Afghanistan Idol
A new documentary explores the cultural phenomenon that is the Afghani version of American Idol.
American Idol remains the guiltiest of pleasures here in the United States. It’s a pop culture phenomenon engineered to lift spirits, distract viewers from depressing headlines, and provide a platform for Simon Cowell’s withering put-downs.
The Afghanistan version of Idol is literally a life and death affair, with fans embracing the show as the ultimate manifestation of a culture war between modernism and strict Sharia law.
Afghan Star, a new documentary named after the country’s Idol-style showcase, reveals just how ingrained the show has quickly become in the country’s culture. But not everyone wants to embrace a show teeming with Western values.
Remaining Taliban forces are against music and television of any kind, and repeatedly try to shut the show down. Some Islamic clerics are of the same mind, warning that the show’s content runs against the pillars of a good Islamic society.
Many Afghan residents see it differently.
The simple act of voting for your favorite contestant via cell phone is a remarkable sign of progress for a country that, in the past 30 years, suffered a devastating invasion by Soviet troops and the barbaric rule of the Taliban.
Afghan Star has become a symbol of art over bloodshed, a chance for a struggling culture to embrace its creative side.
Naturally, none of this would be possible without the U.S.-led invasion and ouster of the Taliban. But the documentary doesn’t delve into war or politics. It’s a story of a people eager for freedom and the few powerful voices even more eager to squash that spirit.
That alone makes it a rarity on movie screens today. Why hasn’t Hollywood seen fit to explore this fascinating struggle either with a fictional film or a documentary like Afghan Star?
The movie opens with a little boy singing his heart out as if he were old enough to audition for the popular show.
“If there was no music, humans would be sad,” the little boy says.
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Christian Toto is a freelance writer and film critic for The Washington Times. His work has appeared in People magazine, MovieMaker Magazine, The Denver Post, The Pittsburgh Tribune-Review, and Scripps Howard News Service. He also contributes movie radio commentary to three stations as well as the nationally syndicated Dennis Miller Show and runs the blog What Would Toto Watch?
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3 Comments
1. gcblues:freedom. the natural condition of humanity. freedom. the sole state that contorts with the reality of human biology. this does not mean all people desire it. are comfortable with it. it does not mean people cease to abuse others freedoms. it means that freedom is the sole condition that all humans of all stripes, colors and thinking thrive in. all other states of reality diminish human capacity. it is why ayn rand said all collectivism is force. all. yours, mine, everyone’s. all. that is why there is no difference in the repression of the right or the left. that you or anyone feel the need to force others to act as you wish without the cause of violence or fraud chafes against the natural state of mankind. try to remember your own desires for the repression of others while you rebel against the repression of maobama. the article is a fine example of the natural need for human freedom thank you.
Jul 30, 2009 - 6:24 am 2. Dr. Bukk:But wait! Obama went to Cairo and said the West was still struggling with women’s rights. Perhaps he meant we were struggling to put burqas on our women, kill errant daughters and stone women for getting raped.
Jul 30, 2009 - 2:03 pm 3. Boogey_man:“If there were no music humans would be sad”
Art may be the one thing that truely separates us from animals. Banning music, acting and other art forms is inhuman.
Death to the taliban.
Jul 31, 2009 - 11:05 amDeath to barbarians.
Long live civilization!