New comic superhero Pakistan Girl battles corruption and domestic abuse
Creator Hassan Siddiqui hopes to empower females in his country to take a stand to fight injustice in a society that heavily favours males
Pakistan Girl's creator Hassan Siddiqui hopes to create a powerful role model for both girls and boys.Pakistan’s newest female superhero has will battle greedy officials and protect battered women, as her creator tries to inspire the next generation to fight injustice in a society that heavily favours males.
The new Pakistan Girl comic series is based on Sarah, a normal teenager with a pet cat who discovers she has superhuman powers after waking from a coma caused by a blast in her village.
Costumed in a green cape, Pakistan’s national colour, the protagonist whips a man beating a woman in a market and saves a young girl taken hostage by a bribe-seeking police officer in the series’ first comic book released this summer.
The creator of the English-language comic says he hopes the superhero will give young girls across Pakistan a role model and give them the courage to fight corruption and violence in a country where crime is common in major cities.
“There’s a huge shortage of female role models and superheroes in the mainstream media here, and we wanted to create a strong female character for the girls in Pakistan and even the young boys in Pakistan that they can look up to,” author Hassan Siddiqui.
Women in conservative Pakistan have fought for their rights for decades, in a country where so-called “honour killings” (where women are killed for perceived immoral behaviour) and other violence against women remains the norm.
Netizens on social media have welcomed the comic, writing largely positive reviews online and calling for more superhero stories in the future.
“Its a very brilliant step by you guys... I’m a big fan of Marvel and DC comics and looking forward for this too,” wrote fan Syed Hassan Nasir on Facebook.
The author said he now plans to work on an Urdu version of the comic with the aim of reaching millions of readers across the country. He is also considering a possible animation adaption.
But reaching the masses won’t be easy.
Pakistan’s education system has been severely underfunded for decades, with more than half of the country’s eight-year-olds unable to read.
According to a 2016 government study, a staggering 24 million Pakistani children are out of school, with a larger share of girls staying home than boys - 12.8 million compared to 11.2 million.
But new fan and school principal Saadia Adnan hopes the comic will provide a new way to help educate children, while also steering them clear of gender stereotypes.
“I think we should be teaching them through this kind of literature because that’s actually the tender age when they are building their own images of their future life,” said Adnan after browsing through a bookstore copy.
Siddiqui’s latest creation follows the success of his earlier comic series Pakistan Man - a moustachioed hero who battles one nemesis named The Corrupter and another villain responsible for banning Youtube.
Pakistan Girl also follows in the footsteps of the country’s hit 2013 comic The Burka Avenger, which detailed the adventures of a mild-mannered teacher who fights gangsters trying to close down the girls’ school where she works.
Edited by Jamie Lam