Quick reminder before we start: our ARY ban continues. Since ARY Digital pulled new episodes off YouTube in Pakistan and pushed everyone to ARY Plus, we haven’t gone back. But some dramas are too big to skip. So for ARY reviews, we’re now being helped by another writer, a loyal ARY viewer who watches every episode for us. Thank you! This is our initial review of Rutba, covering episodes 1 to 7.
Rutba at a Glance
- Channel: ARY Digital, Monday and Tuesday at 8pm
- Writer: Umera Ahmed
- Director: Haseeb Hassan
- Producers: Humayun Saeed and Sana Shahnawaz (Six Sigma Plus and Next Level Entertainment)
- Cast: Mehwish Hayat (Sheely), Zahid Ahmed (Meer), Hiba Bukhari (Mahnoor), Talha Chahour (Hadi)
- Started: 6 October 2026, in the slot left by Bas Tera Sath Ho
Rutba Story So Far
Rutba means status, and the whole drama is about how far people will go to protect it.
Hadi (Talha Chahour) is a village boy who clears his CSS exams and becomes an ASP. Mahnoor (Hiba Bukhari) is a modern city girl who waited eight years for him to settle down. Their families hesitate at first, but they marry. Two years later, they’re happy, expecting a baby, and moving into an official residence that needs renovation.
Then enter Sheely (Mehwish Hayat) and Meer (Zahid Ahmed). Meer runs a construction business. Sheely knew the house’s previous owner, a late ASP named Feroz, and offers to help with the renovation. Hadi, meanwhile, refuses money or favours from contractors. You can already see where this is going: an honest cop versus powerful people with money.
What Works
- Hadi and Mahnoor: a sweet, easy romance. No toxic saas-bahu fights, and Mahnoor isn’t forced to change who she is. Episode 3 made them a fan-favourite couple.
- Zahid Ahmed and Mehwish Hayat: fans are calling their chemistry “insane.” Mehwish’s slap scene in episodes 4 and 5 got special praise.
- The mystery: Meer and Sheely are guarded, layered and hard to read. Their marriage clearly isn’t what it looks like.
- Production: lovely village scenes and aerial shots. It looks expensive.
What Doesn’t
- Too perfect at the start: the village-boy-meets-city-girl romance glides past every obstacle. It’s a little idealistic.
- Hadi’s wandering eye: in episode 7, Hadi is caught looking at Sheely again, the second time now. Viewers aren’t happy. The show spent weeks telling us he’d never stray, and fans feel sorry for Mahnoor already.
Initial Review of Rutba: Our Verdict
Rutba started as a soft love story and is now turning into a power drama with a mystery at its heart. That’s classic Umera Ahmed: lull you in, then pull the rug. Performances are strong across the board, especially Zahid and Mehwish.
Our worry? If the story turns into “honest cop falls for rich man’s wife,” it’ll waste a great setup. We’d much rather see Hadi’s integrity tested by Meer’s money than by Sheely’s charm.
Initial rating: 7.5/10. Worth watching, if you’re watching ARY. We’re not, but our guest writer is, and we’ll be back with an update.
Why the ARY ban? Read ARY Digital & YouTube Exit in Pakistan. And see how the last show in this slot ended in our Bas Tera Sath Ho final review.
Sources: Fuchsia Magazine, Reviewit.pk, Minute Mirror.