Pakistani designer, HSY, often conducts live sessions on his Instagram page and invites a number of celebrities to have a chat and discuss topics of importance. The recent celebrity to appear on his live session was none other than popular actor, Sanam Saeed. Their discussion naturally went towards the recent ban on ads and drama serial and web series, Churails, which has now been made accessible. The designer and the actor indulged in a conversation which revolved around the freedom of speech and whether it posed a threat to society.
It was earlier this month, on October 5 that the critically acclaimed Zee5 web-series Churails was ‘taken down’ in Pakistan, limiting the access of the show to the rest of the territories. The step was reportedly taken after a controversial clip from the series went viral and irked many. During their conversation, the Cake actor explained why the web series will not be banned. “There’s a bunch of other directors whose web series are about to come, they won’t be banned. Asim’s Churails pushed buttons and touched upon topics that several appreciated, but many could not accept,” noted Saeed.
She then went on to reiterate the reservations people had while expressing their objection towards Churails. “They did not want something so ‘fahaash’ (vulgar) to be available for the youth to see,” she added. Speaking about the clip that went viral, which caused the removal of the show for two days, Sanam Saeed said, “It’s a tough one. Because we are in Pakistan and even Manto was banned and thrown in jail!” she recalled.
In the clip, veteran actor Hina Khawaja Bayat’s character Sherry, spoke explicitly about the sexual favours she had to give in exchange for job promotions which of course enraged Pakistanis and demanded that instead of banning biscuit advertisements over “excusable” dance moves, such content should be removed.
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This is not the first time a production has been banned and Sanam Saeed reminded HSY that Ismat Chughtai’s work was also banned. “The same is happening in 2020. Because it’s Pakistan after all and you have to take the risk,” she expressed. To conclude her chat with the couturier, the Daam actor said, “it’ll take time for people to understand that the dialogues that have been spoken (in Churails) and the relationships that are being shown are representative of real life – these things happen.