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Mawra Hocane calls drama Qissa Meherbano Ka an attempt to start a conversation on marital rape

Mawra Hocane calls drama Qissa Meherbano Ka an attempt to start a conversation on marital rape

The actor said the role was "heartbreaking" to perform but the response and acceptance have put her heart at ease.
24 Feb, 2022

Qissa Meherbano Ka kickstarted a conversation about marital rape but its depiction of the heinous act made it seem like the drama was condoning rather than condemning it. The stars of the show Mawra Hocane and Ahsan Khan spoke about the confusion and now that there's one episode to go, Hocane addressed the matter once again. She called the show an attempt at starting a conversation on marital rape and a baby step towards a solution.

Mohabbat aur Nikah k naam pe kiya janay wala Zulm bhi Zulm He hota hai… [Oppression in the name of love and marriage is also oppression]. While marital rape is a shameful and derogatory crime violating women since time immemorial, it is still widely disregarded as a criminalised offence and more commonly labelled as disobedience on a woman’s part. Absurd," Hocane captioned a post on Instagram.

The actor talked about how prevalent marital rape is under the guise of 'love'. "It’s 2022 and men like Murad freely exist in all spheres of life who not only rape their wives but to make it worse also fail to acknowledge it and mock it. In the garb of love & duty, countless women are raped all across the world."

She explained that the drama was trying to address the issue and raise awareness about it. "Qissa Meherbano Ka was our humble attempt to start a conversation around this heinous act. It was heartbreaking to perform but my heart is full at the response and acceptance we have received," she wrote.

"As the last episode airs on [this] coming Saturday we hope to have taken a baby step towards a solution that may take us many many more such initiatives."

After public backlash when a marital rape scene first aired in the drama, Hocane spoke about her character's justification for the rape and said those were the sarcastic words of a traumatised woman. "It takes a lifetime for women to see the light at the end of the tunnel," she said, calling the drama their "humble attempt to give a resolution while being practical and not take the dramatic licence and turn the woman into a hero overnight."

She also addressed why her character is still in the abusive relationship and said, “change doesn’t come overnight”. "We have to show a practical resolution, most women live with this reality for their entire lives, we shall InshaAllah attempt to give a solution for that.”

For Khan, Qissa Meherbano Ka does not intend to glorify marital rape through Murad's (Khan) actions towards Meherbano (Hocane), however, it does intend to talk about a social issue that not many recognise as a legitimate cause for concern.

"I know marital rape is a very tricky thing to discuss because most people do not understand it," Khan previously told Images. "However, if you get into the details [of the issue], you'll see it is an unfortunate experience that many people go through and they can't say a word against it most of the time."

He went on to define what a marriage should be. "We have to understand that marriage is a union of love, respect and regard between two people and if that doesn't exist between two people then this is a serious problem in the relationship."

Comments

Reha Feb 24, 2022 05:32pm
That is all absurd. Shame on producer and f-actors
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Tanvir Khan Feb 24, 2022 06:20pm
It would be trivial to believe that the widespread rapes of women by their husbands in Pakistan are only physical!! Even more merciless and heartbreaking is the lifelong emotional rape of a married woman committed not only by the husband but by society as a whole.....and with the utmost enjoyment!!!
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Truth be told Feb 24, 2022 06:46pm
Ladies like her while imitating Western values will misguide people away from religion whether they understand the intricate details or not.
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Enlightened One Feb 24, 2022 07:38pm
Young males in society are kept in line by their parents by instructing them that if they study hard, complete their studies, get a job, then they will be rewarded with a wife who will love them, respect them, and offer them unlimited on demand physical love and affection. So, the young males obey and follow the rules. Once they come to the finish line, the females change the rules of engagement by controlling if and when they will offer love and respect and physical affection, causing males to be bewildered, resentful, and angry. So the anger and confusion and the desire to dominate is the unfortunate outcome. Either redefine the rules of life from the very beginning and obtain compliance or else this will persist.
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Haroon Temueri Feb 24, 2022 07:44pm
There is no such thing as marital rape because when you have entered into Nikah you have consented cohabitation without any restrictions stop westernizing as long you follow the Holy Book these kind of problem disappear
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Concerned Citizen Feb 25, 2022 01:39am
Can we show something else in our dramas?
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