Negotiating Moral Responsibility: The Justifiability of Falak, Mansha, and Taseer in the Pakistani Drama Jaanum

Abstract

In the Pakistani TV serial drama, problems of morality, gender, trust, individual agency and responsibility are frequently dealt with in the context of domestic relations. The film Jaanum directed by Owais Khan stands out as Fatima Shahid's debut film. Fatima Shahid's Jaanum can be considered as the main reason as it shows films that question the basic line up for right and wrong. Initially in the drama, Rizwan Taseer and his wife Falak are a couple whose connection is based on accepting support and trust. When Arif the childhood friend of Taseer returns to the city, seeking monetary and emotional aid, in this equilibrium Taseer tries to provide Arif shelter. Taseer’s balance is upset when Arif, Taseer's childhood friend, returns to the city for money and emotional support and shelter and Taseer extends an invitation to shelter Arif. Arif is seen as a threat to Taseer's's safety and security at home by his wife Falak and he thinks that her attempt to get rid of the haughty, conceited fat Rasheed translates to the icky one is a menace' in Episode 1, Jaanum. In this battle, Mansha plays another crucial role, as she comes to terms with personal autonomy, family expectations and the individuals she interacts with. The present paper is an attempt to talk about Falak, Mansha and Taseer based on differences between the intention, circumstance and knowledge and consequence and the moral justifiability. It says that rather than being totally right or totally wrong, none of the three characters can be characterised in such a way. The perils of suspicion, the morality of generosity toward upsetting one's boundaries, and the struggle to remain an individual in a familial context, all have an element of truth in them in Falak's case. In Mansha's case, the morality behind choosing to be a member of the family without offending family members is equally complicated. Thus, Jaanum brings to fore morality as relational, contextual and contested, not absolute.