Baydardi (Cruelty)

What would you do if you discovered that your son or daughter has HIV/AIDS? Hopefully not what this mother did.

This drama must be one of the only Pakistani dramas that has addressed this topic in a central way. It has been touched upon in dramas before but only very briefly.

The title of the drama (which means Cruelty) really does live up to its name in the form of the mother’s role who does whatever she can to erase the blame and so-called shame from her son, Shafay (Affan Waheed).

Shafay ends up contracting HIV/AIDS from a university room mate, Rohail after they end up sharing the same razor without any of them knowing during the time that Rohail has the deadly disease.

The mother, Memona (Bushra Ansari), ends up finding out about her son's diagnosis before him, after she reads his medical report and ends up creating a plan which involves Biya (Aiman Khan), the love of Shafay's life. In Memona's eyes, it looks harmless as she is blinded by motherly love for her son, however, she does not realise how much of an impact this is going to create in so many people's lives.

The fact that although she knows how this disease can be contracted, the drama shows that herself and other people think this is the ONLY way of getting it when in fact there can be other factors aswell, as this story shows. Had she had been more educated and aware of the disease, she might not have gone through such extreme measures to protect Shafay, the way she ended up doing.

Personally, the ending disappointed me and I was not satisfied with Memona's outcome, however, the way everyone acted and the way this topic was portrayed, this is a must watch for sure.

Considering how much of a sensitive and taboo subject this is in Pakistan, the drama actually did fairly well and was one of the most popular dramas of 2018.

Rating: 8/10

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