Izat, Dupatta and Security in Humsafar

The drama Humsafar portrays an interesting picture of the concept ‘izat’ and ‘khuddari’. It is interesting to note that this concept is at its strongest in the lower middle class of the society. Khirad which is the main character of the drama values her ‘izat’ a lot. This portrayal of ‘izat’ could be seen especially through Khirads’s ‘duppata’. When she is a part of the lower middle class her dupatta has always been an essential part of her ‘izat’, however, when she marries Asher and ascends her class her dupatta is absent from her head. This is astonishing to see that this idea of ‘izat’ is only an integral part of the lower middle class not the upper or the elite class. This could also be justified by the fact that since she was married and has Asher protecting her, she had the security that she needed. The ‘dupatta’ played a major role during the drama that was created within the drama, as her virtuousness and ‘izat’ was questioned. Khirad was seen in white dupatta draped around her which showed her purity. She begged Asher and Freeda to believe in her but she was called ‘do takkay ki aurat’, ‘pairon ki dhool’ and etc. again questioning her incorruptibility.

The duppata again came to the forefront when Khirad descended back to her original class. It provided her a sense of security and also sanctioned her ‘izat’. Khirad was the sole representative of virtue and izat. Her self respect was hurt when Fareeda polluted her image and Asher being a passive personality also disbelieved her. The most important aspect of her being was her izat and she could not let go of the fact that even her husband did not look into her eyes and believed her. She kept on shouting, “Asher meri taraf dekhain, mera bahrosa karain, mene apki amanat ma koi khayanat nai ki!” Hence, it can be concluded that the concept of izat and presence of dupatta belongs to the lower middles class and white has been extensively shown as a symbol of purity.