Piracy sucks life out of Pashto drama, music

Producers say there is 90% decrease in production this year

PESHAWAR: The production of television dramas and audio music albums on compact discs has reached alarmingly low levels on Eid as producers say there is a 90% reduction in the city.

Only 10 dramas have been released in the market and those too were immediately copied and distributed through internet file sharing. The producers say illegal downloads and  uploading to memory cards is hurting their business as they cannot even recover costs, let alone earn a profit.

“And the CD drama has died a slow death,” says Farhad Khan,  a producer. “This will also be the fate of the Pashto music which is now limited to the release of just a few songs as not many singers are working on albums.”

Ismail Shahid, a senior comedian and regular feature in dramas, has not appeared in any recent production, while Umer Gul and Jahangir Khan were part of just one drama.

He says senior artists associated with the medium are the subject of huge criticism and this cannot be reduced until illegal downloads, which hurt their livelihood, are restricted.

Drop in production

“There is a 90% decrease in the production of CD dramas,” says Ali, the owner of Mehran CD House, which has made such productions.

“Here, artists and producers have no rights over their own work and neither are they protected through any law.”

He adds they have struggled to get the police to take action against illegal downloads and file sharing of their work. However, no progress has been made in this regard. Unlike last year, there have been just 10 dramas releasing in the market.

These dramas were criticised for their poor quality and excessive violence and, like Pashto movies, they are in production without any checks. Producers lament the deteriorating state of affairs and say there is little work for senior artists. It is these dramas that have supported artists and given them an opportunity and the small screen has been graced by the likes of Said Rahman Shino, Ismail, Sarwat Ali, Tariq Jamal and Najeeba Faiz.

The medium was new and a lot of people turned towards it due to the demand. As the saying goes, too many cooks spoil the broth and quality could not be maintained. However, that does not mean that these productions should be banned. Rather, they should be regulated and protected under the law. The situation is similar in the music industry as only a few singers released their albums ahead of Eid. Most leading musicians are complaining of the free downloads and sharing of their music.

“Now the industry really is dying – or at least shrinking,” says Humayun Khan, a Pashto singer. “Copyright terms have hurt artists and Pashto music as record and distribution companies have already stopped the business and sponsoring artists to produce music.”

Published in The Express Tribune, September 16^th, 2016.