TV serials, besides being a source of entertainment was once considered as an agent for the promotion of cultural values and history. With the introduction of cable TV network, this entertainment production is setting a different socio-cultural outline before the viewers which are alien to their culture. Modern TV serials are portraying an impractical image in front of the viewers. They only show splendid, glazing, and lustrous lives of the artists that attract the general spectators especially our younger generation. They start to imitate their lifestyle in their real-life without caring about its socio-psychological and financial implications. During my childhood days, TV serials like Buniyaad, Hum Log, Nukkad, Alif Lala Udaan etc were hugely popular serials that showcased the life of a common man in an indigenous setting. Take the case of serial “Udaan” which was telecast in 1989. The story was about the girl who crossed all the barriers and became a Police officer. Her character in the play became the source of inspiration for female folk. Those serials not only inspired the young minds to deal with their day-to-day affairs but also played a vital role in their character building. 

Unfortunately, the entertainment industry associated with TV serials is more concerned to gain more TRP’s forgetting that they are the influencers of societal mindset. Nowadays, the TV serials launched by various private channels predominantly revolve around family politics dealing with the themes like revenge, imbibing wrong family values like extra and pre-marital relationships, living relationships, emotional blackmail, conspiracy, etc. They are portraying the image of angry mothers-in-law, weeping daughters-in-law. Apart from this, these TV serials promote glamour, sensation, vulgarity, etc. Consequently, the world societies at large are facing a socio-cultural onslaught via television and our territory-JK is not an exception. What’s worrying is that our young generation became so obsessed with this that they not only forming their opinions based on such programs. They also start to compare their life with it and forgetting their actual identity. As student of sociology, I have observed how youth from lower or middle-class backgrounds imitating the lifestyle of elite families that are projecting in these TV serials and consumed the hard-earned money or assets of parents lavishly to fill up his/her demand. These behavioral changes among youth create a web of illusion, they indulge in excessive daydreaming that becomes the acute psychological problems in the later stage of life. They also suffer from xenocentrism.- keeping low opinions about their own culture. Even in social gatherings like marriage ceremonies, they are following those customs that do not suit their indigenous culture. Another concerning issue is the increasing number of domestic violence, suicidal cases, increasing rate of divorce cases, mysterious killings. Those aforementioned evils were not prevalent in our society.
To counter these fast-growing cultural assaults, there is a need to take the following measures.

Establishment of Censor Board

Cinema has a censor board but TV serials do not come under this purview, therefore, there is a need to establish a separate Censor Board for TV serials so that the content of the serials will be pre-checked before it is telecasted.

Promoting Parallel Entertainment Content

Underscored the importance of entertainment, there is a need to prepare and promote the parallel entertainment content that will appeal to young minds and at the same time that may also ensure the moral and cultural upliftment of our society.

An Immediate Measure

As a part of an immediate solution to this problem, the elder members of our family and teachers can play an important role, they can make them understand the difference between the world of reality and the world of fantasy.

Author is a teacher and columnist

Email:----minamharoon123@gmail.com