Interview/ Saad Mohseni, CEO of Moby Group
When the first Taliban regime fell in 2001, several Afghans, exiled by years of war and conflict, made a trip back home. Among them was Saad Mohseni, son of an Afghan diplomat. An ex-banker, he was living in Australia. “We talked for hours about the future of a country we had only just arrived in and that we all arrogantly imagined we would shape into anything we wanted,” he writes in Radio Free Afghanistan, a part memoir, which maps how Afghanistan’s media landscape transformed through the two decades following the fall of Taliban.
Mohseni’s role in this was crucial. His Moby Group introduced FM, soap operas, reality TV, and talk and game shows in the country. Interestingly, while the Afghans started getting a hang of the newer forms of entertainment, what struck a cord was an Indian soap opera―Kyunki Saas Bhi Kabhi Bahu Thi. Such was the success of the show that there were rumours as dramatic as the drama itself―weddings stopped playing music at 8.30pm so that the guests could watch the show, and a branch of the Kabul Bank was robbed as the guards glued to the show.
The Afghans soon grew a liking for Turkish shows. Mohseni’s TOLO launched Afghan Star, a singing reality show, and a soccer premier league, steering Moby Group to become Afghanistan’s largest media company.
With the Taliban back in power, there are many restrictions on media and entertainment. Music is banned, and so are women appearing on TV dramas. Female news presenters have to wear masks on air. Live broadcasts of political shows are also banned.
So how’s Afghanistan’s biggest media group coping? “People still watch soap operas, they still listen to music. Once it’s out, it’s hard to put the genie back in the bottle,” says Mohseni. “Afghans have been exposed to the new-age entertainment. We have OTT platforms, too. It is the 21st century; good luck trying to stop people from gaining access to entertainment.” Edited excerpts from an interview:
Q/ How is the current Taliban regime different from the previous one?
A/ Every day, we wake up to new edicts and decrees. However, these aren’t as strictly enforced as last time. Having said that, we don’t know what could happen in the future. They can enforce the rules much more strictly, and Afghanistan can be back to where it was in the mid-1990s. However, the Taliban isn’t monolithic. There are the pragmatics and the conservatives. The question is, ‘who will prevail?’
Q\ When it comes to the Taliban and Afghanistan, the international reportage is either black or white.
A\ That’s the problem. People no longer go there and see things for themselves. That’s why it is important for us to continue operations as we not only inform the Afghans, we are also gathering information and letting the world know what’s exactly transpiring in the country.
Q/ But how is the experience of operating a media business under Taliban rule?
A/ We don’t have as much freedom as we did earlier and cannot report as much as we did. Although we had red tape even during the previous governments, there were not as many as today. We get summons even daily.
But there’s a strange dance now that the two sides know each other and how to conduct business. So while they’ve become a bit accommodative, we have also become more understanding of their nature. We have learned to co-exist.
So it’s an uneasy dance, but we have to take one day at a time.
Q\ When you say you have become accommodative of the Taliban, doesn’t it go against the ideals of independent journalism your organisation is known for?
A\ We try to be as honest as possible. We have to abide by the laws of the nation but without agreeing with them. For example, they have banned girls’ education. But we continue to advocate for the same but in a way that doesn’t get us shut down. So what do we do? We amplify Taliban voices advocating for girls’ education.
Q\ You say your news department has seen a rise in women employees since the Taliban came to power. Has the scope of their work changed?
A/ Not really! While, yes, the Taliban officials don’t want to talk to women journalists, they are on the field, they file reports, they’re in front of the camera and behind it.
Q/ Even when the Taliban was not in power, your employees came under attack and have even been killed. How do you ensure their safety now?
A/ We empower our editors on the ground. We cannot impose anything on them because, at the end of the day, they are the ones who are dealing with it on a day-to-day basis. So it’s their judgment. They can talk to us, but the final decision is theirs as only they can assess the risk of reporting in a particular way.
We have to be very careful. Every day is a new day, and we are assessing on a constant basis. We have to remain vigilant.
Q/ Have the several bans on entertainment impacted Moby Group’s financial viability?
A/ Yes. The business isn’t as substantial as before. But Afghanistan is our home, and it’s important for us not to look at it as a business venture. Even the limited forms of media are important for us.
Q\ You say you are expanding on education programmes. How’s the reception?
A\ Education programmes are a lifeline for our girls. But they’re important for the boys, too, as an add-on to formal education. We have interesting programmes both on television and online and 10-12 million children watch them daily.
Q\ Have you toyed with the idea of ed-tech?
A\ Yes, we’re in talks with some Indian companies on how to improve these programmes in terms of how to teach and which are the best practices.
Q\ With respect to the ban on girls’ education and the increasing restrictions for women, do you see protests unfolding in Afghanistan, like in Iran?
A\ Iran is a lot more sophisticated than us, as they continue to allow girls education. Ours is much backward in terms of policies. Having said that, Afghanistan has changed from 25 years ago.
Q\ You say yours is a deeply traumatised nation, and while people talk about Afghan resilience, the Afghans are sick and tired of being resilient. Are you also sick of the question of whether there is hope for Afghanistan?
A\ No, it’s a question I ask myself every day. The people are tough. It would take a lot more than a few years of Taliban rule to destroy the country. So although I said that we’re sick and tired of being resilient, the resilience of the Afghan nation would eventually prevail. And I am not hopeless. I am hopeful that things will improve in the long run.