Aadujeevitham: What Is Kafeel? (Dr Talib Al Balushi as Kafeel in Aadujeevitham)
Kafeel is the term used for the local sponsor in GCC countries. Kafeel comes from the Kafala system in Gulf countries. It is a legal framework that defined the relationship between migrant workers and their employer. The system was actually created to supply labours at cheap rates in an era of the booming economic growth. The defenders of the arrangements argued that it benefits local businesses and boost developments. The system has increasingly became controversial as it is recognised as rife with exploitation.
The Kafeel plays the trajectory of Benyamin’s Aadujeevitham. As much as one sympathises with Najeeb for the absolute misfortune befalls on him, the amount of loath for the Kafeel is unassailable. Kafeel in Najeeb’s life is the embodiment of evil, a despicable excuse of human being. What or who is Kafeel?
When Najeeb reached the King Khalid International Airport at Riyadh, he was taken away by an Arab man, believing him to be his Arbab (Perian word for boss). Najeeb was taken to a cattle farm in the middle of a desert and was handed over to the farm’s supervisor or the Kafeel. Najeeb was used as a slave labour and was deprived of even the basic human need like water.
Under the Kafala system, the state gives local individuals or companies sponsorship permits to employ foreign labourers. Since the system falls under the jurisdiction of interior ministries rather than the labour ministries, it guarantees no protection for the labourers under the host country’s labour law, paving way for mass exploitation. Their visas are often linked with the Kafeel’s, and they require the latter’s permission to transfer jobs and end employments.
Many experts argues that the system facilitate modern slavery. This is very visible in Aadujeevitham. As per the Kafala system, the labourers cannot leave the workplace without the permission of the Kafeel, and is considered as an offense that might result in termination of the worker’s legal status, deportation, or imprisonment, even if the worker is fleeing unimaginable abuses.
Dr Talib Al Balushi portrayed the Kafeel in Prithviraj Sukumaran’s film Aadujeevitham, which is an adaptation of Benyamin’s novel, based on real life story of a Keralite Najeeb. The often overlooked atrocities happening under the Kafala or Kafeel system can be referred from the Aadujeevitham.
