Discussion of the Week! July 27- Aug 3

Many of us see the shows and dramas aired on our favorite channels, and try to copy them. But do you think what they show is right? Writers say that it is a reflection of our society, but isn't it a reflection of our culture?

We see:
*Young people going on dates, have boyfriends and girlfriends, and then they are showed that at the end "they live happily ever after"

*Children going to dates before marriage, however, our culture says that bride and groom should not meet eachother before marriage. There should be a "sharam-o-hayia ka rishta"

*Making online relationships.

*Children often misbehaving and going against their parents in almost every matter.

*Excess of Rasomat.

*And the list goes on.............

Are these all part of our culture?
Does Islam allow dating?
Does Islam givies permission to misbehave with our parents?
Does our culture says to have illegal relationship, with another woman or man?

If this is not our religion or culture, then what is this?
Where is this coming from?
Why are we so attracted to it?
Why is it shown in every single drama?
What is the impact of all this on our new generation, which are tomorrow of our country?

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Thanks Saba for all your help and efforts!
Amreen

cool topic

n i definetly agree that its not in our religion nothing of the above is allowed i Islam. i think ppl actually lots of ppl (including me) want to watch these kinds of shows because they just want to see it they dont think oh ok its not like this in real life... anyways its confusing now i dunno how to explain my point but i think ppl just want to enjoy n say "oh this reflects our culture" the same old thing...

i think nowadays the dramas that r being on aired reflects HIGH SOCIETY basically Society not culture n religion...

Aji

But Aji, dont you think Society and culture are one thing. even if they are not then society is wut reflects the culture n vise versa. Religion is different but shouldnt it be integrated with culture esp. in Pakistan -- an Islamic state?

But I do understand you point of view... everyone watch the dramas and enjoy it but never really notice how this entertainment is having an impact on us. We are so used to watch it now that we dont find anything bad or usual about it.

Nice topic Amreen

honestly i feel the same way i mean nowadays pakistani serials r too much 4get all that u have mentioned nowadays they even show pakistani guys drinking alcohol and having extra marital relations and girl dancing here n there thats really bad i wish we could inform our directors that we dont like all this i live in dubai and here i know some indian ppl they say y do u all blame indian industry 4 exposing and all that even ur serials r not less than ours...any way nice topic we can go on on but i better stop lol

ya but amreen I think Culture is idfferent and Society is different coz urdu language is culture not society (just for arguement sake) n we speak english as well dont we? so i think now a days directors want ot show society not culture

n Tuba u r right they show man having extra marital affairs-in BANDISH Noman Masood having an affair with "Khotay Wali"... (Sorry coudnlt find any other word)

This is a new trend that we see in recent dramas... The dramas that I saw growing up were nothing like this... The pakistani channels that reach out to an international audience has all the things Ambreen mentioned... I think they are doing this not just to attract the pakistani audience but also the audience worldwide... They say that these pakistani channels potray our culture, when in reality they are just trying to compete with Indian channels... You see, the Indian dramas have a lot of glamour and people even in Pakistan started to watch those dramas and left behind PTV... So, in a way to get back their audience, these channels filled their shows with glamour....

The new trends in our drama might/might not reflect our culture... There might be some places in Pakistan too where these things might be taking place.. I cannot comment on it because I don't stay there anymore.... But, I can say one thing for sure that whenever I've visited Pakistan, I have not seen so much liberties as they try to show in these shows.... A large number of people are living a very decent lifestyle which involves living with their elders, respecting them a lot, no affairs as such before marriage, or nothing that crosses the limits of Islam....

For a mature audience, these shows are ok... but for teenagers and kids, they set a very bad example... But, I think it also depends on their own home environment.... If there parents are there to guide them in every step about what is wrong and what is right, then these should not leave that much of an impact.... For instance, there are so many people who live abroad and their environment is filled with indecent things that we as Pakistanis think our children should not be exposed to... But still, there are kids who emerge as very sensible adults knowing the difference between what is wrong and what is right in our culture.... The society they live in is different than their culture....

I might have gone off topic here.... Amreen, it is a very good topic that you started and we can have many healthy discussions on it...

-Maha

well amreen i really like this topic bcoz tht's wat i think tht nowadayz in pakistani dramas thy really don't show our culture 4 example going on dates misbehaving with their parents but u know wat i think some things r correct bcoz these dayz pakistan is totally change i recently came back 4m pak n i was shocked 2 c tht so many people go 4 dating so tht's wat thy show in dramas but tht's not wat ISLAM teach us well i don't know about u guys but in my opinion tht's WRONGGG.but still people r attraced 2 these kinds of dramas in ISLAM v also don't drink right but i have seen 2 dramas in which thy showed tht thy were drinking so i think tht's wrong bcoz after watching those dramas people think tht tht's wat v do.
i m sorry if some of u don't like my points but i just wrote the truth may b some of u don't agree with me so sorry haan.

Eman

Is that true? I heard that if cops see anyone who feels suspicious they ask for nikah nama...

well.. nice thoughts everyone, Maha yeah you are right and so are you Eman.. but I think it could also be the case where we people learn things from the drama. If people start going on a date may be they learned it as not a bad thing from the drama right.. supposed if a new thing is shown in a movie or drama, and they say that it reflects the society that doesnt mean that everyone does that but once they start showing it, it becomes a trend in a society as well, and the next generation will see it as a part of culture as their elders did it and later on this does become a part of culture. The examples of this could be some traditions we now have especially in the weddings, mehndi and all... it never was there before but media has influenced so mch that weddings seems incomplete without it right and we see it as our culture.. dont we? 😕 (sorry if i m not making sense here)

Originally posted by: Maha21

This is a new trend that we see in recent dramas... The dramas that I saw growing up were nothing like this... The pakistani channels that reach out to an international audience has all the things Ambreen mentioned... I think they are doing this not just to attract the pakistani audience but also the audience worldwide... They say that these pakistani channels potray our culture, when in reality they are just trying to compete with Indian channels... You see, the Indian dramas have a lot of glamour and people even in Pakistan started to watch those dramas and left behind PTV... So, in a way to get back their audience, these channels filled their shows with glamour....

yeah agree with Maha here..its all abt competition with international media and the sad part it that our media is not even bothered abt the bad impact all these drama serials r having on kids n teenager...

Originally posted by: Maha21

I've visited Pakistan, I have not seen so much liberties as they try to show in these shows.... A large number of people are living a very decent lifestyle which involves living with their elders, respecting them a lot, no affairs as such before marriage, or nothing that crosses the limits of Islam....

i disagree with u here Maha...i havent been to pakistan for a long time but my family n cousines have....n wat they told me was simply shocking...my cousin told me that there is one place in Karachi on sea view (clifton) which is a dating spot (i dont know its name)...ppl actually make out over there..she told me that for a second she thought she was in US or Canada...ok dating is not that bad but MAKING OUT is just too much...n not only karachi..even in Lahore it happens...n not all of them were high society ppl..

Originally posted by: Maha21

For a mature audience, these shows are ok... but for teenagers and kids, they set a very bad example... But, I think it also depends on their own home environment.... If there parents are there to guide them in every step about what is wrong and what is right, then these should not leave that much of an impact.... For instance, there are so many people who live abroad and their environment is filled with indecent things that we as Pakistanis think our children should not be exposed to... But still, there are kids who emerge as very sensible adults knowing the difference between what is wrong and what is right in our culture.... The society they live in is different than their culture....

-Maha

i completely agree with u here

Originally posted by: amreen1409

Is that true? I heard that if cops see anyone who feels suspicious they ask for nikah nama...

well.. nice thoughts everyone, Maha yeah you are right and so are you Eman.. but I think it could also be the case where we people learn things from the drama. If people start going on a date may be they learned it as not a bad thing from the drama right.. supposed if a new thing is shown in a movie or drama, and they say that it reflects the society that doesnt mean that everyone does that but once they start showing it, it becomes a trend in a society as well, and the next generation will see it as a part of culture as their elders did it and later on this does become a part of culture. The examples of this could be some traditions we now have especially in the weddings, mehndi and all... it never was there before but media has influenced so mch that weddings seems incomplete without it right and we see it as our culture.. dont we? 😕 (sorry if i m not making sense here)

it makes complete sense to me Amreen...yeah u r rite...but i also think that its not only media who is at fault..i mean its our choice wat we watch but then its human psychology that we get influenced more by bad things rather than good thingd...thats where our religion comes... Islam says that " Agar insaan ki rooh pak hai to koi buri cheez us k iman ko kamzor nahin kar sakti"...so if we r strong from inside then no matter wat they show on TV or we see around ourself then it shouldnt affect us...i would love to continue but then i'll go off topic...but i guess this can b a discussion topic for next week or month....