Karachi: Pakistani actress and model Mahenur Haidar, who is famous for her role as Apana in the popular drama series Hai, has revealed why she stopped wearing the burqa.
In a candid interviewon the Ahmed Ali Booth podcast, actor and host Mahenur said that while his family prayed fervently and regularly, there was no tradition of wearing a burqa or covering their head with a dupatta or scarf.
However, she started wearing the burqa in 2009 when she was in ninth grade.
The actress recounted her first experience of wearing a burqa in front of her father while waiting for his pride. Instead, he laughed and said, “What is hypocrisy?” asked. Thinking about it, Mahnoor now understands his father’s reaction. He wants them to focus on internal development before making external changes.
Later, Mahenur said that her friends were teasing her to wear a burqa, and her mother was not supportive. “Mahnur, you seem strange to us. When we go out, you don’t seem to be a part of our family,” her mother used to say.
This reaction made her stop wearing the burqa. Mahnoor now feels liberated and wears a burqa whenever she wants, without covering her head with a dupatta, to avoid public criticism for the contradiction in her appearance.
