If you live in Afghanistan, you can be a fan of Peaky Blinders, but you certainly can't dress like them!
Asghar Husinai, Jalil Yaqoobi, Ashore Akbari and Daud Rasa, all from western Herat province, learnt it the hard way, when they dressed up like the Shelby family in the show, and were consequently detained by the Taliban.
The young men explained that they wore the outfits to celebrate the show's fashion. While the Taliban wasn't impressed, the locals gave them the thumbs up.
'At first, we had our doubts, but as soon as we ventured outside, we found that people admired our style, approached us on the streets, and requested to take photos with us,' Yaqoobi says in a YouTube video. 'Despite a few negative remarks, our attention remained on the gratitude expressed towards us.'
The BBC reports that the Taliban told the men, who are in their 20s, that their clothing was 'in conflict with Afghan and Islamic values', and that the values in Peaky Blinders went against Afghan culture.
One of their close friends described their detention and the ban on their outfits as 'absurd'.
'People are living in fear; they can't walk, speak, or live freely,' The Times newspaper reported the friend as saying.
'Our friends wore these outfits purely for fun and entertainment, with no political motives or intention to hurt anyone. We can't even express our emotions or celebrate our favourite global artists.
'They were detained simply for admiring the British series and wanted to share that admiration, but it turned into trouble. Now, they are living in fear.'
Photographs curated by Satish Bodas/Rediff
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