A pair of jeans:
The story takes place in Northern England and is about a young woman called Miriam and her arranged marriage with Farook. At the beginning Miriam comes home from a hiking tour with her friends, at the same moment her parents-in-law, Ayab and Begum, arrive for a visit. Miriam has not time to change clothes so she appears in her western clothes, which are generous, in front of the parents-of-law. Miriam’s mother Fatima remarks the strange situation. Miriam feels ashamed and change clothes in her room. Once she enters the living room a pressed atmosphair reigns. After a short time the parents-in-law go home without talk about the preparations of marriage. Later Ayab, the father-in-law, make clear that he cannot bear Miriam as daughter-in-law any longer and please his wife Begum to speak with Miriam’s mother about canceling the arrangement. Begum regrets the decision of Ayab but does not offer resistance. When Miriam comes to know that the parents-in-law want cancel the marriage she throws her jeans to the ground. In the newer version from 2004 Miriam offer resistance by calling Farook and please him for a meet.
Miriam:
Miriam is an attractive young Pakistani woman, she studies geography at the university. She has an arranged marriage with Farook but she has no problem to accept her parents’ marriage arrangement for her. They got to know before two years ago and are now engaged to be married. Miriam is living between two cultures. On the one side is she integrated in modern western world but on the other side she must hold the Muslim traditions. She insists that she is the same person in jeans as in sari. Normally she cope with the role changes but as she met her later parents-in-law she remarks that the western clothes are inopportune in pakistanti culture so she feels ashamed.