To what extent does the film Bol communicate the issues concerning family planning in a society becoming increasingly known for religious ...

To what extent does the film Bol communicate
  the issues concerning family planning in a
   society becoming increasingly known for
            religious conservatism?

                     By

               Sana Ahmed

 Indus Valley School of Art and Architecture
                    2013

Acknowledgements
I would like to thank all my faculty members, friends and interviewees who helped me

throughout these months to produce something that makes me feel so happy from the inside. A

special thanks to Gemma Sharpe and Hassan Bin Hassan for helping me regain self confidence

every time I stumbled and giving me clear directions whenever I needed their help.

Absrtact

Plato, the famous Greek philosopher, did not see art and poetry as inspiring and uplifting the

human spirit. He viewed them as corrupting influences. This dissertation aims at the exact

opposite. It's set out to explore the potential of film as a medium of communication and whether

or not Bol as a film has successfully communicated whatever it intended to say. It tries to

understand whether the film did justice to the aspects of religion it talked about and if the issues

concerning family planning were in line with the current situation of the country.

Film has great power to play with a man's psychology. This dissertation explores this power and

reviews the content of the film by analyzing the views of experts in the field of entertainment,

religion and medical science respectively. It talks about whether or not religion should be

brought up as a point of discussion and now that Shoaib Mansoor has already done so- did he do

a good enough job out of it? The conclusion in this case is not a yes or a no, but a study of the

gradual process that film making is all about, its multi-dimensionality and how to makes sure it

touches the heart.

Contents

Introduction

Literature Review:

Film as a tool for communication                                               5

Religious texts quoted in the film                                             10

Reason for high population growth in Pakistan                                  11

Pakistani attitude towards family planning                                     16

The Madarassah Culture: Strong divides between the religious and the secular   19

Research Methodology                                                           23

Discussion and Analysis                                                        25

Conclusion                                                                     34

Bibliography                                                                   36

Appendices                                                                     37

Introduction

With Shohaib Mansoor’s recent additions to the film industry, Pakistani cinema has moved beyond just

unreal action sequences coupled with bizarre dance moves. His attempt at creating thought provoking

pieces of art has received a great response from a wide variety of audience. For all the film makers who

heavily underestimate the Pakistani audience and continue producing pitiful films, Bol and Khuda K Liye

at least provide some food for thought and bring up issues that are worth researching and talking about.

Quite many people argue, perhaps rightly so, that Mansoor’s work stands out because among the blind,

the squinter rules. While the Pakistani Film Industry is going through a challenging state, one needs to

make a fair assessment whether his film are quality or simply relatively better than the rest. Whatever the

reasons maybe, the fact that this films was received so well by the audience: together with the crisis the

religion is facing in this region, is the driving force of this dissertation topic. With the prevailing situation

in our country, Mansoor brings up issues that relate to the modern day Pakistan in contrast to the illogical

fantasies of Lollywood. Social Realism is all about bringing to the forefront injustices of social and racial

nature, through images of life's struggles and showcasing the work of labour class as heroic.1 Hence it can

be safely said that Mansoor has clear socio-realistic inclinations in his work. Shohaib Mansoor released

Bol in 2011. This film brings up several social and cultural issues as it revolves around a conservative

Muslim family. The film primarily objects to the idea of reproducing human beings into this world

(blinded by faith and self-centered intentions) without taking complete responsibility of their existence.

Alongside it also highlights the regressive attitude of a male-dominated society that offers no liberty to

woman in choosing life-partner, refusing reproduction, gaining education or working independently.2

   1.
        Social Realism. Social Realism. N.p., n.d. Web. .
   2
    . Shoaib Mansoor. The Times of India. N.p., n.d. Web.

My interest in religion, together with me being a design student occasionally studying film and cinema,

are the main reasons why I chose to talk about Bol. It is one of the very few films that objectively bring

religion as a point of discussion and talks about misconceptions like no other. My initial direction was to

dissect the whole film and talk about the cultural issues it puts forwards in their entirety, but given the

scope of this dissertation, I had to get down to just the family planning aspect. That was also the most

obvious one of all the issues he was trying to address (at least it appeared so). What connects Bol to

Mansoor's earlier work, Khuda Ke Liye is the idea that the cultural issues addressed here are

predominantly a result of irrational interpretation of religion. The central figure in both of these films is

an unreasonable Muslim fanatic holding on to a self-made version of Islam. Mansoor has hence tried to

communicate the idea that how religion in this country is run by every individual, group or political party

the way they want to see it: paying little or no attention to what Islam actually requires of them. Perhaps

this is the sole reason that it is in such deep crises today. Too many cooks spoil the broth- and that is what

has happened to religion in this region, since everyone wants to exercise religious authority here.

The root cause analysis of an undesirable impression of Islam and Pakistan often comes into discussion,

and this is what further motivated me to research in this area. It is more a quest of knowing the reasons of

the state we are in today and since, the issues Pakistan has been facing are innumerable, using Shoaib

Mansoor’s film as an example will provide me with a concrete platform to channel/streamline my area of

research. Also, restricting myself to just the family planning aspect will increase the chances of me doing

justice to the topic- as Bol as a whole was just flooded with issues all over, so much so that each and

every one of them now seems to have been lost in the other.

In order to make it easy on the reader’s eye and understanding, I have picked up the most important issues

brought up in these movies and individually studied it on religious as well as secular levels. No religious

argument can be done justice to if the secular side of it is not addressed. Also, scientific evidence and

simple logic can be of great help if used appropriately to emphasize a point. Hence it becomes inevitable

to reason religious conclusions with the support of science and knowledge. Bringing comparative religion

in here can be a good idea because Islam is the most recent of all the religions it has co-existed with all

this time. It also helps relieve Islam of the undue pressure on it. It came to me as a surprise when I got to

know that until very recently, you had to declare yourself medically unwell for conception in order to get

hold of contraceptives in Ireland.

The secondary research undertaken to understand this topic breaks down the research question in four

main parts. The first section will examine the potential of film as a tool for communication generally. It

will then talk about the effectiveness of Bol in light of that potential. Moving on, I will be discussing in

detail the religious texts quoted in the film in opposition to family planning and their interpretations by

both early and modern scholars. Lastly I will look into the prevailing scenario of the country and how

well (or not) has it been receiving family planning up till now.

My primary research will consist of a set of Interviews from a variety of people. They mainly include

people who were a part of Bol, entertainers and performers, religious scholars and gynaecologists

associated with NGOs working in this field. The knowledge and experience of all these people will help

me understand the social values breeding in Pakistan in today’s world, and their association with religion

(if any). Even though the most validating of all interviews would have been of Shoaib Mansoor himself,

his apprehension in interacting with media or the general public really got in the way of this dissertation.

Despite me trying to convince him for as short an interview as he could afford, I wasn’t able to succeed in

getting his scepticism of me out of the way.

Do we need to be skeptical of the content of Bol for it received its funding from what most Pakistanis

consider to be our biggest enemy? Did the American university Jhon Hoppkins have an agenda? This is

also something I tried to decipher through this dissertation. I don’t want to be myopic already and start

being over critical of the film just because America funded it. If the film brings good fortune to the

Pakistani film industry, why should we not welcome it with arms wide open?

Considering the complexity and intangible nature of the topic, this research does not give clear cut

conclusions that would summarize all of Muslim history in the region and declare Bol to be in line with it

or not. What it will try to do, however, is to seek the potential film has as a medium and to what extent

has Bol explored this potential in conveying whatever it could on family planning.

Literature Review

Film as a tool for communication

‘…given the way in which moving image can manipulate us, allow us to inhabit many

differing points of view, take us on journeys to other times places and cultures, indict us, shock

us, and delight us, surely it’s time for our education system to hold the teaching of the sentence

we watch as no less important and crucial than the teaching of the sentence we read’ 3

While looking at Bol from a communicative point of view, we need to realize that film in itself is

a powerful tool to transfer information and to educate. The fact that it holds within itself so many

layers in terms of cinematography, lighting, sound etc makes sure it caters to different abilities in

a manner that is uniquely put together as one piece.4 The qualities that differentiate film from

other modes of communication, is very elaborately described in Larry Gross' article on Sol

Worth and the Study of Visual Communication. Since a film is composed of so many elements,

it becomes difficult to study it holistically and, as a result, any argument made on film is also

eventually based on art and language or television, mass media and the vision itself.5

When asking the question that 'does film actually educate?' it is necessary to examine its uses in

socio-cultural, artistic, political and scientific endeavours. This is because views developed about

the role of film as an educational tool are never devoid of the views taken of film as art,

3
 Marsh, J. and E. Bearne. Moving Literacy On: Evaluation of the BFI Lead Practitioner Scheme for Moving Image Media Literacy. Sheffield,
The University of Sheffield/UK Literacy Association (2008): 23

4
    Sol Worth (1922-1977)." Studies in the Anthropology of Visual Communication (1977): p 69.
5
    Sol Worth (1922-1977)." Studies in the Anthropology of Visual Communication (1977): p 69

propaganda, communication or the views upon the effects of film on society in general. Since

education has long been naturally associated to reading and writing, it will be intelligent to talk

about the superiority of film (if there is any) over words. There are strong arguments on the

primacy of film on social and psychological grounds. They mostly involve the notion of visual

thinking and lead to the conclusion that film or television is psychologically superior to words.6

Another argument along the same line says that film in itself is a language, stronger than any

other that exists, and that it is the language of today.7

Film has had academic association for about a century now. It was first used in a high school in

the United States in 1918 and has been taught in high schools and colleges since 1930's.

However it was not until the 1960's that it evolved into a full-fledged subject and became an

integral part of the curriculum. 8 Most boards of education now have sections headed by

specialists in the field who are responsible in helping teachers design, develop, teach and use

film in the classroom.9 Rudolf Arnheim, German film theorist and perceptual psychologist, is

one of the pioneers in recognizing film as a tool for education. He defends the place of film in his

book, Visual thinking (1969), and says that all thinking running through the human mind is

primarily visual in one form or the other and therefore film is a classic way to see this thinking

materialize. He further stresses that film has the potential to channelize our thoughts in a

systematic fashion, and can communicate exactly what the film maker is trying to put forward.

No other piece of art and literature enjoys this liberty. There is a limit to what a writer or a

painter can get us to think, their world is uni-dimensional, and our own freedom of thought tends

to overshadow that world. In contrast, the poly-dimensional space that film provides not only

6
    Sol Worth (1922-1977)." Studies in the Anthropology of Visual Communication (1977): p 74
7
    Sol Worth (1922-1977)." Studies in the Anthropology of Visual Communication (1977): pp 74-75
8
    Sol Worth (1922-1977)." Studies in the Anthropology of Visual Communication (1977): p 74-75
9
    Sol Worth (1922-1977)." Studies in the Anthropology of Visual Communication (1977): p 74-75

yields good thought models of physical objects or events: it gives us an alternate universe in

itself where theoretical reasoning can take place.10

When the layman is sitting in the comfort of his home, quite a lot of the outside world that comes

to him is through the visual media. Even outside the classroom setting, when we have no

intention of being educated or informed, the visual media makes sure it tells us its stories. Ralph

J. Amelio says in his book Film in the Classroom (1971) that it is as if we let the visual media

envelop us, and in this day and age where books are not read and the cinema is frequented more

than ever before, why not use the film as a medium to educate? He quotes the following facts in

his book that help in clearing out the position of film and cinema in today's world:

        1. Sixty-five percent of today's film audience is twenty four years older or younger.11

        2. For about one-fourth of their lives, children live in a semantic environment their parents

             did not create or control.12

        3. For every book the average college student reads, he views twenty films. 13

Even though this study is based on a typical American house-hold, it's not very difficult to relate

it to the culture of Pakistan. Keeping these three points in mind, we can safely conclude that the

cinemas are filled with the young more than the old, and that no matter how strictly you attend to

your children, you cannot possibly control their environment to the fullest, there will always be

external factors that affect them (film and television being the most relevant examples in this

10
     Callenbach, Ernest. ": Through Navajo Eyes: An Exploration in Film Communication and Anthropology . Sol Worth, John Adair." Film
Quarterly 27.2 (1973): 61-62. Print.
11
     Sol Worth (1922-1977)." Studies in the Anthropology of Visual Communication (1977): p 78
12
     Same as 11
13
     Same as 11

case.) And lastly for an average Pakistani student enrolled in college, the number of films he has

watched will certainly outnumber the books he has read.

Another article written in support of the film as a tool for communication by Film: 21st Century

Literacy, a group of film makers based in the UK working to promote film education, also speaks

on some very clear advantages that film has over other mediums. Firstly, it speaks of how

teaching through film can be administered and take place in large numbers at a given time. One

can somewhat make sure that a visual piece like film is reaching to hundreds or even thousands

in a classroom setting, unlike a book which the student must read on his own. The only problem

would be to make sure the student is awake- and that is where the film maker's job comes in.

Film is technology at its best and cheapest. Its ready availability and immense engaging powers

attract the viewer like no other medium and lastly the article summarises that film can help in

making the government achieve its educational objectives. 14

Even though all these factors no doubt help us in understanding the potential of film as a tool to

communicate, the author of the article stresses that the problem does not lie primarily in deciding

this at all. The problem lies in figuring out the right way to use this tool, and to put it to use most

effectively. How to get it to articulate the right meaning, how to get the viewer to 'feel' a certain

way about it, and how to incorporate elements like culture, values and religion without amassing

unnecessary hate and controversy are just a few questions a film maker needs to have an answer

to.

However, since film is essentially an art form, it cannot always incorporate the objectivity the

academic world demands. Arnheim also writes in one of his books that how film is essentially an

art form because it does not produce reality exactly. It is art because it has failed to reproduce

14
     Film: 21st Century Literacy | Findings." Film: 21st Century Literacy | Findings. N.p., n.d. Web. 12 June 2013

reality in the same way as a painting or sculpture. The room it has for artistic expression,

imagination and subjectivity questions its place as a scholastic tool. 15

Whilst trying to comprehend all that these people have written on film, it is clear that none of the

authors are trying to imply that film is more virtuous than a book or vice versa. These articles

tend to highlight the many advantages the medium of film has, and how these advantages make it

different (and not essentially better) than other educational settings.

15
     Film: 21st Century Literacy | Findings." Film: 21st Century Literacy | Findings. Web. 12 June 2013

Religious texts quoted in the film

It would not be wrong to establish that despite the many issues shown in Bol, the rejection this

society has against family planning is of core importance to the content of the film. There are

several instances in the film where references have been made to Quranic verses or Prophetic

traditions, and most of them revolve around the institution of family planning. The protagonist,

Zainab (Humaima Malik) towards the end of the film establishes what could said to be the gist of

the film. Before she is hanged to death, she leaves the screen by saying the following dialogues:

 “Agar zindagi leyna jurm hai, tou zindagi deyna jurm kyoun nahin?

Agar khila nahin saktay, toh paida kyun kartay ho?”

(If taking life is a crime, why is giving life not a crime?

If you cannot feed, why do you give birth?)16

Earlier on in the film, Hakeem Sahab answers these dialogues by giving reference to the

following verse from the Quran:

‘Do not kill your children for fear of poverty; it is We Who provide for them as well as for you.
Killing them is surely a grave sin.’ Quran 17:31,

Hakeem Sahab argues with her daughter by giving his own interpretation of the verse. He says
that Allah has called himself AL-Razik (The Sustainer and Provider) and the He is responsible
for every individual's sustenance: therefore giving us no right to put an end to giving birth.
Asghar Ali, writes something very interesting on this verse in his article Islam and Family
Planning published in Dawn. Firstly, he comments that 'killing' is an act that can only be done to
something that has life and exists, and family planning is far from that. Not only does this verse
condemn the idea of burying a child alive after its birth (as was very common in the pre-Islamic
Arab world), according to Imam Razi, it also talks about keeping your children ignorant so much

16
  Morial Shah, 'Bol, Speaking Silence.' The Tribune, (June 21, 2011). http://blogs.tribune.com.pk/story/6540/bol-
speaking-silence/ [Last accessed: 11 May 2013]

so that their mind and soul die away. Poor upbringing in terms of not providing them with the
fundamentals of life, material as well as non-material, might not 'kill' a child physically but it
takes the life out of him metaphorically.17

In another argument between the two protagonists, Hakeem Sahab declares that the Prophet is
reported to have said:

Get married (and reproduce) for I will boast of your large numbers in front of other
nations (on Judgment Day).18

The complete version of the hadith, not quoted in the film is as follows:

Get married (and reproduce) for I will boast of your large numbers in front of other
nations (on Judgment Day), and do not lapse into Christian monasticism.19

In Yusuf Al-Qaradawi's article, The philosophy of marriage in Islam, he has tried to explain the
real meaning of this text. He talks about family planning as being a personal choice where
religion needs not be misinterpreted the way it is. In the complete version of the hadith, the idea
of abstaining completely from marriage and children (i.e. monasticism) is being rejected. He says
that the institution of marriage is a gift to society and if piety was to be made synonymous to
monasticism than would only the ‘bad’ be allowed to have children? By large numbers the
Prophet seems to have proposed a disliking of monasticism and encouraged having children due
to various reasons. Marriage is the sole means of establishing a family, the nucleus of society.
Marriage matures a man's character and bestows upon him the honour of fatherhood, making him
a responsible adult and polishing him for greater endeavors. It keeps one away from lust and evil,
binding him in a pure relationship. He stresses on the idea that those who run away from
marriage in order to live an independent, care free life, are in fact self-interested grown up

17
     Asghar Ali Engineer, 'Family Planning and Islam.' Dawn (7th October, 2011) http://dawn.com/2011/10/07/family-planning-and-islam/
18
     Zawaj.com: Articles and Essays." ZAWAJ.COM: Articles and Essays. N.p., n.d. Web. 14 June 2013.
19
     Zawaj.com: Articles and Essays." ZAWAJ.COM: Articles and Essays. N.p., n.d. Web. 14 June 2013.

children who fail to take up responsibility. Marriage carefully distributes the responsibilities
between a man and a woman, according to the roles nature has set for them. 20

Even though we will get to see a detailed discussion on this hadith in the Discussion and
Analysis section, the support religion has in favour of marriage and procreation cannot be denied
at this stage. Islam as a religion wishes to transform one into a responsible individual, willing to
perform his worldly and religious affairs in the best possible way. This article, even though being
highly subjective in nature, points out clearly what marriage as an institution aims to provide and
how children can serve to be a blessing, strengthening this bond. What's interesting is that the
'quantity' of the children is nowhere talked about because that is just not the point of the hadith.
In my opinion, it is trying to establish something far more superior than the meaning Hakeem
Sahab was trying to imply. Instead of implying a forcefully illogical interpretation to this hadith,
this article forces one to question about the fundamental good associated with the institution of
marriage and parenthood.

20
  Ibrahim B. Syed, ' Food and Sustenance is from Allah' (posted: January 25, 2002)
http://www.irfi.org/articles/articles_51_100/food_and_sustenance_is_from_allah.htm [Last accessed: June 14 2013]

Reasons for High Population Growth in Pakistan

Huma Naz Sethi in her book, The Environment of Pakistan, briefly talks about the major reasons

for high population growth in the country. Where Bol speaks of just two of them (interference

with God's will and desire for sons), her work takes a wider look into the picture:

Child Labor

Pakistan is predominantly an agricultural country with 63% 21 of the population

living in rural areas. With very little laws enforced regarding child labor, rural

families prefer to have a lot of children as having more children means a chance for

a higher income and help in farms. Pakistan’s rural fertility rate as of 2006-07 was

reported to be 4.5 children per woman which is a significant difference from the

urban fertility rate which stood at 3.3. 22 In view of Pakistan’s patriarchal society,

women rarely have a say in matters of family planning, therefore the husband’s

desires are given precedence over all other issues.

Religious beliefs

A fundamental belief in Islam is that Allah will provide “rizq” (subsistence) to everyone. This is

one of the reasons why family planning and contraceptive measures are only adopted by 30% of

married women in Pakistan. The common argument is that fertility lies in God’s hand and using

contraceptives is interfering in God’s will. Results from the Demographic and Health Survey

conducted in 2006-07 indicate that among married women, 28% believe that fertility should be

21
     Huma Naz Sethi, The Environment of Pakistan (Prism Publications, 2002) p 211
22
     Karen Hardee and Elizabeth LeahyPopulation, Fertility and Family Planning in Pakistan." Pakistan Defence Forum RSS. Web. 15 May 2013.

determined by God and 23% perceive religious prohibition or resistance from husband or

others.23

Strong desire for sons

Considering the male-dominated mindset of Pakistan, most families desire to have at least one

son to shoulder the burden of managing the household and supporting his parents in their old

age. For this reason, many married couples continue to try having children in hopes of bearing a

son.

Illiteracy

Pakistan ranks a lowly 113 among 120 countries regarding literacy rate, which currently stands

at 55%. It had previously been discussed that fertility rates reduce with each year of girls’

education. Adding on to that point, due to illiteracy people are not able to comprehend the

economic crisis that high birth rates bring.

Other factors for Pakistan’s high population growth include early marriages, which allows a

longer fertility period for reproduction, the warm climate of Pakistan, which aids conception and

favors reproduction, and political instability which hinder welfare programs.

Even though religion is a major factor whenever we talk about resistance against the use of

contraception, this book is clear in stating that it is just one of the many that exist in our society.

Bol through its educational content is very clear and direct in bringing up religion as a point for

discussion; however the discussion and analysis section shall be examining in detail as to

whether or not the religious arguments put forward in the movie were sound.

23
     Karen Hardee and Elizabeth Leahy 'Population, Fertility and Family Planning in Pakistan.' Pakistan Defence Forum RSS. Web. 15 May
2013.

Pakistani attitude towards family planning

Karen Hardee and Elizabeth Leahy present the current situation of family planning in Pakistan in

their article Population, Fertility and Family planning in Pakistan: A Program in

Stagnation. They talk about how instable governance and rising extremism in the country is a

serious threat to any large-scale initiative taken by the government or NGOs. Even though

Pakistan was among the vanguard countries in Asia to have started a family planning program in

the 1950's, no significant progress has been made in the past decade with an annual increase of

only 0.3 percent since 2000-01 in the total contraceptive prevalence rate (CPR) of the country,

signaling a plateau. 24

A country that is already in crisis in terms of basic necessities like health, education and

employment, needs to be even more careful about its demographic conditions since a population

growing this rapidly risks the possibilities of economic development and progress. Research has

shown that countries where instable governance is coupled with a majority of youthful

population (like in Pakistan where 60 percent of the population is under thirty) are more likely to

have autocratic governance and face outbreaks of civil conflict. We need to therefore

acknowledge the importance of strategic family planning programs and make sure they yield

results.25

24
   Karen Hardee and Elizabeth Leahy 'Population, Fertility and Family Planning in Pakistan.' 5-7 Pakistan Defence Forum RSS. Web. 15 May
2013.
25
   Karen Hardee and Elizabeth Leahy 'Population, Fertility and Family Planning in Pakistan.' Pp 5-7 Pakistan Defence Forum RSS. Web. 15
May 2013.

Figure 1.126

The figure above, taken from the Pakistan Demographic Health Survey show that despite all the

effort on government and private level, over 70 percent of women do not use any contraceptive

methods. Contraceptive use is lowest among young and rural women, but rises with education.

Women living in urban areas are two-thirds as likely to use modern contraceptives as those in

rural areas. The gap between women with differing levels of education is smaller than the rural-

urban divide, but still significant. Only 19 percent of women with no education are using a
26
   National Institute of Population Studies (NIPS) [Pakistan] and Macro International Inc. 2008. Pakistan Demographic and Health Survey 2006-
07. Islamabad: NIPS and Macro International Inc.

modern method of family planning, compared to 26 percent of women who completed secondary

school. The link between higher levels of education among women and smaller family size

across the developing world is clear; on average, each year of girls’ education has been found to

reduce fertility rates by 0.3 to 0.5 children per woman. 27

However, quite a large number of these women (around one-quarter) show an unmet need for

family planning, wanting to either have a reasonable amount of gap between their children or not

have any more children at all. For all these other women who do not have any intention of using

contraceptives in the future, only three percent cite a desire for more children as a reason, the

other major reasons involve the belief that fertility should be determined by God (28 percent);

perceive religious prohibition or resistance from husband or others (23 percent); infertility (15

percent); and concerns about health, side effects or the cost of family planning (12 percent).28

The government of Pakistan realized in the early 1990's that women's mobility in the majority of

the regions of this country is severly restricted, and that is why the it instituted outreach

programs in which women are visited at home in their villages by Lady Health Workers. This

proved to be a very fruitful step and was later adopted by many other NGO's working in this

field. Contraceptive use in villages with the community-based workers was 74 percent higher

than in villages without.29

Pakistan’s family planning program is administered by two government

27
   Karen Hardee and Elizabeth Leahy 'Population, Fertility and Family Planning in Pakistan.' P 08 Pakistan Defence Forum RSS. Web.
Accessed 15 May 2013.
28
   Karen Hardee and Elizabeth Leahy 'Population, Fertility and Family Planning in Pakistan.' P 09 Pakistan Defence Forum RSS. Web.
Accessed 15 May 2013.
29
   Karen Hardee and Elizabeth Leahy 'Population, Fertility and Family Planning in Pakistan.' P 09 Pakistan Defence Forum RSS. Web.
Accessed 15 May 2013.

ministries, the Ministry of Health (MOH) and the Ministry of Population Welfare (MOPW), and

both these sectors face severe mismanagement and corruption. The staff is ill-trained and ill-

equipped, while the cost of effectively running the Lady Health Worker program is far too high

for the l health budget of the country.30

All in all, I believe that this article puts forward some key issues in the prevailing scenario of the

country. Firstly it points out as to how there is a striking difference in the thinking and decision

making abilities between the educated and the uneducated. Furthermore, even though it talks

about a huge percentage of people attributing resistance to family planning with God's will and

and/or religion, whenever they are educated and services are made available to them- they are

likely to receive these new ideas particularly well.

30
  Karen Hardee and Elizabeth Leahy 'Population, Fertility and Family Planning in Pakistan.' p 11 Pakistan Defence Forum RSS. Web.
Accessed 15 May 2013.

The Madarssah Culture: Strong divide between the religious and the secular.

This chapter intends to closely look up into an issue that this country is facing in terms of

extremist ideologies. It hopes to decipher Hakeem Sahab's character and the factors in today's

Pakistan that yield obscurantists like him: in light of the madarssah culture, the strong divide

between the religious and the secular with no room for an overlap.

“We must not forget the question of . . . how one ought to be educated. For in modern times,

there are . . . no generally accepted assumptions about what the young should learn, either for

virtue or the best life; nor yet is it clear whether their education ought to be conducted with more

concern for the intellect than for the character of the soul.” ––Aristotle, The Politics.31

Aristotle argued that every citizen essentially has a different educational priority based on his

preferences and country of origin. “For a start,” he explained, “men do not all praise the same

virtue, so naturally they differ also about the training for it.” 32 This is what Matthew J. Nelson’s

article titled Muslims, Markets, and the Meaning of “Good” Education in Pakistan speaks of. He

analyzes the local educational demands in Pakistan in terms of market, competition and choices

in favour of religion.

        31
             Nicholas Dirks, Geoff Eley, and Sherry B. Ortner, Culture/Power/History: A Reader in Contemporary Social Theory , (Princeton:
   Princeton University Press, 1993), pp. 412 quoted in Nelson, Matthew J. "Muslims, Markets, and the Meaning of a "Good" Education in
   Pakistan." Asian Survey 46.5 (2006): p 701. Print.

        32
             Moore, Barrington. Social Origins of Dictatorship and Democracy: Lord and Peasant in the Making of the Modern World. Boston:
        Beacon, 1966. Print.

He sheds light on the growing madrassa culture in contrast to secular learning. The lack of

proper schooling facilities, the deplorable state of government schools, and unaffordable private

education make the madrasah a considerable choice.33 He accepts that his survey is theoretical in

nature for a real Pakistani has never had many options to choose from as far as basic education is

concerned. Nelson’s article is supported by extensive case studies and statistics. He believes that

one’s personal priorities as far as schooling is concerned are primarily decided by two factors:

his financial condition together with the career he intends to pursue.34 His findings however

seem to have a twist. When the research sample (consisting of the less educated and the ones

with no formal schooling at all) were asked the question, ‘If your children were provided with a

choice among all of the schools currently available in Pakistan except madrasas—because, in

many cases, madrasa graduates suffer from unemployment—would you be satisfied with your

educational options?” In response to this question, nearly 60% of the citizens said “No!”

When it was revealed to him that for some the madrassa is not a compromise but a beloved

choice, he is rather caught by surprise. Further research reveals that for many, education is not

just an economic investment, but an attempt at teaching their children proper Islamic behavior.35

This is reflective of their doubts and insecurities towards exposing their child to anything beyond

religion. The conclusion he has drawn out of his research is rather rational. He is generous is

identifying that such inclinations towards the madrassa do not mean that every citizen with an

interest in religion is a terrorist in the making. As the International Crisis Group (ICG) points

out, the “Madrasas associated with jihad and sectarian and international terrorism are easily

recognizable.” And, “madrasas must not be confused with those that are a normal part of

       33
            Nelson, Matthew J. "Muslims, Markets, and the Meaning of a "Good" Education in Pakistan." Asian Survey 46.5 (2006): p 703.

       34
            Nelson, Matthew J. "Muslims, Markets, and the Meaning of a "Good" Education in Pakistan." Asian Survey 46.5 (2006): p 703.

       35
            Nelson, Matthew J. "Muslims, Markets, and the Meaning of a "Good" Education in Pakistan." Asian Survey 46.5 (2006): p 705.

Pakistani life.” In particular, the ICG notes that most of those trained in local madrasas have

little or nothing to do with the notion of international militant jihad.36 He brings us back to the

question of growing religious conservatism. It is important to realize that if these madrassas are

not producing terrorists: they are also not producing virtuous citizens with a rational

understanding of religion. Historian and journalist Dr. Mubarak Ali was says “I must admit much

of this talk is exaggerated. On the whole the madrasas create narrow-minded, sectarian students,

but not terrorists. Not all the Afghan Taliban were madrasa-educated,” he noted. “They also

included young people in modern schools or colleges.” 37 Hence for the sake of simplicity, it

would not be wrong to say that a typical madressa product is somewhat like the central character

of Bol, Mr. Hashmatullah Khan or Hakim Sahab, an obscurantist with an intolerant, partial

understanding of religion. Who, despite any active involvement in ‘terrorism’, causes much

terror throughout the film.

The fact that the local madarssah pays no attention to any sort of secular learning eventually

leads to its products avoiding Islam rather than constructively engaging in it. In the early days of

Islam, religious education was never devoid of scientific knowledge. This is the very reason that

eminent figures like Al-Ghazali used scientific knowledge and implied it to develop religious

philosophy.38 Drawing strong boundaries between the religious and the secular has not only put

religion under pressure and doubt, but also lead to the essence of Islam being lost when they say

36
     Nelson, Matthew J. "Muslims, Markets, and the Meaning of a "Good" Education in Pakistan." Asian Survey 46.5 (2006): p 709.

37
     Nelson, Matthew J. "Muslims, Markets, and the Meaning of a "Good" Education in Pakistan." Asian Survey 46.5 (2006): p 709.
38
     Nelson, Matthew J. "Muslims, Markets, and the Meaning of a "Good" Education in Pakistan." Asian Survey 46.5 (2006): pp 709-10.

that being ‘Muslim’ is the state of peace achieved by a strong spiritual connection with the

Supreme Being as opposed to a superficial endorsement of a set of rituals.39

39 . Yoginder Sikand, “Pakistan Is Becoming More Fundamentalist by the Day: An Interview with Dr. Mubarak Ali,” http://www.islaminterfaith.
org/oct2002/interview. Html quoted in Nelson, Matthew J. "Muslims, Markets, and the Meaning of a "Good" Education in Pakistan." Asian
Survey 46.5 (2006): p 715. Print

Research Methodology

I will be researching on the effectiveness of Bol as a tool for communication. Film has long had

academic association in most parts of the world but it is still not clear to me that why is this

region in particular so far behind in recognizing its educational qualities. My secondary research

consists of several parts, each one of them uniquely contributing to some aspect of the research

question. I have started the literature review with Sol Worth's Studies in the Anthropology of

Visual Communication, where he speaks of film as being multi-dimensional and being

psychologically superior to written and verbal language. This will help me understand the status

enjoyed by Bol and what sets it apart from art that works in a single dimension. I have then

carefully picked up points where religious texts have been quoted in the film in opposition to

family planning, and closely studied their interpretations by both early and modern scholars. I

have then studied factors that contribute towards high population growth in Pakistan and what

sort of resistance family planning programs face in this region. I concluded the literature review

section by speaking of the Madarssah culture and the strong divide our country faces between the

religious and secular forms of learning- there barely seems to have an overlap as was found in

early Islam, where no religious philosophy was devoid of scientific knowledge.

My primary research will be entirely based on interviews as I believe that experts in the field

could guide me better towards deriving a conclusion given the subjective nature of the topic.

They mainly include people who were a part of Bol, entertainers and performers, religious

scholars and gynaecologists associated with NGOs working in this field.

My first interview was with Sheema Kermani (classical dancer, teacher, drama artist and

women’s rights activist), where I questioned her mainly about the importance of performance-

based art and how it can help is elaborating a social concern. She stressed on the idea of how a

country where the majority cannot read and write should promote such mediums as a substitute

to traditionally academic set ups.

Later I spoke to Mahira Khan (Actor, VJ) who plays to be one of the seven daughters in Bol.

Since Shoaib Mansoor was not comfortable with an interview, Khan proved to be the right

choice in trying to explain some of his intentions behind the film. She was generous enough in

realizing that even though Bol speaks of a lower-income family, its issues are universal and

anyone anywhere can relate to them.

Later I spoke to Nida Aslam (Filmmaker, journalist, production team member of Bol). She spoke

of the environment on sets where everything was obscured and the team itself was not being

trusted. She then talked about how Bol was strictly commercial in nature and one should not

confuse it with being an art film because it was far too objective and direct in its content.

Speaking to scholars in this regard was inevitable in order for me to understand the history of

some of the religious texts quoted in the film. Rehyan Yousufi and Kulsoom Motiwalla, even

though had contrasting opinions as far as the details were concerned, both said that there is so

much more to family planning than providing good nutrition to your child and we should explore

those avenues in order to avoid confusion.

Lastly Dr. Ghazala Khan (Gynaecolgist, Greenstar representative at Atia General Hospital,
Malir.) and Dr. Shershah Syed (Former President of the Society of Obstetrics and Gynaecolgy,
Pakistan) highlighted the different sorts of resistances they occasionally have to face while

offering family planning advice to their patients. Dr. Shershah Syed is also a very close
colleague to Ms. Sheema Kermani and has written many plays on social concerns for Tehrik-e-
Niswaan. His interview will summarize the picture of the situation of women wanting to choose
birth control today as his experience spreads amongst urban and the rural areas alike.

By studying my primary and secondary research side by side, I hope to reach to a level where I

can comment and criticize on the content shown in Bol. Through this analysis of the content,

together with understanding the power of film, I hope to reach to a subjective and open ended

conclusion that if not summarizes, at least reviews the film's relevance to existing social reality.

Discussion and Analysis:

To one of these very harsh reviews of Bol by Tazeen Javed published in Dawn, an anonymous

post on their website is right in condemning the author that she needs to realize that it's no James

Cameron movie that she is reviewing. She is reviewing a Pakistani film in an age where the

industry is pretty much dead and gone, and hence context and a little leniency are in order.40 For

the same reason I believe in not being too over critical about the movie. It might not be the

world's best work, but according to Mahira Khan41 it was certainly one of the best things

produced in Pakistan so far. For the sake of ease of analyzing and understanding, this section will

break down the research question in parts. It will firstly talk about the effectiveness of Bol as a

tool for communication. It will then discuss the religious texts quoted in the film and their

scholarly interpretations, together with the misconceptions associated with family planning in the

name of religion. Lastly it will talk about the prevailing scenario and future of family planning in

Pakistan, and whether or not will extremist ideologies breeding in the country ever change.

Bol as a film:

Bol can be generally classified as a commercial film aimed for the mass-market audience.

Strictly nationalistic in nature, it had elements of social realism, art and education in its structure

and content.42

40                                        th
   Tazeen Ahmed, 'Bol: A Review'. Dawn (4 July 2011). http://dawn.com/2011/07/04/bol-movie-review/ [Last
                th
accessed June 4 2013]
41                            th
   Mahira Khan interviewed 17 April 2013 [Interview conducted via telephone and was recorded and transcribed]
42                            th
     Nida Aslam interviewed 10 June 2013 [Interview conducted via telephone and was recorded and transcribed]

Despite the many issues it talked about, it did not fail to deal with them objectively which is

atypical of films that are solely art. Nida Aslam43 points out that the entertainment, glamour, and

renowned faces associated with the film make the whole project appear very commercial. While

examining the chapter Film in the Classroom, it became clear to us that this medium undoubtedly

has academic potential; however the interesting point is that it informs and educates us

subconsciously, even outside the class room setting (where we have no intention of being

informed and educated).

 Bol could have been a typical love story revolving around Atif Aslam and Mahira Khan with

Hakeem Sahab being the villain, but it was so much more than that. It was filled with intellectual

conversations between the two protagonists, it brought up Quranic verses and Prophetic

traditions as a point for debate and discussion which is so rare in the main stream cinema. So for

all those who came to watch Bol just for the sake of entertainment, left off with a mind that was

forced to think FOR these issues.44 Its educational content was pushed forward by the

entertainment of it, as according to Sheema Kermani 45, the audience will never be satisfied until

and unless they are entertained. In order to make the most out of any piece of art, be it film,

theatre, drama etc, there has to be a subtle and nuanced balance between the content concerning

social responsibility and the content concerning entertainment.46 And it can be said that Bol did

keep this into consideration throughout.

While we talk about the protagonists' interesting debate over religion, we move closer to the

film's educational content. However there seems to be a twist in this analysis. According to the

43
     Nida Aslam interviewed 10th June 2013 [Interview conducted via telephone and was recorded and transcribed]
44
     Mahira Khan interviewed 17 th April 2013 [Interview conducted via telephone and was recorded and transcribed]
45
     Sheema Kermani interviewed 30th March 2013 [Interview conducted via telephone and was recorded and transcribed]
46
     Sheema Kermani interviewed 30th March 2013 [Interview conducted via telephone and was recorded and transcribed]

report published by Mandviwala Entertainment, more than 70 percent of the revenue generated

by Bol was from the metropolitan cities of Pakistan47. As it is known that it talks about the

problems associated with the uneducated lower-income class, do these statistics imply that it was

informing the already informed ones? Did it talk about family planning to those who already

plan a family: hence being a waste in its potentialities? Well, not entirely. Even though it did not

get through the rural low-income class, it still had something for each and every one of its

audience. Mahira Khan48 confidently speaks of its universal content, and that it caters to the

hypocrisies associated with everyone irrespective of their social standing. So when we talk about

the educated middle and upper middle class, they might not throw their daughter into the well

but they would still not rejoice her birth like that of a male child.49 The way two educated people

from different sects of Islam look down upon one another, is all so obvious in our everyday

interactions.50 The way we exercise the contrasting difference between our actions and our

feelings is perhaps a little more sophisticated than the other class- but it still renders us a

hypocrite. So her point that you need not be from a lower-class set up and have many siblings in

order to relate to Bol holds true.

As far as referring to the point made earlier about film being multi-dimensional as opposed to the

flatness of words and language, I don’t wish to propose that a film is heavier on the text book in

view of the knowledge it encompasses. A more logical way to interpret this would be to consider

film and cinema as a totally different realm, with a different kind of potential all together. And

the filmmaker's job is to understand this potential to its best and make full use of it.

47
  An Interview With Nadeem Mandviwalla." - Entertainment Articles : Hamariweb.com. Web. 8th June 2013.
http://www.hamariweb.com/articles/article.aspx?id=16486
48
     Mahira Khan interviewed 17 th April 2013 [Interview conducted via telephone and was recorded and transcribed]
49
     Mahira Khan interviewed 17 th April 2013 [Interview conducted via telephone and was recorded and transcribed]
50
     Mahira Khan interviewed 17 th April 2013 [Interview conducted via telephone and was recorded and transcribed]

Therefore when giving credit to Bol as an agent for change in terms of its educational content,

we can safely say that film has that potential, even if the Pakistani cinema is nowhere near

exploring it. In recognizing what Bol has done and what it has set us out to think, we are actually

appreciating this other medium of education and talking about discovering and expanding it.

Sheema Kermani51 stresses on the whole idea that in a society where the majority cannot read

and write, performance-based mediums are the best way to communicate a message. This is why

a lot of her documentaries and short plays produced under the banner of Tehrik-i-Niswaan are

used by several NGOs throughout the country for educational purposes.

 Even though it exaggerates in a few cases, it is not wrong in doing so because film can

dramatize to put a point forward. That’s the kind of liberty it enjoys. Bol has been successful

enough as a tool for communication even if all that it has done is getting us to think and feel for

the issues it was talking about- for the first step towards change is change in the mind itself.

Religion and Family Planning:

As mentioned earlier in the Research Methodology section, one of the biggest challenges during

the course of this dissertation was to find a Scholar with whom I could discuss about film and

cinema, and whose ideas and way of thinking is liberal and logical enough for a secular man to

understand. Reyhan Yousufi52 (Islamic Authour and a contemporary of Javed Ahmed Ghamidi,

famous for his liberal and modern approach) proved to be the right choice for this Job.

51
     Sheema Kermani interviewed 30th March 2013 [Interview conducted via telephone and was recorded and transcribed]
52
     Reyhan Yousufi interviewed 21st April 2013 [Interview conducted in person and was recorded and transcribed in Urdu]

He firstly makes it clear that no verse in the Quran addresses the issue of family planning

directly, and that verse 17 of Surah Israh mentioned earlier talks about killing life after it has

come into being.53

He says that the biggest crises faced by the Muslim community of today is not understanding that

society works independently of religion, and when social norms evolve, we need to

accommodate religion in a way that neither takes us out of the boundaries it has set for us, nor

does it alienate us from existing individual and societal realities.

He then quotes the following hadith:

 According to Jabir, "A man came to the Prophet (pbuh) and said, 'I have a slave girl, and we

need her as a servant and around the palmgroves and therefore I am afraid of her becoming

pregnant.' The Prophet (pbuh) said, 'Practice 'azl with her if you so wish, for she will receive

what has been predestined for her."54

This hadith establishes three very important points according to Yousufi.

       1. Allah is the ultimate planner. Despite all our efforts, only whatever He wills shall prevail.

             All we can do is try and nothing more.

       2. It also helps in restoring any doubts about a woman's character in case she conceives

             despite contraceptive measures. The conception is then regarded as something

             predestined and not that the woman is unchaste.

53
     Reyhan Yousufi interviewed 21 st April 2013 [Interview conducted in person and was recorded and transcribed in Urdu]
54
     Reyhan Yousufi interviewed 21 st April 2013 [Interview conducted in person and was recorded and transcribed in Urdu]

3. Lastly and most importantly, considering the level of transparency found in the Prophet's

             sayings about matters he completely forbade, family planning is certainly not one of

             them.

He says that all unreasonable and illogical conclusions we have developed over family planning

are a result of an anti-western psychology. While fiqh (Islamic Jurisprudence) was being

developed by the scholars of early Islam, polygamy and having many children was the need of

those days, as it was an animal (not mechanical) age. Hence the scholars then gave this whole

issue a religious backing.

He wraps up his argument by saying family planning becomes unlawful when it comes out of a

fear of poverty and hopelessness. "We should not base family planning on the sole idea of not

eventually having enough to eat" he says, "That is unislamic, Allah is the provider of all things

no doubt. But it's all just so much more than material provisions today. It's about good

upbringing, realizing human value and differentiating yourself from sheep and cattle."55 This can

directly be related to Imam Razi's interpretation of the verse from the Quran where he says that

killing of a child can refer to poor upbringing, something that Bol mentions throughout.

Kulsoom Motiwala,56 who heads the Al-Quran Courses Network in Pakistan, had relatively more

orthodox views on the topic. She constantly emphasized on the whole idea that how planning a

55
     Reyhan Yousufi interviewed 21 st April 2013 [Interview conducted in person and was recorded and transcribed in Urdu]

56
     Kulsoom Motiwala interviewed 29st April 2013 [Interview conducted via telephone and could not be recorded]

family for the fear of poverty is unlawful in Islam, but allowed under certain circumstances

including adequate spacing between children and health risks.

Perhaps it is still unclear to me why did Bol confuse valuing human life with the quantity of

children you have. For a couple with just two children might do injustice to them, while a couple

with eight children can raise them extraordinarily well. A small family size is just one of the

ways, and not the only, in ensuring quality upbringing. When the bottom line of the movie

is jub khila nahi saktay tau paida kiun kertay ho, I don’t see where and how was raising quality

individuals was being talked about. We only seem to see that they were unhappy because they

didn’t have enough to eat.

Pakistani attitude towards family planning:

Dr. Ghazala Khan57 very elaborately describes the different kinds of responses she receives from

her patients in regards to family planning. While some believe that the use of contraception is

next to genocide, the others assume that any such measures will lead to adverse affects on their

health. However one thing is very clear from what she had to say. As she counsels and educates

her patients, they are at least willing to give it a try. During the course of her training with

Greenstar, she was taught to get down to the patient's level and use politically correct

terminology in elaborating her point. So for a strictly conservative husband, she would not argue

with him on religious grounds but would advice the couple to resort to contraceptive measures in

order to have spacing among their children and to ensure the mother's health. She would not

57
     Dr. Ghazala Khan interviewed 29st April 2013 [Interview conducted via telephone and was recorded and transcribed in Urdu]