Firstly, I was impressed by the FCCS’ physical environment. Although the entrance felt fairly dilapidated and made me wonder where I had arrived, I then emerged into a beautiful garden full of fruit trees and backed by a characteristic old mansion and its surrounding outbuildings. It was a world away from the dusty brown streets of Kabul and simply sitting there in greenery was a treat. I was warmly welcomed by Mr. Timor Hakimyar (Executive Director, FCCS) and his staff. Full of energy, he was an engaging person to chat with.
The musicians
As we sat in the garden sipping green tea, a trio of musicians started playing some traditional music on the rubab, tabla and flute (Afghan name unknown). Apparently, the rubab player, Mr. Hussain (sitting in the middle of the below photo), is one of the most famous in Afghanistan. I am no expert, but it was truly beautiful music. After some time the theatre group, who had been sitting in the garden patiently, signaled it was time to start. They had set up a stage with floodlights, which gave it quite a professional feel. The lights showed up shocking clouds of dust swirling in the air – to think we breathe that in every day!
Thankfully, my colleague Mr. Asheq interpreted the actors’ words so we could understand what was happening. Although simple (for example there were no stage props) I found the acting was of a high quality. They were all clearly experienced. I was surprised and impressed that there was also an actress among the cast. The different scenes were all entertaining with their respective stories, and the way they were later interwoven to create powerful messages about corruption, greed, ambition, education, the underprivileged and violence was skilful. The key underlying message, of course, was the importance of democracy and transparency/accountability in elections. At times funny and at times serious, the play left a deep impression. After the play finished, we had a series of photos with the actors on stage, and were able to ask questions about the play, their roles and the logistics of organizing such mobile theatres. We heard some incredible stories about how actors had to hide in vehicles or use other innovative methods to travel through certain regions in order to perform. As ever in Afghanistan, security considerations are a fundamental part of the planning process.
Photo with the cast
It crossed my mind that working on such ‘immediate impact’ projects contrasts heavily with other types of peace and development initiatives (e.g. international conferences), whose effects are not seen for long periods of time. Having personally come to Kabul from working in an Embassy, where our work on bilateral relations rarely produced ‘fruits’ in the short-term, I thought about how worthwhile it is to also work on ‘on-the-ground’ projects such as this TAF/FCCS initiative.
We were then invited to have dinner, which was a veritable feast. They evidently had prepared for an army of people, and we tucked into giant chunks of stewed beef, roast chicken, Kabuli pulao, spinach, naan bread and succulent peaches. This was all accompanied by another performance by the same musicians who had patiently waited until the play was over to resume.
The entertainment had not yet finished, though. The actors, clearly wishing to stay in the limelight and with much energy in reserve, started dancing. Ranging from traditional Pashtun styles, which were dramatic (almost aggressive) and performed in a circle, to a hilarious Indian Bollywood-style performance by the ‘Commander’ in the play, this was perhaps the most entertaining part of the evening.
Energetic dancing
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