BEYOND THE SCARS: BELATEDNESS, SILENCE, AND IDENTITY RECONSTRUCTION IN AWAIS KHAN’S SOMEONE LIKE HER

This article will be an analysis of how trauma, silence, and survival relate to each other in Awais Khan's film Someone Like Her (2023) using Cathy Caruth's theory of trauma. Based on a qualitative close reading of the episodes, dialogues and narrative shifts, it is suggested that the trauma that is experienced by the protagonist Ayesha is not one that is confined to the acid attack, but rather, it is a long and gradual process. It starts on the patriarchal level, is exacerbated by coercive control, and comes back via panic, dissociation and a dis-integrated sense of self. The analysis reveals that in the novel, silence is double coded, in two ways: it is forced by the family and society and it is a psychological measure to protect oneself from too much shock. The article also illustrates how silence is not overcome by individual bravery but by witnessing, recognition, and solidarity among women. By rejecting suicide, revealing her scars, and founding Jazba, Ayesha has transformed the act of surviving from a final state to ongoing process of self-reconstruction. The study adds to the scholarship of Pakistani English as well as feminist trauma studies. Keywords: Pakistani English literature; Trauma theory; Cathy Caruth; belatedness, silence; testimony; identity reconstruction; Awais Khan; Someone Like Her;