A Low-Volume Rebellion: How Kabul’s Taxi Drivers Defy The Taliban One Song At A Time

Last Updated:September 26, 2026, 4:41 PM IST

For many Afghan cabbies, playing music is a deliberate act of defiance against sweeping restrictions on cinemas, live performances, and most forms of public entertainment

The nationwide prohibition on music is strictly overseen by the Ministry for the Propagation of Virtue and the Prevention of Vice. Cabbies describe the daily routine of turning on their car radios as a vital coping mechanism to alleviate stress and reclaim personal freedom. Representational image/AFP

Taxi drivers in the Afghan capital of Kabul are quietly turning back to music inside their vehicles, risking harsh penalties to defy a nationwide ban imposed by the Taliban regime. The subtle wave of cultural protest, as reported by AFP, has seen cabbies blaring regional folk, pop, and traditional Afghan tunes from their car stereos, offering commuters a rare break from public silence enforced since 2021.

While public venues, cafés, and shops remain strictly muted, the enclosed cabin of a taxicab has emerged as an unexpected battleground between individual expression and government enforcement.

Dashboards as Battlegrounds Against the Morality Police

The nationwide prohibition on music is strictly overseen by the Ministry for the Propagation of Virtue and the Prevention of Vice. Under official directives, morality officers patrolling public streets are mandated to penalise anyone playing or listening to music, classifying it as a severe moral violation that disturbs public order.

To avoid detention, vehicle confiscation, or physical punishment, drivers operate under constant vigilance. Steering through heavy urban traffic, cabbies keep their stereos set to low volumes and instantly switch off audio feeds or lower the sound completely whenever approaching armed checkpoints or white-coated morality patrols.

Low-Volume Audio as a Quiet Act of Protest

For many drivers, playing music has evolved into a deliberate act of defiance against sweeping restrictions that have outlawed cinemas, live performances, and most forms of public entertainment. Cabbies describe the daily routine of turning on their car radios as a vital coping mechanism to alleviate stress and reclaim personal freedom.

Passengers have largely welcomed the covert soundtracks, with many viewing the quiet defiance as a shared, silent refusal to let traditional Afghan culture be entirely erased from daily life.

Rising Tension Between Cultural Heritage and Regime Enforcement

The Taliban administration has encouraged former musicians to perform unaccompanied religious chants or patriotic poetry, framing non-religious music as un-Islamic. However, the persistence of taxi drivers secretly playing pop and folk melodies highlights deep-seated resistance to ideological mandates.

As morality patrols intensify inspections across major transport corridors, the stealthy use of car stereos underscores how ordinary citizens continue to carve out tiny pockets of cultural survival despite pervasive fear.

Quick Answers

Powered by

Ask News18

How are Kabul taxi drivers defying the Taliban music ban?

Taxi drivers in Kabul are quietly playing regional folk, pop, and traditional Afghan tunes at low volumes from their car stereos while navigating the city.

Which Taliban government body oversees the nationwide prohibition on music?

The nationwide prohibition on music is strictly overseen by the Ministry for the Propagation of Virtue and the Prevention of Vice.

What penalties do Kabul cabbies face for playing music in their cars?

Drivers face severe penalties including detention, vehicle confiscation, and physical punishment by morality officers patrolling the streets.

Powered by

Ask News18

About the Author

Pathikrit Sen Gupta

Pathikrit Sen Gupta is a Senior Associate Editor with News18.com and likes to cut a long story short. He writes sporadically on Politics, Sports, Global Affairs, Space, Entertainment, And Food. He tra…Read More

Read More