UK theatre faces protests encore

After the storm of protests by British Sikhs over a play, many would have expected the Birmingham Repertory Theatre to steer clear of Asian ...

After the storm of protests by British Sikhs over a play, many would have expected the Birmingham Repertory Theatre to steer clear of Asian drama for a while. But now, it seems to be at the brink of a new row after announcing the staging of a work on mujras.

The play called Bells is written by a British Pakistani Yasmin Whittaker Khan. Dubbed ‘‘provocative’’ by the author herself, the play aims at a dramatic expose of the seedy underworld of mujras.

According to Whittaker Khan, are now finding a foothold in Britain. She claimed that she herself had visited four such mujras in the UK and was determined to reveal how Muslim girls find themselves trapped in this world.

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However, a spokesman for the Islamic Society of Britain has denied their existence saying: ‘‘Brothels are nothing to do with Islam. If it does happen then it’s a cultural thing. If it (this play) stereotypes Muslims, then it will cause offence.’’

And the chairman of the Birmingham Central Mosque has gone one step further and asked for the play to be banned, despite not having seen the work as yet. Dr Mohammad Naseem stated: ‘‘It a tiny proportion of Muslims who visit brothels, then having a play about it tars all Muslims with the same brush. It will be perceived as an attack on Muslims and this will be offensive. I would like to see it cancelled.’’