Film Essay: Afghan Star

The film Afghan Star depicts a fantastic story of how one television show began to change the way that a nation viewed their own culture. In the war-torn country of Afghanistan, the progression of art and music has been relatively stalled due to previous Taliban rule. The people there have been discouraged to express themselves in ways that seem completely normal in many Western cultures. This prevention is why the Afghan Star television show creates such a buzz and blossoms into the phenomenon that it is. This paper will delve into the narrative of this film, as well as analyze the challenges faced by both the contestants and the producers of the show. Most importantly, it will show how Afghan Star did something that no politician could accomplish and brought the peoples of a divided nation one step closer to each other. From the very outset of the show, Afghan Star was a smash hit. Its popularity grew tremendously as the competition progressed and before long almost everybody had picked a favorite contestant and was following along. The show was brought to air by a group of men including the presenter, Daoud Sediqi. He became the face of the program and was instrumental in its progression. The film focuses on four of the top contestants, Rafi Naabzada, Hameed Sakhizada, Setara Hussainzada, and Lema Sahar. The selection of these people gives the film an interesting dynamic because all four hail from different parts of Afghanistan and two of them are women. Singing on stage is a big deal for anyone in the Islamic culture, but especially for women because many people feel it goes against tradition. As the contestants become more and more popular from the show, many people begin to recognize them in the streets. This is both exciting and nerve-wracking for them. On one hand, many of the singers have always dreamed of being famous but on the other, there are many security concerns that arise along with popularity. This is especially true because of the clash of singing with Islamic tradition. At one point in the film Rafi mentions how he has asked an interviewer to keep their talk short to minimize the risk of an attack of some sort. There are many different opinions about the television show across the country. Many people fully support it and have longed for Afghanistan to break out of its cultural rut. They want more shows like it to follow as well as other popular Western entertainment. Others feel that Afghan Star is okay but that the envelope should not be pushed any further. Something such as dancing would be heavily looked down upon by this group. And finally there are those, many in the government as well as religious leaders, who despise what the show symbolizes and do not wish for it to have an impact on Afghan culture. They draw upon the rules of traditional Islam that look down upon music because it is not a part of the religion. However, the resistance is strong and as Daoud Sediqi puts it: “There was music in Afghanistan’s past, there is music in the present, and there will be music in the future.” The film puts a heavy emphasis on the struggles that the two women, Lema and Setara, face in the competition. Due to their gender, their actions on the program are much more scrutinized by the general public. Lema makes a strong effort to hold true to her conservative upbringing and not step too far out of line. She mentions how she and her family hide the song books, the computer and other things at night in the chance that their home is invaded. She expresses her fear that if the wrong items are found by the wrong people, it could mean death for the family. She eventually receives threats and is later forced to live under protection.
Setara is an even more extreme case because unlike Lema she considers herself to be “open-minded” and thinks that singing and dancing should not only be practiced but should be enthusiastically appreciated. She has very liberal ideas that clash with those of traditional Islam. When she is voted off of the show, Setara gives one final performance where she removes her head cover and performs a dance on stage. This sparks outrage amongst many of the viewers. Even her fellow contestants express disapproval at her actions. Following this performance Setara begins to fear for her life as death threats are made against her. She makes every possible effort to keep a low profile and eventually returns home to her family. The fact that the contestants are all from different parts of Afghanistan adds another element to the mix. In many cases, the home town or group that the singer is affiliated with becomes the strongest proponent of their cause. They feel like they are being represented by that person and that they are bringing attention to their group. In one specific example, there was a man who began to organize a campaign for Hameed to help him to become the Afghan Star. He purchased thousands of SIM cards in order to vote multiple times and even offered to sell his car because he believes so much in Hameed. I think that this example helps to depict the state of frenzy that this television show had put the public into. As the competition continued on, many people began to see an underlying trend. Afghan Star had begun to bring the country together in a way that nothing before had ever accomplished. Everyone was watching the show and talking about the show, and subsequently pushing aside their grudges and fights with each other. Residents of one city may become huge fans of a contestant from another city and see that after all they were all people of one nation. This was one thing that Hameed stressed in many of his songs and campaigns. He always focuses on how together, all Afghans were brothers. This idea appealed to the people of the country, many who were fed up with war and strife. Afghan Star had become an incredibly useful tool for peace-seekers. However, these strides did not come without resistance. Several times the producers of the show were asked to discontinue the airings. A council was even formed to evaluate whether or not Afghan Star was acceptable under the Islamic tradition. One prominent leader spoke out against the show and rejected its worth. Even the Taliban played a part at one point. They had realized that outside forces were tracking them with signals from cellular devices. Therefore they demanded the telephone companies to shut down the towers. Because the votes for Afghan Star contestants are measured in SMS text messages, this would have a significantly detrimental effect on the show. Sediqi was quoted saying that without SMS, there would be no Afghan Star. Sediqi, along with the rest of the producers, was very much of the mind that the television program was instrumental in changing the nation into one where people could be free to express themselves. They saw how much sway pop music holds with the public and they want to use that for the good of all of Afghanistan. They knew that in order to achieve those goals it was necessary to bring the country together as one nation instead of a divided one. The competition eventually came down to the two men, Rafi and Hameed. The film shows the two preparing and traveling together for the final show. It is clear even at this small level that these two men, from completely different parts of the country, have bonded over their shared experience. I believe that this represents what is possible on a much larger scale with the whole nation of Afghanistan. It all starts with people coming together over a common interest. Not surprisingly according to the film, over a third of Afghanistan watched the final episode. They both sang their songs and in the end, Rafi was crowned the Afghan Star. The two embraced and the crowd, probably along with the rest of the nation rose to their feet and cheered. It was a glorious moment not only because of the champion being declared, but because this show that had changed so much had finally come to an end. All of the tension and excitement that had built up over the past few week was released. The best part was that this would not be the end of Afghan Star, because the producers had decided to continue the series. In the end, one small similarity can make a big difference in people. If two people from separate cities in Afghanistan can connect over the fact that they both love to sit down and watch Afghan Star, that will bring them one step closer to understanding each other. After the decades of violence and strife that occurred in that nation, it will certainly be some time before it is ever a truly peaceful place, but strides are beginning to be made and one very powerful stride was that made by Afghan Star.