Switching TV channels aimlessly and dodging saas-bahu serials purposely, I sadly hoped for a day when I can watch a woman like me on mainstream media. Cursing all the ghissy-pittey scripts, I turned to social media, and guess what? I wasn’t disappointed. Zee5 dropped the trailer of a Pakistani web series, Churails, that got me immensely excited. It’s happening. It’s finally happening!
So, I binge-watched Churails (the only way of watching it anyway) and literally had goosebumps. This was THE Pakistani representation my heart always yearned for.
Churails took Pakistani women out of their ”damsel in distress” cliche and made them in charge of their own narrative
Four women from diverse backgrounds, preparing an army to avenge oppressed women! Bring me the popcorn already because mard ko tou ab dard hoga. From spying on cheating husbands to punishing oppressive men, the churails did it all. So much better than two women fighting over the same man on national TV.
The stellar cast, featuring Sarwat Gilani, Yasra Rizvi, Nimra Bucha, and Mehar Bano brought life to their roles.
Zubaida was all of us when she couldn’t follow her dreams due to her family
Played by Mehar Bano, Zubaida accurately portrays the struggle of an average Pakistani girl only allowed to leave home with her younger brother for ”safety”. She is beaten to a pulp when her family finds out that she has a knack of boxing and is even involved with a boy.
A shoutout goes out to all the male allies in the show: Shams, Dilber, and the policeman really proved their mettle.
The show beautifully highlights how feminism is not just a ”woman” thing. It is believing in the equality of rights of ALL genders across the board, and there is no shame in advocating that.
As beautifully wrapped up by Shams, ”Mard thay, iss liye aurat ke liye rukawat nahi ban’na chahtay thay.”
I cannot even count the number of issues Churails addressed in just 10 episodes.
From harassment, forced marriages, child marriages, cheating, transphobia, domestic abuse to uncovering a secret prostitution ring in Pakistan: the web series does NOT hold back. Living in our tiny bubble, we forget how complicated our social fabric is and Churails grasped that real well.
Churails is not a saccharine treat. It’s a hard to swallow, rather bitter, but necessary pill. It will cast a spell on you and haunt you, for it promises to leave a mark. Here’s to all the late-night binge-watching and WhatsApp groups I bombarded with plot twists. I hope we can have all this and more for future Pakistani series. Here’s to a digital revolution!
So, have you watched Churails? Are you a fan? Do you have anything else to say? Sound off in the comments below.
