I know I am late to come to this show. But man, I am so glad I finally got here. I really needed to see a strong empathetic Asian husband, and this character delivers.
First, I always had a thing for men who can stand up to their family. I like who knows right from wrong and who can speak out when wrongs are committed in front of them. From the moment Hamza entered the show, he treated Hala with kindness. He treated her like family. But when they were marrying her off, he spoke up for her with his own father. And when his own family turned against her, he righted a wrong. He didn’t force her to marry him. He gave her a choice and since then he never backed down from it.
Second, no matter their fight, he always defended her. He didn’t let his family make decisions for him. When his mother said that he should divorce her, he told his mother that Allah didn’t say to commit crimes because his parents ordered him to. He never wanted to leave her. His first and foremost thought was to find a way back to her.
Third, he boosted her confidence. He noticed the little ways his family ignored her and mistreated her and rectified it. Whether it was to buy her a phone, or ask about a bag or open her bank account, he empowered her.
Fourth, I am at age where I find it sexy if a man can cry. When he was hurting, he wasn’t fragile to not get emotional. I loved that he was in sync with his emotions.
But he wasn’t without his flaws which makes him believably human. He didn’t want to hear how his mother treated Hala because he didn’t want to spoil his relationship with his mother. That means he must have instinctively known his mother mistreated her. But he wanted at least a layer of pretense to protect himself. I would have to say, he never allowed that layer to exist at the cost of his wife’s wellbeing.
Towards the end of the series when Hala tells him of her complains, he asks if his mom is the only reason she didn’t coming with him. I had expected him to leave his family. But he let me down a little when he left her alone instead. And yes he redeemed himself when he still came back Everytime she needed him, but in that moment my heart broke for her. And in the end of the show, he does agree to go to Australia. If he had done that before they could have avoided months of stress.
Also right after they got married, and Hala asks for divorce and he raises his voice at her, Hala thinks he is going to raise his hands on her. I wish he would address that more directly with her and comfort her. Halas mental state had been in tatters, and he is educated enough to know he should handle victim of abuse better. He does learn latter in the show, to change his tone when she would get scared. But I feel like he never fully appreciated why Hala would get scared if someone caught her by surprise. He saw her tears but didn’t fully want to understand her fears.
One of my favorite fights he has is with his mother when she calls Hala characterless and he shreds her apart. And I loved when he stood in front of his father after he got married and said he gave her a reason to come back to the house. It’s so attractive to see a character stand up to people he loved and respected to honor her.
This is the first show where I have truly enjoyed a male character as much as I loved arnav Singh raizada, but for very different reasons.
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