Chand Tara – The Ramazan drama on the block that’s sending out not one, not two, but three couple goals.
From Chand and Tara to Ashir and Roomi, and now, possibly Mala and our new tuition teacher, plus all the couples that need to be reunited as well as find a new companion, this drama is about relationships, joint family and everything in between claims the writer Saima Akram Chaudhry, so we sit down to have a chat about the story behind the story (over the trusty Whatsapp OFC, a girl’s gotta do what a girl’s gotta do).
And this is what the writer had to tell us.
Don’t worry we’ll keep it short and sweet with our 10 point plan!
If married couples needed to be taught how to bring back the romance in their relationship, Chand Tara is your go-to solution. If young couples need help getting things in perspective, Asher and Roomi have a journey to map, and if joint family chachis need inspiration, there’s always the chachi power in Chand Tara that is super non toxic, entertaining and sending out positive messages to drama writers who still rely on saas-bahu conspiracies to drive views.
Chand Tara is not that drama.
So here we go with 10 Things writer Saima Akram Chaudhry had to tell us about her inspiration behind the script, her penchant for joint family living and how to make your relationships last from young TikTok couples to more mature doctor-engineer relationships.
1. The channel does not tell me what to write on
“The channel doesn’t dictate my topic.” She discloses thankfully. “I’m one of the writers who has a free hand, and I have a main topic I want to address, and then the story takes a natural flow, the messages keep coming up as the story unravels.”
Even though the main topic is joint family system. I always want to portray the many positives and negatives in this system. As I write the story, the relationships that arise from this system and their layered connections come through.
2. I wanted to address this trend of young TikTokers tying the knot early in life
There is a trend where young TikTokers are getting married around us at a very early age. Ashir and Roomi portray that couple, where they get married early because they fall in love but they are too young to deal with the subsequent challenges of marriage that come with age and maturity.
Hum Tum was totally for the youth as well. Because I teach in a college, I am in touch with the youth, so I am aware of their challenges and the issues they face. So the young TikTok couple, fond of getting married early was inspired from that interaction.
3. My story begins with marriage because I want to show you the challenges after, especially with a married female doctor
My main couple is of course more mature, Ayeza and Danish aka Nain Tara and Sarim (Chand), the challenges they face together as a couple and how they resolve them, especially when a doctor is married, how she has to manage her family and relationship commitments, this is what I aim to portray. Reveals the writer passionately.
The story will not build up to marriage, in fact, on the contrary, this drama starts off with both couples sharing a good understanding and then their story and challenges afterwards, and once they realize marriage comes with a great deal of challenges.
Saima Akram Chaudhry
“I research before I write my stories. I took help from doctors who are actively involved in the profession before I wrote the Chand Tara.” Responds the writer, hence we see the attention to detail when it comes to gynaecological procedures and related medical issues in the narrative.
4. Audiences are not very receptive to Ramazan portrayed in a drama
Ramazan Dramas carry a huge cast and then inserting Ramazan into the dynamics is hard because of the day-night shooting sequence. Then people might complain that when fasting, the character might be telling untruths, fooling around or couples might become too romantic. So audiences might not receive it too well. Hence it is a challenge to portray Ramazan in a Ramazan drama. “Maybe we attempt it once more as in Suno Chanda, but it comes with its own set of challenges.” She contemplates, hopeful, yet realistic about the real life dynamics of it.
As a writer it is a great responsibility to make a character perform within a roza and not overstep the line.
Saima Akram Chaudhry
Ramazan dramas carry a great deal of responsibility for me. I have to focus on certain issues. My main focus is always on family and relationships. I want to show them in a positive light, you will not see negativity in my relationships. I have tried in Suno Chanda, the saas-bahu relationship is very beautifully portrayed, in Hum Tum too.
5. On joint families, writing comedy & the challenges
“The biggest issue in a joint family system is privacy, couples don’t get space and time with each other, and this is the issue with every household.” Reveals Saima Akram Chaudhry, from a place of knowledge.
Also, comedy dramas perform better in Ramazan, for some reason, because it is aired every day, the continuity is maintained and audiences are more receptive, hence we offer comedy in Ramazan.
Saima Akram Chaudhry
6. I wanted to address a new issue where the girl should approach marriage and a relationship first.
Hmm, a refreshing perspective on a taboo topic, we thought.
“Mala might be that girl for you. Her life goals are different from regular couple goals. She wants to take her own life decisions, and she will address many taboos in our society relating to marriage, second marriage, women, relationships. It is not easy to accept this issue in our society.” Reveals the writer, on a hopeful note.
I wanted to address a new issue where the girl should approach marriage and a relationship first
Saima Akram Chaudhry
7. On approaching a new relationship later in life
And Chand’s father is on the precipice here. He yearns for his wife and a relationship, but is hesitant to start a new relationship. I want a joint family system to be inclusive, not leave anyone out and I want to focus on relationships too.
I have also tried to address the issue that when your life partner passes away, you have to restart your life, or at least continue it beyond.
Saima Akram Chaudhry
In Ramazan I focus on my characters from all age groups, from children, teens, youngsters to elders, this is my conscious effort, to give families a drama that everyone can watch together as a family and not feel uncomfortable. “Hence my Ramazan serials are always family focused.” She says with surety. Now here’s a writer who knows what she’s pitching to her audiences.
8. On her favourite scenes from the drama so far
When I had a chance to visit the sets, I loved some of the scenes portrayed so far. When Chand pretends to sprain his foot, I loved it when he wakes up in the middle of the night to get her attention, and Tara then tends to him and then suddenly falls off to sleep.
I loved the way Chand celebrated the moment by dancing in the middle of the night, just because he had received his wife’s attention.
Saima Akram Chaudhry
9. I have a slight issue with our audience
When asked if she would want things differently, our Chand Tara writer had this to say from the heart. “I have a slight issue with my audience.”
Every year when Ramzan comes around, everyone complains that they don’t want to watch dramas in Ramazan, but then the views appear in millions. We never ask anyone to dismiss namaaz or ibaadat and watch a drama, normally people watch in their free time.
Saima Akram Chaudhry
Also, despite what people say, reveals the writer, the views speak for the audience. “Comedy dramas perform better in Ramazan, for some reason, because the episodes are aired daily, the continuity is maintained and audiences are more receptive, hence we offer comedy in Ramazan.”
10. I copy pasted my husband’s messages as inspiration for Chand Tara’s cute love messages
This one left us with a smile on our face. When questioned on the inspiration behind the romantic element, leaving notes & cute messages: Saima Akram Chaudhry had this to tell us!
I have just copy pasted my husband’s actions here.
Saima Akram Chaudhry
“I actually wanted to show love and understanding between spouses through small, everyday things that give you an idea of the love and care between life partners. Since my husband is a surgeon, his life is also very busy so a lot of the times, we express our love through love notes, messages texts and flowers because if we can not spend quality time with each other then these small gestures make one’s relationship with the partner stronger. I have just copy pasted my husband’s actions here.” There you have it, and that’s how our writer gets romantic inspiration for her writing. So go ahead and copy paste the idea in your own life and get started on a relationship that will add spark, warmth and a little bit of love to a life that often gets too busy, too boring and perhaps, too unromantic?
She signs off with a commitment to her cause, of penning uplifting relationships in joint families
We have a duty as we portray eastern culture, if we can become more large hearted, we can give more space, we can make this joint family system work. It is your personal choice, what you want, but a family drama is made up of relationships. Hence I like to show the positives and the negatives in the system to show people how they can make it more inclusive for all as an option.
Tell us if you agree and are you watching Chand Tara every evening? Who’s your fav couple and why?
Chand Tara has been penned by writer Saima Akram Chaudhry and directed by Danish Nawaz. It is a project of Momina Duraid productions and airs every evening in Ramazan on HUM TV.
4 Reasons Why Audiences Are Relating To The Story (Even If You’re Not Watching)!
Listen in as we host Ramazan Dramas writer Saima Akram Chaudhry on Gup Shup with FUCHSIA
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