Friday, April 17, 2009
Traffic Cops and Afghan Star .
Last night I watched Traffic Cops on BBC1. This episode featured Traffic cops in South Wales uncover drug stashes and an amorous couple in a bush. The programme was filmed in and around Cardiff and Swansea. Living in Cardiff I was able to identify the locations and the whole programme seemed local to me. I have nothing to do with drugs or crime but because of the locations and accents everything seemed familiar to me. This programme seemed to portray everyday life in South Wales and everything seemed normal to me.
So why have I titled this post "Traffic Cops and Afghan Star"? I am a white Atheist Englishman living in Wales. Earlier this week I watched the Cutting Edge documentary Afghan Star. The third series of Afghan Star was watched by a third of the population of Afghanistan. This documentary follows them, and two of the men, in detail. Rafi Nabzaada, 19, a Tajik, is the cockiest, and Hameed Sakhizada, 20, is Hazara and the most musical of the four. Lema Sahar, 25, is a Pashtun singer from Kandahar, a Taliban stronghold, while Setara Hussainzada, 22, is risking the most, coming from the ultra-conservative city of Herat. I thoroughly enjoyed watching Afghan Star, it was a brilliant programme. Then I had a thought, this programme did not appear foreign to me. You would think that a programme filmed miles away in the Middle East would look, feel and sound foreign to a British viewer. I have never been to Afghanistan, I have only read about Afghanistan from books. I have watched the odd television programme about Afghanistan, read and seen things on the internet and in newspapers but I have never set foot in Afghanistan. So why did this programme not appear foreign to me? Yes, I have had holidays in Morocco, Tunisia and Turkey - all Muslim countries. I have read various books, surfed the internet and watched television. My day job brings me into contact with Muslims here in the UK. Yet this programme did not in any way seem foreign to me, it felt as though it could have been filmed anywhere in Britain. When I go on holiday to Morocco, Tunisia or Turkey I am used to seeing with my own eyes street scenes and cultures similar to Afghanistan. When the programme featured a scene where a contestant was with his Iman and when they prayed they raised both hands to their chin, I knew instantly that they were Sunni Muslims because Shia Muslims only raise one hand to their chin.
So I think that Afghan Star did not appear foreign to me because of my exposure to Muslim culture through books, holidays, the internet and television. What saddens me though is the large number of people today in Britain who are frightened by Islam. Like most fear, people can be frightened by what they do not understand. I have an understanding of Muslim culture and as an Atheist I am not worried about it one little bit. The Muslim culture is not foreign to me and I was able to enjoy Afghan Star just as much as Britain's Got Talent. Lema Sahar and Setara Hussainzada did not dance like Fabia Cerra though!
Last night I watched Traffic Cops on BBC1. This episode featured Traffic cops in South Wales uncover drug stashes and an amorous couple in a bush. The programme was filmed in and around Cardiff and Swansea. Living in Cardiff I was able to identify the locations and the whole programme seemed local to me. I have nothing to do with drugs or crime but because of the locations and accents everything seemed familiar to me. This programme seemed to portray everyday life in South Wales and everything seemed normal to me.
So why have I titled this post "Traffic Cops and Afghan Star"? I am a white Atheist Englishman living in Wales. Earlier this week I watched the Cutting Edge documentary Afghan Star. The third series of Afghan Star was watched by a third of the population of Afghanistan. This documentary follows them, and two of the men, in detail. Rafi Nabzaada, 19, a Tajik, is the cockiest, and Hameed Sakhizada, 20, is Hazara and the most musical of the four. Lema Sahar, 25, is a Pashtun singer from Kandahar, a Taliban stronghold, while Setara Hussainzada, 22, is risking the most, coming from the ultra-conservative city of Herat. I thoroughly enjoyed watching Afghan Star, it was a brilliant programme. Then I had a thought, this programme did not appear foreign to me. You would think that a programme filmed miles away in the Middle East would look, feel and sound foreign to a British viewer. I have never been to Afghanistan, I have only read about Afghanistan from books. I have watched the odd television programme about Afghanistan, read and seen things on the internet and in newspapers but I have never set foot in Afghanistan. So why did this programme not appear foreign to me? Yes, I have had holidays in Morocco, Tunisia and Turkey - all Muslim countries. I have read various books, surfed the internet and watched television. My day job brings me into contact with Muslims here in the UK. Yet this programme did not in any way seem foreign to me, it felt as though it could have been filmed anywhere in Britain. When I go on holiday to Morocco, Tunisia or Turkey I am used to seeing with my own eyes street scenes and cultures similar to Afghanistan. When the programme featured a scene where a contestant was with his Iman and when they prayed they raised both hands to their chin, I knew instantly that they were Sunni Muslims because Shia Muslims only raise one hand to their chin.
So I think that Afghan Star did not appear foreign to me because of my exposure to Muslim culture through books, holidays, the internet and television. What saddens me though is the large number of people today in Britain who are frightened by Islam. Like most fear, people can be frightened by what they do not understand. I have an understanding of Muslim culture and as an Atheist I am not worried about it one little bit. The Muslim culture is not foreign to me and I was able to enjoy Afghan Star just as much as Britain's Got Talent. Lema Sahar and Setara Hussainzada did not dance like Fabia Cerra though!
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