Another literary masterpiece from Nimrah Ahmed, after Jannat Ke Pattay, Namal is a novel which stands out amongst all other Pakistani novels due to its complex matrix of truth, deception and of course, the narrow stream of love which continues to emerge amongst all these channels of life.
Unlike other novels, Namal revolves around the lives of different characters instead of focusing on a single character as the cornerstone of the entire story.
The Story
The novel starts off with a tinge of mystery and thrill.
Faris Ghazi, a young man is accused of murdering his step brother and is sent to jail. The only eyewitness to the murder, Zamar Yusuf, a just but nevertheless stern district attorney who also happens to be Faris’s ex-teacher, declares him as the culprit. A complex and well-planned murder makes these two become foes against each other.
Nimrah Ahmed has explained the convoluted system of Pakistani Law in the most transparent way. While keeping murder as the focal crime, she has managed to explain other criminal activities which take place in our daily lives, and go surprisingly unnoticed.
The Characters
Hashim Kardar (Faris’s first cousin), villain to the world but hero to his family, is the character we can all hate but love at the same time.
Hashim is a renowned lawyer and owner of an Oil Cartel. Despite being involved in numerous illegal activities, Hashim never fails to uphold his promises to his family, which is his strength. This character is depicted in shades of grey where Nimrah Ahmed leaves the final analysis to the readers to study his character in depth.
The next prominent character is Saadi Yusuf, the perfect definition of a handsome, young and tender-hearted young man who is both relative to Faris and Zamar. He outsmarts the main culprit by finding out the murderers of Faris’s step brother, Waris Ghazi.
Through Saadi, Nimrah Ahmed has beautiful explained to us various verses of the Quran especially of “Surah Namal” hence the name of her novel. She further explains how a person, a Muslim, is never supposed to lose hope and stick to his/her core beliefs no matter how gruelling or wearying the circumstances may become. For it is indeed, a test from Allah.
Inspirational Nimrah Ahmed
Last but not the least, Nimrah Ahmed has proven to be an inspiration to young girls. From discussing the most intricate problems faced by young girls to the most straightforward ones, Nimrah Ahmed has provided a way to deal with them in the form of Huneen Yusuf – A twenty year old, super genius girl and sister to Saadi Yusuf. Haneen deals with the perpetual dilemma between the heart and soul. We see Haneen being the perfect embodiment of an intelligent, intellectual, knowledgeable young woman, yet human enough to be relatable to the youth, as she eventually accepts her share of flaws.
All in all, for those who are looking forward to spending their entire week reading mystery, thrill and humour, Nimrah Ahmed’s Namal is the perfect way to spend your week – An extensive characters analysis revolving around a story of murder, war and love. We have definitely fallen in love with this one!
If you like Umera Ahmed, you will Love Peer e Kamil!
This is Mahnoor Majid from Lahore. I am currently doing A levels from LACAS JT. In pursuit of my love for the literary world, I started writing everything I see. I am an ambivert trying to bring out the best in me. I don’t really believe in being inspired by someone but my goal is to become a better version of myself. As for everyone, “The world is a much better place when you give away a part of your heart rather than a piece of your mind. “
Like!! Great article post.Really thank you! Really Cool.