It's called Afghan Star, modeled after all the Idol shows around the world, and if you happened to catch it last Friday, you were probably disappointed to see the plucky 20-year-old, Lima Sahar, voted off. She finished in third place, the highest of any woman in the show's three-year history. If you're an Afghan woman, just singing in public can get people to rail against you, even if you can "bang" it out better than William Hung.
Sahar, who comes from Afghanistan's most conservative tribe -- the Pashtuns, thanked everyone who had voted for her. She also reminded the audience that there had been very little music in Afghanistan in the last two decades, which have been mostly consumed with war.
Under the Taliban regime that was overthrown in 2001, women were not even allowed out of their homes unaccompanied, while music and television were banned. [Link]
Reporter: "People say that the Taliban loves to ban everything. Is that true?"
Taliban leader: "Yes, yes, we love to ban. That's why we have the word 'ban' in Taliban."
Reporter: "What about women's rights? Do you believe in them?"
Taliban leader: "Yes, yes, we do. That's why we have the word 'lib' in Taliban."
"I am very happy to have come in third place," Sahar said on the show broadcast Friday night. "This is an honor for me that the people voted for me. I really thank them and I also congratulate them."
The country's conservative cleric's council has protested to President Hamid Karzai over "Afghan Star" and Indian dramas shown on Tolo TV, the country's most popular station. But younger Afghans say the show is helping women progress. [Link]
Progress comes in small steps. First you let women compete on Afghan Star, then you teach them how to program the VCR ...
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