Is Phaans The Whodunit We All Have Been Waiting For?

A crime has been committed and there are many suspects … who has committed the deed, ‘if’ there was a crime!
Published 07 Mar, 2021 07:37am

Saturdays might never be the same with Phaans coming into our lives just as the action-packed Mushk left; like its predecessor, the drama brings with it an air of suspense that keeps the viewers intrigued about a crime that might have or might not have been committed.

The plot revolves around a girl named Zeba (Zara Noor Abbas) who was assaulted when she went to meet her fiancé on the latter’s insistence. Was it the fiancé who committed the act, or the other male members of the house where she was staying with her mother for the wedding of the employer’s daughter? Let’s find out who the suspects are and how those associated with them could affect the investigation.

Sami Khan (Samad)

It was at one of his wedding functions that the heinous act was committed; everyone suspects him because it was the front pocket of his kurta that was torn off, and was found in the hands of the victim after she returned in a semi-conscious state from outside. However, Samad maintains his innocence and even visits the hospital to check on the victim, twice. A person who commits such an act doesn’t do that, does he? The girl’s mother, sister, and his own fiancée (who calls off the engagement) suspect him but the rest of the people don’t. In fact, he was shown running after someone who had distracted him while he was talking on the phone, and he recognized that person when he met him. What goes against him is the fact that he was the last person to enter the house before the victim and since he was the groom, he was supposed to stay inside with the rest of the people.

Zain Afzal (Hashim)

It wouldn’t be a surprise if he is found guilty of committing the crime; it was he who called his fiancée and asked her to meet him in an abandoned location. Also, Samad recognized him at the hospital as the person who was running away from the house, when the rest of them were sort of sympathizing with him. When his mother asked him where he was – first at home and later at the hospital – he couldn’t give a direct reply, and while his first answer was in anger, his second was confusing. He claims that he was innocent but hasn’t told anyone the truth, not even his own mother who is also the aunt and the future mother-in-law of the victim. The police would believe the rich and not someone like Hashim who was at the wrong place at the wrong time, with the wrong intentions. Did he do it or didn’t he, that’s something which will be revealed to the viewers in the coming weeks.

Ali Tahir (Siraj)

With his crooked history, it is a surprise that no one has suspected Siraj as the person who had abducted the victim and violated her. He is shown to be a violent person in flashbacks, and his wife blames him for his son’s condition. However, when he came inside to find the victim unconscious, he dismissed the whole thing as a ‘charade’, prompting his wife to suspect him of being involved in the matter. His comforting dialogues to Samad also added suspicion to the situation because he seems to know more about the incident than the rest. It isn’t clear if he is involved or not but with his connections, his wealth, and his previous record, he couldn’t be written off at all. After all, he was the last person to see the victim before she left the house, and did act suspiciously when the two had a near collision inside the house. Why was he snooping around in the servant quarter does make him suspicious, but then it is his house, and he can be anywhere he wants!

Shahzad Sheikh (Sahil)

The victim might have pointed her fingers at Sahil but he seems to be the last person who could qualify as a suspect. Not only does he suffer from a mental disorder, but he is also unable to handle his toys let alone force himself on a human being. Also, his reaction after being accused by the victim seemed genuine enough for the doctors to administer medicines, and that makes him least likely to commit the act. Also, he was friendly with the victim, whose own mother claims that he was inside when the victim was roaming outside. The accident happened at one of the wedding functions of Sahil’s sister but he, even after seeing everything from his own eyes, wasn’t able to understand what had happened and asked for the house help the next morning as if nothing had happened. His sisters were there to comfort her but his father was always sending him back to his room, for he thought that the least he knows the better. After all, someone with Spider-Man bedsheets and pillow covers couldn’t have acted as the Green Goblin, right?

Zara Noor Abbas (Zeba)

She might be the daughter of the house’s maidservant but she is her own person who has dreams, in pursuit of which she is studying hard. Her studies are the reason why she catches Samad’s attention who promises to help her with notes and wishes her the best of luck. Little did she know that their acquaintance would make the to-be-bride jealous and she would even talk to her fiancé about it! After all, he is shown to be a little attentive to beautiful ladies and there was no one more attractive than Zeba in the whole house. Yes, she was guilty of listening to her own fiancé and leaving the house without informing anyone, but that doesn’t justify the fact that she was violated and left helpless. She claims that it was Sahil who had committed the act but no one including her own sister believes her, for she thinks that her elder sister is trying to defend Samad or Hashim. While the doctor (in collaboration with the police) declared her a hysteria patient, her mother supports her only until the whole family is locked in the basement of the very house where her mother had worked for so many years.

The Girls

And then there are the girls, some of whom even act like Sherlock Holmes, wanting to both solve the mystery and clear the name of their loved ones! Everyone has a different point of view – while Nadia (Arjumand Rahim) wants to get the matter resolved as quietly as possible, her housemaid Shakila (Kinza Malik) wants to see justice prevail; Hafsa (Yashma Gill) suspects her fiancé who is also the son of her mother’s friend Saba (Mariam Mirza), and calls of the engagement in anger, for she believes that he showed interest in the victim, an allegation he rejects. The groom’s mother feels that she and her son were disrespected by his future in-laws and wants him to forget about Hafsa, but he wants to know the truth. The victim’s sister (Hira Khan) however, has something else on her mind for she believes that this is the best time to snatch her sister’s fiancé who is more of her stature than her studious sibling, and if the story steers in that direction, it would be a horrid choice.