Pehchaan

Story of the Drama

Below is the episode-wise story of the drama ‘Pehchaan’. First, let’s look at the characters played by the cast:

Pehchaan – Cast & Characters

• Hiba Bukhari as Sharmeen aka Kuki 
• Syed Jibran as Adnan (Sharmeen’s husband) 
• Aina Asif as Hamna (Sharmeen’s daughter)
• Syed Mohammed Ahmed as Fahad (Adnan’s father)
• Sajida Syed as Nafeesa (Adnan’s mother)
• Nadia Hussain as Shaheena (Adnan’s sister)
• Aadi Khan as Umer (Shaheena’s son)
• Qavi Khan as Sharmeen’s father
• Huma Nawab as Sharmeen’s mother
• Nadia Khan as Safeena (Sharmeen’s aunt)
• Sadaf Aashan as Saba (Sharmeen’s sister)
• Sohail Sameer as Haider (Sharmeen’s brother)
• Hajra Khan as Fariha (Haider’s wife)
• Anoosheh Rania Khan as Faryal (Haider and Fariha’s daughter)
• Mirza Zain Baig as Aziz
• Anaya Khan as Nargis (Aziz’s sister)
• Syeda Tuba Aamir as Aziz’s fiance
• Eshal Fayyaz as Kehkashan
• Diya Mughal as Hina
• Usman Mazhar as Hameed
• Shakeeb Anwar
• Salma Asim
• Noor ul Hassan
• Ahmed Usman
• Khwaja Naeem Haq
• Faizan Khan
• Birjees Farooqui
• Arshad Ghori

Episode 1

Air Date: 09-Jun-2022

The episode starts with Sharmeen aka Kuki reminiscing her old times when she was a carefree girl, full of life. In the present, she is a married woman and a mother of two grown-up kids, Fahad and Hamna, leading a luxurious life abroad with her husband, Adnan. Despite her peaceful life, Sharmeen is always lost and seems discontent. Adnan’s father is pretty satisfied with his daughter-in-law and doesn’t miss a chance to appreciate her but his mother Nafeesa favors Adnan more than Kuki. Adnan’s sister, Shaheena lives at her parents’ house along with her son, Umer who is interested in Hamna. Shaheena is desperately waiting to hitch Umer with Hamna once Kuki returns to Pakistan. Kuki is all set to visit Pakistan alone but keeps talking vaguely to her husband that she might not return back. Adnan who has become totally dependent on Kuki assures her that nothing unfortunate will happen and that she will safely come back.

Episode 2

Air Date: 10-Jun-2022

Before leaving, Kuki bids farewell to her children and husband. Meanwhile, in Pakistan, her parents, siblings, and in-laws are desperately waiting for her arrival. Shaheena arrives at the airport to pick Kuki up only to discover that she is nowhere to be found. The news of Kuki going missing spreads like wildfire in her family, leaving everyone concerned. Adnan loses his sleep and feels helpless as he can do nothing from afar. Shaheena sends Umer to the civil aviation office to enquire about Kuki where he scans through the CCTV footage only to find Kuki interacting with a guy informally. While Nafeesa and Shaheena curse Kuki for being characterless, Adnan and his father are unable to believe it. Adnan insists on Shaheena to report a missing complaint about Kuki but Shaheena refuses. Kuki’s elder sister, Hina who has always envied Kuki takes the opportunity to badmouth her, infuriating her parents who are not ready to listen to a word against their beloved daughter. 

Episode 3

Air Date: 16-Jun-2022

Shaheena enquires Adnan about his relationship with Kuki to find a reason for Kuki’s betrayal. Adnan assures his sister that the two of them were leading a wonderful life in Istanbul and that he is clueless why Kuki took such a bold step. He then seeks help from his police friend who immediately hires an undercover detective, Dilshad, to look for Sharmeen. After going through the CCTV footage, Dilshad arrives at Kuki’s parents’ house to investigate her past. It turns out that Kuki’s parents married her off at a really young age on the very second proposal after they rejected the first proposal for Kuki that came from their neighbor, Aziz Waqar. Dilshad discovers that the guy in the CCTV footage is none other than Aziz. When Adnan is informed about the development, he goes straight to Kuki’s best friend, Nargis’s house who happens to be Aziz’s sister to inquire about her loafer brother. But he fails to get any information and decides to fly to Pakistan.

Episode 4

Air Date: 17-Jun-2022

Adnan arrives in Pakistan and can’t stop thinking about his time with Kuki. His family greets him sadly as he expresses his hopelessness and misery to them. The entire family tries to keep his spirits high but to no avail. A flashback scene reveals that Kuki once invited Nargis and Aziz to her house in Istanbul. Adnan minds seeing Aziz and Kuki informally interacting with each other and asks Kuki to abstain from meeting or inviting her friends again. Kuki does not resist herself and argues with her husband for not respecting her choices despite the fact that she never questioned Adnan’s choices. Adnan goes to meet Aziz and inquire about Kuki but is puzzled to find that he is unaware of her. When Adnan alleges him for keeping Kuki hidden, Aziz tells Adnan that he is soon getting married to someone else.

Episode 5

Air Date: 23-Jun-2022

Fahad breaks into tears as he longs for his mother so Hamna assures him that their father will definitely bring her back. After being missing for four days, Kuki finally arrives at her home. Her brother, Haider enquires her where she was but Kuki does not utter a single word, scaring her entire family with her strange behavior. While everyone is worried about Kuki’s silence, Haider’s materialistic wife, Fariha can’t stop thinking about where Kuki’s luggage is. When Adnan is informed about Kuki’s arrival, he rushes to the house to meet her. However, she refuses to meet him and asks Haider to convey a message to Adnan to send her the divorce papers. Adnan questions Kuki’s parents if Kuki was married to him with her consent. A flashback scene reveals that when Adnan’s parents brought his proposal to Kuki, she was pleased and overjoyed to marry a guy who lives abroad. 

Episode 6

Air Date: 24-Jun-2022

Adnan loses his mind after knowing the divorce demand. He begs Kuki to think about their children but she is bent on her decision and turns a deaf ear to him. Adnan’s family can’t stop cursing Kuki and feel pity for Adnan and his children. Hamna is worried about her mother’s edgy attitude and talks with Umer only to find out that her parents are separating. Like Adnan’s family, Kuki’s mother and children also suspect that there is another man in her life for whom she is ready to give up everything and Kuki is flabbergasted to know this. Upon Adnan’s insistence, Hamna calls Kuki and threatens to leave her forever if she gets a divorce. Kuki is heartbroken after seeing her family turn against her since they can no longer demand her for expensive gifts and favors. Adnan’s parents arrive to meet Kuki and solve the matter. Kuki openly announces that she can no longer live with Adnan and shows no concern for her children. 

Episode 7

Air Date: 30-Jun-2022

Kuki’s eldest sister, Saba is worried that her daughter, Feroza’s upcoming wedding will be thwarted due to Kuki’s immature stubbornness. She begs Kuki not to make a spectacle out of herself and her family but Kuki does not relent. Adnan’s father, Fahad, and his sister, Shaheena suggest Adnan handle the situation with patience and not take any abrupt steps. Seeing Kuki’s disoriented behavior, Fariha suspects that someone cast black magic on Kuki out of jealousy. Her daughter, Faryal loves Kuki dearly and politely asks her where she was when she went missing. A flashback scene reveals that when Kuki landed in Pakistan, she had a brief encounter with Aziz at the airport who tried flirting with her. After that, Kuki went to her aunt Safeena’s house. Safeena is Kuki’s unmarried paternal aunt who was abandoned by her family because she wanted to live a desireful life. She lives alone in her father’s house and suffers from poverty.

Episode 8

Air Date: 01-Jul-2022

Hina’s overbearing and abusive husband, Hameed treats her as a slave and keeps taunting her for not giving him children. Kuki remembers the time when she was a teenage girl and always aspired to marry a man who lives abroad. It is revealed that Kuki refused Aziz’s advances when he confessed his love to her as she thought of him as a dull, ordinary man. Adnan can’t stop thinking about Kuki’s association with Aziz. In his fury, he approaches Aziz and threatens to kill him if he does not stop influencing Kuki. Aziz is clueless about the situation and makes it clear that his one-sided feelings for Sharmeen have ended long ago. After finding out that Kuki went to Safeena, her mother starts believing that Safeena is influencing Kuki into destroying her marriage to avenge her brother. So, she asks her husband to go meet Safeena and retrieve any kind of information that Kuki might have relayed to her.

Episode 9

Air Date: 07-Jul-2022

Adnan’s parents regret not letting their son marry the girl of his choice. A flashback scene reveals that Adnan liked a girl named Kehkashan for many years but his father disapproved of her since she belonged to a family of landlords. Adnan’s mother convinced her husband to fulfill Adnan’s wish and after much hassle, he agreed to meet Kehkashan’s family. Kehkashan’s father turned out to be an uncivil and mannerless man who harshly humiliated Adnan and his family. Later, despite Adnan’s reluctance, his family forced him to marry Kuki. In the present, tensions keep rising among Adnan and his children as they are unable to figure out the reason behind Kuki’s resentment. Kuki’s father is filled with remorse for leaving his sister Safeena alone and fears that Haider will do the same to Kuki. Adnan decides to leave Kuki on her own and return to Istanbul for his work and children. 

Episode 10

Air Date: 08-Jul-2022

Adnan’s father suspects that Adnan might still be in contact with Kehkashan which is why Kuki has decided to leave him. When he confronts Adnan about it, he straightaway denies all his suspicions. Kuki regrets not completing her studies while she was young due to which she cannot land a decent job. While everyone in the family bashes Kuki for her recklessness and accuses her of having an affair, her father sides with her and disapproves of all the suspicions against her. Before leaving, Adnan tries one last time to convince Kuki and bring her back home but she is bent on her decision of separating and refuses to go with him. Adnan is enraged and declares that he will never divorce Kuki and will also keep his children away from her forever.

Episode 11

Air Date: 14-Jul-2022

Out of remorse, Kuki’s father goes to see his sister after decades. Safeena is astonished to see him and welcomes him with a heavy heart. The brother-sister duo spends some quality time together reminiscing about their childhood moments. Kuki keeps talking to Faryal about how she suffered her entire life with an identity crisis and that her life always revolved around her husband and her children. A flashback scene reveals that when she went to see Safeena, both went for outings and lived their untapped fantasies together. It turns out that Kuki has been deeply wounded as Adnan never appreciated or complimented her on any of her virtues. Later, Safeena visited her childhood friend’s house with Kuki only to discover that her friend has passed away two years ago. Dejected, she returned home and told Kuki that she is left all alone and will have no one to attend her funeral. 

Episode 12

Air Date: 15-Jul-2022

Safeena pushed Kuki away from her as she did not want Kuki living under her ill-fated shadow. Before leaving, Kuki gave all the gifts that she brought from Istanbul to Safeena and the neighbors’ kids who help Safeena with daily chores. Back in the present, Kuki’s sisters’ opinions for her keep echoing in Kuki’s head, driving her crazy. When Kuki’s father returns home after meeting Safeena, his wife lashes out at him for visiting his sister discreetly. Fariha asks Haider to send Kuki away to her house or else she will become a forever burden for them. Kuki’s children beg her to let them know the reason for her resentment but Kuki fails to explain anything. A flashback scene reveals that on Kuki’s wedding night, Adnan completely ignored her as he was drunk and mourning over losing the love of his life. 

Episode 13

Air Date: 21-Jul-2022

A flashback scene reveals that Adnan had an extramarital affair with Kehkashan and he kept oppressing Kuki to cover up his sins. Kuki always kept up a happy face to assure her family that she is satisfied with her marriage. In the present, when Hamna finds out that Adnan was unable to convince Kuki, she rebukes her mother for being selfish. Aziz reminisces about the time when he liked Kuki and couldn’t wait to marry her. To rectify his mistake, Kuki’s father proposes to his wife to bring Safeena back home, earning his wife’s resentment. Aziz calls Kuki and invites her to meet his fiancé. Before going to the airport, Adnan decides to convince Kuki one last time. He follows her to the restaurant and is enraged to see her with Aziz. Aziz tries to mend things between Adnan and Kuki but Kuki asks him not to interfere in her personal matter.

Episode 14

Air Date: 22-Jul-2022

Kuki is bent on her decision of disassociating herself from Adnan and informs him that she will file for divorce in court. Haider is exasperated by Kuki’s odd behavior and asks his mother to kick her out of the house. Fariha informs Saba that Kuki is madly in love with Aziz and is ruining her marriage for him. She also distances Faryal from Kuki to keep her daughter away from Kuki’s “bad” influence. Furious, Adnan flies back to Turkey and hesitates to answer Hamna’s increasing questions. Hamna calls her mother and bashes her for being involved with another man, leaving Kuki dazed. Hameed finds out about the development and criticizes Hina for her sister’s shamelessness. When Hina argues and tries to defend Kuki, Hameed shuts her off by calling her infertile. Kuki regrets being in a toxic relationship for so long and is determined to take a stand for herself. 

Episode 15

Air Date: 28-Jul-2022

Adnan reminisces about the time he spent with Kehkashan whom he called Kuki. It is revealed that when Adnan left for Turkey after his marriage, Kehkashan waited for him for a long time. However, he failed to keep his promise to come back and marry her after which Kehkashan’s father married her off, severing her ties with Adnan. Saba warns her mother that she will not spare Kuki if her actions hinder her daughter’s wedding. Adnan suspects that Kuki might have discovered his secret affair which is why she is retaliating. Meanwhile, Kuki goes to meet Safeena to vent out her overwhelming emotions. She remembers the time when Adnan gave her the name Kuki on their wedding night and she was too naïve to figure out that Kuki was his lover’s nickname. Kuki’s entire family holds a meeting to decide the fate of Kuki’s marriage, suffocating Kuki and forcing her to leave the house once and for all.

Episode 16

Air Date: 29-Jul-2022

Adnan’s cold attitude and neglect towards Kuki have made her stonehearted that she no longer cares about the sentiments of her family or children. She goes to live with Safeena who berates her for ruining her marriage. Shaheena arrives at Safeena’s house, asking Kuki the reason behind her anger. Kuki refuses to answer any questions and brushes her off by saying that she has finally come to her senses and realized that Adnan never loved her. Fariha doesn’t miss a chance to curse Kuki after seeing her daughter turn against her. Kuki’s father goes to make amends with Kuki but she refuses to come back home and makes it clear that she needs free space to breathe. Safeena tries to explain to her that loneliness is the worst kind of pain to endure and suggests she mend her relations with Adnan but to no avail.

Episode 17

Air Date: 04-Aug-2022

Kuki lands an ordinary teaching job in the street based on her international passport. Adnan can’t wrap his head around the fact that Kuki has returned his money and is living with her aunt who barely can afford two meals a day. In his rage, he calls Haider and demands he bring Kuki back home. This angers Haider and he blames his parents for spoiling Kuki. When Haider fails to comply, Adnan forces Shaheena to bring Kuki back home. A month before Feroza’s marriage, her prospective mother-in-law passes away, postponing her marriage further. Adnan’s mother insists on sending Hamna to Pakistan as she fears that Hamna will certainly follow in her mother’s footsteps. A flashback scene reveals that after Adnan found out that Kuki is pregnant, his behavior toward her instantly changed and he took her to Turkey to take good care of her. 

Episode 18

Air Date: 05-Aug-2022

Aziz summons his sister Nargis to Pakistan, requesting her to halt his wedding. Haider and his parents arrive at Safeena’s house to take Kuki back but she relentlessly refuses. Just then, Aziz and Nargis make an appearance, confirming Kuki’s family’s suspicions about her. Nargis informs Kuki that Aziz made the decision to marry after seeing her happy in Turkey. However, now that she is on the verge of ruin, he is still ready to marry her. This enrages Kuki and she bursts onto everyone like a volcano, begging them to let her live life her own way. Haider feels guilty after seeing Safeena and Kuki living alone in an ordinary neighborhood. Kuki feels exasperated after experiencing the difficulties of living in Pakistan such as load shedding, harsh weather, and pollution. Nafeesa threatens Kuki’s mother that she will remarry Adnan once he sends Hamna to Pakistan. 

Episode 19

Air Date: 11-Aug-2022

Fariha informs Kuki that Adnan is planning to remarry, fuelling her already burning existence. Safeena consoles Kuki after seeing her lamenting over her doomed fate. Haider calls Adnan, asking him to return to Pakistan and sort out his matter before marrying someone else. Clueless, Adnan fumes with anger after finding out that his mother has spread false rumors. Kuki’s heart aches remembering the time she spent with her children. She tries to reach them but they refuse to speak to her, giving her space. Seeing Safeena worried about paying the house bills, Kuki goes to a jewelry shop to sell her jewelry. Used to living the deluxe life, she falls sick after consuming contaminated tap water. Shaheena remembers the time Kuki backed her when she got widowed and suggests going to see Kuki. Hamna becomes precocious and resents her father for neglecting Kuki and being insensitive to her. 

Episode 20

Air Date: 12-Aug-2022

Despite being sick, Kuki goes to school to fulfill her duty faithfully. However, she gets a reality check after the principal chides her for her average performance. Meanwhile, Adnan’s family arrives at Safeena’s house to meet Kuki and are angered to discover that she is on her job. Nafeesa alleges Safeena for exploiting Kuki and using her for her own benefit. When Kuki finds out about the allegation, she becomes even more determined to sever her ties with her in-laws by filing for divorce. Adnan faces difficulty looking after Hamna and Fahad alone. Seeing him bewildered, his friend makes him realize that his lack of appreciation and sensitivity toward Kuki made her rebellious. Hamna threatens her father that she will leave the house if he does not bring her mother back home. When Adnan refuses to take any action, she calls Kuki and begs her to come back but to no avail.

Episode 21

Air Date: 18-Aug-2022

Adnan fumes at his mother after finding out that she insulted Safeena. This infuriates his father who berates Adnan for being a disappointment to the family. Seeing his family falling apart, Adnan realizes that he has failed to become an obedient son, a loyal husband, and a compassionate father. Hamna fathoms that her father is at fault which is why Kuki is resentful. She decides to detach herself from Adnan to make him realize his mistake. Aziz calls off his engagement with his fiancé, earning her resentment. Kuki gets fired from her job and experiences hardship finding another job. After running around school to school, she eventually lands a job as an assistant teacher at a negligible salary. This prompts her to start a home-based cooking business along with pursuing her job. Fariha informs Adnan about Kuki’s plan to file for divorce through the court. 

Episode 22

Air Date: 19-Aug-2022

To accumulate funds for the startup, Kuki asks Haider to return the money he loaned from her once. Haider fears that if Kuki becomes successful, she will never return back to Adnan. When he does not respond with a promising answer, Kuki goes to meet Aziz and trades her jewelry in exchange for cash. Aziz promises to support her in her endeavor by marketing her food business. Adnan runs into Kehkashan in a mall and is surprised to see her after many years. While Kehkashan can’t stop thinking about him, Adnan is worried to see his children drifting away from him. Soon enough, Kuki lands a huge order and she expands her team to fulfill the order. Haider learns that Fariha incited Adnan against Kuki. In his fury, he threatens to divorce her if Kuki’s marriage is ruined. Hamna demands Adnan send her and Fahad to Pakistan as they wish to live with their mother.

Episode 23

Air Date: 25-Aug-2022

A flashback scene reveals that a few months ago, Kehkashan called Adnan to meet her. Keeping it a secret from Kuki, Adnan went to see her where she revealed that she got divorced as her husband found out about her failed love story. Although he himself was a flirt and had many affairs, his male ego couldn’t swallow the fact that his wife had a past relationship. Kehkashan showed advances to come back into Adnan’s life but he completely ignored her. In the present, Kuki’s mother realizes that she treated Safeena unjustly and decides to bring her back home. When she and Haider arrive at Safeena’s house, their jaw drops seeing that Kuki has turned Safeena’s life around with her successful business. The news of Kuki’s flourishing business reaches Hamid and he restricts Huma from keeping any ties with her sister, fearful that she might get inspired by her and follow in her footsteps.

Episode 24

Air Date: 26-Aug-2022

Adnan remembers the time when Kehkashan proposed to him a few months ago but he rejected her proposal, making it clear that he loves his wife and wants to stay loyal to her. Fariha wishes Haider had given Kuki the money when she asked for it. This way she would be indebted to him instead of Aziz. Kuki’s father decides to support Kuki in her decision. He repeatedly asks her to explain what Adnan did to her. She does not reveal the truth, thinking that it is useless to cry over spilled milk. Adnan is disturbed to see Fahad’s strange behavior toward him. Seeing him concerned, Hamna begs him to apologize to Kuki and bring her back. Kuki reveals to Safeena that before she came to Pakistan, Kehkashan met her and told her everything about her relationship with Adnan, implying that Kuki will always be an unwanted person in his life.

Episode 25

Air Date: 01-Sep-2022

When Kehkashan met Kuki, she got under her skin and made her realize that she is merely her substitute for Adnan. This shattered Kuki’s heart into a million pieces and all her happy memories with Adnan started looking like a delusion to her. After the great revelation, Safeena suggests Kuki forget the past and think about her children’s future but Kuki makes it clear that she has made peace with the fact that her children will get over her decision one day. Adnan figures out that Kehkashan must be the one who brainwashed Kuki. In his rage, he rejects her, warning her to stay away from him and his family. To make amends, he flies to Pakistan and reveals to his family that Kuki is innocent and that he is the reason behind all the chaos. He then goes to Kuki and apologizes to her for his mistake. She refuses to accept his apology and forbids him from calling her “Kuki.”

Episode 26 (Last Episode)

Air Date: 02-Sep-2022

Adnan starts living at Safeena’s house until Sharmeen accepts his apology. He feels proud to see his wife turned into a strong and independent businesswoman who has built her own identity without anyone’s help. Adnan explains to her that although Kehkashan was his first love, he soon got over her and fell in love with his wife. Huma fumes with anger after discovering Hamid’s medical report in which he is diagnosed with an infertility disorder. She confronts him about it along with divorce papers and berates him for destroying her self-respect just to keep his fake manliness alive. Sharmeen’s heart melts after she overhears Adnan speaking to Kehkashan over the phone and expressing his hate for her. She feels relieved and the duo finally patches up. They fly back to Turkey after handing over the food business to Safeena and the family reunites. Aziz also moves on and the drama ends with Adnan and Sharmeen attending the former’s wedding in Pakistan.