Ishq Subhan Allah

Zara and Kabir live separately. While Zara resides with Amina, Azra and Nusu in Mumbai, Kabir lives with his family in Lucknow. Zara and Kabir have applied for a divorce wanting to free each other, but he finds Zara's hospital reports and is shocked to discover that Zara was in a coma after being shot. Alina tries to bring them together but they see through her plan.

Zara discovers that Kabir became a writer after publishing a book on their relationship and moves to Lucknow with Azra. They finally decide to give their relationship another chance angering Zeenat and Shahbaz. Shahbaz again tries to have her killed but Kabir saves her every time.

The Ahmads rejoice at the couple's reunion prospect and Kabir insults Irfan, asking the Qazi to beg to him to take Zara back. Upset, Zara breaks up with Kabir, while Irfan has a heart attack. Ayesha is heartbroken and asks him to leave the house. He starts living in the mosque.

Zara learns about Ayesha's illness from Kashan and decides to go back only for Ayesha's sake. She decides to reunite Ayesha and Kabir on Eid. Shahbaz and Zeenat worry that Zara and Kabir might get back together so Shahbaz constantly provokes Kabir against Zara. According to the Sharia Board, all the board members should attend the Eid celebrations with their entire family.

Shahbaz tries to foil the plan but Zara is the event organizer and manages the situation. Rukhsar returns and the family is unaware of it. Zara and Azra succeed in reuniting Kabir and Ayesha with Rukhsaar's help. Rukhsar vows to reunite Kabir and Zara. Zara tried to find out who shot her on 12 April. Rizwan misleads her and tells her that he did not attack Kabeer purposely but was blackmailed by someone else. Rizwan begins to plan his revenge against Shahbaz and Kabeer. He plans to frame Shahbaz for Kabeer’s murder. During this time, Kabeer and Zara start working together at an NGO and have to go to a village to help save kids education. At the village, Shahbaz plans the explosion of the warehouse while Rizwan plans to put Zara and Kabeer inside the warehouse, so that Shahbaz gets the blame for their death. Kabeer and Zara escape in time and come back to give Khula and separate, it is then revealed that Rukhsar never intended to reunite Kabeer and Zara and she gets punished

• Adnan Khan as Kabeer Ahmed: Shahbaz and Ayesha's son, Zara's husband, Rukhsar's former husband, Lucknow's Shaher-Qazi (2018–2020)
• Eisha Singh as Zara Siddiqui: Irfan and Salma's daughter, Kabeer's wife (2018–2019)[6] / (2020)[7]

• Tunisha Sharma as Zara, Babli, Caretaker of Zaid, Alisha and Firdaus at Kabir's home (2019-2020)
• Amit Kumar Poddar as Turram Khan (2019–2020)
• Shipsy Rana as Rukhsar Sheikh: Zeenat's younger sister, Kabeer's second former wife, Hamdaan's former wife (2018–2020)
• Vinay Jain/Anupam Bhattacharya as Shahbaz Ali Ahmed: Kabir's father (2018–2019/2019–2020)
• Gunn Kansara as Ayesha Hussain: Kabir's mother, Shahbaz's wife (2018–2019)
• Aankit HS Vyas as Rizwan: Zara's cousin (Antagonist) (2019)
• Monica Khanna as Zeenat Sheikh: Kashan's wife, Rukhsar's elder sister, Amaan's mother (2018–2020)
• Toshi Shaikh as Young Amaan Ahmad: Zeenat and Kashan's son (2018)
• Abdur Rehman Shaikh as Amaan Ahmad: Zeenat and Kashan's son (2019–2020)
• Anjita Poonia as Alina Ahmed: Kabir's sister, Amir's wife (2018–2019)
• Amit Dolawat as Amir Nabi: Former army officer, Alina's husband, Kabir and Zara's helper (2019)
• Suneel Pushkarna as Qazi Irfan Siddiqui: Zara's father (2018–2020)
• Shalini Arora as Salma Siddiqui: Zara's mother (2018–2020)
• Kanika Gautam as Azhra: Zara's cousin (2019–2020)
• Kinshuk Vaidya as Zain Abdullah (2019)
• Ali Raza Naamdaar as Wali Khan(2019)
• Aashutosh Semwal as Imran: Kabir's best friend (2018–2019)[8]
• Rutpanna Aishwarya as Reema: Zara's best friend, Imran's love interest (2018–2019)
• Piyush Sahdev as Siraaj Ahmad: Underworld Don of Kashmir[9](2018)
• Gautam Vig as Miraaj Ahmad: Siraaj's brother (2018–2019)
• Nisha Nagpal as Nilofer Ali: Rukhsar's friend (2018)
• Aliraza Namdar as Priest Imam Hashim Mian (2019)
• Deepali Saini as Kausar Mehrami: Bilal's wife, the one whom Zara helped (2019)
• Salman Shaikh as Bilal Hassan: Kausar's husband (2019)
• Kiimmy Kaur as Sabina: Ayesha's sister, Kabir's psychiatrist, (2019)
• Shefali Rana as Tabassum: Kabir's aunt (2019)
• Worshipp Khanna as Chef Deven (2019)
• Zafar Ali as Aabid Ali(2019)
• Azinkya Mishra as Zaid (2019-2020)
• Puvika Gupta as Firdaus (2019-2020)
• Tejaswee Bhadane as Alisha(2019-2020)
• Vishesh Sharma as Hamdaan Alghazi: Rukhsar's former husband (2018)
• Manish Khanna as Jalali (2020)
• Ayush Shrivastava as Asim (2020)
• Urvashi Upadhay as Begum Noorjahan (2020)
• Ravi Bhatia as Sartaj (2020)

On 15 October 2017, During the telecast of Zee Rishtey Awards while celebrating its 25th anniversary, Zee TV unveiled its new logo and announced the show by releasing a teaser of this series under the title Subhan Allah along with other three shows under its new strapline Aaj Likhenge Kal. [10]

Before its premiere, it was titled as Ishq Pakeezah but was later changed to Ishq Subhan Allah.[11]

Deepak Rajadhyaksha, Deputy Business Head, Zee TV said, "We started 2018 with the launch of two beautifully curated shows, Aap Ke Aa Jane Se and Kaleerein – each of which has touched upon a contemporary Indian reality and is sensitizing the masses about the same. Our next primetime fiction offering belongs to the Muslim social drama space that we had, ourselves, pioneered with Qubool Hai, a show that enjoyed an immensely successful run of two seasons. Ishq Subhan Allah asks viewers to pause and reflect on the true interpretation of religion in our daily lives. It questions the true importance we accord to a woman's choice in every decision that a couple makes, including entering the institution of marriage as also ending it with dignity".[12]

Dheeraj Kumar, the producer of the show said, "With Ishq Subhan Allah, we want to break the stereotype and urge people to take a rational stance in matters of religion. We want to spread the message that adherence to religion cannot come at the cost of compromising practicality. Instead, one must apply the core fundamentals of one's religion to move forward in life."[13]

Adnan Khan expressed, "Kabeer's character is of a young Maulvi with a thorough understanding of Islam. While he is very traditional and culture-driven, his personality and outlook is extremely different from Zara's. Being a Muslim, I could easily adapt myself to certain aspects of Kabeer's character which helped me a lot during my preparation. In fact, I could also strongly relate to his inner instincts and religious traits as I am extremely religious in real life, albeit with a modern touch. The concept of the show is extremely engaging and I am looking forward to this exciting new journey".[14]

Eisha Singh said, "Ishq Subhan Allah is a unique concept with a strong message. Zara is a strong and confident woman who doesn't fear any consequences and isn't afraid to ask the right questions. She is deeply rooted in her religious teachings of the holy Quran but applies them intelligently to life with logical reasoning. Zara is progressive but she isn't a rebel or an atheist. She has studied Islam in depth and stands up against the misinterpretation of its teachings. Moreover, I am really excited to play such a strong character and I hope that the audience will enjoy watching this side of me."[15]

In November 2019, Zee TV's home production house, Essel Vision Productions took over the production of the series from Creative Eye Limited.[16]

Owing COVID-19 outbreak, the shootings were stalled since 19 March 2020 and the series telecast was halted midway on 20 March 2020 and was expected to resume shoot after the lockdown ends.[17] In April 2020, it was speculated not returning back, being axed abruptly by the channel due to the losses caused during the lockdown. [18][19] However, in July 2020, it was reported that the show has got an extension and the makers have brought back the original lead, Eisha Singh on the show.[20][21][22]

The first teaser of the show was released on 15 October 2017 under the title Subhan Allah.[23] The first promo of the series was released on 10 February 2018 featuring the leads Eisha Singh and Adnan Khan depicting their different ideologies on Islam.[24]

Kabir Ahmad (Adnan Khan) and Zara Siddiqui (Eisha Singh) are devout followers of Islam but interpret the Quran differently. Kabir abides by the traditional code of conduct and Zara applies the teachings of Allah in a practical way. Kabir and Zara take us on a journey of their world where they are grappling with issues like Triple Talaq. They are married due to an agreement but gradually fall in love. However, they face a series of obstacles in their life.[25]

Eisha Singh was selected to play Zara Siddiqui's character and Adnan Khan was cast to play Kabeer Ahmed.[26] [27] In October 2019, Eisha Singh quit the show to look for new opportunities and her character was shown falling down the cliff.[28][29] After Eisha's exit, Tunisha Sharma was cast as the new female lead of the show.[30]

In late June 2020, when filming was about to resume after the halt owing to the COVID–19 pandemic, it was reported that Tunisha Sharma will make an exit from the show and the channel has approached the original lead, Eisha Singh to return to the show. However, Eisha didn't confirm her return to the show.[31]

On 3 July 2020, Eisha Singh confirmed to be returning to the show and Tunisha Sharma confirmed her exit from the show. Sharma's character was later revealed to be an imposter. [32][33][34]

To promote the show, Zee TV launched Galat Galat Galat, a marketing campaign which drives conversations about the misinterpretations of Islam. Showing protagonist Zara Siddiqui's point of view this campaign delivered a strong message against Triple Talaq system. A special profile was created for Zara Siddiqui on YouTube, Facebook and Twitter to share stories and videos about her point of view and interpretation of Islam derived from the Quran.[35]

"I am learning Urdu. There are certain words that I had to repeat at least 30 to 40 times to pronounce them properly. I was born and brought up in a typical Hindu family, but the plus point is that I am from Bhopal so I am familiar with the culture. I also learnt how to perform namaaz. Islam is such a beautiful religion,".

— Eisha Singh[36]

Based on the backdrop of Lucknow, the series is mainly filmed on the sets created at Mira Road in Mumbai with some initial sequences were shot in Lucknow as the show's storyline is based in Lucknow.[37] The honeymoon track of Zara and Kabeer was shot in Kashmir in April 2018.[38][39]

“Being a practising Muslim, I have a knowledge of the religion. We also had many scholars on board for research. We confirmed and consulted with the scholars at any point of doubt. Our intentions are very clear because we do not want to hurt anyone.”

— Danish Javed

[40]

The airing of the series was shifted from its earlier 10:00pm IST slot to 10:30pm IST slot from 25 February 2020.[41]

The production and airing of the show was halted indefinitely in late March 2020 due to the Covid-19 outbreak in India.[42] Because of the outbreak, the filming of television series and films was halted on 19 March 2020 and expected to resume on 1 April 2020 but could not and the series was last broadcast on 20 March 2020 when the remaining episodes were aired.[43][44][45] After four months, the production and filming of the series resumed on 12 July 2020.[46][47][48] The airing of the series was resumed from 3 August 2020.[49][50][51]

The ratings of the show had dipped before the lockdown so it was reported to go off air after the lockdown.[52] But the show received an extension as the replacement show was not ready. Also, the makers did not want to drag the story and hence they decided to give a logical conclusion to the show.[53] The shooting of the series wrapped up on 29 September 2020.[54]

Finally, the show ended on 2 October 2020 after a successful two and a half years long run.[55][56]

Ishq Subhan Allah deals with the sensitive and burning issue of Triple Talaq due to which it received negative criticism from some Muslims. Following the first week of its premiere, the show created disappointment between the Muslims and a complaint was filed by Raza Academy, an Islamic association based in Mumbai against the show for wrongful representation of religious facts and maligning the image of the religion.[57]

The complaint by the academy stated that the show "shows Islam in a bad light, the scripts of the entire serial is made to understand that Islam religion needs a lot of changes, revival, amendments".[58]

Since the show is based on a religious concept, many Muslim priests like the Shariat Board Chief, Imam Organization and Jamiat Ulama-e-Hind had also raised objection against the show.[59][60]

Following a month of its premiere, India Today stated that the well written characters of Zara and Kabir developed the loyal fan following of the show over a month of its run and the concept of Triple Talaq has aroused the interest of the viewers and further expressed, "Apart from its bold and relevant theme, the show's narrative has been spun in an interesting way with well-etched out characters".[61]

On the reception of the show in such a short spam of time, Deepak Rajadhyaksha the Deputy Business Head of Zee TV said, "In keeping with our brand philosophy Aaj likhenge Kal, it is our constant endeavor to present viewers with progressive stories that are not only entertaining but also provoke them into thinking differently, get inspired, take charge of their destiny and work towards an extraordinary future. With Ishq Subhan Allah, we bring audiences the love story of a Muslim couple where the man and woman beg to differ on matters of interpreting and applying religion to their daily lives. We have dwelled into the issue of Triple Talaaq which was never spoken about in a prime-time fiction show. The response that the show has received in its opening week stands testimony to the universal applause and the warm welcome given to the show by Indian audiences."[62][63]

Ishq Subhan Allah was ranked in the top ten shows of India in its opening week. The show opened with 5.34 million impressions in urban with 8.46 million impressions in overall and was the ninth and eighth most watched Hindi GEC in urban and overall in its debut week."[64][65] This gave the show the leadership position in the 10 pm slot and it become the second-highest opening weekday fiction show of the financial year amongst pay Hindi GECs.[66] However, in the following week, the show dropped to the eleventh position in urban with 4.86 million impressions, occupying the fourteenth position in overall with 7.59 million impressions.[67] In the next week, it further dropped to fourteenth position in urban with 4.42 million impressions and eighteenth position in overall with 6.93 million impressions.[68][69] The show again entered the top ten, occupying the ninth position in urban with 4.79 million impressions and 7.71 million impressions in overall in the week 14.[70]

In week 15, the show entered the top 5 and became the third most watched Hindi GEC with 5.11 million impressions in the urban and 8.23 million impressions in overall.[71][72]The following week, it became second most-watched show in urban with 5.37 million impressions and was at the fourth position with 8.26 impressions in overall.[73] The show maintained its second position in week 17 with 6.44 million impressions and third position with 10.52 million impressions in overall.[74] In week 18, the show was third and fourth most watched show with 5.37 million impressions in urban and 8.61 million impressions in overall.[75][76] The show occupied fourth position in the following week with 5.10 million impressions in urban and was at the fifth position with 7.91 million impressions in overall.[77][78] In week 20, it maintained third and fifth position with 5.26 million and 8.15 million impressions in urban and overall.[79] The show was the fourth most watched show in urban with 5.33 million impressions and was the third most watched Hindi GEC with 8.35 million impressions in overall in the following week.[80] The show dropped to the seventh place with 4.19 million impression in urban and 6.67 million impressions overall in week 22.[81] In week 23, the show occupied the fifth place with 6.24 million impression in urban and sixth position with 9.77 million impressions in overall.[82] The following week, the show dropped to the eight position with 4.67 million impressions, occupying seventh position with 7.30 million impressions in overall.[83][84] The show maintained the eighth position with 5.41 million impressions in urban and seventh position with 8.33 million impressions in overall in week 25.[85][86] In week 26, the show further dropped to the tenth position with 4.68 million impressions and 7.29 million impressions in urban and overall.[87] The show again retained the fifth position in urban with 6.03 million impressions and occupied sixth position with 9.19 million impressions in overall in week 27.[88][89] The show maintained the fifth position in urban with 6.28 million impressions and 9.85 million impressions overall in week 28.[90] The show fell down to seventh place with 6.001 million impression, occupying fifth position with 9.57 million impressions in overall in week 29.[91][92]In week 30, the show further fell to the ninth place with 5.90 million impressions but was the seventh most watched show with 9.32 million impressions in overall.[93] The show occupied sixth position in urban with 6.50 million impressions and 10.21 million impressions overall in the following week.[94] In week 32, the show dipped to ninth place with 5.68 million impressions in urban and 8.95 million impressions in overall.[95] The show was out of top ten, occupying eleventh position in urban with 4.74 million impressions and thirtheenth position in overall with 7.413 million impressions in the following week.[96][97] The following week, it further dropped to twelevth position in urban with 4.69 million impressions and thirteenth position with 7.24 million impressions in overall.[98] In week 35, it occupied thirtheenth position in urban with 4.23 million impression and seventeenth position with 6.30 million impressions in overall.[99] The following week, the show entered top ten, occupying eighth position with 5.77 million impressions in urban and tenth position with 8.63 million impressions in overall.[100] In next week, the show was the tenth most watched Hindi GEC in urban with 5.68 million impression and the seventh most watched show with 9.03 million impressions in overall.[101] In week 38, it garnered 4.85 million impressions and 7.28 million impressions, occupying twelevth and fourteenth position in urban and overall.[102] The next week, it occupied eleventh position with 5.15 million impression in urban and fourteenth position with overall 7.72 million impressions.[103] The following week, it occupied tenth and eleventh position with 5.78 million and 8.97 impressions in urban and overall.[104] In week 41, with the ratings of 5.82 and 8.94 million impressions, the show occupied eighth and eleventh position in urban and overall.[105] In the following week, it was the tenth most watched Hindi GEC in urban with 4.96 million impressions, occupying fourteenth position with 7.42 million impressions in overall.[106] The show was the fourth most watched urban Hindi GEC with 6.28 million impressions and occupied eighth position with 9.27 million impressions in overall in week 43.[107] The following week, it occupied eighth position in urban with 5.70 million impressions and twelevth position with 8.69 million impressions overall.[108] In week 45, the show was sixth most watched urban Hindi GEC with 5.17 million impressions but dropped to fourteenth position in overall with 7.79 million impressions.[109] In week 46, it decreased to 4.93 and 7.007 million impressions, occupying fourteenth position and last position in the list of top 20 Hindi GECs of urban and overall charts.[110] The next week, it further dropped to sixteenth position with 4.66 million impression, exiting from the list of Top 20 Hindi GEC weekly list of overall charts.[111] The ratings increased to 5.01 million impressions, occupying fifteenth position in urban in the following week.[112] In week 49, it further increased to 5.49 million impressions, occupying twelevth position in urban and the show re-entered in the list of top 20 Hindi GECs in overall, getting nineteenth position with 7.78 million impressions.[113] The show occupied thirteenth position in urban with 5.50 million impressions, slipping to last position in overall with 7.70 million impressions in week 50.[114] In the next week, with 5.42 million impressions, it occupied twelevth position in urban, getting nineteenth position with 7.67 million impressions in overall.[115]The following week, it garnered 5.004 and 7.284 million impressions, occupying twelevth and nineteenth positions in urban and overall.[116]

In the first week of 2019, the series was at fifteenth position with 4.88 million impression in urban, making an exit from the list of top 20 overall Hindi GEC.[117] In the second week, it was at fourteenth position with 4.76 million impressions in urban, occupying fourteenth position.[118][119] The following week saw an increase in viewership, with the show gaining 4.99 million impressions, occupying thirteenth position. In week 4, the viewership further increased to 5.25 million impressions and it was at twelevth position in urban.[120] Maintaining the twelevth position in week 5, it garnered 5.39 million impressions and the show re entered in list of top 20 overall Hindi GEC with 7.72 million impressions, occupying last position.[121]