Daily Times

On the 25th of March, TV One aired a telefilm by the title of ‘Koji’. Koji is the story of an unattractive girl belonging to a group of beggars inhabiting a slum area of Karachi. Her unattractiveness comes due to a big blotch on one of her cheeks, the sight of which becomes nauseous for everyone to such an extent that people do not even give her as much money in charity as they give to her beautiful, spotless faced partner, Mangoo. The name Koji, meaning ‘ugly’, is thus given to her after her physical appearance.

This telefilm depicts in a heart-wrenching manner how the act of judging others from the outside has seeped into people, so much so that a place where morality does not even look furtively and illegitimate relations are not looked at askance, Koji is flouted and not accepted by any man. Examples are a character Jimmy who enjoys Koji’s melodious voice but insults her when she expresses her love for him and two hooligans living in the same area who spit on the street in disgust at hearing Koji’s name. One character, the leader of the group, comes forward as a lustful person who offers Koji to make love to him. This is where the idea of inner beauty presents itself. Despite being ugly from the outside and living amongst people with low moral values, Koji does not accept the offer of intercourse with an oaf and rejects him straightaway; this depicts her strong sense of dignity and intact self-respect.

After this first portion ends, the character of Jhalla (meaning ‘insane’) is introduced, who turns Koji’s world upside down and presents an ideal, mystical notion of love which goes beyond the physical and connects itself with the soul of a person. Jhalla, a mad man clad in dirty clothes with a predilection for electronic devices, falls in love with Koji and changes her world entirely. From here onwards, the story becomes a beautiful tale of love between an unattractive girl and a lunatic. Here, one very important scene must be brought under consideration. One day, Jhalla brings a scrub for Koji., and with his own hands, he rubs it on her face very softly. While his fingers move across her cheek, Koji acts as if she is in a trance, for her eyes close and open, open and close. In a few days, Koji’s blotch starts to vanish. While this scene seems to be a subtle example of seduction and decent and physical intimacy, it conveys the idea of how love and care have the ability to heal wounds. Koji’s physical appearance grows better, but on a symbolic level, her internal stains and bruises are removed as a result of selfless love.

The rest of the telefilm reverts to the topic of double standards, for when Koji, now a beautiful woman, does not heed to the people who would reject her earlier, it becomes unbearable for everyone and no stone is left unturned to make the lovers’ lives a hell. For knowing how it is done and where the love story ends, the telefilm is to be watched.

It is a dark dramatic work which inclines people to ponder upon it for a long time and realise the vast range of themes it incorporates. The world of begging, the abominable strategies adopted for professionally pursuing beggary, judgement through physical appearances, inner beauty and love as a universal element, the seed of which can grow in a lunatic’s heart as well, are all the themes which the telefilm covers. Koji is a special dialect, specific to the area shown, has been spoken by all the actors in an effortless manner, making it a realistic work. It has been produced by Seema Taher Khan, directed by Tariq Siddique, and penned by Saji Gul.

Published in Daily Times, April 5^th 2018.