Kabul Diary - to Bollywood with love

While the West is a sought after destination for many in the sub continent, India is seen as a desirable location by many Afghans. Indian movies and TV serials have a big role to play in this positive perception about the country. The Afghans are smitten by Bollywood and the fares that it churns out so regularly. Indian TV serials like ‘Kyunki Saans Bhi Kabhi Bahu Thi’, ‘Kahani Ghar Ghar Ki’ and ‘Kasauti Zindagi Ki’ have been dubbed into Dari and have become instant hits. Tulsi as KSBKBT is popularly called here after the lead character is a must watch serial. Posters of the female actor playing the role are seen all over Kabul. This is a far cry from the days of the Taliban rule when there was a total ban on music and movies. My conversation with Aman who drives the office vehicle usually goes thus:

Aman – How are you?
Me- Am fine Aman how are you?
A – Am fine. How is Dharmender?
Me - He is fine too
A – What about Amitabh Bachchan?
Me – Good
A – Shahrukh Khan?
Me – Suffering from a slight stomach ache today
A – Oh! What about Sunny Deol?.....

Most conversations about India end up in Bollywood. The common question that I always (any Indian I assume) face once my nationality is established is whether I know any of the movie stars personally or have met any of them. Well the closest I came to is seeing Rakesh Roshan, Jeetendra taking walks on Juhu beach. Here are some of the reasons why Indian movies and serials find such favor with the Afghans.

Firstly the language is understandable. Most of the Afghans had moved as refugees to Pakistan and India. Urdu was something they had to learn to speak, in order to study, to work, to survive in these countries. This was their training ground for the language and the Indian movies in Hindi acted like a teacher. Even here among those we meet, if some local cannot converse with you in Hindi you can be sure that he doesn’t watch too many movies.

Indian movies show a lot about the Indian culture woven into the society. Afghans identify with this. They learn from it. Movies with stories about joint families are accepted as it is a system followed in Afghanistan. A colleague says, “From the Tulsi drama people are learning how to have a good family life and how to manage to live within a joint family. It teaches the parents how to behave with their children and specially the daughter-in-law. It also points out that being rich is not important than having a good character”

Women have a voice and they express themselves freely. Women work outside home without an eyebrow being raised. A girl student I met said – “Here women don’t have the freedom to speak out. There are women who do it but they are few. But women in India are more vocal. They say what they feel about things and it is not a bad thing”

Women dress decently and exquisitely and move without a veil. People dress in bright and colourful clothes. The girl student – “We watch Indian movies and dramas and try to follow the fashion and style of the actors. We love wearing Indian dresses and jewelery”

Love can be expressed freely (perception maybe :))

Infrastructure is good. Good education and jobs are available – A colleague–“We see how Indians are studying in colleges and Universities and what opportunities they have for education. We see the problems that they have, both social and financial, and how they deal with that. We look forward to have similar opportunities. Indian should try and open up their Universities here and they will do well”

Festivals and customs are interesting – A young lady working as a translator on my project– "The new movies are not good. The older movies from the early 2000 showed so much of the Indian culture and families. My father watches Baghban every day. He likes what he sees. Those are the kind of movies that Afghans like. They are free from Western influence and show how India is”

Another colleague– “Indian serials are more popular than the movies. Serials can be watched by the entire family. Most movies are mainly for the youngsters. Serials teach a lot of things. I have learnt about life”. Everything that Afghans know about India comes from the movies. And perception is reality.

I borrow view CDs of Hindi movies from my Afghan colleagues. They seem to have anything you name. Its not only about the movies, it’s also about the music. You can hear it everywhere, in every hotel, in every party, in every vehicle. Every conversation I have ends with the Afghan saying, “Mujhe Indians se bahut pyar hai, India hamara bhai”. When I hear that I cant help saying a silent prayer of gratitude to the stars of tinsel town who make my stay here so much pleasurable.