A chunk of what I learnt through watching Pakistani dramas over time...

Couple: Has sons
Society: MASHAALLAH MASHALLAH MASHAALLAH (insert eye heart emojis)
Couple: has daughters
Society: InshaAllah Allah beta bhi dega/ Allah qismat achi karay (translates to= may they get married in good households)
Girl: Has an opinion
Society: achi larkiyan bolti nahi, tum se shaadi kon karay ga?
Boy: Is rich and marries a secretary from office
Society: Larki challaak hai issi nai phasaya hoga
Girl: Earns 1 lakh rupees
Society: Either - Yass slay queen
Or - shaadi ke baad ghar bethayyiye
Boy: Earns 1 lakh rupees
Rishta aunty: Aap ke betay ki salary boht kam hai acha rishta nai aae ga
Girl: Is dark skinned
Society: fair and lovely zindabad, warna rishta kaisay aae ga?
Girl: Goes to a well reputed university
Society: Larkiyon ko parhaanay likhanay mai kya rakha hai
Mother-in-law: Exists
Society: The greatest evil, villainy to the core
Boy: Likes a girl
Society: Iss ki shaadi ki umar hai get him married to the girl he likes
Girl: Likes a boy
Society: Kharaab larki
Girl: Shows the slightest signs of resisting oppressive traditions
Khandaan: Log kya kahain ge
Husband: Is abusive
Wife: Bechari through and through, takes no action
Ghunda boy: Likes a girl
Girl: Meray maa baap nahi maanain ge
Ghunda boy: Kidnaps her
Wife: Stays out one night
Husband: Her honour has been taken, cannot trust her anymore
Husband: Is abusive
Wife: Either- dies
Or - prays 24/7
Husband: Changes into a good man overnight
Wife: Has produced daughters only
Husband: Remarries just to have sons
Husband: Has a female colleague/childhood friend
Wife: Is that a home-breaker I smell?
Pakistani drama: Exists
The theme of marriage: Any conversation is incomplete without me *evil laughter*
Disclaimer: The above rant/dialogues/observation list is not exhaustive
Disclaimer part 2: This is not to say that all dramas are like this, neither that there aren't amazing Pakistani dramas.
Hahaha Ayesha this is one of the most fun blogs I've ever read!
Thank you for saying exactly what you were thinking and what we all are thinking while watching them. I think the most valuable lesson I've been able to extract from your blog is that yes there is discrimination but (like how you summed it up in the end), at the root of every discrimination is the lens of marriage. There are only a handful of Pakistani dramas actually that I recall don't revolve around the realm of marriage.
I think on the flip side, if you've had the chance to visit a theater recently, most of our theatrical plays focus on a much more diverse range of…
I like how you summed up the entire Pakistani drama industry into dialogues, great job from your side!
I agree with the themes that you highlighted. And, I wanted to tell you that these are so repetitive that I have started getting annoyed while watching Pakistani dramas. They have become m the starplus of Pakistan.. only a few drams like sinfe ahan and Baaghi break those stereotypes and show something positive. Otherwise, all negativity is filled in these drams, and I swear I am not kidding that sometimes I am so annoyed that I want to shoot the director and story writers for such scenes. I agree with what I believe you are saying: that various types of individuals are…
A perfect example of media reflecting how strongly society wants to cling on to its constructs and how stereotyping is prevalent throughout. Media espicially these dramas are often a very realisitic reflection of what goes on behind the curtain. Society claims to be civil and to establish order where behind the curtain of social construcst this is actually whats happening. Very well written Ayesha
Hi Ayesha!
This is such a good and rather humorous take on the often consistent problematic themes across a multitude of Pakistani dramas. It was an insightful read and such a unique way to write a blog! I like how it encapsulates all the major themes that we see across Pakistani Dramas on television.
I agree with all the themes you highlighted. There's one theme that I'd like to add that I've observed across many dramas. There is this constant trivialization of the drama heroines' accomplishments. Some dramas feature career women, some feature intelligent women who topped their college exams, some feature older, middle-aged women who have had successful careers for years. However, their accomplishments are severely downplayed, and these…
I really like the way you've written this blog Ayesha! Instead of writing a detailed analysis on the dramas, you've just written some basic dialogues around themes that are prevalent in Pakistani dramas and just the dialogues themselves, despite being brief, really convey what you wanted to say in the blog. Very well done!
And I agree with the themes you have highlighted. Even in the dramas that I have liked in the past like Tanhayyian and it's sequel Tanhayyian Naye Silsilay, while a lot of the stereotypical themes are not there and the dramas show a very close family bonding with great dialogues. The overall storyline still ends up showing a very bold female character who had a goal…