Malaal-e-Yaar () is a Pakistani television serial produced by Momina Duraid under MD Productions. Based on the feudal system, it explores the ritual of early settled marriages. The main theme revolves around two persons from opposite backgrounds who hate each other, but eventually fall in love, bounded by a marriage only on paper. It stars Mirza Zain Baig, Azekah Daniel, Zainab Shabbir, Hamza Firdous and Jahanzeb Gorchani in leading roles. It gained local and foreign viewership soon after its first episode went on air.
Plot The story concerns a family of wealthy feudals whose head and heir are orthodox and follow century-old feudal mechanisms. The serial starts with parallel scenes of the protagonists; Balaj and Hooriya. Hooriya is a headstrong young girl living in the metropolitan city of Karachi and pursuing a quality education. She likes wearing Western clothes and rides a bike and is always ready to do any sort of social work. Balaj on the other hand is a feudal boy of a nearby village, where his taya Malik Shahbaz is the head of the district. Balaj's parents died when he was an infant and was raised by his aunt Surraya, Malik Shahbaz's wife. Being under his taya's supervision, Balaj has apparently turned out to be cruel and ill-mannered. He even gave up his studies as education was not valuable for him being the future head of his tribe. Not known to both Balaj and Hooriya is that they have been engaged since childhood, as Hooriya is the daughter of Malik Shahbaz's younger step-brother Malik Wajahat.
Wajahat fell in love with his college-mate Samreen and married her against the wishes of his family. His brother Malik Shahbaz has ever since blamed him for this act and does not give him the due recognition and respect which Wajahat deserves being part of the Malik family. In all matters of decision-making, Balaaj is above Wajahat. Succumbing to his family's pressure, Wajahat had got married for the second time to Saeeda, a girl chosen by his brothers, even when he was a father of two daughters with Samreen. It is told that Samreen had left the haveli of her in-laws when Malik Shahbaz got engaged her eldest daughter Hooriya to his nephew Balaaj when they were just five-year old kids. Not agreeing to this old tradition of early engagements and fearing that Balaj will be as orthodox as his uncle and her daughter will be just like other women of this family having no say and respect in their lives, Samreen left her husband and took her daughters to live a life of seclusion for their better future. Wajahat didn't bring them back for their own betterment but also was not strong enough to go against his brother's decisions. Unknown to his family, Wajahat secretly keeps vigilance of his wife and daughters and sends them financial assistance through his trusted slave Ghulam Din. Samreen has never told her daughters about Hooriya's engagement or about the whereabouts of their paternal family.
Hooriya is in love with her childhood friend Danish who runs a mobile shop. But Danish's mother does not like Hooriya for her boldness and extroversion. Samreen is also not in favor of Danish as she believes that if his mother does not approve of Hooriya then their marriage will not be successful.
One day, after Hooriya gives meal to an old street-seller, he is wounded by Balach's speeding vehicle, engaging him and Hooriya in a verbal brawl. Hooriya makes the wounded man to be put in Balach's car and taken to hospital. In hospital she makes Balach pay all expenses. Balach does this unwillingly and both him and Hooriya curse each other. Hence, from their very first meeting, Balach and Hooriya are at wits end.
Surraya, called Bi Jaan wants her daughter Amber (Maryam Noor) to be married to Balach. Bi Jaan loves Balach as her own son and considers him the best match for her daughter. Amber, unlike Balach is continuing her studies and is in love with her class-fellow Faiq (Faraz Farouqi). But she is hesitant to tell about him to her family as Faiq is from middle-class and she knows that her father will never approve his proposal.
Malik Shahbaz crowns Balach as the head of the panchayat (ignoring Wajahat) and also commits him to his daughter, thinking that Samreen and her daughters will never come back in their lives, so Balach and Hooriya's engagement doesn't exist anymore. Balach obediently agrees to this betrothment as his uncle's decision is the final order for him. Amber though very close to Balaaj as a cousin, is not happy about this engagement. She tells about Faiq to Bi Jaan, but as expected she rejects it knowing that Malik Shahbaz will never accept a son-in-law from a lesser background.
Seeing her husband's longing for his first wife and daughters, Saeeda one day visits Samreen. She asks her to return, to which Samreen refuses and asks her to leave. While leaving Saeeda meets Hooriya and her sister Minhal (Zainab Shabbir). She and Samreen lie to them that Saeeda is an old friend. Saeeda takes their picture for showing it to Wajahat and leaves. When she tells this to Wajahat, his reaction is not what she expects. He scolds her for interfering in his personal life and warns her not to go near his wife and daughters again. Saeeda once again realizes that only Samreen is Wajahat's love and she can never gain his trust.
Balaaj and Hooriya meet for the second time, which is as unfavorable as their first one. Balaaj splashes water on nearby walking Hooriya and Minhal. Hooriya as usual loses her temper and starts cursing Balaaj recognizing him from their previous meeting. Balaaj retaliates but they both are stopped from manhandling by Amber and Minhal.
Danish convinces his mother to ask Hooriya's hand in marriage and she does that reluctantly and they get engaged. Amber tells Faiq about her engagement and distances herself from him. Faiq is heart-broken to know that though he loves Amber but cannot get her due to their status difference. Faiq's mother is angry to know that Amber betrayed her son's loyalty by choosing her rich cousin over him. Danish and Faiq's mothers are relatives. They visit Samreen's place and on seeing Minhal, Faiq's mother immediately likes her for Faiq. They make Faiq and Minhal meet, and Faiq for overcoming Amber's loss, develops interest in Minhal.
Amber on the other hand is still in two minds in marrying Balaj.She asks Balaj to convince her father for delaying their marriage for few months to which he agrees. Amber again approaches Faiq. They both decide to run away. But on the night when Amber is leaving haveli, she is caught by Bi Jaan. After her mother makes her understand the importance of her background and Balaj as her life partner, Amber decides to stay and accepts Balaj as her man. Faiq is waiting for her in his car but when she doesn't turn up, he is again heartbroken on her betrayal.
Preparations start for Balaj and Amber's wedding. In city as well, there is a wedding which Hooriya's family is attending. During celebrations there is shooting in air and Samreen gets shot accidentally. Her condition is critical and the sisters don't have enough money for her surgery. Unwillingly, Hooriya calls Ghulam Din for help. On knowing about the accident, Wajahat arrives at the hospital and meets his daughters for the first time in years. Samreen is saved but she goes into comma. Wajahat decides to take his daughters to his haveli as he cannot leave them alone in the city.
So, Hooriya and Minhal arrive at their paternal house on the eve of Balaj and Amber's mayun ceremony. Except for Saeeda no one is happy to see them. On seeing Saeeda, they recognize her and after inquiring from a servant they get to know that she is in fact their step-mother. This makes them angry and initially they misbehave in response to Saeeda's motherly affection, accusing her of stealing their father from them and making their parents separate (none of them know that their mother actually left their father to prevent Balaj and Hooriya's marriage).
Amber sees Hooriya and Minhal and recognizes them. Balaj and Hooriya also encounter each other and are shocked to learn that they are indeed cousins.
Balaj and Hooriya's further meetings are also bloody ones. Once she is dragged by him with her arm for strolling outside the haveli without a dupatta. The next time he doesn't allow her to have dinner before their taya has arrived at the table. Hooriya starts to hate this household within the first few days of her arrival, primarily because of Balaj's presence and secondly due to the rigid regulations maintained by her taya Malik Shahbaz.
The main twist occurs in the story when Malik Shahbaz decides to marry Balaj to his childhood fiancé' Hooriya as she has now returned to her family. Being a staunch follower of his traditions, Malik Shahbaz doesn't even care about his daughter's happiness, who is about to become Balaj's bride, and gives his final decision to wed Balaj and Hooriya. Balaj on discovering that Hooriya is committed to him since childhood, also agrees to marry her, primarily because he considers Hooriya as his possession being his fiancé and secondly because he wants to somehow bring her under his command as she has always been repulsive towards him. Wajahat as before submits to his brother's command and tells his daughters about Malik Shahbaz's decision. Both Hooriya and Minhal are shocked to learn about Hooriya and Balaj's engagement and more shocked to know that their taya has cancelled his own daughter's marriage. Obviously, Hooriya's response is negative. On the other hand, Amber is shattered about what her parents are doing to her. She retaliates to her mother that she agreed to leave the man she loved for Balaj and now how can they take Balaj from her. Bi Jaan is also helpless. Even Balaj cannot support Amber as he agreed to marry her only because of his taya's orders otherwise, he never had any feelings for her. Balaj admits to Amber that he hates Hooriya but is doing so only on his taya's orders and for fulfilling his family traditions. Amber is heartbroken.
Hooriya and Minhal realize that Saeeda is not pretending to be good to them, in fact she does care for them. She even agrees to help Hooriya out of this turmoil. Saeeda makes a plan for the sisters to escape. As a ritual, Hooriya is taken to a shrine before wedding and from there, Saeeda makes them flee. Hooriya is in constant contact with Danish who is waiting for them in Karachi. As they escape from the shrine, Balaj and his men catch them in the bus they are travelling and forcefully take them to a hut and lock them. There Balaj beats Hooriya for cursing their taya and takes her mobile away as Danish is calling her, but during all this neither Balaj gets to know about Hooriya's engagement with Danish nor that it is Danish to whom Hooriya is in contact with. Finally, Hooriya agrees to marry Balaj as he points a gun at Minhal and their Nikah is officiated under force and threat.
Thereon, another chapter starts in Balaj and Hooriya's life. Both are aggressive towards each other. Hooriya has vowed not to accept him as her husband and is rebellious at all fronts. Balaj on the other hand is squeezed between his anger towards Hooriya and his taya's set standards for treating a wife. He initially puts unwanted regulations on her and makes her realize that like every other wife in the haveli she is just equal to his shoes. Yet, Balaj maintains a distance from Hooriya, not allowing himself near her without her permission. Despite Balaj and Hooriya's soft and rough skirmishes, both become habitual of each other and Hooriya also takes her final exams while living in the haveli.
Faiq and Minhal get engaged much to Amber's shock that the man she loved has returned to her life as her cousin's fiancé'. Faiq is still confused for his feelings for Amber but is determined to marry Minhal only.