Cadet Caleb Minus
Blog Post
I chose this blog post about the Pakistani movie/TV industry because it involves ICTs and also revolves around women’s perceptions, roles, and rights in Pakistan. It takes about how Khalilur Qamar, a successful director in Pakistan, uses his art to essentially demonize women and glorify men. The article highlights “that any woman in a pair of jeans is inherently evil or that any wife who stands up for herself against abuse is bad” and that men are “innocent creatures who only suffer because of the women they are around with barely any fault of their own.” For this reason, on social media and obviously blogs are making a big deal about how he is reinforcing a dangerous form of patriarchy.
As a result, his colleagues and viewers have begun to outcry against his direct and subliminal comments on women. It’s nice to see that ICTs are being used to create and drive social change in Pakistan. Likewise, it’s interesting because in our class we’ve taken time to focus on the impact society has had on women in South Asia, more so in a negative sense, in that ICTs are often ineffective or simply not used to help women. This blog post shows that there are people, including men, who are fighting and calling out media that degrades women, to stop the “vile circle of woman blaming and the botched notions that a woman cannot ask for her rights”.