In a world where #metoo has become a global phenomenon, allegations of sexual harassments are not new. Some are legit, some are cooked up, and there’s no way to find the right from wrong.

Dunk is one such drama.

Dunk (Sting) is a Pakistani drama serial that premiered on ARY Digital in December 2020. It deals with the false allegations of harassment.
The serial is been written by Mohsin Ali and directed by Badar Mehmood, the duo who previously collaborated for Ishqiya. Since I’ve watched Ishqiya, I can say that it will stretch the plot as elastic until it becomes plastic. And, it will be repetitive. Look at Shehnai, Ishqiya and all the other drama. Being repetitive is ARY speciality.

Producers: Dr. Ali Kazmi & Fahad Mustafa
Production company: Big Bang Entertainment
Distributor: ARY Digital Network

This drama revolves around four families – the Nawaz family, the Faraz family, the Humayun family, the college found family and legal system. Let’s meet the cast and the characters, shall we?

Cast & Characters

Nawaz Family

Bilal Abbas Khan as Haider Nawaz

The protagonist

Shahood Alvi as Nawaz

Haider’s father

Laila Wasti as Saba Nawaz

Haider’s mother

Azekah Daniel as Minal

Haider’s wife

Fahad Shaikh as Safeer Nawaz

Haider’s brother

Faraz Family

Sana Javed as Amal Faraz

The antogonist

Saife Hassan as Faraz

Amal’s father, Nawaz’s younger brother, Haider’s uncle. He commits suicide in the last episode.

Salma Hassan as Mahnoor Faraz

Faraz’s wife, Amal’s mother

Kanwal Khan as Maha Faraz

Amal’s younger sister

Gul-e-Rana as Aapa Bi

Nawaz and Faraz’s elder sister, Haider and Amal’s phupho

Humayun Family

Noman Ijaz as Professer Humayun

The victim of false sexual harasment allegations

Yasra Rizvi as Saira

Humayun’s wife

College’s found family

Annie Zaidi as Vice Chancellor

Professor Humayun’s colleague

Tara Mahmood as Professor Anjum

Professor Humayun’s colleague

Khalid Zafar as Professor

Professor Humayun’s colleague

Faheema Awan

Minal’s Sister in law

Legal System

Rashid Farooqui

Amal’s lawyer

Usman bashir

Honorable Judge

Review

There are some dramas that I “watch” watch, and some that I just take a cursory glance at. Balaa and Dunk are too such dramas. Yesterday, incidentally, I watched the last two episodes of both, and boy are they similar.

In both, Bilal Abbas’s characters go to all lengths to avenge what has happened to him and his family. Anyway, more about that in the below sections.

Plot Summary

Amal is a stubborn girl who doesn’t hesitate to go to any length to get things done in her favour. Amal falsely accuses Professor Humayun for sexual harassment. The latter can’t handle the societal pressure and commits suicide. Later, Haider realizes that Amal isn’t the ideal fiancée and life partner. He married Minal, and the fight now engulfs all the families. 

As the story progresses, more and more people learn about Amal’s false allegations. Haider stands by Saira to fight for justice for professor Humayun. 

The last episode, however, brings everything to a conclusion. It might not be the perfect ending and some scenes looked out of place, but it was alright. 

Review Written update and review and rant

So, by now, Haider has realized that ghee tedhi ungli se niklega. He asks Amal to come and meet her. Scared by his aggressive ways, Amal promises that if Haider let’s her go, she will take back all the allegations against everyone. Safeer is recording the whole confession on video. 

When Haider brings Amal home, Faraz admonishes for everything he has done. For Faraz, Amal is the epitome of righteousness and Haider is the epistome of all things bad.

 But then, Haider tells the truth. In her room Amal is fabricating more false stories about Haider as she weeps in front of Maha and Maahnoor.

The next morning, Faraz doesn’t go to court with Amal, saying: “I’ve accepted defeat already.”

Saifi Hassan portrays the perfect image of a defeated father. 

Later, when Aapa Bi foes to Faraz’s room, he’s no more. He has commited suicide. Inna lillah…

In the court room, Amal flips on her words again, and starts a sob story of how Haider had abducted her to blackmail her and take her allegations back. Haider then shows the same evidence that he showed to Faraz. 

Amal and her lawyer still won’t back down, but Maahnoor comes to court to announce that Faraz has killed himself because of Amal. After a loud and dragged scene, Amal accepts everything. So, it’s not the proof that Haider brought won Humayun case. It was her father’s death. She’s sent to prison for ten years and some monetary penalties. 

Nawaz and Saba reconcile, Nawaz and Haider reconcile, Haider and safeer reconcile, Nawaz family and Faraz family reconcile. There’s a lot of reconciliation.

And they live happily ever after.

Parting Thoughts

We already live in a toxic society with questionable morals. Showing such dramas might just give people more ideas.

True, both genders suffer from sexual harassment. Agreed, both genders are falsely accused of sexual harassment, but there’s a difference.

Very few men are harassed in general, and very few false allegations are made.

Women, on the other hand, face harassment so frequently that it feels like a part of routine. 

I saw Usman Mukhtar’s post the other day where he shares his story of how some woman is harassing him. I feel for him, and I feel for all the men like him, but these stories should only be part of real life. We don’t want to see more cringe on our screens. 

I think we didn’t need this drama, especially how it was stretched and moved in circles in the middle. 

Anywho! 

I’m glad that I didn’t follow this one very religiously.

Off to something that will cheer me up.

Signing off…

Shabana Mukhtar