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Afghan Star, hosted by John Legend
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Afghan Star, hosted by John Legend

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Hosted by John Legend this is the story of a TV show that changed a country. 


When the Taliban banned music in Afghanistan the country was plunged into silence. But there were people who fought back. Who smuggled cassette tapes and VCRs into the country. Who danced at secret house parties. And risked death just to watch their favorite Bollywood movies. And then those same people set up a radical new tv show. It was called AFGHAN STAR– an American Idol, but for Afghanistan. 


The show sparked a cultural revolution. People marched through the streets campaigning for their favorite contestants. In villages, they’d huddle around a single tv to watch. And the country changed: women took the spotlight and danced and sang on stage. But AFGHAN STAR was so successful the show became a lightning rod for a resurgent Taliban. The Taliban hated everything the show represented. The singing, the dancing, the women. And so they started a campaign against AFGHAN STAR. They threatened the contestants, they issued fatwas and eventually placed a bomb on a bus filled with the show's producers. 


This is the story of a tv show that transformed a country and group of young producers faced with an impossible choice …between protecting the show they built and staying alive.

9 Episodes
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Introducing: Afghan Star, hosted by John Legend

Introducing: Afghan Star, hosted by John Legend

2024-04-0103:39

In Afghanistan, a cultural revolution was televised through a musical talent show, and this is its story. To purchase original Afghan Star artwork visit www.awastudios.com/afghanstar — proceeds go to support The Noor Initiative, who are on a mission to ensure every Afghan girl has access to education and opportunity. Like what you hear? Follow us @kscope_nyc on Twitter and Instagram. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Lights, Camera, Action

Lights, Camera, Action

2024-05-1548:351

A young radio producer in Afghanistan is given an impossible task: to create a brand new, revolutionary talent show in just two months. Music at the end of this episode from Afghan musician Qais Maroof, contestant on The Voice of Afghanistan. To purchase original Afghan Star artwork visit www.awastudios.com/afghanstar — proceeds go to support The Noor Initiative, who are on a mission to ensure every Afghan girl has access to education and opportunity. Like what you hear? Follow us @kscope_nyc on Twitter and Instagram See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Angels Of Peace

Angels Of Peace

2024-05-2244:30

Daoud Sediqi grows up in an Afghanistan full of music and movies. Then the Taliban arrive and Daoud becomes a revolutionary on the frontline of the cultural war. To purchase original Afghan Star artwork visit www.awastudios.com/afghanstar — proceeds go to support The Noor Initiative, who are on a mission to ensure every Afghan girl has access to education and opportunity. Like what you hear? Follow us @kscope_nyc on Twitter and Instagram See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Bigger than an Election

Bigger than an Election

2024-05-2941:57

As the sole breadwinner for his family, Shakib Hamdard struggles to provide for his mom and sisters. But everything changes when the young taxi driver finds himself at the very first audition for Afghan Star.   To purchase original Afghan Star artwork visit www.awastudios.com/afghanstar — proceeds go to support The Noor Initiative, who are on a mission to ensure every Afghan girl has access to education and opportunity. Like what you hear? Follow us @kscope_nyc on Twitter and Instagram See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
The Dance

The Dance

2024-06-0531:081

Setara Hussainzada is one of the first women to make it to the final rounds of Afghan Star. It’s a triumph. And then she does something that puts her life – and the lives of everyone who makes the show – at risk.  To purchase original Afghan Star artwork visit www.awastudios.com/afghanstar — proceeds go to support The Noor Initiative, who are on a mission to ensure every Afghan girl has access to education and opportunity. Like what you hear? Follow us @kscope_nyc on Twitter and Instagram See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Devil’s Star

Devil’s Star

2024-06-1241:03

As the show’s producers take a dangerous trip to recruit talent from across the country, Afghan Star becomes a target for a resurgent Taliban.  ... To purchase original Afghan Star artwork visit www.awastudios.com/afghanstar — proceeds go to support The Noor Initiative, who are on a mission to ensure every Afghan girl has access to education and opportunity. Like what you hear? Follow us @kscope_nyc on Twitter and InstagramSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
The Bomb

The Bomb

2024-06-1934:10

Afghanistan’s biggest popstar leads the fight against the Taliban. And then one January day, a bomb goes off on a bus in Kabul, and nothing about the show– or the country– will ever be the same again ... To purchase original Afghan Star artwork visit www.awastudios.com/afghanstar — proceeds go to support The Noor Initiative, who are on a mission to ensure every Afghan girl has access to education and opportunity. Like what you hear? Follow us @kscope_nyc on Twitter and InstagramSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Exodus

Exodus

2024-06-2639:23

Aryana Sayeed is doubling down on her life in Kabul while all around her, the Taliban are closing in. ... To purchase original Afghan Star artwork visit www.awastudios.com/afghanstar — proceeds go to support The Noor Initiative, who are on a mission to ensure every Afghan girl has access to education and opportunity. Like what you hear? Follow us @kscope_nyc on Twitter and InstagramSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Curtains

Curtains

2024-07-0341:22

As the Taliban returns, Massood Sanjer - the head of TOLO TV - has to make a decision. Should he do what they want and take Afghan Star off the air, or keep fighting for the revolution he helped start.  ... To purchase original Afghan Star artwork visit www.awastudios.com/afghanstar — proceeds go to support The Noor Initiative, who are on a mission to ensure every Afghan girl has access to education and opportunity. Like what you hear? Follow us @kscope_nyc on Twitter and InstagramSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
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