Wajahat Rauf addresses the controversy surrounding “Hadsa”

Wajahat Rauf has addressed the controversy surrounding his production drama “Hadsa“.

The statement from the producers comes amid a ban slapped on the broadcast of drama by PEMRA following massive backlash on social media.

In a detailed statement posted on social media, Wajahat Rauf maintained that the project is in no way related to the motorway incident of 2020, nor is it based on the life of the victim of that tragedy.

“Hadsa” is written by Zanjabeel Asim Shah and produced by Shazia Wajahat and Wajahat Rauf having Hadiqa Kiani in the main lead.

The other day, Wajahat Rauf responded to questions about the Hadsa’s storyline and denied the accusation that it is based on the motorway rape incident.

He clarified that the only similarity between the drama and the real-life incident is the location (the highway) where the event takes place.

To the questions: Is the drama Haadsa based on the motorway incident? If yes, did you get consent from the real victim before making a play on her life?, Wajahat Rauf replied, “The drama is not based on the motorway incident. The protagonist, her husband, her 3 children, the family dynamics, the police officers who investigate the crime, the reason behind the crime, and the trial are all fictional. The only thing common in the story is the part about the place (highway) where the incident occurred. The crime highlighted in the play is a very serious issue existing in our society and we want to create content that raises awareness of this and other heinous crimes committed every day. In no way do we intend to or have taken one particular incident in mind when making our dramas or films. The aftermath of the crime, her fight against the culprits through a functional legal system, and her stand against her own husband/mother-in-law are all fictional and created by the writer.”

He also replied to the questions which were asked about the ugly portrayal of society’s treatment of rape victims.

To the question, “Don’t you think it is insensitive to use dialogues like ‘Izzat wapis naheen ayay gee’ whereas we should be building a narrative that her izzat is not lost at all and that shame lies with the culprits and not her?, Wajahat Rauf wrote, “The last thing we would want to do is to be insensitive towards someone who has been a victim of this brutal crime. It is our opinion that it would be far more insensitive towards the victims if we did not adopt a condemnation tone; in that case, one might argue that we are not at all familiar with the trauma that a rape victim goes through. Our writer did speak to actual victims who were willing to talk about their trauma and how they eventually coped with it and that is what is reflected in the play. A character should be judged after seeing her entire role. Judgment shouldn’t be passed on the basis of a glimpse of social media posts. Writers and directors can show temporary weakness to show long-term strength of a character that develops. Please treat this as a developing story and judge only at the end if you must”.

Question about giving awareness or following ratings, Wajahat Rauf said, “If we wanted ratings, we would have gone with a sure shot saas-bahu or toxic husband story. We passionately tell stories that create awareness on sensitive issues be it Guru (a story about an intersex who sacrifices everything to raise an abandoned child) or Daamsa (a story about child trafficking), Pinjra (a story about parenting and favouring one child over another) or Parde Mein Rehne Do (a film about how families more than often blame the woman for not being able to conceive without getting the appropriate tests done). Wajahat Rauf, Shazia Wajahat, Showcase (Production House), Producers, Hadsa”.

 

Here are the snippets of Wajahat Rauf’s Instagram stories: