A review on Pakistani drama TV series, Fraud Episode 14 (2022). The new TV series is directed by Saqib Khan and written by Zanjabeel Asim. Fraud is a story of love, innocence and treachery as our protagonist is manipulated into marrying a forged personality. Fraud is an iDream Entertainment and ARY Digital Production.
+ Crew
- Directed by Saqib Khan
- Written by Zanjabeel Asim
- Produced by Abdullah Seja
- Production by iDream Entertainment
+ Note
Fraud is a case study of Pakistani families who always strive for betterment of their children. Obsession with wealth and power almost always ends up leading to unfavorable consequences. The director Saqib Khan is known for his numerous television projects and his upcoming cinematic film Ghabrana Nahi Hai (2022).
+ Main Cast
- Saba Qamar as Maya
- Ahsan Khan as Tabriaz
- Mikaal Zulfiqar as Shaan
- Rabia Kulsoom as Maila
- Adnan Samad Khan as Nael
- Mehmood Aslam as Nisar
+ Plot
Fraud is a story of Maya whose father wants her to marry into the richest family that he could find. But wealth does not equal character as she ends up marrying a wealthy man named Tabriaz who, through his trickery, makes life for Maya full of deceit and fraud.
+ High Points
i – The only interesting storyline going on at the moment is the follow up con job of Tabriaz as the son of a wealthy landowner. But this time around, the audiences know fully well how they are manipulating the naive family of the bride into handing over all of their belongings. And honestly, that is entertaining to watch. Even the performances are mostly very believable and the production has done a great job in setting up the locations and costumes for this particular storyline. I’m curious to see how far Tabriaz and company will take this con job or will they finally be caught red handed.
ii – The “divorce” revelation scene was simple but actually brilliant writing as on one hand, the bride’s family now views the Tabriaz family as “open minded, pure hearted” people whereas her being a divorcee makes a lick of a difference to their ultimate plan of grab whatever you can and disappear.
+ Low Points
i – Unfortunately I cannot sing praises for the rest of the show as it has quickly become so mediocre and stale. The progression of the plot seems purposefully lethargic (in order to prolong the lifespan of the show) and the scenes have no urgency or depth to them. Maya is a supporting character in her own show who has absolutely nothing meaningful to do except to serve as a narrative prop for the characters around her (for example, being a vehicle for her sister to get married). The characters that did make a significant impact in the past like Nael are absent since past five weeks and Nisar seems to have outlived his usefulness to the plot of the show.
ii – A few reviews ago, I mentioned that Talal could be an interesting character if the show plays its cards right. Well, I was wrong. He is as generic and bland as any other “good guy” from any numerous Pak TV shows out there. If someone were to ask me what are the character traits of Talal, I will surely be dumbfounded. A plain piece of Cardboard has more character depth than him.
iii – Shaan is now setting his eyes on his new secretary. Sigh.. whatever. This subplot never (at any point) grew interesting, nor does this subplot fit into the world of Fraud. I don’t mind if a show has parallel storylines going on that only converge philosophically (films like Amores Perros (2000) is a perfect example) but they need to converge on some level. The acting, the backdrop, the writing; everything seems so out of place for this show. And quite frankly, Mikaal Zulfiqar is not talented enough to take the lead role of this storyline.
iv – And yes, the secretary interview scene was cringeworthy. After hearing her praises of her qualifications, she replies to her future boss with “Tell me something I don’t know”. Awful, pathetic writing.
+ Overall
The only thing that makes Fraud currently watchable is Tabriaz’s storyline. The rest of the show is utterly mediocre and forgettable.
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