Epic showdown, shocks and twists

It's been a trying week for poor Shabnam. First she finds out her father has gone behind her back and traced down her daughter, then she walks in on finace Kush and best friend Stacey.

The Masood's are once again sent to the forefront of the soap in what has been described as a big story with lots of shocks and twists ahead.

Masood may have pushed his daughter too far when she realises Mas has gone behind her back once again and told Dean that his daughter is alive and lives not too far from Walford.

And, as actress Rakhee Thakrar told Metro.co.uk during a recent chat, the betrayal will lead to Shabnam reaching a devastating decision.



She said: ‘By the point that Shabnam finds out that Dean knows at the engagement party there have been constant promises from Masood which have all been broken almost instantly. Her disappointment is rock bottom – she wants to hurt him quite badly.
‘She ends up banning him from the wedding as that’s the one thing she has control of and the one thing she can do to get back at him.’

An extremely emotional showdown in true EastEnders style rock the party, but Shabnam stands strong on her decisions and tells her father to stay out of her life.

Can Shabnam ever forgive Masood? (Picture: BBC)

She explained: ‘I think the one thing she does have experience of is the importance of forgiveness. He is her dad, they know eachother inside out.
‘As much as she’s disappointed, she knows that part of what hes done is all for the right reasons so I hope she’d find it in her heart to forgive him.’
Following the fracas at the party, Shabnam throws herself into the wedding preparations, little knowing that another man in her life has gone behind her back too. And while Rakhee admits that she has deliberately kept herself away from finding out how far Stacey and Kush’s potential affair escalates, she does have her own theories on where Kush’s heart lies.

Is Stacey feeling uncomfortable? (Picture: BBC)

‘On paper, Stacey and Kush seem like a much more suitable couple who make more sense,’ she told us, before adding: ‘There’s something about Shabnam and Kush where it shouldn’t work – how can these two people possibly fall in love? So when they do, I think there’s a little bit of magic there. It gives you that feeling that things which aren’t possible actually are.
‘He’s finding compatibility with someone else and that can be really conflicting for him.’

Kush is finding Stacey hard to resist (Picture: BBC)

The amiable star, who is much less intimidating than Shabnam despite our phone call dropping several times due to signal, is the most surprised out of everyone over how much viewers have taken to the couple.
She recalled sweet moments where fans approached her insisting that she gave Kush a chance. But now that she has, could she end up regretting it?
With a dark and upsetting storyline said to be in the pipeline for the Masoods and several secrets and tensions bubbling away, the stage is set for some fantastic EastEnders drama – and Rakhee is loving it!

Happy ever after? (Picture: BBC)

Discussing producer Dominic Treadwell-Collins, she enthused: ‘He’s created such an energy and such a whirlwind of excitement and enthusiasm. It’s such a joy to be here and the audience are so invested in what were doing, it’s really exciting time to be here.’