The portrayal of Pashtuns in mainstream media and art in Pakistan is both tinged by an undercurrent of racism, and a misunderstanding born out of disconnection from them. Pakistan’s involvement in the ‘War on Terror’ had a disproportionate impact on its Pashtun citizens, as the northern province of the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa (KP) was used as a base for the state’s activities in Afghanistan. An entire generation of Pashtun men was drafted into joining General Zia’s adventurism in neighbouring Afghanistan, which not only left them scarred but left the region vulnerable to extremism and further militarisation. Which is, unfortunately, exactly what happened and KP and its people were terrorised by the Taliban and suffered through multiple military operations. Although the situation in KP is more peaceful now, the result of so much pain and violence can clearly be seen not just in the people of the province but also in how they are seen by the rest of their countrymen.
Perceptions matter, especially when they inform the dominant narrative about a people. It doesn’t sound so dire when put like this, but think of what atrocities have occurred throughout history based on perceptions alone and it will become clear why it is important that a nuanced and truthful portrayal of Pashtuns is essential
Mainstream media and art only portrays Pashtuns as dangerous, gun toting tribesmen or as unintelligent goofs. And this caricaturization does a great disservice to the Pashtun people by boxing them in into stereotypes and subsequently limiting their opportunities in life. Perceptions matter, especially when they inform the dominant narrative about a people. It doesn’t sound so dire when put like this, but think of what atrocities have occurred throughout history based on perceptions alone and it will become clear why it is important that a nuanced and truthful portrayal of Pashtuns is essential. But, one Pashtun artist is challenging these stereotypes and illustrating a different side of Pashtuns through her work.
The burqa is meant to render you invisible but those defiant women in bright coloured burqas refused to blend into the background
Noormah Jamal
Noormah Jamal is a rising artist in the local art scene, and her thought provoking work has won her a genuine following that appreciates the counter narrative regarding Pashtuns she is trying to put forward. Her work is story based, inspired from the emotional baggage that Pashtuns carry. Her colourful style belies the gravity of the subject that she is trying to address through her paintings. This dissonance is purposeful, as the artist herself says, “My work is colourful in order to draw people in, but my subjects never smile. This contrast is so that people notice it and start a conversation about the stark difference between the background and the subject, and why that is”.
Unsmiling subjects aren’t the only recurring motif in Noormah Jamal’s work, she also makes use of the burqa in her paintings. But she does so in a manner very different from the way it is commonly depicted in Pakistani art– as a symbol of oppression or as an edgy prop in pop culture–her use of the burqa visual is meant to symbolise a form of protection or a mask that one can choose to put in. This too ties in with her efforts to present a different side to Pashtuns and their culture. Noormah spent her childhood in Peshawar, and she recalls routinely “seeing women in flamboyant and colourful burqas”, and that image resonated with her as “the burqa is meant to render you invisible but those defiant women in bright coloured burqas refused to blend into the background”. She states that the Peshawar of her childhood looked very different from that way it is now, pashtun women clothed in black burqas were a rare sight as they preferred their own colorful iterations or simply a white chadar.
The artist’s father belongs to the Orakzai Agency, thus she has spent many a summer with him and her family in their village in the foothills of the Karagh Ghar mountains. She narrates that before the insurgency in the area women in her family’s village didn’t have to cover up in burqas as they do now, because the of the concept of ‘ujra’, wherein women only wore a white chadae atop their clothes when stepping out of the house as outsiders (particularly unknown men) weren’t allowed in the village proper.
The black burqa, in fact, was not a very common sight in Pakistan in general until the country’s rightward shift under General Zia-ul-Haq. And the increased usage of the burqa in KP can also trace its roots back to the rather violent and fundamentalist version of Islam that was used to indoctrinate young men, in the 70s and 80s, into fighting a ‘jihad’ in Afghanistan. This strand of Islam–Wahhabism– that was imported into Pakistan, particularly KP, has had a very detrimental effect on Pashtun culture. Much of the original culture of the Pashtuns has been warped by this. This is cause for concern as Pashtun cultural traditions are largely passed down orally. Noormah states that, “in the past, Tapay (folk songs) also used to also be about intoxicants and merrymaking” or ” Pashto poetry, like Ghani Khan’s, used to also delve into serious introspection over religion”, but now all the songs are about “the loss of life or being killed by enemies”. What this indicates is that the Pashtuns weren’t always the hardline religious extremists they are now believed to be. And, the degradation of their native culture combined with their inaccurate, flat portrayal in art and media is threatening the Pashtun identity. They were a nomadic people thus they lack a written history and there is real danger that the young generation of Pashtuns will lose a large part of their culture.