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Celebrities like Bushra Ansari bear the worst of ageism in Pakistan

Bushra Ansari and Hina Bayat share how they navigate the social media commentary about their sartorial choices
Updated 05 Jun, 2017

At the end of my interview with Bushra Ansari a thought crossed my mind: I finally know what I want to be like in 30 years.

Bushra Ansari is awesome. She is self-assured and accomplished. Like a true grand dame she has the airs of someone who has lived life. A life that she has lived in a way that makes me look forward to leaving behind the uncertainties of my 20s.

A lot of our interview centered around fame, fashion and being female. We talk about the difference between style and trend. We also talked about the double-edged sword that is being famous in the age of social media. At the core of our conversation was the singular truth: for women in the public eye there are so many ways to fail.

Much ado about a jumpsuit

The Twitter trolls came for her just days ago after a photo of her wearing a classic, unfussy, sleeveless black jumpsuit at Hum Showcase red carpet went viral.

Bushra Ansari at the Hum Showcase red carpet
Bushra Ansari at the Hum Showcase red carpet

The comments were ridiculous, ranging from the absurdist (‘aunty go back to wearing saris’) to the sexist ('why didn’t her children and husband stop her from leaving home?!') to the ageist (‘if only people start acting and dressing their age! #bushraansari’ and ‘iss age mein kabron ke designs dekhne chahiye’).

Ansari did not mince words when I asked her how she feels about internet trolls who are like sharks to blood when it comes to celebrities’ misinterpreted interviews or sartorial choices.

“Yes, you need some sensitivity in the way you present yourself to your public. But to judge someone for wearing jeans [as if] it automatically means they are not a good woman is not healthy.” — Bushra Ansari

She thinks that telling someone they should or should not wear a gown, pants or a hijab is an unhealthy form of criticism.

“Yes, you need some sensitivity in the way you present yourself to your public. But to judge someone for wearing jeans [as if] it automatically means they are not a good woman is not healthy.”

Because Ansari is a self-proclaimed lover of variation and is prone to boredom, she has always been quick to embrace changing trends. There was an awami-inspired phase during which she exclusively wore men’s clothing and Peshawari chappals. Then there is her constant tug and pull with the length of her hair. (While she prefers short hair she finds that she needs long hair for drama serials like Udaari in which she rocked a choti).

The passion for variation is not reserved for the red carpet. She tells me that since the age of 27 when she played a much older woman she has been happy to take on roles that demand extremes of her.

But for Ansari the way she chooses to dress up or down should not be news to an audience that has been watching her regularly for decades. Referring to the time when actresses like Marina Khan would frequently come on television with super short hair and no makeup, she questions why there was no vitriolic dialogue back then.

“Perhaps, social media has given people ijazat to have opinions. I don’t understand it. It’s not always a good thing,” she muses.

Tuning out the voices

Ansari’s contemporary Hina Bayat echoes a similar sentiment telling me that while she makes efforts not to offend her audience’s sensibilities she is not willing to go against her own convictions for the sake of pleasing others.

Hina Bayat as the showstopper for Natasha Kamal at PSFW 2015
Hina Bayat as the showstopper for Natasha Kamal at PSFW 2015

"I am not one of those who will don a hijab or a dupatta for a Ramazan show unless it’s during the azaan, qirat or naat - as I would do in my daily life. Similarly, I won’t become a clotheshorse for a designer simply so I can be dressed for a red carpet unless I feel that it is me inside those clothes." — Hina Bayat

“Being a public figure comes with certain responsibility. Even unwillingly we become role models for others who have expectations from us but I am not one of those who will don a hijab or a dupatta for a Ramazan show unless it’s during the azaan, qirat or naat - as I would do in my daily life. Similarly, I won’t become a clotheshorse for a designer simply so I can be dressed for a red carpet unless I feel that it is me inside those clothes,” Bayat told Images.

What's Pakistan's problem with fashion beyond a certain age?

This no-holds-barred social media skewering that Ansari and Bayat speak of is, without a doubt, what celebrity culture around the world has mutated into.

In fact, we see it so often that not only have we have come to expect it, I would argue that we have become numb to it. This better-than-you, judgmental, moralistic, and toxic dialogue has many disguises.

There is the derogatory name-calling that seems to permanently follow the likes of the uber-famous Kardashian clan or, on a domestic front, the Hocane sisters.

There is the stealth sexist and ageist takedown of powerful public figures like Hillary Clinton who had to succumb to wearing brighter colors and smiling more often while on the campaign trail after the media said she had a ‘likability’ problem.

Indeed, famous females world over are not immune to the trifecta of ageism, sexism, and lookism.

However, I would argue, that in a place like Pakistan where the class system is very much alive, and where there is no settled definition on religious or cultural norms, the social media takedown of female celebs is particularly sinister and sanctimonious.

Female celebrities in Pakistan are palatable so long as they don’t have the pluck to act or dress in a way that goes against society’s arbitrary age benchmark after which we expect these women to neatly tuck themselves into a matronly, fashion-free, sexless wormhole.

We saw this when the Twitter trolls rushed forth, torches ablazing, pitchforks at the ready, deeply offended that Ansari had dressed in an outfit that according to them was befitting only of a size zero someone born in the nineties.

This same group was gushed over veteran actress Reema’s comeback performance because her performance was predictable and, therefore, palatable to them.

Reema's comeback at this year's Lux Style Awards was uniformly hailed as graceful
Reema's comeback at this year's Lux Style Awards was uniformly hailed as graceful

Reema was not deeply offensive because she was acting ‘age-appropriate’ by wearing a fully-covered, straight-laced outfit and sticking to a performance routine of ‘elegant’ dance moves (in other words, sensuous dance moves, because sensuality is the reserve of women over forty, with the nubile Mawra Hocane there to bring the actual sex appeal).

Basically, female celebrities are palatable so long as they don’t have the pluck to act or dress in a way that goes against society’s arbitrary age benchmark after which we expect these women to neatly tuck themselves into a matronly, fashion-free, sexless wormhole.

Never mind that we can only hope to look as good as Bushra Ansari at 60.

Are we scared of growing old?

Truthfully, we are all guilty of fetishing the young and dismissing the famous after they have hit a certain age.

Just think back to the last time you saw a celebrity who you grew up watching (or perhaps who aged on-screen at the same time as you) and made a comment about how “she looked so good (or bad)...for her age”.

Bushra Ansari rocking a daring do for her brief appearance in Jawani Phir Nahi Ani
Bushra Ansari rocking a daring do for her brief appearance in Jawani Phir Nahi Ani

But, as both Ansari and Bayat are quick to tell me: style will always transcend age.

Although trends gear themselves for the younger crowd, style is different from being on-trend.

For Bayat style is about finding the confidence to dress for herself and to be comfortable and happy with the age she is at.

“We all have to age but if you are secure in your own skin you can truly enjoy your journey through life,” she points out. “Your appearance is a reflection of who and what you are - fashion can be dated, an individual should not be.”

Perhaps it is this generation’s great tragedy is that we will have spent our time on earth hell bent on feverishly celebrating the temporary gloss of youth. We will continue to be outraged at the Bushra Ansari’s sleeveless jumpsuit. But we will gleefully watch preteen and teenaged Lolitas batting their false lashes at an actor three times her age.

Why then do so many of us forget to celebrate the privilege of living a long life and the confidence, empowerment, and wisdom that comes with it?

Perhaps this fear of aging and the aged is actually a placeholder for our fear of becoming invisible and purposeless. After all, in today’s frenzied, fast-paced world of filtered images and self-driving cars, both people and objects are prone to becoming outdated well before their time is up.

Or perhaps, as Ansari believes, because we are dissatisfied with ourselves we are okay with subjecting the women we watch on our screens to cruel verbal attacks. Maybe it just makes us feel better about ourselves.

Or perhaps it is this generation’s great tragedy is that we will have spent our time on earth hell bent on feverishly celebrating the temporary gloss of youth. We will continue to be outraged at the Bushra Ansari’s of the world for having the audacity to wear a sleeveless jumpsuit. But we will gleefully watch preteen and teenaged Lolitas batting their false lashes at an actor three times her age.

Whatever our reason may be, the outcome is the same.

By demanding that mature, independent women make only sartorial and beauty choices that we, the public, are comfortable with means we are flagrantly stripping away the autonomy, maturity, and sexuality of these fully grown and exceptionally accomplished women.

And by forcing our warped ideals of what fashion or beauty should look like at any given age we are not only affecting how we view famous women but also how we view ourselves

Comments

Imran Ahmed Jun 05, 2017 11:53am
Bushra Ansari is a brilliant, versatile and mult-talented entertainer. Those people who try to knock her down lead sad lives, we should treat such people with pity.
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mazhar memon Jun 05, 2017 11:56am
I think most of the younger persons have not seen enough of life yet and have not matured enough to understand and appreciate what all this means. if some of the lucky ones survive long enough this frenzy of market forces and come out of this magical trance, they may start appreciating this. One hard fact is that they will face similar situation and demise much sooner then Bushra Ansari and great artist of her age and time do.
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Ahmad Jun 05, 2017 12:27pm
No one has the right to comment on other person'should clothes. Period.
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imdadali Jun 05, 2017 12:30pm
changing in life style is need of glamour world in which bushra ji is working, she is our ideal and we like it in any style and we have no objection over it because she is dear us. She is legend and we should respect our legends instead of criticism. change in dress is demand as per short. Bushra ji is religious mind lady no doubt.
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TAriq Jun 05, 2017 12:46pm
Dress is by all mean a way to present yourself without saying a word. Bushra Ansari and many people like her must be sensible about dress presentation as no can be sofia loren, Elizabeth taylor or Noor Jehan.
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waqar Jun 05, 2017 01:23pm
Agreed that no one has the right to dictate another person's dressing. However, the other person shud also dress and behave in public after keeping in view the society, culture and religion of that place. For example, in certain African tribes, females are topless in daily lives. If you do that in any country, including the West, and you will be jailed !
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Rama Krishna Jun 05, 2017 01:49pm
She is actually looking good in those clothes....i have no idea why people were rude to her
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Tina Jun 05, 2017 03:03pm
How could someone judge others on the way they dress? It is not just outdated but extremely narrow minded.
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Dasti Jun 05, 2017 06:28pm
Every individual deserve respect, specially artists need encourgement and support, because they are public figure and more prone to face irresponsible and desrespectful comments.
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SHN Jun 05, 2017 06:40pm
Uh I'm sorry but they both (Bushra and Hina) look absolutely ridiculous. To each their own, but they look ridiculous. And Reema's performance was an absolute joke and mockery of Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan.
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UNSHACKLEpAK Jun 05, 2017 06:51pm
Please leave Bushra alone.
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mohammad H Khan Jun 05, 2017 08:17pm
Failed to understand her comment...you will wear dupatta only during azaan and qirat. Well may be modesty only appears during azaan is beyond me
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INDEPENDENTTHINKER Jun 05, 2017 08:42pm
If Bushra Ansari was a star from Hollywood, she would have been compared to the likes of Lucy, Mary Tyler Moore, Carol Burnett, etc. She is a gifted and talented Pakistani star, who should be valued. Those who have anything negative to say about her - should go and look at their own lives and see how they can make it a bit happier!
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Safina Bakhtiar Jun 06, 2017 01:26am
Is Pakistan becoming a nation of fake outward complex...oh wait we already are we tear up senior actresses only what about the male actors, they can have fake hair and bellies but our male dominated society thinks that's success?
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INDEPENDENTTHINKER Jun 06, 2017 01:33am
@SHN Maybe you should consider going into show business - and see what a "Joke" you turn out to be!
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UNSHACKLEpAK Jun 06, 2017 01:46am
@mohammad H Khan It's a personal choice. It's not please others. That's the point. Your idea of modesty isn't another person's idea of modesty. In some countries showing even face or eyes is considered immodest. For them most of us are already beyond hope.
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Bea Jun 06, 2017 02:52am
Bushra Ansari looks stunnimg in the black jumpsuite do not take any notice of the haters they are just sad people with nothing better to do, if all pakistani actors looked like her at her age they should class themselves lucky she is a great actress not a fly ny night like the new lot you have none of those have any talent.
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Saira Jun 06, 2017 04:53am
I think it is a sign of strength and a pretty cool "I don't care" attitude coming from an actress like Bushra Ansari. What I don't like about her is her over exposure and lack of respect and sensitivity towards others, especially juniors. This was demonstratively evident when she was a jury member in "Pakistan got talent". Most of the time she was completely obnoxious towards the young participants.
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Ghalibjee Jun 06, 2017 06:00am
If we don't want people judging us then we should be mature enough not to judge others. If you don't like something you can always choose to look the other way.
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Anwarahmad Jun 06, 2017 06:36am
SHE IS A BORING PERFORMER.
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S R Jun 06, 2017 11:01am
@mohammad H Khan people can have different definition of everything in life including modesty. No need to understand just accept n live with it.
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