PTV — intezar farmaiye

Back to good ways?

The studios, lights, cameras and gray panelling mesmerised me. I considered myself a fortunate person who, at a time when TV sets in Lahore could be counted on the fingers and when mobs would push each other at public places and hotels to watch the ‘picture box’, I was standing in the middle of a TV studio. This was my first ever encounter with Pakistan Television. It was December 1964 when my father Altaf Parwaz, a renowned poet and writer, took me for some Lahore-based literary society’s Mushaira. During that tour, one day my father and I were sitting in Ayub Romani’s office at Radio Pakistan Lahore, when the discussion tilted towards the advent of television in Pakistan. Lahore had just inaugurated Pakistan’s maiden television station, so it was a new and unique contraption for Pakistanis generally and for Lahorites especially. At that time, like all other teenagers, television was an alluring mystery for me too. When I came to know that this TV station was situated in Radio Pakistan Lahore’s compound, it intrigued me and very hesitatingly I voiced my desire to see it. Uncle Ayub left his routine work, held my hand and took me there, where I met Fazal Kamal for the first time.

The longing to perform on stage was my childhood desire and I would soothe that itch in front of a radio microphone in 1965-70. It was Radio Pakistan Rawalpindi, where renowned broadcasters like the late Noor Ahmad and Abdul Majeed of Dunya-e-Radio taught me voice pitch and levels and I got the chance to stand alongside Yasmeen Tahir, Shujaat Hashmi, Najma Mehboob, Azhar Lodhi and many others. Then came 1966, and the itinerary changed. I never thought of adopting acting as a profession, so my contribution to PTV is not great, but still I hold the honour to be among the founder artists of this station (no harm in saying so!). There I had the luck to work with icons like Shahzad Khalil, Ghufran Imtiazi, Yawar Hayat, Aftab Israr and many others.

The ratio of possessing a TV set in those days was like 1 to 100. So one can easily visualise that going to the neighbours to watch programmes, even when the hosts were not willing to welcome you, was not reprehensible. The keen viewers would watch the programs till national anthem. The eyes wouldn’t be blinked even when ‘Intezar Farmaiye’ (This time Intezar Farmaiye has extended for indefinite spell) message was shown on screens for vague lengths. Rawalpindi/Islamabad Television started from the army barracks of Chaklala. In 1971, I said goodbye to these barracks and kicked off for the real military barracks of Kakul. But I never lost contact with near and dear ones like Shahzad Khalil, Zahid Uzair, Fiaz-ul-Haq, Rafique Warraich, Ghufran Imtiazi, Azhar Lodhi and many others. My separation from PTV lasted for about 24 years until I said a farewell to arms.

Meanwhile, PTV voyaged from black and white to colour and from U-matic to Beta and digital. PTV produced remarkable serials like Waris, Uncle Urfi, Ankahee, Khawaja & Son and many more. The Islamic Summit 1974 and live election transmissions were memorable productions. The privilege of compelling people to change the timings of their functions, whether a marriage or a mehndi, would rest with PTV only. Neighbouring India’s TV programmes looked juvenile in front of PTV’s productions. Though like many other organisations, PTV also suffered due to political groupings and corporate politics, nevertheless, nobody could snatch the mark of respect from Pakistan Television of being an institution, until 9/11 turned the whole world upside down.

In the tornado of global transformation to the trends and traditions of politics and professions, the media too was not spared. The infant channels still in their cradle developed notions and started considering themselves of PTV’s stature without realising that most of the technicians and artists providing a base to their foundation are saplings and sprouts of PTV. No doubt many of the private channels appear to be avant-garde due to their tabloid and sensational trends, but the grace and elegance possessed by PTV (alas!) remained the sole property of this national channel for quite long. For this very reason, despite all the enlightenment and moderation, PTV was considered to be the only channel which could be watched while sitting with family members.

Through the crises, PTV’s role was always commendable and praiseworthy. So was it during the early hours of the October 2005 earthquake. The way PTV held the fort shall remain unparalleled. The coverage of such disasters was a very responsible task. So chants of reaching the calamity-hit areas with a sole camera first were meaningless vis-à-vis PTV’s coverage. The beauty lies in covering and carrying events to a logical wind-up and not in framing, forgetting and abandoning them halfway. Mature and balanced coverage of such calamities spoke of professionalism, which appeared as the sole prerogative of PTV.

Unfortunately the fall of PTV came with the years and sadly, today it stands right next to the national flag carrier PIA. It’s no more the same crowd puller PTV that used to bring the shops’ shutters down when it would be time for ‘Waris’ or ‘Tanhaiyaan’. Nobody cared for this one time esteemed institution. The political Zika virus badly hit the organisation which steadily and virtually turned it in to ‘His Master’s Voice’. Although 1990 onwards every government exploited it as a tool for their image building, nevertheless, it still had entertainment as one of the priorities but that also vanished with the passage of time. The producers of PTV are highly professional, enthusiastic and above all ingenious and imaginative. They are more than willing to make productions, as good and classic as their precursors have been making and so are the other members of this gigantic Cruise. Unfortunately, they are asked to keep their ‘shops’ open but no selling.

Lately, I came across a news piece in the media about PM ordering inquiry about the ‘top hat’ of PTV. Regrettably, I dare ask why in the first place the honourable prime minister didn’t consider about this aspect at the time of appointing someone who was already a controversial figure? And secondly, just one inquiry would not be sufficient. Someone has to go deep down into this muck to find the reasons as to what the programming department of the headquarters has been doing during all these years? Why was it literally turned into a shrine? Why the PTV’s own faculty was shoved in the back seat to rust and repeated sub standard private productions were bought at heavy amounts, when, instead of purchasing one private drama at least two good serials could have been produced by the talented producers of PTV? Why was there hardly any program for children, and to whom the slot was allotted for cartoon films?

Why were the scripts and ideas submitted by writers of repute thrown in the dustbin and the producers were dictated to get it written from unknown writers of authorities’ choice? It reminds me of my friend late Shahzad Khalil, who once while talking to a writer bluntly told him, “Personally I don’t like you at all but the problem is that you write good and I can’t allow my liking to override the quality of script”. What was happening now was totally the opposite. Program department is the spine of PTV and sadly the negligence, corruption, nepotism and wrong appointments formed osteophytes at multiple levels in the lumbar spine of poor PTV.

Under the dark clouds, the appointment of Mr Ata-ul Haq Qasmi as chairman PTV emerged as a ray of hope for the fallen organisation. It is generally known that reforming this giant set-up would be an uphill task but again Qasmi sahib is the one who can bring this sick unit out of the ICU. There is a very valid and meaningful term used in the armed forces and that is ‘esprit de corps’. Sadly, the esprit de corps displayed by its workers, artists and other members is the story of yester years. It’s hoped that Qasmi Sahib’s concern and interest will certainly revert it to the same old PTV. However, as a first step he is expected to open ‘Khawaja & Son’ immediately, for writers and producers and I strongly believe the rise and reputation will follow robotically.