug addiction, depression and more.
The series starts off with shots of the bustling Lahore railway platform, coupled with subtle classical music. A sari-clad Tehmina (Sanam Saeed) makes her way to a women’s compartment, where she starts strikes up a conversation with the other passengers. Meanwhile, the focus shifts to the woman Yasmin (Eman Suleman), who is trying to chip off blue nail polish from her fingernails. A transgender, ill-treated by other travellers, also makes her way to the same passenger car.
In response to a question, Yasmin’s life slowly unravels on screen. In a neighbourhood of the walled city of Lahore, where poverty-struck families go to sleep on empty stomachs, her daughter is crying for milk. Yasmin’s husband Waqar (Adnan Sarwar) is shown scouring the house for her jewellery, supposedly so he can buy groceries for them. However, addicted to gambling and alcohol, he ends up using the money to feed his habits. When he needs more money, his gambling partners suggest that he should prostitute his wife. With nothing else left to gamble, the no-good husband chooses this easy way out!
The exchange of the wife occurs in a powerful scene, where Waqar throws her into a room with another man, and the rest is left to the viewer’s imagination. The next morning, having suffered the worst kind of deception and betrayal, Yasmin is shown lying on the floor, shedding tears. Meanwhile, her daughter happily gulps down the bottle of milk she has been crying for since the night before.
With her new source of income, the minor debts of the family are paid off, and there is ample food for all family members, but Yasmin remains in a state of shock. Her husband tortures her psychologically by insisting that she must continue to do “dhanda” if she wants to live in the house, and declaring that “Allah ne rizak teray haath main rakha hai,” thus the burden for raising the child now rests solely on her shoulders.
For a while it seems as if Yasmin will helplessly accept her situation, and perhaps she would have, had it not been for her daughter. Yasmin is forced to act, when she realizes how Waqar is eagerly anticipating selling the daughter’s services too! Draped in a new red veil, tightly clenching her daughter’s hand, Yasmin flees the house, and the viewer sighs with relief.
While the writing and direction are commendable, the portrayal of characters by Eman and Adnan is praiseworthy as well! The desperation, disbelief and pain in Yasmin’s eyes, and Adnan Sarwar’s depiction of the vile husband who feels no guilt or shame, are convincing. While the episode showed the desperation and degradation of one addict, the problem is quite widespread in our society.
The teasers for the show included poetry recited by Shabana Azmi, while Amjad Islam Amjad’s poetry is part of the original soundtrack as well. The drama opens with a dedication that reads “Un aurton k naam jinho ne mushkilon k aagay sar jhukana nahi seekha,” showing that these women remained steadfast and overcame the exploitation and challenges they faced. This is one drama that should not be missed! Akhri Station airs every Tuesday at 9 pm on ARY Digital.
You may also like:
