Anwar Maqsood – renowned scriptwriter, television host, satirist, humourist, has expressed his dismay over the current state of Pakistani drama industry.
His son, Bilal Maqsood, held a live session on social media and a conducted an informal question-answer session with the acclaimed scriptwriter.
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Upon being asked as to why he doesn’t write for television anymore, Anwar Maqsood expressed his utter disappointment in the current television industry and the scripts being used. He further added that all of his colleagues have passed away and this industry is nothing without them.
“No one is writing. Ashfaq Sahab isn’t writing, Bano Qudsia isn’t writing, Munoon bhai isn’t writing, Intizar Hussain isn’t writing. They have taken drama with them. Now there is no drama,” he noted.
Anwar Maqsood went on to criticize the titles and scripts of modern dramas stating, “Now after such programs how can I write dramas.”
Drama industry mogul then recalled his late colleague and friend Moin Akhtar, stating that the latter would often deviate from the script and improvise as he pleased, a move which always eventually benefitted the show.
The 84-year old playwright also recalled his father’s death in the early days after migrating to Pakistan, which essentially left family in dire financial circumstances, “Achay logon kay hee halaat buray hotay hein,” he said.
He recalled that he and his siblings started working from an early age stating, “We knew that these testing times will eventually pass if we continue to work hard. Our parents taught us to not lie and cheat and just be honest in our dealings. After that, it didn’t matter to them what we did, be it writing, painting, sewing or radio. And this is exactly what ended up happening.”
He went on to mention that in order to make ends meet, he sold kittens, cuff-links and ties made from old clothes salvaged from the flea market at Lighthouse, and had clients such as Waheed Murad, Sohail Rana, and Santosh Kumar.
“Out of these, half still owe me money for the cuff-links and ties,” he jested.
Long before Anwar Maqsood became famous as a writer and satirist, he was known in art circles as a painter of enviable potential, who sold out all of his 32 paintings in his very first exhibition held at the French Embassy.