There’s been a lot of negative vibes going around recently. While it may just be the universe doing its own thing by screwing everyone over, that’s not always the apparent case. Whether you’re the kind of person who dismisses black magic as mere fiction, or someone who vehemently believes in it, it’s something that’s been there for ages, and now it’s gaining more popularity due to certain TV shows. Belief in magic, superstitions, jinns and the like are a part of sub-continental culture, and even religion, which is probably why a TV show like Nazr-e-Bad has the potential to influence the masses. Despite having a 58% literacy rate , we’re still steeped in superstition and it’s easy for us to get influenced by things like ‘Kala Jadu‘ as something we can blame our problems on, or as an excuse to do stupid shit. Most Pakistani shows are usually about Monster-in-Laws, shohar ka affair/doosri shadi, unrequited love and starcossed lovers, so when someone decides to do something outside the box, it gains major traction and people lap it up like sweet honey, which is more or less what happened with Nazr-e-Bad.
The internet is filled with ‘kalay totkay’ and ‘kala jadu karain, shohar ko wapis lain‘ sites, and I can totally see their traffic going up due to the recent discussion surrounding this particular topic. I suppose I can understand why people would want to look into the subject; some want a quick fix to their problems like getting someone to love you, making your abusive shohar come back, improving financial circumstances and such, while others just need something or someone to blame for everything that goes wrong in their lives, since it helps them deal with whatever problems they may have. The recent rise in online witchcraft solutions and their advertisement also shows how f*cked up the PTA’s priorities are. They’ll go as far as banning all of YouTube in the name of blasphemy, and yet they won’t censor Pakistan based websites soliciting black magic services, which too is against Islam since it’s considered ‘Haraam.‘ Ironic isn’t it? All of this goes to show that the PTA and even mass media is embroiled in petty shit that has absolutely nothing to do with society’s well being.
TV channels are exploiting the masses by spreading hysteria, and the blasphemy law is manipulatively used to target certain individuals for personal grudges. The cyber crime bill is used to asphyxiate freedom of expression and open discussion, while rampant harassment on social media goes largely unnoticed, same goes for all these kala jadu sites and pages. These websites and blogs are openly advertising themselves, spreading phone numbers and addresses with no repercussions whatsoever. From what I’ve heard, black magic in Pakistan usually revolves around blood, animal sacrifice and human remains. Doesn’t sound very safe and ethical does it? Even if you don’t believe in it, there’s still something very eerie and messed up about using dead things for a ritual that probably won’t work. Regardless, the PTA has not taken any action against parties advertising such revolting practices, and I’m pretty sure the PRA (Pakistan Revenue Authority) won’t be taxing all the money that they make either.
Kluchit Staff
Ameera Mehmood
