If you know and remember the widely known piercing green eyes of the 'Afghan Girl', then you probably know where this article is heading but if you don't then, here's the story.
Steve McCurry- an American photographer is recognized globally for his outstanding work in photography. He captures the quintessence of human struggle and celebration. One such instance of the same is the captivating picture he took of Sharbat Gula.
How the Afghan Girl Became Famous -
During the initial years of the Soviet war in neighbouring Afghanistan, National Geographic employed Steve McCurry as a photojournalist in 1984 and he was based in Pakistan. He was commissioned to take photos of refugee camps by the border of Afghanistan and Pakistan.
McCurry made rounds in about 30 camps, the situation was as common as the refugee camps set up in the rest of the world. Among the sea of tents, there was a tent which was an all-girls Islamic school that Steve walked past and decided to step into.
It was a typical class of 15 girls where he noticed Sharbat Gula, a shy 10-12-year-old student with intense green eyes. As she was over the age of 8, being a Pashtun she had to wear a scarf around her head. Therefore, she was wearing a tattered maroon scarf that covered her face and Steve was stunned by her eyes.
The renowned photojournalist then took pictures of her but she instantly hid her face with her hands. Merely taking photographs of her eyes would not be enough he had his translator instruct Sharbat's teacher that she take off her scarf from her face. Sharbat does as told, she reveals her face.
The young girl was posed as her eyes gaze deeply into the camera and McCurry captures about five frames in a fleeting moment, leaving without even learning her name- let alone knowing her story.
This picture went on to become one of the most recognizable portraits on the planet, it was popular as it landed on the magazine cover of the National Geographic's June 1985 issue.
The Truth Untold - 17 Years Later
Although Sharbat's photograph was captioned, "Haunted eyes tell of an Afghan refugee’s fears”, the magazine did not tell her story. For 17 years since its first print, no one knew her name- not even Steve McCurry. Her haunting eyes did not entirely fear the war but were most likely filled with anger.
As a Pashtun, the young girl would not have had spoken to another man who is not her family without the consent of her parents or guardians- let alone have her picture taken by a stranger. So there is a possibility that the anger in her eyes was mistaken for fear. The anger that stemmed from him invading her personal space.
17 years later, a team from National Geographic Television & Film’s EXPLORER brought McCurry to Pakistan to look for the girl with sea-green eyes in January 2002, this was difficult as they did not know anything about her- not her name, where she lived, her family- nothing. All they had was a picture of her from when she was about ten or twelve years old.
There was a very less chance that they would find the girl in the picture. They showed her photograph around Nasir Bagh to hundreds of people, the then still standing refugee camp on the outskirts of Peshawar where the photograph was taken.
A lot of women came forward claiming they were the girl in the picture while some others said they knew her name. Their pictures were taken and after examining them, the team concluded none of those women was her.
Finally, one day a man became aware of the search, he said he had lived in the camps together as children. When Sharbat arrived, they immediately knew it was her, although her skin had softened, her ferocious eyes remained the same.
After digital iris recognition and examining the scar on her face, it was concluded that the girl in the picture was her- Sharbat Gula. That is how they learnt the name of the woman in the iconic portrait. She too, eventually learnt how popular she was.
However, she didn't receive anything in return for her picture until 2002. By this time, she was married and was by her husband's side at the revisited photoshoot. Sharbat was married at the age of 13, or 14, or even 16. It's hard to say how old she is, even she doesn't know her age.
She was wearing a shawl and doesn't reveal her face to anyone but her husband nor does she smile at any other man. McCurry said she didn't smile at him either, her expression was flat when he took her photographs. When Sharbat discovered that her picture was renowned in the media and by many people- she was upset, perhaps, even angry.
She had never had her picture taken as a child. Steve's was the first. Therefore, the picture made her angry. She did not understand the power her eyes held and why were people so captivated by the photograph.
She eventually came around when she heard that the program along with many people raised over 1 million dollars to help build schools for young girls in Afghanistan. This was Sharbat's dream too- that her children receive an education.
But because of her, numerous people around the world could know of the plight of the Afghan refugees as she became a symbol of turmoil and unrest of war and now many children in Afghanistan would receive education too.
Sharbat's Hard Fate -
Sharbat's family left Afghanistan because of the fighting and the killing during the Soviet War. Her mother died of appendicitis when she was young. They lead a difficult and painful life, one that was full of tragedy and hardships.
But this never stopped. Her husband and daughter died and were buried in Peshawar. In 2016, she was arrested by the Pakistani Authorities for obtaining illegal Pakistani ID (Identity Card) in 1988 and a computerized ID in 2014.
She held it with her Afghan passport, which she used in 2014 to fly to Saudi Arabia for the Hajj. She would face up to 14 years in prison and a fine of 3,000 dollars to 5,000 dollars if she was convicted, according to the Dawn news agency.
Sharbat spent 15 days in prison and would have also been deported to Afghanistan but it was stopped. She was released in 15 days and she then moved to Afghanistan. Ashraf Ghani, the President of Afghanistan assured her children would have healthcare and schooling who also gave her the keys to her new apartment.
Sharbat revealed that the attention she had gotten since being identified as the subject of National Geographic's cover could be a threat to her from the conservative Afghans who don't believe that women should appear in the media.
Written by - Ivanova
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