‘Tu apne baap ke saath shaljam-gosht kha sakta hai, mein apne ghar mein pair nahi rakh sakti’: Aik Aur Pakeeza underscores how society shields abusers and punishes survivors

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Niche

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Haunted by their viral video, Pakeezah (Sehar Khan) and Faraz (Nameer Khan) are hiding in fear, unable to process where they stand in life now. Living in a friend’s house, a glaring future ahead of them, they are grieving their loss with no time to mourn.

Wishing for her death, Pakeezah states that it would have been better for her brothers to kill her for honour, instead of leaving her to have a lifeless life. She is locked up in a room, reliving the dreadful incident that transformed her life. Faraz is her only support left, yet she still blames him for pushing to meet and not fighting the goons that harassed them at gunpoint.

Where Faraz is able to go out, meet his family, eat with them and take financial support, Pakeezah has not only endured physical abuse from her family but cannot step outside the house. Though both were victims of the cyber scandal, the fear of being recognised for Pakeezah is far more than that of Faraz. When she wants to tag along with him, he clearly states that he will not face any consequences if anyone recognises him, yet they would not spare Pakeezah if recognised.

Her outbursts reflect how she feels caged in a relationship she wished for earlier; the loss of her family and autonomy proves that the onus of honour primarily lies with women. Faraz and Pakeezah were equally involved in the video that went viral, yet Faraz still had his family’s support, whereas Pakeezah lost it all.

The highly engaged audience quickly grasped the messaging behind the heavy scenes, sparking online discourse. The Aik Aur Pakeezah team served the purpose, as people started talking about how women are more abused than men in the name of honour. Dissecting the bone-chilling conversation between Pakeezah and Faraz, a netizen said:

Stating that women are not allowed to lead a normal life, a user posted:

Another stated that the treatment men and women face from society is “disproportionate”. They posted:

Another said:

One added that it is harder for the female gender, and posted:

Where men give labels, women suffer is what another netizen added:

A viewer pointed out that men around Pakeezah believe their lives are falling apart, even though they are living normally. However, Pakeezah is locked up in a room, unable to find even a gush of fresh air. Calling it society’s hypocrisy, they posted on X:

One added that this society does not give you a single chance to land in trouble or make a mistake, and posted: