Neelay Hath (Urdu: نیلے ہاتھ, lit.'Blue Hands') is a 1989 Pakistani television drama series written by Shahid Nadeem and directed and produced by Muhammad Azeem.[1] It was adapted from the stage play Barri (The Acquittal), written by Nadeem and first produced by Ajoka Theatre in 1987, directed by Madeeha Gauhar.[2][1] The series aired on PTV during the first government of Benazir Bhutto.[3] It was also broadcast in India.[4]
Plot
Nabeela Noman, an educated woman and member of a women's rights organisation, is imprisoned on false charges. In prison, she encounters four other women who have also been falsely imprisoned: an activist, a mother detained in place of her wanted son, a woman charged with dancing at a shrine, and a young woman who killed her husband.[5][6]
Neelay Hath was adapted from Barri (The Acquittal), a stage play written by Shahid Nadeem and first produced by Ajoka Theatre in 1987 under the direction of Madeeha Gauhar. The play portrays four women held in a prison cell on different charges and was produced to draw attention to the conditions of women prisoners and gender discrimination in Pakistan's legal system.[1][5] Following the play's critical success in Pakistan and India, Nadeem adapted it as a television serial.[1] The play has subsequently been staged in various cities in Pakistan, India, and the United States.[8]
References
1234Sumbul, Deneb (4 November 2022). "A Dark Stage". newslinemagazine.com. Newsline. Archived from the original on 13 September 2025. Retrieved 17 May 2026.
