Saif-e-Hassan, the silver-haired, graceful man of our drama industry, has not only given phenomenal performances in famous dramas such as ‘Zaibunnisa’, ‘Alif, Allah aur Insan’, ‘Aur Zindagi Badalti Hai’ and ‘Muqaabil’, but has also given beautiful, unforgettable directorial pieces to Pakistan such as ‘Sammi’ and ‘Sang-e-Marmar’ which are considered two of the most popular Pakistani drama serials of 2017. Saif-e-Hassan’s next directorial work, which is to be released tomorrow (Thursday) on HUM television is a horror drama, written by Enaam Hassan, with whom Saif-e-Hassan previously worked in ‘Tum Mere Paas Raho’ aired on the same channel. ‘Belapur Ki Dayan’, casting Adnan Siddique, Sara Khan, Osama Tahir, Rayan Ibrahim, Irfan Khoosat, Sajida Syed, Ismat Zaidi, Amar Khan, Rashid Farooqi, Rashid Mehmood, Umer Naru and Shah Jahan, is going to be Saif-e-Hassan’s first horror project as a director, which was written around two years ago but unfortunately, in the times when the genre was not in vogue. Now that the audience has accepted plays like ‘Dhund’, ‘Dilnawaz’ and ‘Nazr-e-Badd’, it seems to be the right time for ‘Belapur ki Dayan’ to go on air. The drama is based on a mystery, not scary, unrealistic beings, who are made to disappear through amulets. However, there does appear a character for a short time who gives duas to recite. Even that too, is not a typical pir (spiritual healer) but a simple, pious person Artificial horror elements in the play such as made-up faces, protruding teeth or horrifying eyes do not exist, the director says. “It is close to reality, and is based on a mystery rather than terrifying creatures. Our motive is not to scare the audience, but to tell them an intriguing story.” When asked if some religious element has been incorporated in the work considering the society’s beliefs, Saif-e-Hassan told that no such thing has been included because as mentioned earlier, the drama is based on a mystery, not scary, unrealistic beings who are made to disappear through amulets. However, there does appear a character for a short time who gives duas to recite. Even that too, is not a typical pir (spiritual healer) but a simple, pious person. ‘Belapur ki Dayan’ is to replace ‘Daldal’, a marvellous piece of dramatic work that ended last week. The fact that ‘Daldal’ has ended is not to be mourned, for what is following it is going to be something different, fresh, and based more on reason than fantasy. The duo behind this horror project has already given us a token of their successful team work in the form of ‘Tum Mere Pas Raho’, casting Bushra Ansari, Zahid Ahmed and Amna Ilyas, so it is hoped that this time too, Saif-e-Hassan and Enaam Hassan are not to going to disappoint the audience. The writer can be reached at m.ali_aquarius85@yahoo.com Published in Daily Times, February 14th 2018.