With Afghanistan facing a national election in August, “Afghan Star” could not be better timed. This absorbing, enlightening documentary is nominally about an “American Idol”-like television talent contest in Kabul. But in its suspenseful depiction of a competition for prize money and the honor of being named Afghanistan’s top singer, “Afghan Star” eloquently conveys the tensions, victories and shattering setbacks of a fragile democracy struggling to restore a once-flourishing culture.

This is a particularly useful image for American audiences, who have come to see Afghanistan as enemy territory. Filmmaker Havana Marking portrays a country as rich and diverse in its terrain as in the tribes it comprises.
The film follows a season of “Afghan Star,” which has been as big a national hit as its American counterpart. The competition is narrowed to Rafi, Hameed, Lima and Setara.
The religious leadership begins to take notice of the show, and so security tightens around the singers. Lima, who takes music lessons in Kandahar, must hide that fact in that Taliban-dominated region; when Setara dares to dance and uncover her hair on the show, she is condemned and subjected to death threats.
Marking has found attractive, charismatic subjects to propel “Afghan Star.” As appalling as it is to hear men on the street hatefully call Setara a “loose woman” and call for her murder, there’s something heartening in seeing the producers of the television contest forge ahead. The important thing is that the singers survive to sing another day. That’s entertainment. And that’s what democracy looks like.