Banning the entertainment!

In the world of today, where the minds and knowledge has expanded to such an extent that any image that’s formed in the thought can be practically attained through various means. However, in the same time and space, man has become very much dependent to live captured in small boxes, let that be behind the lens as in the eye of a camera, online communication as through the internet on the computers or the Cable Television Network for entertainment for that matter. As it is the digital age we are living in, thus digital cameras as in photography, online contact and various TV networks have become the primary sources of consumption.
There was a time when the choices were few. Masses used to get up early, go to various institutions for studies or resume set 9-5 jobs. However, as time has elapsed, so have the tasks of the world. Today one cannot predict his routine day-to-date life let alone have dinner at 8:00 p.m. and watch the 8:00-9:00p.m. drama along on the then only available channel, PTV. Today, one cannot spare time for any programme for that matter and cannot really go and hire long films for that matter. But Cable TV has apparently solved the problem as it offers various set of programmes and it’s many channels.
However, the latest ban of PEMRA has disrupted the transmission of most of the channels of Cable TV. After a rift of PEMRA and Cable Operators, for apparently showing channels not satisfying the demands as par the rules, initially some 60 channels were banned and the viewers that primarily switched to Cable TV for news and entertainment, suffered a complete blackout of transmission at large. However, later, after the formal agreement between the two factions, publicity rights of 35 channels were withheld only and now there are 35 to tackle for PEMRA namely Star Plus, Star Gold, Star Ustav, Super Sports 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, B4U Music, B4U Movies, E-Entertainment, Sat Mac, AXN and MBC One.
Out of all these, as there are other sports channels that are active as well, thus for all those who both love and hate Star Plus for it’s dramas, are in great agony as all programmes were at it’s climax. Wherever one goes, there’s the issue of banned channels when the frustration is only for the first one on the list, i.e. Star Plus. The viewers are enraged at PEMRA as they say that if vulgarity was the basis for banning a channel or Indian stuff is the reason for that matter, then why has the authority allowed various highly exposing songs and all Indian films on the Cable TV for that matter. They demand that one pays the Cable TV fees to get hooked to the channels of their choice but when PEMRA suddenly wakes up to the lawlessness amongst the Cable Operators and imposes an unjustifiable ban on certain channels, it very much troubles the entertainment hungry ones at large.
Then the viewers have also suggested that why not the PEMRA authorities impose a certain fine if the Cable Operators are not buying rights for certain channels and settle the matter accordingly, without putting the viewers into unnecessary hassles and disruption of transmission of certain channels. The word is that Star Plus has been banned particularly because of Federal Minister for Information; Sheikh Rashid Ahmad’s hate for Indian dramas. However, let’s not forget that in the Nawaz regime, an attempt of banning Popular Music was made but it failed as the masses do not go by a single person’s intention. It is also in the air that the honourable minister fears that Pak dramas are getting less popularity. But let’s rest assured that our dramas are of very fine quality and provided they maintain their standard, nothing’s going to happen to their viewership. Nothing in the dresses or dialogues in Star Plus dramas speak vulgar as compared to our own ones on Geo and ARY Digital.
For years and years, we have been watching Indian films and if one day now, someone gets up and bans them, it just won’t be on. Similar is the case with the said channel. The buzz is that it would be restored by 2nd January next year. It is pertinent to mention here that soon after the partition, when we had only PTV to watch, even then there used to be an Indian channel that was in our frequency range, presenting black and white comedy programmes for kids.
Whether the elders claim that India’s slow poisoning are youth or whatever a handful of oldies think, it is of no use as Pakistan is not a fundamentalist country and nation and in view of the Enlightened Moderation and free country concepts of our able leadership, the viewers do deserve to watch what they want and there should be a healthy competitiveness in the air. The scornful faces should be ignored. The effort would’ve been worth it if was permanent but as everyone knows that it’s a couple of days drama and in Lahore in fact, Star Plus is being shown under the name of Star only, it’s all a useless game. The fact that the message is being displayed on Cable TV requesting the viewers not to force the operators to show them the banned channels, it’s clear that the operators are tense over the issue as well.
It’s a shame that living in a free country, we are not given the right to watch what we want. As for now, let’s hope PEMRA lifts the useless countrywide ban on certain channels and finally comprehends the fact that we do not live in the rule of the stick anymore but today’s masses are knowledgeable and their voices and demands cannot just easily repressed without any set justification though there cannot be any for what it has done! PEMRA should better start showing Pak films on the Cable Operators’ channels instead of Indian ones and indulge in real issues like these instead of creating mess. It would at least save the film vendors’ market without troubling anyone!

—Uzma Zafar