Ali Saleem may have devised the perfect, if improbable, cover for breaking taboos in conservative, Muslim Pakistan. In a country where publicly talking about sex is strictly off limits, Saleem has managed to bring up the subject on his prime-time TV talk show, and to do so without stirring a backlash from fundamentalist Islamic clerics.

And he has done so as a woman.

When Saleem takes to the airwaves, he is Begum Nawazish Ali, a coquettish widow who interviews Pakistan’s glitterati and some of its top politicians. A real woman could not possibly do what Saleem does. In the unlikely event a station would broadcast such a show, the hostess would be shunned.

It is something of a mystery why a man who openly acknowledges he is bisexual is a sensation here. Traditional Islamic teaching rejects bisexuals and gays.

Saleem, 28, has his own theory for his popularity: he thinks Pakistan has always been more open than outsiders believed. He is thrilled with his success for reasons that are both political (he is proud to be breaking ground in bringing up tough subjects) and profoundly personal. “My biggest high is to see myself gorgeous in the mirror” he said recently while reclining in a makeup-room chair. “Maybe, yes, I am a diva.”

It is hard to judge how successful Saleem’s show is as there are no viewership ratings here. And there are clearly people who find the show revolting.

But by many measures, it is a success. Television critics have been generally supportive, and the show, which has been on for a year and a half, has a prime-time slot despite its name, Late Night Show With Begum Nawazish Ali.

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