It has been a phenomenon for several years now. During Ramadan, drama series and soap operas fill the airwaves of Arab television stations, both satellite and terrestrial channels.
Drama are of all types: historical, religious, fictional, comic, social and animated. All are vying to win the attention of the "poor" viewer. Advertisement companies are, also, competing for the "precious" minutes of prime times.
Ramadan shows seem like treasure troves for advertisers, no doubt. But this year, the TV dramatic dose seems a little bit over what can be absorbed. They might cause indigestion to many viewers.
An attempt to get a total count of all the series looks a difficult task which requires great effort. With little effort, the friendly Google search engine shows a surprising huge production.
The number of Kuwaiti shows, especially produced for Ramadan are 29. The number of Egyptians are 20, and the number of shows produced or directed or acted by Syrians is 26. There are also dramas and shows from Jordan, Lebanon, and other Gulf and Arab countries. Their numbers are unknown.
One of the reports put the total number of shows from all Arab countries at 140 this year!
Personally, I would like to know who is going to follow more than 4 or 5 series, at the most, every day? And how?
The average viewer will watch a maximum of between two and three series.
Debate
Some people might prefer to follow one show and make sure they carry out, properly, other religious duties and family related obligations during Ramadan. Others might prefer to spend their free time in the mushrooming tents in the Arab countries that are erected for social gatherings during Ramadan.
In the past few years, the concept of Ramadan tents has created a big debate. Opponents said Ramadan is an occasion to pray, recite the Quran and worship God seeking His forgiveness, and not a time to smoke hubbly bubbly and nibble on nuts till a late hour. Supporters said Ramadan, which falls once a year, is also an occasion to socialise with families and friends.
The debate over tents has abated, but to make a room for another. This time on TV shows.
In the past few years, several TV shows received the admiration of the viewers. But not all. Some others, mainly those which highlighted terrorism after 9/11 never made it to the screen, and some were yanked off the air after few episodes. Shows on celebrities caused debate.
Some historical and other shows on tribal relations, led to resurfacing of old disputes, misunderstanding or rivalries. But they also raised controversies and accumulated admirers alike.
This year the huge number of TV serials has been met with opposition.
In the past few weeks, there was a campaign on the internet to boycott all shows and pay more attention to religious duties.
A group of young women, also took advantage of the modern technology of the Facebook, but offered viewers free books to read instead of watching drama for long hours. They started with a novel by the great late Egyptian writer Najeb Mahfouz.
Surely, the variation in drama production is a healthy phenomenon, but shouldn't we pay more attention to quality rather than quantity?
Producing scores of drama works and TV shows in a span of several months is definitely compromising the degree of creativity and lessening effectiveness and it decrease attachment of the viewers.
Why not stretch the drama production throughout the year? Allow more viewers to watch the production, create debate and increase effectiveness.
Before the start of Ramadan, majority of the masses in many Arab countries were glued to TV screens to watch the Turkish soap operas Nour and Lost Years.
The way the viewers were mesmerised by the series was the focus of many local and international articles and talk-shows. Among the reasons given for people's unusual attachment to these shows was their nostalgia to the way of living of an extended family under one roof, as well as the lack of adherence to good production standards for the Arabic drama.
Isn't it the time to review plans for Ramadan TV shows production?
