Roag (2011 TV series) explained

Based On:	Roag by Faiza Iftikhar
Director:	Babar Javed
Network:	ARY Digital
Company:	A&B Entertainment
Producer:	Asif Raza Mir Babar Javed
Country:	Pakistan
Language:	Urdu
Num Episodes:	20
Runtime:	approx. 38-40 minutes
Theme Music Composer:	Waqar Ali
Opentheme:	Muhammad Ali

Roag is a Pakistani television drama series produced by Babar Javed and Asif Raza Mir under the banner of A&B Entertainment. It was directed by Javed, and was written by Faiza Iftikhar, whose novel of the same name it was based on. It premiered on ARY Digital on 16 April 2011.

It revolves around the struggle of a family who suffers a lot as one of the children was abused sexually.^{[1] [2]} It features Faysal Qureshi, Sumbal Iqbal, Asif Raza Mir, Mohib Mirza, Yamina Peerzada, and Shagufta Ejaz.^[3] It ended on 27 August 2011 with a total of 20 episodes.^[4]

Plot

The plot follows the story of a house where parental neglect leads to the abuse of a child of the house. The series talks about the aftermaths and consequences of this trauma that the child suffers her entire life until she reaches adolescence.

Cast

• Asif Raza Mir as Abid
• Faysal Qureshi as Ayaz
• Arisha Razi / Sumbul Iqbal as Nimra "Nimmo"
• Shagufta Ejaz as Humaira
• Rida Asfahani
• Sara Umair as Sameera
• Mohib Mirza as Faiq
• Yamina Peerzada
• Lubna Aslam
• Qaiser Naqvi as Humaira's mother
• Seemi Pasha
• Sajid Shah
• Kanwar Arsalan

Reception

A reviewer found that "The way a victim and her family carries the burden of shame and guilt is realistically portrayed in Roag in which the family finds itself exploited by a stranger on the eve of their daughter’s nikah."^[5] Author Munira Cheema stated in her book Women and TV Culture in Pakistan, "Roag is a serial that has influenced not only viewers but also talk shows and their debates on child rape."^[6]

Notes and References

1. Web site: The Quint. 20 June 2016. 20 June 2016. Pakistani TV Shows Are Talking About Rape, But Is That Enough?. https://web.archive.org/web/20220214075906/https://www.thequint.com/amp/story/entertainment/pakistani-tv-shows-portrayal-of-women-rape-sexual-violence-zindagi-channel-izzat-chup-raho-paani-jaisa-pyaar-roag . 2022-02-14 . live.
2. Web site: Haider . Sadaf . 27 December 2016 . Romanticising rape is not okay. So why do Pakistani dramas do it anyway? . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20161227075035/http://images.dawn.com/news/1176816 . 2016-12-27 . 2023-01-16 . Dawn Images.
3. Web site: Haider . Sadaf . 2016-10-21 . 10 iconic Pakistani TV dramas you should binge-watch this weekend . 2023-01-15 . . en.
4. Web site: dawn.com. 10 April 2012. 14 February 2022. Drama serials: Fitting the bill?. https://ghostarchive.org/archive/20220314/https://www.dawn.com/news/709333/drama-serials-fitting-the-bill . 2022-03-14 . live.
5. Web site: Haider . Sadaf . 2015-03-01 . Review: Chup Raho suggests there's no honour in silence . 2023-09-22 . DAWN.COM . en.
6. Book: Cheema, Munira . Women and TV Culture in Pakistan: Gender, Islam and National Identity . 2018-07-30 . Bloomsbury Publishing . 978-1-83860-991-7 . en.
7. Web site: Rehman . Atika . Qamar . Saadia . 2012-07-09 . Lux Style Awards 2012: Glamour's night out . live . https://web.archive.org/web/20220218081346/https://tribune.com.pk/story/406261/lux-style-awards-2012-live-updates . 18 February 2022 . 15 October 2022 . The Express Tribune.