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For the past year, I have been struggling to understand why Indian Muslims want to make shows and write stories with Muslim backdrops when they are not interested in avoiding misrepresentation of the culture. I'm still trying to wrap my head around the fact that in today's episode, Aaliya wore a lehenga with a short blouse like that which showed her skin.
On top of that, she wasn't even partly covering her head at the engagement. They said that they're inspired by Pakistani dramas. Well, in their dramas over there, the brides are so modern, some rich, and beautiful, but they do cover their head.That's like a basic phenomenon in most Muslim families ESPECIALLY lower and upper middle class families like that of Aaliya's in the drama.
Also what defied all logic is that Aaliya's phuppu and Mom always have their hair covered. She is shown going to a dargah which many young Muslims do not do, and then you show her wearing a lehenega like that and dancing with her cousin ( who is her mehram meaning she can get married to him) in her OWN wedding to songs. Where is the consistency in characterization ? Families like Aaliya's do not consider these things to be normal in the real world. Now I'll get many replies saying " it's just fiction, it's just a drama." Does watching a drama mean that your brain stops working ? Does it mean that you forget what you have grown up seeing about a particular culture, be it any culture ? If I saw a hindu lead in a drama wearing a head scarf, I wouldn't say " Ohh, it's just a drama, they can show whatever they want" because it doesn't go with cultural norms. Liekwise, here what they showed was truly unreasonable.
All of us can sit and argue for hours about how it's okay to show skin and how many Muslims do it but HERE in MY post, I am not talking about what's right or wrong, because everyone's opinions are different.
But religious principles are not different for different people.They are what they are. Cultural norms are what they are. You simply cannot overlook some of them.
MANY Muslim girls, including me do not cover their head, but it is also true that Muslims do not wear festive or bridal attire like that which reveals so much skin. Yes, many women wear sarees, but they take their "pallu" around ( atleast women in my khandaan) in such a way that it doesn't show skin. We also avoid net sarees and chiffon sarees because they reveal skin, so my Mom mostly wears silk sarees with long blouses.
Really disappointed that both shows on TV right now with Muslim backdrops are totally messing up the image of the culture. What shocks/hurts/irritates even more is that both of these makers are Muslims themselves who may or may not be religious , but I am sure that they know how the culture works. Yet, they do a below average job of representing it. Enough said. Now, ya'lls turn.
Mr And Mrs Parshuram
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