New Delhi: Qandeel Baloch, who was today shot dead in Multan by her brother, possibly in the name of family’s honour, revealed her rebellious self in supposedly the last interview of her life.
In a candid interview with the Dawn earlier this week, after a man claimed himself to be her husband, this late social media sensation revealed her side of the story – her marriage, how she took to social media and why she made that music video.
According to the man, named Ashiq Hussain, he married Qandeel in 2008 and has a son, who now lives with him.
When asked about Ashiq’s claims, she said, “I didn’t run away from home. I’ve been dealing with the problem all day, telling everyone, attending their calls, telling the media. Media is not supporting me. They’re saying that I want to marry Imran Khan but I’m already married. This is wrong. What about my self-worth? My identity? I am a social media sensation, I am a fashion icon. I don’t know HOW many girls have felt support through my persona. I’m a girl power. So many girls tell me I’m a girl power, and yes, I am.”
Disclosing about her marriage, Qandeel said, “I was 17 years old when my parents forced an uneducated man on me. The abuse I have been through. It happens in places like this, in small villages, in Baloch families. This happened to me too. I said, ‘No, I don’t want to spend my life this way’. I was not made for this. It was my wish since I was a child to become something, to be able to stand on my own two feet, to do something for myself.”
“What do you think will happen in a forced marriage? With an uneducated man, an animal. What would I say, that I am already married? Why would I say it?” she added.
She even mentioned during the interview, “My family never supported me. I would say I don’t want to live with him, but they didn’t support me.”
The actress spoke about her son, whom she had to give away to her husband and was then not allowed to meet her.
But, she had a ray of hope, “I thought when my child is older, he’ll understand, he’ll see the environment there and feel that his mother was right, that she did what was right.”
A rebel by heart, Qandeel said, “I’ve fought with everyone . And now I have become so headstrong that I only do what I want. I started working in showbiz, I faced so many difficulties, you know what happens with girls here. You know what kinds of offers they make girls here. You know how they try to misuse girls who are new to the industry.”
“You could say that this is my revenge [from this country]. I don’t do these things happily. Nothing is good in this society. This mardon ki society (patriarchal society) is bad. You probably know this already, think about the problems you face yourself,” she added.
Further speaking about her recently released ‘Ban’ music video with Aryan Khan, which made her face before huge controversy, she said, “I was trying to start a new trend in Pakistan, main ne socha acha trend start karoon.People are criticizing me, saying I’m copying Nicki Minaj and Mia Khalifa. They enjoy their videos, why not Qandeel Baloch? My work is entertainment, and I look at what entertains people. Whether it’s a selfie video or a music video.”
“I was a little scared when they were releasing it. I said don’t do it right now. I had some problems with some shots. They didn’t remove those shots, they said it wouldn’t be problematic at all. You’ve seen the reaction, these things are just making me stronger,” she added.
Being a woman who fought her whole life against the set norms of the society, in her final interview, mentioned, “Today the media isn’t giving me any credit for speaking about empowerment of women, girl power. They don’t recognize that this girl fought. Today I am capable of taking on the burden of an entire household. But no one gives me credit for that.”
