Khuda Mera Bhi Hai (God is Mine Too)

This drama’s storyline was about something that had never been shown to Pakistani television viewers before.

Khuda Mera Bhi Hai is centered around a young, rich couple, Mahagul (Ayesha Khan) and Zain (Syed Jibran) who end up having a baby who is neither, male nor female. In a normal world, we call them transgenders or intersex children, however, in Pakistan, they are usually given a provocative term, a ‘Hijra’ which no one ever wants to hear themselves be called since they consider it an abuse. They are often looked down upon and are considered worthless and incapable to live a normal life. It is a shame how in this day and age, they are still not considered to be humans in the Pakistani society or in any Asian society for that matter and this is what this drama is all about. It shows how one mother tries to change this and goes against all odds to give her child, Noor (Furqan Qureshi), a normal life despite her mother-in-law and husband as well as the society being against it. They find it a better idea for the child to be sent to where all the rest of the ‘Hijras’ are as they are ‘good-for-nothing’ and ‘all they can do is sing and dance for money.’ Unfortunately, this perception is still alive and the only reason for this type of discrimination is the way people have been brainwashed from an early age that a transgender person is not normal and needs to be kept away from ‘normal’ people.

This drama showed a different side to transgenders rather than the typical stereotypical ones in Pakistan (where they are singing, dancing and asking for money on the roads). It showed that they can also live regular life, if given a chance.

What extreme actions does Mahagul take? How does Noor feel about being ‘different?’ What does the future have in store for both of them? You will need to watch the drama to find out.

A strong independent mother from a rich family, bringing up a transgender child is something that has never been shown in any drama before which is why this drama caught my attention and drew me to watch it. I was really eager to see how this story unfolds as I wanted to see, whether the mother would support the child all the way through or would she end up giving up eventually.

I loved the fact that this drama showed that not everyone thinks wrongly about these people. Mahagul was quite lucky that she had a good support system around her and was not completely alone in this challenge. Her mother was one of her biggest supporters when it came to her decision to raise the child on her own. Her best friend, even her brother-in-law and father in law were quite supportive.

I want to give credit to everyone who was a part of this drama, however, I want to give a special mention to three main people who really stood out for me.

Ayesha Khan is a well-established actress in the drama industry and has even ventured into movies quite recently. I have always considered her a very talented and amazing actress. Her character of a strong yet vulnerable independent woman really stood out to me and it felt that she was really living the character. This made me feel that I was also part of her challenges and felt all the emotions that she was going through in each episode. Not many actors can do that and not many people can play this character with such ease.

Alyy Khan is also worth a mention. He played the role of Mikaeel, which I really loved. Many of Alyy Khan’s work that I have seen shows his character to be quite strong, ruthless and usually of a grey shade, however, this role was like a breath of fresh air for me as he played the caring, supportive and loving friend to Maha Gul and he was seen as a father figure in Noor's eyes as well as his biggest role model.

Last but not the least, my most favourite character in the drama. Noor, which was played by Furqan Qureshi. I really did not expect him to play such a hard role with such ease. I love the way they portrayed his character where he acted like a completely regular 20-something person without making him act too feminine in an over-exaggerated manner unlike in other dramas where they are shown acting like the stereotypical intersex people. He was educated and well mannered, however, had a lot of emotions which made him weak and this was due to his father not accepting him as his child. You could really empathise with the character. Furqan Qureshi brought tears to my eyes with his acting and I hope he goes really far because he is extremely talented.

Everyone else in the drama was also extremely amazing and I would like to give a special mention to Adnan Shah Tipu who played the role of transgender who is given a decent job and support by Maha Gul. His powerful acting really blew me away and his relationship with Maha Gul and Noor was so endearing.

Lastly, I would like to commend the brave storyline that the producers and director decided to bring into light to the Pakistani viewers. I really do hope that this drama brings some kind of positive change amongst the Asian society and are more accepting towards not only transgender people but everyone who is not considered ‘normal’ in their eyes.

Rating: 8/10

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