Sania Saeed and Atiqa Odho share screen after 25 years

KARACHI: The 1992 serial Sitara aur Mehrunissa, written by Anwar Maqsood, became popular and perhaps, one of the reasons was the wonderful chemistry between veteran actress Sania Saeed (Mehrunissa) and Atiqa Odho, who made her debut as Sitara.

25 years later, the duo is back to reunite on screen in Pyari Bitto. Saeed spoke with The Express Tribune on how she felt about sharing screen with Odho after more than two decades. “Actually, I don’t feel anything. I only feel it when others say it has been more than 20 years since we last shared screen,” she said. “We have known each other and stayed friends all this time so it doesn’t feel like we have been away, and therefore it doesn’t feel strange at all.” She added part of the reason of this familiarity for her is that Sitara aur Mehrunnisa is talked about so much that it doesn’t feel like it has been that long.

We need to improve our storylines: Sania Saeed

In the serial, Odho plays the mother of the titular Bitto, which is played by Sania Shamshad. Saeed plays Bitto’s aunt who ends up adopting her. “The connection between me and Atiqa is her character’s daughter,” said Saeed.

Pyari Bitto deals with a number of topics, including Alzheimer’s disease. Talking about the serial, Saeed shared it was also about relationships. “It’s about these women and their relationship. You know, when you love someone and you don’t stop? I would say it is about people not knowing when to stop,” she said. “When you love someone, you have to know when to stop, otherwise it doesn’t remain good. It turns into a bad relationship.”

I’m a Pakistani first: Atiqa Odho

As to what makes Pyari Bitto interesting and different from usual family-oriented serials, she said, “It’s about people and it’s more female centric. But it has a completely different take on relationships. Mostly dramas are about saas bahu and all the relationships already explored. But there’s so much more to life and so many stimuli that change life and relationships. And it’s not always that which is portrayed in our plays. Pyari Bitto deals with other factors that affect our relationships. Sure, there are exploitative relationships. But it can’t always be a bad person, but a disease, a circumstance, even a temperament that affects relationships. And Pyari Bitto is all about that.”

Along with Saeed and Odho, the serial also stars Farah Shah, Rashid Farooqui, Nayyar Ejaz, Tipu Sharif and Fawad Khan (from Jeevan Hathi).

Pyari Bitto airs from September 9 onwards on Express Entertainment.

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