Significance of cars

The Khans remain the only family capable of affording cars in Amal’s village. Cars therefore symbolize the poverty surrounding Amal and the extent of financial difference separating her neighbors from the Khans. When Jawad’s car collides with Amal in the market, it represents an intrusion of Jawad’s unfamiliar world into her own. Jawad’s shiny black car emphasizes his otherness, immediately communicating his financial superiority. Amal rides in a car for the first time when Ghulam drives her to the Khan estate, so she can begin her life of servitude. In this scene, Jawad’s car represents Amal’s transition from her old to new life. She parts with her simple life at home and enters a world filled with luxury.