''Sona Chandi'' ( ur, سونا چاندی) is a classic comedy-drama

television Television, sometimes shortened to TV, is a telecommunication medium for transmitting moving images and sound. The term can refer to a television set, or the medium of television transmission. Television is a mass medium for advertisin ...

serial produced 48 episodes but released only 32 episodes by PTV . The story of the drama, written by

Munnu Bhai Muneer Ahmed Qureshi (6 February 1933 – 19 January 2018), better known as Munnu Bhai, was a Pakistani newspaper journalist, columnist, poet and a writer. He was awarded the Pride of Performance Award by the President of Pakistan in 2007 for his ...

, revolves around a couple who comes to a city in search of work so that they can pay off their debts. The role of ''Sona'' is played by TV actor Hamid Rana and Chandi (Sheeba Arshad). This simple, innocent couple while performing their domestic-help jobs in different homes, end up helping many people in solving their problems.Transition: Sona Chandi star Ghayyur Akhtar passes away
The Express Tribune (newspaper), Published 7 February 2014, Retrieved 4 December 2020

Play's background and inspiration

The play was inspired by a real couple named Sona (male) and Chandi (female) from

Kallurkot Kallur kot ( ur, ), is a town in Bhakkar District in the Punjab Province of Pakistan. The town is the headquarters of Kaloorkot Tehsil.Bhakkar District Bhakkar District ( ur, ), is a district in the province of Punjab, Pakistan. The district was created out of parts of Mianwali in 1982, and has the city of Bhakkar as its headquarters. Part of its area consists of a riverine tract along the ...

Punjab, Pakistan Punjab (; , ) is one of the four provinces of Pakistan. Located in central-eastern region of the country, Punjab is the second-largest province of Pakistan by land area and the largest province by population. It shares land borders with the ...

(the writer of the play) who was educated in Kallurkot during his father's posting there as the railways

station master The station master (or stationmaster) is the person in charge of a railway station, particularly in the United Kingdom and many other countries outside North America. In the United Kingdom, where the term originated, it is now largely historical ...

North Western Railway (British India) The North Western State Railway (NWR) was formed in January 1886 from the merger of the Scinde, Punjab & Delhi Railway, the Indus Valley State Railway, the Punjab Northern State Railway, the eastern section of the Sind–Sagar Railway and the ...

in the city before 1947, has mentioned his inspiration of these roles in his numerous interviews. Sona is still alive and lives in Kallurkot. During one of his visits to Kallurkot a few years back, Munnu Bhai got to meet the real Sona which is portrayed in the 1983 film version of the same play 'Sona Chandi' (1983). The credit of its popularity goes to the whole team:

's script, direction by Rashid Dar and the performances by the actors especially the leading characters of this PTV drama – Sona and Chandi.Life and works of Munnu Bhai celebrated
Dawn (newspaper), Published 27 February 2014, Retrieved 4 December 2020

Lead characters

* Sheeba Hassan as Chandi * Hamid Rana as Sona *

Ghayyur Akhtar Ghayyur Akhtar ( ur, ), (5 October 1945 – 7 February 2014) was a radio, television, film and theater actor from Lahore, Pakistan. He is best known for acting a role in the television serial '' Sona Chandi'' (1982). He was honored with Pr ...

as Bhai HameedYoung artists urged to work with devotion
Dawn (newspaper), Published 9 March 2016, Retrieved 4 December 2020 * Mama Yaqoob * Tashfeen as Baji Rukhsana * Munir Zareef as Chacha karmoo * Atiya Sharaf as Massi Barkate * Munna Lahori as Diver of Nawab Farasat Ali Khan

Guest appearances

Khursheed Shahid Begum Khursheed Shahid (1 January 1926 – 27 June 2021) was a Pakistani actress and singer. She was also the mother of actor Salman Shahid. Early life Khursheed Shahid was born in 1926 in Delhi, where her father was a government official a ...

as Mehtab Begum * Asim Bukhari as Shams *

Farooq Zameer Farooq Zameer was a notable Pakistani actor. He died at the age of 76. He was awarded the Pride of Performance The Pride of Performance ( ur, ), officially known as Presidential Pride of Performance, is an award bestowed by the Islamic Republi ...

as Abbas Ali Khan *

Durdana Butt Durdana Butt (9 May 1938 – 12 August 2021) was a Pakistani actress known for her roles in dramas '' Ruswai'', ''Intezaar'' and '' Rani''. She was best known for her role in dramas ''Tanhaiyaan'' and ''Tanhaiyan Naye Silsilay'' as Bibi. Early ...

as Kako Dhoban *

Arifa Siddiqui Arifa Siddiqui ( Urdu ) is a Pakistani actress and singer who worked for PTV in the 1980s and 1990s.Tauqeer Nasir Tauqeer Nasir ( Punjabi, ur, ) is a veteran actor from Pakistan. He served as Director General (DG) of Pakistan National Council of Arts (PNCA) for the period of 2 years. He started his career in 1978 with Pakistan Television Corporation. Ear ...

as Popa *

Neelofar Abbasi Neelofar Abbasi (née Aleem) is a Pakistani actress. She is known for her roles in dramas ''Happy Eid Mubarak'', ''Khumaar Zeher Alood'', ''Aroosa'', ''Naya Raasta'' and ''Eid Ka Jora''. Neelofar is best known for her role in drama ''Shehzori'' ...

as Begum Akhtar * Aurangzeb Laghari as Bao Naseeb * Tamanna Begum as Ruqaya *

Faryal Gohar Faryal Gohar is a Pakistan actress, television writer and human rights activist. She is known for her roles in dramas '' Waris'', '' Uraan'', ''Chaandni Raatain'', '' Chand Grehan'', ''Wisal'' and '' Mohini Mansion Ki Cinderellayain''. Early lif ...

as Zaib *

Jamil Fakhri Jamil Fakhri (Urdu: ; 15 September 1946 – 9 June 2011) was a veteran Pakistani film, TV and stage artist. He gained popularity from Pakistan Television Corporation's TV drama serial ''Andhera Ujala'', in which he played the police inspector ...

as Munawar * Sajjad Kishwer as Tafazzal *

Abid Kashmiri Abid Kashmiri is a Pakistani film, television and stage actor and a comedian. He has been working in Pakistani Urdu films and dramas as well as working in stage dramas. Filmography * ''Bazar-e-Husan'', 1988 * ''Aainak Wala Jinn'', 1995 * '' ...

as Ghafoor *

Talat Siddiqui Adeeba Nazeer, also known as Talat Siddiqui was a Pakistani actress and singer. She acted in both Urdu and Punjabi films and is known for her roles in films ''Ishq-e-Habib'' (1965), ''Kon Kisi Ka'' (1966), ''Lori'' (1966), ''Yaar Maar'' (1967), ' ...

as Begum Abbas Ali * Shakila Qureshi as Pinky * Ismat Tahira as Hameeda *

Masood Akhtar Syed Masood Akhtar (born 18 August 1946) is a former international cricketer who represented the American national side between 1979 and 1982. He was born in present-day India, and played first-class cricket in Pakistan before emigrating to the ...

as Chaudhry Afzal *

Najma Mehboob Najma Mehboob (1949 – 6 December 1983) was a Pakistani film and TV actress. She mostly played character and mother roles in dramas and films both in Urdu and Punjabi languages. She died in a train accident during a film shoot in 1983. Early l ...

as Frasat Ali Khan's mother * Muhammad Sharif as Basheer

References

External links

Sona Chandi on IMDb website
{{DEFAULTSORT:Sona Chandi 1980s Pakistani television series Pakistani television sitcoms Pakistani drama television series Pakistani comedy television series Pakistan Television Corporation original programming