Trailer of Story of Burqa: Case of a Confused Afghan( Brishkay Ahmed, Canada, 2012, 70 mins). View the entire film at Culture Unplugged.
Q: The following scene is animated and features a woman with a birdcage on her head, which, without giving too much away, we return to at the end of the film. Why did you use animation in the film?
burqa isn’ t Islamic, and secondly, that it’ s a powerful political tool. When a woman wears a headscarf, she’ s not limited. She can be a judge, a member of parliament, or a homemaker if she so chooses.
A: The animation is important to me because I want young girls to be interested. I want to reach beyond the intellectual audience who knows documentary film or who understands the broader issues. This is an important subject and should reach a diverse audience; educated and uneducated, young and old.
But I do believe that the power to change that kind of oppression is the responsibility of women. It’ s up to us to make sure we shut that cage door and aren’ t shoved back in.
Q: The subtitle of your film is“ Case of a Confused Afghan.” What questions did you hope the film would answer?
A: Most importantly, I wanted to show that the
When her face and hands are covered and she’ s wearing a double layer and can barely hear anything, she is rendered invisible.
A true understanding of the burqa and its history is critical. A great number of people in the world have accepted the fact that the hands and faces of their daughters, sisters, and mothers should be covered. In some cases women are not allowed to leave their homes. [ Referring to the recent controversy in Canada ] I have no problem with a woman taking her oath with her face covered, if it is indeed her personal choice.
When I stayed in a women’ s shelter in Afghanistan, I never met a woman, there or in Kabul, generally, who said they liked the burqa. At any opportunity,
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