KARACHI: A big number of showbiz celebrities and members of the media attended on Wednesday evening an Iftar dinner hosted by the Hum TV Network to celebrate the success of three of its recent plays Mann Jogi, Nadaan and Tan Man Neelo-o-Neel.

Talking about the first drama, president of the network Sultana Siddiqui said she’s grateful that all three plays were liked by viewers. If such an encouragement kept coming her way, she’d keep picking up important subjects for dramatization. She was of the opinion that any subject can be picked for a TV play if it’s handled properly (saleeqey se) and the team taking it up feels the sensitivity of it. For Mann Jogi, she held the first meeting with director Kashif Nisar and asked him which writers he was comfortable to work with who would understand the topic (of halala). He took the name of Zafar Mairaj whom Ms Siddiqui also holds in high esteem as a writer.

Mr Nisar said he wants to do difficult subjects but channels usually get worried. He was thankful to Ms Siddiqui for giving him the chance to do the play.

Mr Mairaj said there comes a time when one needs to decide whether one wants to become a shop/store or a voice. This was the time when it was decided to become a voice.

Actor Sabeena Farooq talking about her character said she was doing the part of a woman who gets married, divorced and then goes through the process of halala. She hadn’t experienced these three aspects of life. But since she’s a woman, she could understand the emotions of a woman.

Actor Gohar Rasheed said an actor doesn’t do any wonders; it entirely depends on the team that he’s working with.

Nadaan’s director Merheen Jabbar said eight episodes and the theme of social justice were ideal for her to direct.

Tan Man Neelo-o-Neel’s director Saife Hasan said when Ms Siddiqui told him about the topic of the play (mob mentality) he and his writer decided that it wouldn’t be treated as a dark story; its entertainment value must be there.

Actors Ahmed Ali Akbar, Kashif Hussain and Saji Gul (writer) representing team Nadaan and Mustafa Afridi (writer) and actors Shuja Asad and Sehar Khan representing team Tan Man Neelo-o-Neel also spoke.

Nadia Khan moderated the discussion.

Published in Dawn, March 14th, 2025