The West African state is predominantly Muslim – mostly following the Sufi strain – where public displays of affection or sex outside marriage are frowned upon.
Within weeks of the series’ launch, a powerful Muslim NGO, Jamra, asked the country’s audiovisual watchdog, the CNRA, to crack down.
After deliberation, the CNRA on March 29 allowed the series to continue provided there were “corrective measures” to the script. Without these changes, the show would have to be screened late at night, or face being banned altogether.
Everything seemed to be going fine until the 34th episode – the scene of Cheikh and Mareme canoodling on the marital bed.
“They crossed the red line. They offended a large proportion of Senegalese by broadcasting virtually pornographic content during the blessed month of Ramadan,” Jamra’s Mactar Gueye told AFP.
“It is unthinkable that this apology for fornication and adultery continues in this form,” he said, in an interview at his home where a giant TV screen was turned on to a telenovela channel showing soap operas.
Sexual emancipation
The female characters on “Maitresse” often bear the brunt of the moral messages — on-screen marriage-breakers, for instance, are verbally lashed by friends and family for their behaviour.
But for Senegalese feminist activist Fatou Kine Diouf, this finger wagging has had less impact on viewers than the theme of sexual emancipation.
“The series shows women who are in charge of their sexuality. It will never get directly shown on screen but everyone is talking about it. In that respect, the series is really powerful.”
The soap opera’s set is a joyful buzz of actors, technicians and makeup artists, working up to 12 hours a day, six days a week.
In a tired voice, Sy, the executive producer, says that male hostility, religious objections and technical hitches are her daily challenges.
“But when young women watch the show and identify with characters that are like them, they are deeply touched,” she said. “And nobody can take that away from us.”
Source – AFP
