In Pakistan the only way a whip/flogger is used is for harsh punishment when victims defy the strict codes of Islam. On the contrary one of the largest manufactures of bondage/fetish wear comes straight out of Pakistan's commercial epicentre, Karachi.
Two brothers from a poor family in Pakistan were chosen by their father to receive a university education and $800 upon graduation, to which they bought a computer and began researching. Leather jackets were popular in the manufacturing industry in Pakistan at the time, so they were looking these up online. They stumbled across a straight jacket. They were confused yet intrigued and after further research realised the potential for the fetish/bondage market in the United States.
Islam rules the region, next to the factory where the brothers and their $3 billion fetish industry reside is a mosque and the offices of a radical Islamic organizaiton. The brothers cannot tell anyone the real reason they make this ‘gear’. Their wives don’t even know. The union has tried to shut them down – but eventually they justified it by saying, “… it’s just business”. More recently they hired a team of people to ‘protect’ them and their factory. Their employee’s, generally women don’t even know what their products are used for.
If you watch the amazing video the STARK contrast of the brothers standing next to their designs is something to appreciate. They talk candidly about how creating these items, makes them inquisitive – Islam though does not allow for such exploration.
One of the women designers says some of the bondage gear interests her, but not all of it.
Take some time to watch the video; it is eye opening to say the least. I'd also like to know your thoughts.
The article and video interview come from the New York Times.
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