The Great Fall
SHE DOES IT. Most of the Madams do it, and the rest of the Begums imitate them. That is, how Benazir Bhutto, Prime Minister of Pakistan, first sets and then lets her dupatta (head scarf) fall. These days, it has become fashionable among the conservative female elite of the country to similarly cover and uncover their heads while attending receptions, talking to dignitaries, and speaking on the mike at seminars and symposia.
More, and more, the falling of the dupatta, requiring intermittent readjustment, is beginning to seem like a deliberate gesture meant to project grace. Whatever the case, the dupatta is in vogue in Pakistan.
More than a decade ago, Gen Zia-ul Haq, not happy with the uncovered heads of women on state television and at public functions, ordered them to use the head scarf. Apart from TV personalities, the early victims were wives of ministers, government secretaries, and lady officials. Although there were no "cover-your-head" orders under Nawaz Shard., the trend continued.