Pakistan : Gender-based discrimination has long plagued Pakistan’s entertainment industry, particularly in terms of age. Women are not allowed to age at the same rate as men.
While a woman’s opportunities significantly decrease as she gets older, a male actor seamlessly transitions from one leading role to another. Therefore, it is not surprising that anti-aging products are bringing in so much revenue for the cosmetics industry.
In the popular sitcom Bulbulay, Hina Dilpazeer plays Nabeel Zafar’s mother despite being younger than him. This is a glaring example of this disparity.
Zafar acknowledged this imbalance on a recent podcast with FHM, praising Dilpazeer for gracefully taking on the role despite their real-life age dynamic. Even though he spoke with respect, the question remains: Would it ever be expected of a male actor to play the father of a woman who is older than him? Most likely not.
While female actors are forced into supporting roles as mothers, aunts, or grandmothers as soon as they reach the age of 40, or sometimes even earlier, male actors continue to enjoy romantic and heroic roles well into their 40s and 50s.
According to Wikipedia, which, as we all know, is not at all a trustworthy source but provides a reasonable estimate of actors’ ages, Zafar, who was 41 when Bulbulay first aired in 2009, was played as a young adult opposite Ayesha Omar’s Khoobsurat, who was 28 years old, and Dilpazeer, who was 40, played his mother without raising any eyebrows. A senior female actor would never be expected to do the same.
This gender disparity is not limited to sitcoms; it is present in every aspect of Pakistan’s entertainment industry.
Actors like Fahad Mustafa, 41, are still cast in lead roles in romantic serials like Kabhi Main Kabhi Tum alongside far younger female actors like Hania Aamir, 27. Men age like fine wine, while women become invisible. The pairing is celebrated and accepted by the audience. However, casting directors and producers frequently use the phrase “women age faster than men” when confronted with these double standards, making the opposite impossible.
