Kinnaird College drops session with Khalilur Rehman Qamar after students’ backlash

Author: News Desk

The famed Kinnaird College for Women called off an interactive session with writer and director Khalilur Rehman Qamar – someone who claims to be “the biggest feminist of Pakistan” – reportedly after a severe backlash from its students, reports on social media indicated.

The backlash came from the all-girls college’s current students as well as its alumni over the playwright’s controversial opinions on women which kicked up a storm on social media a few days ago.

The college’s Centre for Learning & Cultural Development had scheduled the event for Wednesday at 11am but dropped it after the criticism. Apart from Qamar, director Agha Jarar was also among the guests invited for the talk.

Further, a local media outlet quoted an unnamed faculty member as saying the university “has been working on women empowerment for a 100 years, we can’t let someone with such views conduct sessions”.

Many social media users commended Kinnaird College, saying the move was “behtareen [most excellent]” and “nicely done”. “Keep calling him out until he realises it and apologises for his misogyny, and until it starts showing that he has changed,” another said.

Mere Paas Tum Ho, penned by Qamar, features Ayeza Khan, Humayun Saeed and Adnan Siddiqui in the lead roles. The plot focuses on a wife who leaves her husband for an affluent businessman. Some observers criticised Qamar’s offensive remarks towards women in various TV interviews. A dialogue from the drama serial also became controversial as some were of the view that it was offensive towards women.

In fact, a woman had moved Lahore’s civil court a day earlier, filing a plea to halt Mere Paas Tum Ho’s last episode – set to be aired in cinemas on January 25, 2020 – stating that it portrayed women in a negative light in the society.

Earlier today, Rehmat Ajmal – a young emerging actor known popularly for her role in Qamar’s Mere Paas Tum Ho drama series – had shared her thoughts on being part of the contentious serial penned by Qamar.

“I absolutely do not endorse the concepts and viewpoints of Rehman. I watched his interview and got to know about his problematic views on many things WAY after the project was completed,” she had said.

Qamar was criticised last year as well for comments he made during an interview when the playwright said he did not understand what equality women demanded, challenging them to “abduct a man and gang-rape him so I know what equality is”.

Share
Leave a Comment

Recent Posts

  • Business

PSX registers second highest single-day gain

The 100-Index of the Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) witnessed bullish trend on Monday, gaining 4,411.27…

3 hours ago
  • Business

SCCI president highlights CPEC as a game-changer for Pakistan

President Sarhad Chamber of Commerce and Industry (SCCI), Fazal Moqeem Khan has termed the China-Pakistan…

3 hours ago
  • Business

Rupee sheds 15 paisa against dollar

The Pakistani rupee on Monday depreciated by 15 paisa against the US dollar in the…

3 hours ago
  • Business

Gold prices remain unchanged at Rs273,400 per tola

The price of 24 karat per tola gold remained unchanged at Rs 273,400 on Monday,…

3 hours ago
  • Business

SECP reasserts compliance by listed firms to publish gender pay gap data

The Securities and Exchange Commission of Pakistan (SECP) has announced that despite extensive advocacy and…

3 hours ago
  • Business

Commerce minister, Kenya’s envoy explore new horizons in trade ties

Federal Minister for Commerce, Jam Kamal Khan, and the Kenyan High Commissioner met Monday to…

3 hours ago