Re: Sarmad Sultan’s new drama ‘Jal Pari’
I agree. The Humsafar thread has become just a fun read now. What happens in the thread is perhaps also indicative of mindsets of Pakistani women in general. They want to keep the chit chat light hearted and avoid discussing the real issues that the drama could and should provoke. The Humsafar thread is unique in the sense that you probably have more women reading it then any other thread at the moment. Popular dramas bring the women together on the same platform, which is otherwise difficult. It could have been a great opportunity for the women to actually discuss the problems of a married woman (i.e Khirad) in the wider context. But as always I find most Pakistani women tend to avoid getting into any kind of philosophical discussions and prefer the light hearted banter. Not that there is anything wrong with it occasionally , but when the women seize to take part in serious discussion, the consequences of that then become apparent in our society in the long term.
It may sound idealistic, but I do believe that women can perhaps change the general mindset of a society if they tried. It is proven that children learn first and foremost from their mothers. if the mothers won’t teach their kids how to be reflective, philosophical or how to discuss social issues and how to address them, then who will?
As far as Jal Pari is concerned, I’m loving the story, ( watched 13 episodes so far). The best drama on at the moment. Sarmad needs to work more with good writers like S. Sehbai. I’m hugely impressed with Neelam Munir. She plays the grey shades of her character effortlessly.