When Sadaf Kanwal swirled onto the screen in Na Maloom Afraad with “Kaif-o-Suroor,” clad in glitzy attire and framed by sultry lighting, her performance became the focal point of Lollywood’s marketing machine. Yet behind the glittering façade of her dance lies a troubling paradox: the very media corporations that profit off such item numbers are the same ones perpetuating regressive narratives about women in dramas and serials. For me, this song is a microcosm of how Pakistani entertainment exploits patriarchal ideals while simultaneously profiting from their commodification.
Dramas vs. Movies
Turn on any prime-time Pakistani drama, and you’ll likely find women portrayed as the idealized mazloom figure—dutiful wives, sacrificial mothers, or chaste heroines waiting for male validation. These characters are lauded, idealized, and rewarded for their meekness. Contrast this with the high-octane allure of item songs in cinema, where women are transformed into larger-than-life symbols of desire, objectified for the male gaze.
The hypocrisy is staggering: on one hand, dramas preach morality, condemning women who step outside societal norms. On the other, films rely on the very antithesis of that morality to sell tickets. Sadaf Kanwal’s Kaif-o-Suroor embodies this dichotomy—a glittering performance crafted to attract eyeballs, yet one that exists within a system that shames women for embracing their autonomy.
The Commodification of the Feminine Ideal
Media corporations, driven by profit, are masters of compartmentalizing the feminine ideal. In dramas, women are cast as paragons of virtue, their value tied to their submission. In films, they’re transformed into objects of fantasy, a spectacle designed to titillate. This commodification serves a dual purpose: it reinforces patriarchal values in one medium while exploiting their subversion in another.
Kanwal’s dance in Kaif-o-Suroor is a perfect example. Her movements are bold, unapologetic, and magnetic, but they exist within a framework designed to commodify her as a product. The very industry that benefits from her charisma would balk at casting her in a lead role that challenges societal norms.
Weaponizing the Female Form
Item songs like Kaif-o-Suroor are often framed as empowering, but the empowerment they offer is superficial at best. The camera’s gaze isn’t hers to control; it’s the audience’s, filtered through the lens of male directors and producers. These corporations weaponize the female form, turning it into a tool to lure viewers while perpetuating the same patriarchal structures that restrict women’s roles both on and off-screen.
The irony is palpable: Sadaf Kanwal’s dance is celebrated for its allure, yet the actress herself becomes the target of moral policing. The backlash she faced after the song’s release—a barrage of slut-shaming and moral condemnation—reveals the societal double standard at play. The same audience that eagerly consumed her performance was quick to denounce her as a “bad role model,” ignoring the corporate machinery that engineered the spectacle.
The Price of Progress
The question then arises: can item songs like Kaif-o-Suroor ever be truly empowering in a media landscape so deeply entrenched in patriarchy? The answer is complicated. On one hand, they provide a platform for women to showcase their talent and reclaim their sexuality. On the other, they exist within a system that reduces them to commodities, profiting off their objectification while denying them agency.
A Call for Change
To break this cycle, the entertainment industry must confront its own hypocrisy. Media corporations need to rethink how they portray women—not just in item songs, but across all forms of storytelling. It’s time to move beyond the binary of the virtuous damsel and the seductive siren, creating space for complex, multifaceted female characters who defy societal expectations. Until then, Kaif-o-Suroor will remain a glittering paradox: a celebration of feminine power trapped within the confines of a system that refuses to fully embrace it.
Your blog perfectly encapsulates the duality of womanhood expected within society. I think you’ve accurately pointed out how media commodifies women while punishing their autonomy, and while reading this I was immediately reminded of Laura Mulvey’s Visual Pleasure and Narrative Cinema reading. She points out how women are presented as objects of desire rather than agents of their own narrative, much like the point you make about item songs being designed solely for male gaze. Moreover, your critique of item songs as superficial empowerment is spot on! Most of female empowerment pushed in media is simply repackaged traditional objectification, and you’re right to call it out! However, I think the portrayal of audience as complicit in moral policing might be…
Your blog incisively unpacks the glaring contradictions within Pakistan's entertainment industry, where women are alternately sanctified and commodified depending on the medium. The analysis of Kaif-o-Suroor as a microcosm of this duality is both compelling and thought-provoking.
I particularly appreciate your exploration of how media corporations exploit patriarchal ideals, not just to shape narratives but also to profit from them. The juxtaposition of virtuous, submissive women in dramas with the hyper-sexualized portrayals in cinema captures the industry's profound hypocrisy. Your critique extends beyond individual performances, holding the system accountable for perpetuating harmful stereotypes while capitalizing on their subversion.
Your nuanced take on "empowerment" in item songs is especially striking. While they might offer women a space to showcase talent, you rightly…
Great post! Building on your points, it’s worth noting how item songs like *Kaif-o-Suroor* also cater to global capitalist markets, turning women’s bodies into commodities for international audiences. This adds another layer to the lack of agency, as these performances are shaped not just by local patriarchal norms but also by global consumer demands.
It’s also helpful to contrast this with the rise of complex female characters in streaming platforms like Netflix’s Delhi Crime or Made in Heaven These shows challenge the “damsel vs. siren” trope and show that empowering narratives are possible when women are involved in shaping stories, both on-screen and off.
Lastly, the backlash actresses face often reflects class bias. Women in entertainment are judged more harshly…
Your discussion on the commodification of the feminine ideal is insightful, particularly in how the same media system profits from these portrayals while reinforcing patriarchal norms. The point about superficial empowerment in item songs is especially significant; the lack of agency in how women are framed by male directors and producers raises important questions about the nature of this so-called empowerment. Loved reading this!!