Nauman Ijaz claims to be producing a drama serial different from those already being presented at various TV channels. He is producing serial ‘Doraha’ written by Muhammad Aamir Raza and directed by Kashif Nisar.

The cast includes Samia Mumtaz, the heroine who has been shown a blind girl. The producer claims the play is different in the sense that it talks in a subtle way about how marginalised communities feel in Pakistan amid social pressures, prejudices and other ills.

The serial is on sets and being shot in Lahore. It will go on air in January on a private TV channel. Nauman Ijaz, Saba Qamar, Uzma Hassan, Laila Zubairi and Ali Agha will also perform in the play.

After Sawa 14 and Ponay 14 August, Anwar Maqsood’s another stage play -- Half Plate -- will be staged at the Alhamra Art Center, The Mall, in January. The earlier two plays earned plaudits from Lahorites.

Usman Pirzada is also planning to stage a commercial play in Lahore this year, it is learnt.

Coke Studio releases its fourth episode of Season 6 featuring ‘Aamay Bhashaili Rey’ by Alamgir and Fariha Pervez, ‘Ishq Kinara - Üsküdar’a Gider Iken’ by Zoe Viccaji and Sumru Ag1iryürüyen, ‘Laila o Laila’ by Rostam Mirlashari and ‘Mahi Gal’ by Asad Abbas featuring Fariha Pervez.

Alamgir’s contribution to this season of Coke Studio is the soulful Bengali folk composition ‘Aamay Bhashaili Rey’. The roots of the song are old, and has always been a source of inspiration for Alamgir, reminding him of his youthful beginnings as a 14-year-old boy who had come to Karachi on his own to find his passion and what would become his new home.

The song also featured in Alamgir’s second album and he feels that its enchanting quality has always connected with people irrespective of whether the language was understood. Thematically, the song is one of struggle. It asks for the devotion and spirit to endure the toil and risk that eventually reaches the finish line -- something that resonated with Alamgir’s struggle to keep going in the early stages of his career.

In the subtle melancholy of what is almost a lament; the song is met by Fariha Pervez’s rendition of ‘Saiyyan Bina Ghar Suna’, which speaks out on the other end on the need for companionship and the yearning for completeness.

The instrumentation of the song is used to complement and mirror the flow of emotions that transition between the vocals and carry the theme into its resolution.

Rostam Mirlashari, a Balochi from Iran, will come up with his rendition of the folk song ‘Laila o Laila’ – a song found in our part of Balochistan as well, demonstrating that while borders may have been put in place, cultures, traditions and heritages remain intact.

Opening up a trove of Sufi Folk is Asad Abbas’ ‘Mahi Gal’. Based on the raag ‘Miyan Ki Malhar’, the song is an old folk melody that Asad grew up hearing in his home.