Imagine discovering a missing painting while watching a television drama—a scenario more common in fiction than reality. Yet, this is precisely what happened to Safdar Ali Soomro, a talented artist from Daharki, Ghotki, Sindh.
Safdar, known as Saifi, had been searching for one of his paintings for years after it disappeared. As a final-year student at the University of Jamshoro’s Art and Design Department in 2016, Saifi created a series of paintings for his thesis. In 2017, two of these paintings were submitted to an exhibition at Karachi’s Frere Hall. He was informed that if the paintings sold, he would be paid; otherwise, they would be returned. However, instead of receiving them back, Saifi was told the artwork had been lost.
Recently, Saifi was stunned to spot one of his long-lost paintings in a scene from ARY’s popular drama, “Kabhi Mein Kabhi Tum.” In disbelief, he replayed the footage multiple times to confirm that it was indeed his work.
Frere Hall’s management has denied any responsibility for the loss, stating that the artwork was still stored in their gallery and could be retrieved by presenting a receipt. Meanwhile, Big Bang Productions, which was responsible for the drama, clarified that they had no connection to the paintings and had merely rented the location at Frere Hall for the scene.
This unexpected discovery has reignited interest in the painting’s mysterious disappearance.
