Discussion Of The Week #3 **Social Issues**

Hola People!

We (that's me and Sam) are back with a new discussion! Hip Hip Hurray!🥳

So the topic of this week is SOCIAL ISSUES

These days, we have been noticing a trend where many dramas we are seeing on TV (ongoing and upcoming) are based on certain issues being faced in our society.

There is abuse, acid attacks, poverty, forced marriages, greed and many more. The list is never ending.

What are your views regarding what is being shown nowadays? Is it acceptable? Is it right to raise social awareness in this way, is it even helping our society or should dramas be more light hearted and purely for entertainment purposes?

Which social topics should be discussed this way and which topics are an absolute NO-NO and should be avoided at all costs since dramas are to be watched with family?

I don't watch social issue dramas coz they are depressing. But I am aware of the importence of them. 😊

I watched some dramas which are pased on social issues, like : Ruswai which deals with gang rape, and the stigma which the victime of it has to live with. 😒 It was well made, and I think it dealed with the sensitive topic perfectly. 👍🏼

Court marriage is one of the issues which keep coming on tv, but they are mostly used for entertainment, where lovers though married against their families wishes end up living happily ever after🤓..only few dramas dealed with this issue realisticly.. Bhool did good job highlighting the aftermath of it.😒

I was shocked when I knew that there are many victims of acid attacks in Pakistan and India. I watched Lashkara drama but couldn't complete it..

Child abuse and human traffic are hard to discuss in dramas..and tough to be watched. I do believe such topics need to be discussed, and educating children about them is important to make them avoid falling in the hands of bad ppl. 😔

Thanks for sharing your views awida🤗

Originally posted by: Unique.Sheep

Thanks for sharing your views awida🤗

Most welcome Hinna .🤗 I think I am getting stronger now. I can watch depressing dramas. Coz no good romantic ones are made nowadays.🤔

Can you share your views about the best social issue dramas you watched, and changed the way you look at the world.😳

Originally posted by: awida

Most welcome Hinna .🤗 I think I am getting stronger now. I can watch depressing dramas. Coz no good romantic ones are made nowadays.🤔

Can you share your views about the best social issue dramas you watched, and changed the way you look at the world.😳

i dont really see any point in social issue dramas because i dont see them making any difference in our society...people watch and then forget about it...mainly people like to watch dramas for entertainment, to escape from real life problems

while its good to keep them realistic and relatable, they dont need to be so toxic

i have enjoyed a few which had hatt ke concepts like baydardi because it educates about aids and even IZN was good though many people didnt understand the concept

udaari was also good, it explored child abuse in a nice way without being too toxic unlike damsa and bikhray moti🤢

i also hate domestic violence being shown on tv even if its for social awareness but its indirectly just encouraging it

Khud parast and kaisa hai naseeban concepts looked interesting and i want to see them only then i can give my views

The worst ones are those based on sister rivalry, second marriages, halala and saas/nand doing zulm on bahu or vice versa🤢 mah e tamam i only liked because i found it different...both the FLs were grey shaded so there was no one completely innocent/mazloom

Oh and my fav will always be islamic topics😳 I loved shehr e zaat and KAM

I have mixed feelings about social issue dramas. ARY makes the most social issue serials. I remember ARY had a huge season of social issues and they were hits. Bandish was apparently a social issue on black magic, Beti was about the daughter concept, Kaisa Hai Naseeban was on marital abuse. I only watched Kaisa Hai Naseeban and I loved that show. It not once glorified marital abuse. It showed how she tried to find an escape from that life and gave the message to parents about how just because someone is an international resident or just giving high hopes, do more investigation still before you give your daughter to him. This was one of the non-toxic social issue serials. I found Beti to be very toxic. Bandish.. horror is just not my thing. Then there have been many after that as well. I found Surkh Chandni to be very toxic and from the promos it had a lot of victim-blaming which is ok only to a certain extent for dramatization but it was just too much which is why I quit after 1st double episode. Even Cheekh just went too far with the abuse of Saba Qamar . I feel like there's just a way to make such dramas without them becoming so toxic and depressing. For example currently we have Bikhray Moti and Log Kia Kahengay which I find to be really toxic and depressing and I feel these are useless shows because they try to go for a social issue but end up ruining it with all the toxicity where the issue is lost in the midway. I found Damsa and Meri Guriya really depressing too, never watched them for that reason. Rabba Mainu Maaf Kareen tried to show the social issue of halala nikaah and making mistakes in divorce but it was simply another crap that was churned out. Ghalathi was a well thought out show for the most part because they didn't overdo the talaq part in my opinion and they showed Hira's character as strong which was the most important. I think shows like Ishq Zahe Naseeb dealt with the issue in a really good way. Even Ranjha Ranjha Kardi did well (except for the part where they showed marital rape and never touched on it again, which I found odd) for the most part. It's just about excecution that can make a social issue drama watchable. Even Saraab is doing well right now. I just think when you want to show a social issue don't dramatize it and turn it back to the normal suffering serial. Show the actual issue. I don't mind watching these dramas when they are done well. The channels just have to think that if this is actually a social issue show, why are we showing the same old typical crap in the middle now. I think there should always be a balance of entertainment and social issues as far as Pakistani TV goes. There shouldn't be an imbalance where it feels like watching TV is so depressing and toxic, because albeit local viewers will keep watching since their main choice for entertainment is GEO, ARY, and HUM, international viewers may tune out of watching many dramas😭.

Good point.

Surkh chandni and Baandi had good concepts but were just turned into crying and melodrama

I can't say that social issue dramas are useless. We see lots of discussions about them on social media . So it depends on the social issue itself and the type of viewers who watch it ! Dramas are a big part of ppl lives specially housewives. I think they may learn something from them. Society don't change at once. Sometimes it takes longer.. but the change is coming. I remember in the past there were few Egyptian movies which led to the change of law.

I personally had no idea about material rape before it was discussed here in a thread of one of the dramas. It made me learn , read and understand the difference between husband rights and a wife's consent.

Educating viewers about those issues, making them feel for the helpless cases of the victims are some of the important messages these dramas give to the society.

Sadly many dramas end up making excuses for the criminals , like domestic violence: (ex. Daasi) . or trying to justify their horrible acts by showing the victim in a poor light (ex. Baghi) or highlight the redemption track on the cost of the victims ( ex. Khaani) , or just not doing justice to the social topic (ex. Dar Khuda Se).

Originally posted by: awida

just not doing justice to the social topic (ex. Dar Khuda Se).

I think Darr Khuda Say should have not even been promoted as a social issue like it was before it started. It was stretched like chewing gum... and then it literally lost the concept few episodes in. It became more about marraige drama and Sana being blamed for everything in the world. It was a decent family drama, but in terms of social issues it was a big flop. I wish they actually would make a proper series on workplace harassment to highlight it in our society with no melodrama.

Originally posted by: awida

I can't say that social issue dramas are useless. We see lots of discussions about them on social media . So it depends on the social issue itself and the type of viewers who watch it ! Dramas are a big part of ppl lives specially housewives. I think they may learn something from them. Society don't change at once. Sometimes it takes longer.. but the change is coming. I remember in the past there were few Egyptian movies which led to the change of law.

I personally had no idea about material rape before it was discussed here in a thread of one of the dramas. It made me learn , read and understand the difference between husband rights and a wife's consent.

Educating viewers about those issues, making them feel for the helpless cases of the victims are some of the important messages these dramas give to the society.

Sadly many dramas end up making excuses for the criminals , like domestic violence: (ex. Daasi) . or trying to justify their horrible acts by showing the victim in a poor light (ex. Baghi) or highlight the redemption track on the cost of the victims ( ex. Khaani) , or just not doing justice to the social topic (ex. Dar Khuda Se).

I agree people discuss it on social media but does it have any effect on peoples personal lives? How many people have you seen who have stopped beating their wives after watching a drama about it or even stopped raping?

A drama can educate you but it cant change your mentality or nature