
In tense relations with India, Pakistani TV dramas build bridges
Two Pakistani women sit together on a couch, rehearsing their lines while a director scrutinizes them.
Waiting off camera for his scene is the male lead, an actor blessed with Bachelor hair and fine bone structure. Also out of sight: the Islamabad homeowners, who are holed up in a separate room and whose furniture and knickknacks will be seen by millions of viewers — many from the society that has been their country's neighbor and uneasy sparring partner for much of the past century.
This is the set of the Pakistani drama Adhi Bewafai, or Half Infidelity — one of what some in other nations would call "soap operas."
But these dramas, it turns out, are not just for Pakistanis. Realistic settings, natural dialogue and almost workaday plots about families and marriages make Pakistani dramas a hit with viewers at home and abroad — especially in the neighboring country that split with Pakistan in 1947 and is its nuclear archrival today: India.
Television, it seems, is succeeding where diplomacy sometimes can't.
A glimpse into life across the border
Several thousand people work in Pakistan's drama industry; the country produces between 80 to 120 shows a year, each one a source of escapism and intrigue. They offer Indians a tantalizing glimpse into life across the border — and manage to break through decades of enmity between the two governments.
Maheen Shafeeq, a research associate at the Institute of Strategic Studies in Islamabad, says there is effectively no relationship between the two governments. Each government is fixed on a single issue it cannot move past — for India, it's terrorism; for Pakistan, the disputed territory of Jammu and Kashmir.
"The governments are very much opposed to each other," she says. "They don't agree what they should talk about."
Although it's difficult for Indians to visit Pakistan, where these shows are filmed, they faithfully follow the plot twists and turns through platforms like YouTube, ZEE5, and MX Player.
For those of a certain generation, however, it wasn't always so easy to keep up.
Kaveri Sharma, a writer in the Indian city of Patna, recalls her mother-in-law and aunt jiggling antennas in the 1980s and 1990s in hopes of catching a signal from Pakistan's state broadcaster, PTV. It's how Sharma first realized that the country next door was a drama powerhouse. It inspired her to discover the shows for herself years later, even going on to watch them with her own daughter.
"They feel familiar, but they are also a break from our own lives," Sharma says. "I don't see any differences between the two countries. Everything is relatable. I see Karachi and think that it could be Lucknow or Patna. What happens on the shows could happen to me or my friends."
She had heard only negative things about Pakistan since childhood — that it was the enemy that would take everything from India. The TV dramas have added subtlety and detail to this image for her. She would love to visit, but is unlikely to get the opportunity. So she explores Pakistan through the locations, malls, offices, streets and restaurants depicted on the small screen.
The names of popular Karachi neighborhoods roll off her tongue. Sharma, like Bibi Hafeez in the southern Indian city of Hyderabad and Punita Kumar in the central Indian city of Raipur, raves about the dramas' universality of themes, the strong characterization and the emotional range.
"Pakistani characters are not only heroes or villains. They have shades to them, and that is very human," says Kumar, who chanced upon a Pakistani drama through a chunky videocassette when she was a teenager living in the northern Indian city of Aligarh. It was love at first watch.
"They captivated me. We got a cable connection that offered PTV. Then YouTube came and I realized I could search for whatever drama I wanted. I haven't taken a stop," she said. "We get exposure to Pakistani life in the scenes, but the struggles the characters have with their relatives are ones I would have with my own."
Pakistani TV veteran Khaled Anam is delighted by Indians' enthusiasm for the country's serials and the barriers they help erode.
"What Bollywood is to India, dramas are to Pakistan," says Anam, who is based in Karachi and has worked as an actor since the 1980s. He has appeared in many dramas, including the ratings smash Humsafar (Life Partner).
India's productions go big, while Pakistan's are more low key
India dominates the movie market in South Asia and beyond, with big stars and bigger budgets. Pakistanis have been exposed to Bollywood films for decades, although the prevailing hostile political climate means they can't watch them in movie theaters. The bans are mutual, though. India, like Pakistan, restricts content from across the border in movie theaters and TV channels.
And while India is no slouch when it comes to TV production, it doesn't offer viewers what Pakistan does, according to Anam: simplicity, depth of writing and a limited number of episodes.
"There are 15-minute flashbacks in Indian serials. (The characters) are decked out and dolled up. It's a fantasy world. The shows go on forever. Everything is 'DUN dun dun!'" says Anam, mimicking a dramatic musical riff and shaking his hands.
The actors on the couch in Islamabad are rehearsing lines about a woman who is disrespectful and so, according to one of them, is an unsuitable marriage prospect. The delivery and grammar could be heard in virtually any South Asian household.
"Pakistanis are generally emotional people, and that is in their dramas also," says Islamabad-based director Saife Hassan. "It would take me less than two minutes to explain the plot of the super-duper hit Kabhi Main, Kabhi Tum (Sometimes Me, Sometimes You). It's about the emotions between a husband and wife."
Hassan, who began his TV career in the 1990s, says Indians frequently comment on his social media pages and send him direct messages about his work. He even recalls Indian viewers praying for the recovery of a character who was in a coma.
Hassan would love to see more homegrown dramas make it onto platforms like Netflix, as some Indian shows have with great success. But he wonders whether international audiences would understand and connect with Pakistani stories or lives: "The way we think is different from the West. Our shows are not driven by events. They are driven by emotions."
There is also a lack of raunch in Pakistani dramas, which are family-friendly with little to no vulgarity, violence, or even action. Indians, therefore, are a natural audience for Pakistani dramas, Hassan says. "They are our people. They are like us. They eat like us," he says. "I love India, and I love Indians. They have grown out of this animosity."
Hashtags

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles


Los Angeles Times
19 minutes ago
- Los Angeles Times
13 of the late Brian Wilson' s finest songs to revisit
Brian Wilson's death on Wednesday at the age of 82 heralds an end to one idea of Southern California — as the temperate paradise of ascendant Americana. Exuberance and dreaminess, writerly sophistication and technical ambition, drugs and madness: Wilson's exquisite craft captured all of it, with his band the Beach Boys leaving behind a singularly inventive and exultant body of work, one that scripted and embodied California to the world. His vast catalog of incomparable achievement also contained thwarted hopes and despair amid his drug abuse and mental illness. It should be revisited in its full range today. These are a few of his hallmark accomplishments as a writer, arranger and performer. Surfer Girl (1963)Unbelievably, impossibly the first single that Brian Wilson ever wrote. So sophisticated and delicate in its moon-eyed teenage passions, full of artful melodic moves bolstered by the pure-water harmonies that would define the group. The song that set the template for a SoCal subculture, and a band to eventually rival the Beatles. In My Room (1963)Perfectly captures the loneliness and sanctity of young solitude over a lovely doo-wop arpeggio. It's a bracingly vulnerable track for a boy band to write in any era of masculinity. Warmth of the Sun (1964)What a beautiful composition to come right in the wake of the Kennedy assassination. Soaked with loss, redeemed by those radiant chord changes showing Wilson's escalating ambitions as a writer, here with Mike Love. Don't Worry Baby (1964)Riffing off the Ronettes' hit the year before, this early cut served double duty as a sincere portrait of romantic comfort and safety, and a reassurance for Wilson's own insecurities as a performer on stage and in life. The regal vocal here proved it worked. Please Let Me Wonder (1965)An absolute swoon. Wilson was ramping up to the sonic inventions of 'Pet Sounds,' but this era-transitional single captured the old lovelorn magic and dreaminess in an increasingly robust arrangement. California Girls (1965)Written with Love after the Beach Boys' first European tour, this hallmark single is diabolical in its sincerity and craftsmanship, a gobsmacked appreciation for all the world's women that probably did as much to build the Golden State's global reputation as Hollywood and the microchip. Caroline, No (1966)It's hard not to pack this list with songs from 'Pet Sounds,' but this one stands out for its poignancy about time passing and the grind of life changing a lost love. Wilson regarded it as one of his best, and with its striking instrumental palette of harpsichord and flutes, it's easy to agree. God Only Knows (1966)From the opening bait-and-switch lyric to the quiet, tidal shifts in tone and that regal outro, it may be the emblematic Beach Boys song. It will never lose its potency as a crowing statement of devotion. Go get married to it, or ponder its existential desperation. Good Vibrations (1966)Probably the definitive Beach Boys single in that it has absolutely everything they're beloved for — compositional genius, technical invention and immaculate performances spliced from four different studios into one incandescent, emblematic single. Darlin' (1967)The Beach Boys were in decline by 1967 — in health and hipness alike. Wilson revamped a song he wrote with Mike Love (for what became Three Dog Night). Now as a rollicking horn-driven soul number (with a great vocal from Carl Wilson), it became an unexpected highlight of this era for the band. Cabin Essence (1969 and 2004)A core piece of the mangled, unfinished 'Smile' sessions, the song took Wilson four decades to get right and finally release as part of his own effort to finish the LP. It's packed with ideas from all over the American songbook — Aaron Copland and western folk, run through with Wilson's own cracked impressionist view of life on the rails. Surf's Up (1971)'A blind class aristocracy, back through the opera glass you see / The pit and the pendulum drawn.' An elegy for the hopeful '60s, with a wry title that lays the band's old sunny optimism in the grave. Til I Die (1971)A wrenching composition evoking a declining Wilson's hopelessness and despair, all the more striking for its exuberant production. It feels even weightier on today of all days — 'How deep is the ocean, I've lost my way.'
Yahoo
19 minutes ago
- Yahoo
Israeli forces recover bodies of two hostages in Gaza, PM says
Israeli security forces operating in Gaza have recovered the bodies of two Israeli hostages, Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu says. He named one of them as Yair (Yaya) Yaakov, 59, who was killed inside his home at Kibbutz Nir Oz during the Hamas-led attack on southern Israel on 7 October 2023. His teenage sons, Or and Yagil, and his partner, Meirav Tal, were abducted alive and released in November 2023, as part of a ceasefire deal between Israel and Hamas. Netanyahu said the name of the other hostage had not yet been released, but that their family had been informed. There are now 53 hostages still being held by Hamas in Gaza, at least 20 of whom are believed to be alive. News of the recovery of Yair Yaakov's body initially came from his sons. "Dad, I love you," Yagil wrote in a post on Instagram on Wednesday evening, according to the Haaretz newspaper. "I don't know how to respond yet. I'm sad to say this. I'm waiting for your funeral, I love you and knew this day would come." Yagil also thanked the Israel Defense Forces (IDF) and the Shin Bet internal security service and expressed hope that the remaining hostages "will be brought [back] in a deal that doesn't risk soldiers". Later, Netanyahu issued a statement saying: "Together with all the citizens of Israel, my wife and I extend our deepest condolences to the families who have lost their most beloved." "I thank the soldiers and commanders for another successful execution of the sacred mission to return our hostages." The Hostages and Missing Families Forum, which represents many hostages' families, said in a statement that it "bows its head in sorrow over the murder of Yaya and shares in the profound grief of the Yaakov family". "There are no words to express the depth of this pain," it added. "The hostages have no time. We must bring them all home, Now!" The Israeli military launched a campaign in Gaza in response to the 7 October attack, in which about 1,200 people were killed and 251 others were taken hostage. At least 55,104 people have been killed in Gaza since then, according to the territory's Hamas-run health ministry.


Fast Company
19 minutes ago
- Fast Company
Gavin Newsom is having his social media moment
'Fuck around' and 'find out,' read a TikTok post, following a screenshot announcing that California is suing President Donald Trump for deploying the National Guard to the streets of Los Angeles. But the TikTok wasn't shared by a typical meme account—it came from California Governor Gavin Newsom. 'I damn near fell over when I realized this was Gov. Newsom's page,' one user commented. Since Friday, demonstrations have erupted across Los Angeles in protest of the president's immigration policies and the ongoing Immigration and Customs Enforcement raids. Although many of the demonstrations have remained peaceful, there have been violent incidents including authorities deploying tear gas and rubber bullets, and protestors setting Waymo vehicles ablaze throughout the city. As tensions escalated, the Trump administration deployed the National Guard and Marines—despite objections from local officials—sparking a lawsuit from the state, threats of arrest against Governor Newsom, and a surge of defiant memes. 'And remember kids, the next time anybody tells you 'the government wouldn't do that', oh yes they would,' says the popular TikTok sound used on Newsom's official account video, playing over screenshots of news headlines and images of armed forces confronting demonstrators. In another viral video from the governor's page, which amassed over 5.4 million views, Taylor Swift's 'You Need To Calm Down' plays over a series of photos of the two politicians. 'r u ok?' the post asks, with a caption reading: 'America's keyboard warrior.' Newsom's clapback drew widespread praise in the comments. 'I do disagree with Newsom a lot but him standing up to tyranny and standing with your state takes some serious guts. Hats off to you Newsom,' wrote one user. He's also taken to his personal account to deliver meme-laced messages to Trump—one featuring a photoshopped image of the president wearing a crown, captioned 'send in the troops.' The slideshow ends with a shot from the musical Hamilton, with text reading: 'Democracy is under assault right before our eyes. It's time for all of us to stand up.' The online showdown has significantly boosted Newsom's social media presence, growing his personal TikTok account by approximately 397,000 followers and his official Governor account by 479,000 since Friday. Newsom is the latest in a growing number of politicians leveraging memes and social media to bypass traditional media and speak directly to the public through humor. Famously, Kamala Harris gained momentum during her presidential campaign with ' Brat summer ' and the coconut tree trend, while Joe Biden leaned into the viral ' Dark Brandon ' meme during his reelection campaign. Although meme strategies can generate enthusiasm and visibility, the 2024 election results suggest that online popularity doesn't always translate at the polls.