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An Innovative Superheroine: Burka Avenger a Conversation with Aaron Haroon*

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An Innovative Superheroine: Burka Avenger a Conversation with Aaron Haroon* INTERVIEW An innovative superheroine: Burka Avenger A convErsation with AAron Haroon* What was the beginning of with some friends and Burka Avenger? artists and I told them Aaron: I am a musician and my idea of a game called over the last 10 years I got Burka Avenger: this idea more and more involved of a female character in directing my own music protecting a girls’ school videos. That gave me the which the bad guys are chance to work together trying to destroy (Ill. 2). with some of the top She is throwing books directors and I step by and pencils at them – step learned how to put instead of using guns, a story together. When because I wanted to be you have a 4- or 3-minute anti-violence. So they song, each shot has to be drew some really cute thought about because little doodles. Then we you only have 3 minutes to got in touch with a game work with. Then I started programming team and thinking: “Let me try to © Black Unicorn, Pakistan they too didn’t think my do something on a larger Ill. 1: The school teacher Jiya (left) takes on an alter ego, burka-wearing idea was too crazy. So scale.” I wanted something superheroine Burka Avenger (right), to fight crime we moved forward, we which had some relevant developed, we started social topic and which was to work on this. relevant to Pakistan. And around that a very interesting story about a female time in 2010 I read about girls’ schools protagonist who would stand up and So it was a game first. What happened being shut down by extremist elements. be powerful and be strong. And little then? That made me angry, like most Pakista- by little the concept of the superheroine Aaron: I realized that a lot of games nis were angered by it. Pakistan has a Burka Avenger (Ill. 1) started to develop. offer an animated back-story that very low female literacy rate, in some advertises the game by telling a little villages and towns the literacy rate for Was it planned as animation from the story. So I wrote a little story, got in women is 0%. Many problems in Paki- very beginning? touch with my artist friend and he stan such as corruption and terrorism Aaron: From my music videos I was made a cute storyboard. I also got stem from illiteracy. One of the most used to live-action, so I actually thought in touch with some animators. I did important issues is education for girls. more in the direction of a movie. I sound effects, voice-overs and music started imagining a live-action movie in my own recording studio, and the So reading a newspaper article was and I started to think of actresses in result was a 3-minute animation. It just the beginning of Burka Avenger? Pakistan who could play a different turned out so amazing. I was blown Aaron: Yes. After reading about the female character. And then I realized away when I saw the final results. schools shutting down I imagined a that a movie would be maybe one year school teacher saying: “No, I am not of my life. And since I would be invest- How did you feel? going to let you bad men shut down this ing in the project it would probably be Aaron: It just was fantastic. And I school! These girls need education. So very straining on my financial situation. became so excited, I was like: “I can’t go away!” I started imagining this idea in So I decided to start small and I started believe it. I am sitting here in Islamabad my head and I thought that could make with an iPhone game app. I got together in Pakistan. Who would have thought 40 28/2015/E INTERVIEW dent, where she to wear it. But this is not the case in had been shot Pakistan. in the face by Another incident was when I read the taliban, we in the Western media how in France had done about the burka and the headscarves were 7 episodes in- banned in schools. Personally, I thought cluding episode that was unfair because it is not liberal, 1. We were all it is oppressive in another way. So there standing in the were all of these things in my mind and office because also the fact that the taliban are trying © Black Unicorn, Pakistan Ill. 2: to defeat the villains and protect the children, Burka Avenger uses we thought, to hijack this religion of peace. So what takht Kabaddi, an ancient mystic martial art. In the series, it involves “This is just an if they were confronted with a woman throwing books and pens in conjunction with acrobatic moves uncanny coin- in a burka, how would they react? They cidence!” And won’t say: “take off the burka so that people were we can see you.” It was very interesting that we could have developed such a saying “release it. This is your first epi- and it had many different layers for me. high-quality production of animation?” sode, release it now!” But I thought that People associate “burka” with some- And I started pacing around in the people would think we were cashing in body who is submissive and who has room very excitedly and my heart was on this tragedy that happened to that been oppressed and “avenger” with beating, saying: “Yes, we can do this or little girl. I didn’t really want to do that. somebody who is powerful. So when that.” Because I had thought that for So we finished all episodes and then you bring them together it turns the animation you have to go to Pixar or released the whole season. stereotype on its head and makes peo- Disney and that it is very difficult to Interestingly, another coincidence hap- ple think. In this case she, as a school do. I had no idea about the animation pened. Our launch date on Geo TV teacher, doesn’t wear a burka at her job. world. So I started putting a plan to- was delayed by the broadcaster by a She is choosing this outfit as a costume gether and I got in touch with the team few months and it happened that very to disguise her identity to be like a members I had been working with. And shortly after Malala’s UN speech our TV superheroine. So it is very interesting I said: “how about we plan more than series was released. The public interest bringing different things together. just a 3-minute animation? how about exploded. It became a worldwide story. a TV series?” And then we started talk- A lot of newspapers, Associated Press, When did you come up with the name? ing about a TV series. I rented a place, reuters picked it up. Burkaavenger.com Aaron: It was around the time just before bought the computers, got the team got 4 million hits within the first few I started working on it. Initially I thought members on board. They were excited days. of a more aggressive name like “Burka to work on this project and the differ- revenge”, that she is that burka woman ent drawings and works they came up Let’s talk about the creative elements. who is revenging what happened at the with were absolutely fabulous. So I was How did you come up with the char- girls’ school. Then I realized that revenge like: “If I am going to do this, I have to acter Burka Avenger? can have negative connotations. And do this well and I am going to put my Aaron: There are many things that then I came up with the name “Burka heart and soul into this to make sure led to that. A few things are based Avenger” – and I couldn’t stop smiling. it turns out really good.” on biographical experience. When I was younger I met a woman wearing How did you develop the design of the Is there a connection to Malala? a hijab or a burka and I told her: “I am character Burka Avenger? Aaron: Yes and no. The story in one of so sorry. Your father or your brother Aaron: The initial design for the game our episodes is very similar to Malala’s. forced you to wear this?” And her was more like a loose-fitting burka. But Actually we kept the project a secret answer was: “My father hates me wear- when we decided to do the TV show for quite a time and just worked on it. ing this. This is my identity, this is my the main artist I was working with did Many girls’ schools had been shut down choice, this is the symbol of my faith.” a few renderings and drawings and he so that was a very common occurrence. Well, a good time to realize that I was came up with the look of the more Episode 1 was about a little girl stand- wrong, that my mind-set was wrong. I tight-fitting burka. And when we saw ing up against the baddies. I wrote this realized that a lot of these women are her we were like “Wow, that is so cool!” first episode in 2011 when I started not suppressed. Yes, there are certain It set her apart, it gave her an original working on the game. In October 2012, parts of the world like in Saudi Arabia look, it made her cool and sneak and when we heard about the Malala inci- or Afghanistan where they are forced superheroish and it gave her the free- 28/2015/E 41 INTERVIEW dom to be up to all her moves (Ill.
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