Faseele Jaan Se Aagay returns

The second season of the popular series starts on June 10.

LAHORE:

The much-awaited second season of “Faseele Jaan Se Aagay,” a drama series jointly produced by the Inter Services Public Relations and CRS, will be going on air, starting this Friday at 7:40 pm on PTV Home. The drama serial’s first season was telecast on PTV Home during January and February.

The new drama series, inspired by true events of the war on terror, documents the epic journey of the jawans of the Pakistan Army and the common people, who, despite all the odds stacked against them, showed firm resolve to weed out terrorism. According to the serial’s executive producer, Khawar Azhar, the series is an attempt to unveil the real terrorists and militants, who use religion to exploit the downtrodden masses. A very interesting aspect of this play is that several serving military men are acting in it.

The new season will be presenting five new stories, inspired by real -life efforts of military battalions and local lashkars to eliminate terrorism.

The first episode of the new season, “Parwaz-e-Junoon” , to be telecast on June 10, is based on a true incident involving the Army Aviation during the operation Rah-e-Raast. The episode depicts pilots in two helicopters, who while traversing a routine route, discovered 800 kilogrammes of anti -aircraft guns installed at a mountain top. Consequently, they eliminated the militants operating the weaponry and brought the latter back with them to the military base. This play is written and directed by Kashif Nisar and prominent cast members include Major Zahid Bari, Major Khalid Maooz, Captain Nauman, Nayyar Ejaz, Faizan Khwaja and Erum Akhtar.

The second episode titled “Mehrunnisa Ka Lashkar”, will be telecast on June 17. The play focuses on the story of Mehrunnisa, a brave lady who decided to stand up against marauding terrorists trying to seize control of her hometown Buner. Her determination resulted in the creation of a local lashkar that forced the terrorists to retreat from that area. This drama is written by maestro Asghar Nadeem Syed and is directed by Azeem Sajjad. Renowned artist Ayesha Sana plays the role of protagonist, Mehrunnisa, while Najibullah Anjum and Tariq Jamal feature in other major roles.

The third episode, “Ma’arkae Chuprial”, directed by the talented director Azeem Sajjad, will be telecast on June 24. This play is another action-packed serial, adapted from one of the actual battle fought by the Pakistani military’s 12 Northern Light Infantry (12 NLI), during operation Rah-e-Raast. This particular encounter resulted in the 12 NLI seizing two vital peaks in the militant-controlled Sakhra valley. This drama is also written by Asghar Nadeem Syed and prominent cast members include Colonel Ather Rana, Major Muhammad Adnan, Lieutenant Tayyab Mahi and Imran Rizvi.

The fourth episode, “Bilal Shaheed — Ghazanosar Ka Hero”, will be telecast on July 1. It highlights the bravery of Captain Bilal Zafar, who embraced martyrdom during the most significant combat at Peochar, the headquarters of Malakand’s militants. Zafar was among the initial officers who laid down their lives during operation Rah-e-Raast. The martyrdom  of these soldiers is believed to have strongly motivated the army to subsequently achieve overwhelming success in exterminating terrorists from Malakand Division. Written by Zafar Meraj, this drama features Captain Ahsan Kyanai, Mohsin Gillani and Seemi Raheel in prominent roles.

The final episode, “Muhafiz Ya Masiha”, to be telecast on July 8, is also written by Zafar Meraj. The narrative is based on the actual twin bombings at the International Islamic University in 2009. It highlights the gallantry of a Christian employee of the institute, Pervez Masih, who saved dozens of lives by intervening timely to curtail the devastation of the blast. Yet Masih in turn ended up sacrificing his own life. Sarmad Khoosat, the director of the play, is also acting out Masih’s role. Other cast members include Ghazala Butt and Waqar Khalid.

The theme song for the second season “Imtihan Hai Imtihan” has been written and composed by young Imran Riaz and Sahir Ali Bagga respectively. Rahat Fateh Ali and Shafqat Amanat Ali have jointly delivered the song’s vocals.

Many might discount this drama series as merely state propaganda, especially at a time when the Pakistani army is being maligned for its two-faced approach to the war on terror. However this serial offers an important alternative narrative of the current situation. It takes a micro-level approach to explore individual tales of sacrifices made by the country’s protectors in the line of duty. It highlights the poignant truth that our soldiers remain the primary target in the war on terrorism.



Published in The Express Tribune, June 8th, 2011.

The article has been revised to reflect the following correction:

Correction, June 8, 2011

Due to a reporting error, the original article incorrectly stated that the Catholic Relief Services worked on the TV series.