Saji Gul is a contemporary Pakistani playwright known for his famous plays like Sanata, currently running Iltijah and his contribution to the series Kitni Girhein Baqi Hain in the form of his play Gudde Guriya Ka Biyah. The presence of a psychologically unstable young girl in Sanata, a girl forced into marrying a man of her father’s age in Gudde Guriya ka Biyah and a child suffering from down’s syndrome in Iltijah tells that children, their psyche and their rights are a matter of importance for Saji Gul.
This inclines us to go back to the early works of the writer produced for Pakistan Television (PTV). Saji Gul came up with a few beautiful productions specially created for children, addressing their problems in a comic manner at times, and at times, making them learn important things by incorporating lectures and animated videos into drama serials. In this regard, two of his works are ineluctable. One of them was Granny, Sunny Aur Science casting the veteran actress Durdana Butt.
The play was solely meant for children with its attractive colourful set designed in the most creative manner possible, and comprising of a story of a naughty boy. The play, while was rendered interesting by the nuisances of Sunny the mischievous child, incorporated animated scientific videos, the purpose of which was to teach children along with providing them entertainment. These videos would address important scientific topics like nutrition, cell making etc. The important thing to be noticed is that these videos never made their appearance out of the blue in the episodes, but were always a part of the plot and were well-connected with the scene preceding the video.
Another important work of Saji Gul related to children was Kidz Court. This play comprised of children assembled together in colourful uniforms in a simulation of a court. Children with problems would present their cases to the court, with the judges being children as well. In an amusing manner, this play would address important topics related to children rights such as child labour. One example is an episode in which a girl is brought to a court who has been ill-treated by her owners who do not allow her to read or write but make her do loads of work and give nothing in return except for maltreatment.
Saji Gul is a celebrated writer who is being commended a lot for his beautiful play Iltijah but it must be known that Saji Gul is someone who from the very start of his career has been endeavouring to produce works which address issues related to children. Children are an important segment of the audience which must not be ignored while producing works for television, especially in a country like Pakistan where family is an important institution, and often, parents and children sit together to watch television. Considering this situation, plays dedicated to children and their problems are a laudable effort, for which Saji Gul must not go unpraised.