Producer Yawar Hayat Khan dies

Well known producer and director of Pakistan Television (PTV) Yawar Hayat Khan has died. He was 73.

Hayat was suffering from lung complications as he breathed his last in Combined Military Hospital Lahore yesterday. He was laid to rest in Lahore today.

Born 18 October 1943, Yawar started his career with PTV in 1965. He was initially educated at the Aitchison College, and then went on for his Bachelor of Arts degree to the Forman Christian College.

He was considered one of the chief architects of Pakistan Television drama serials. He ruled the PTV screen in 1970s and 80s with serials such as Jhok Siyal, Samandar, Nasheman, Kundi, Farar, Dehleez, Sahil, Gumshuda, Qila Kahani and many others.
 

"Yawar was the last tower of creative era of production," says playwright Mustansar Hussain Tarar.

"With the departure of Yawar Hayat an era of production and direction has come to an end," Tarar told Dawn.

Tarar, who worked with Hayat as playwright and actor, said: "You became a little Yawar after being with him for a few hours. He was an excellent conversationalist and had that profound an influence on you."

Tarar called Yawar among the best three producers and directors in Pakistan. The other two are Muhammad Nisar Hussain and kanwar Aftab Ahmed.

"Yawar had a distinctive quality of production. He would give suggestions that improve the script of the drama to a great extend. Even if you start watching his drama on TV midway and you immediately know that it's Yawar's production."

Known veteran actor Qavi Khan, who worked with Yawar in various dramas like Dehleez (1981) said the producer-director had a beautiful personality and voice. "Yawar had a great command over script and we would do a lot of rehearsal to achieve perfection.

In an interview before his death, Yawar compared some of his work to the writings of the American writer William Faulkner.