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Layan Damanhouri
Saudi Gazette
Is it a fashion accessory? Is it a religious symbol? Is it a political statement? Is it a traditional practice or a feminist practice in our globalized world?
Over a period of eight years starting before the Arab spring, ‘The Tainted Veil’ a documentary film explores questions both Muslims and non-Muslims usually regarding hijab through a series of interviews with different individuals during a time when all eyes were and remain on Islam.
Produced by Anasy Productions, in collaboration with directors Ovidio Salazar, Nahla Al Fahd, and Mazen Al Khayrat, the film premiered last summer at the Carmel International Film Festival.
It went on to win an award at the Jakarta International Film Festival and had a theatrical release in Los Angeles and New York as part of the requirement for gaining entry into the Academy Awards. “Unfortunately, it didn’t make the final shortlist but it received positive reviews in the national newspapers including the New York Times,” Salazar told Saudi Gazette.
Its most recent screening was at the Jaipur International Film Festival in India earlier this month, where filmmakers were invited to promote as well as exchange knowledge and ideas between India and other countries in context of their social and cultural ethos.
‘The Tainted Veil’ seems to offer a window to non-Muslims clearing doubts regarding the hijab.
The film takes on an objective approach, starting off with the journey of a young Syrian woman who decides to wear the hijab and has unanswered questions of her own.
Her answers are being explored through various interviews with different people from around the world, including influential public figures in the Muslim World.
“The topic has only become more of an issue in recent times,” Salazar said. “We tried to show there is a much more nuanced argument behind either choosing to wear it or not.”
It is apparent that different factors affect a woman’s decision to put on the headscarf, such as their beauty, social pressure, and the veil as a form of protection.
The stance on the subject is also contrasted between reverts and those who were born Muslim. The recurring debate about hijab as a representation of modernity and tradition is a theme highlighted, where a British Muslim claims that previous generations in Europe naturally covered their hair in public. A French feminist affirms the secular notion in that the modern woman is liberated from any constraints and that all religions should be contained in the private sphere.
“There is really no compulsion in religion and it should be up to a woman to decide what is best in the circumstance,” Salazar adds. These circumstances as shown in several European women, who each believe the veil sets them apart from their society in different European countries but still insist on wearing it.
The film demonstrates that interpretations in the Arab World are not homogenous on the subject amid secular, religious and non-practicing Muslims. Non-Arabs living in the Middle East and in the West openly voice their opinions, including Europeans, Turkish, Berbers, and Kurdish Syrians.
Sheikha Alyazia Bint Nahyan Al Nahyan, producer of The Tainted Veil, said: “Everyone has different answers and what we are trying to say is, that the answer of having no choice, is an answer which is not acceptable.”
When asked about the aim of the film, she said, “We wanted people to know more about the topic and its place in different cultures in past and present. We want to let people know more about each other, other cultures, reasons behind their choices to wear or not to wear and be more acceptable towards each other.”
As Islamophobia gradually seeps into different communities, Salazar added that it is more important than ever to try and bridge the gap by understanding.
