When Amir returns to Afghanistan after the Taliban has taken over the country, he learns that having a beard is a necessary sign of showing that he is a good Muslim. Therefore, he buys and dons a fake beard before entering the country. This is necessary because a "beard patrol" of Taliban soldiers enforces the command in the holy writings that all loyal Muslim males wear beards to distinguish themselves from other faith groups. Shaving is now illegal in the country, and males caught beardless are severely punished. Amir witnesses some of the types of punishments which are doled out in the nightmarishly transformed Kabul. For example, the Taliban will bury people believed to be adulterers to their necks and stone them to death.

Amir's need to be bearded is part of the otherness of his return to his homeland, where he can no longer feel like himself, comfortable and at ease. Even wearing the fake beard, however, is risky: Assef, who has become a high ranking official in the Taliban, sees through the beard as a fake and rips it off Amir's face, exposing his disloyalty to the new regime.