Fashion blogger Aljazi Alrakan talks about the changing face of women’s fashion in Saudi Arabia.
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
[00:00:00] Families were shy of allowing their daughters to be exposed in social media
[00:00:04] A lot of people abroad were surprised to learn we don't necessarily cover our faces
[00:00:10] We don't have to wear a bio when we're traveling
[00:00:17] So much of our perception of what women from the Middle Eastern countries look like is shaped by movies
[00:00:24] I for one can remember this scene from Sex and the City 2 where Tali Bratsha and her friends meet these Burkhak clad women
[00:00:32] But what lies under the Burkhak is not merely lipstick
[00:00:36] I think it's easier now with all the bloggers, vloggers, YouTubers for us to imagine what these women look like
[00:00:43] Fashion blogger Aljazi Alrakan whose voice you just heard still refrains from putting her pictures online
[00:00:49] She told me fashion blogging for her began as merely a hobby, something she did in her spare time
[00:00:55] My name is Aljazi Alrakan. I am a Saudi dentist by degree
[00:00:59] I joined the workforce in 2005 by working as a dentist in the private sector
[00:01:03] I started off working 48 hours a week and I realized I didn't have a social life
[00:01:07] So I eventually cut that down to 28 hours a week
[00:01:10] And that gave me the opportunity to pursue some of my hobbies and interests such as my interest in fashion world
[00:01:16] In 2012 with the shift of the entire world to smartphones and the popularity of social media
[00:01:22] I opened my Instagram account under the nickname Jazabel
[00:01:26] To be quite honest my main objective was to share with friends and acquaintances around the world
[00:01:31] The day-to-day lifestyle of an average Saudi woman
[00:01:34] And somehow from there it picked up popularity and it became almost a blog and then the actual blog came on
[00:01:42] We perhaps wouldn't even think twice before taking a selfie and putting it up on all our social platforms
[00:01:48] But for women like Aljazi, putting themselves on the digital space meant dealing with years and years of restrictions
[00:01:56] The reaction to the content that I shared on my Instagram appalled me
[00:02:01] For instance a lot of people abroad were surprised to learn that such modernization and advancement exist in Saudi
[00:02:10] And a lot of people were surprised to learn that wearing an abay is an optional thing
[00:02:15] It's not a mandatory thing or there is no law that forces us to do it
[00:02:19] It depends mainly on your views and we don't necessarily cover our faces
[00:02:24] We don't have to wear abaya when we're traveling
[00:02:27] I'm sure many of us didn't know that
[00:02:29] What I also didn't know is that women in the fashion industry all around the world are now reclaiming the hijab, the burqa, the abaya
[00:02:38] In what is called the modest fashion movement
[00:02:41] And all this has been possible because of social media
[00:02:44] Families were shy of allowing their daughters to be exposed in social media or in the media in general
[00:02:50] If they wanted to ensure them prosperous future in marriage
[00:02:53] And that perception gradually changed drastically in the last 5 years
[00:02:58] Think or hope that I played a major role in it
[00:03:01] Because I do think that I encouraged many more women from my part in the society
[00:03:07] To share their life, to share their true identity
[00:03:10] But as we all know social media is dark and full of trolls
[00:03:13] And Aljazi had to grapple with comments like
[00:03:16] You're spoiling your family name, you are not Muslim enough
[00:03:20] What you're doing is completely unislamic and so on
[00:03:23] I proved a point
[00:03:24] I represented myself and my part of Saudi society with dignity and respect
[00:03:30] I carried my family name in the most honorable and respectable manner possible
[00:03:36] And there is no shame at all in showing who you really are
[00:03:41] And at the same time it does not make you less Muslim
[00:03:45] Aljazi's spirit is commendable
[00:03:47] And women like Aljazi have definitely played a huge role
[00:03:51] In changing perceptions about women and fashion in Saudi Arabia
[00:03:55] In April 2018 for instance Saudi Arabia held its first Arab fashion week
[00:04:00] Now the country is all set to lift the driving ban on women
[00:04:04] This is what Aljazi has to say about that
[00:04:06] I don't think that the lift on the ban of driving is going to have a different or much impact on our social attitude
[00:04:14] Because we've always adapted around it
[00:04:17] We've always managed to live our life and it never decapitated us
[00:04:21] There you have it guys, that was Aljazi Alrakan
[00:04:24] Dentist turned fashion blogger chatting about the changing face of women's fashion in Saudi Arabia