Little Drops of Water-by Shaista Hussain

The recent trend of minority killings in Pakistan, specially targeting the Christian community has disturbed us a lot. I am disturbed particularly because I spent eleven years of my life in a Christian School in Rawalpindi and I have beautiful memories of those formative years. What I learnt at school was well in line with the basic teachings of Quran, our own religion.

When I was in a playgroup, we would receive milk and biscuits for lunch, and my parents would fondly recall that every time I would have anything to eat at home, I would close my eyes, put my hands together and say, ‘Thank you God for the milk and biscuits, Thank you!’. The school had taught me my first basic lesson, to be grateful to God for all my blessings.

Our school was more than a 100 years old, and we would occasionally have visitors (old goras mostly) who would come and visit the school and tell us why they remember it so fondly. The school had a character of its own and the motto was true to what it believed: Not Self but God and Others.

A regular day in school would start by the school choir leading hymns (pray books) that all of us would sing out loudly and cheerfully. There was a school prayer that was to be recited and included the school motto to remind us all of the vision that the school stood for. We ended up in the National Anthem and the school would then disperse to start the regular classes.
I recall how the annual Christmas play was such a glamorous event every year (The angel Gabriel would be the most beautiful girl in class 10! And all of us would look at her in awe) and each year all of us would participate with excitement and joy. I had the pleasure of being the narrator of the Annual Christmas play twice, and our parents would almost always attend the annual play because one of us would be participating.

Then, there was the annual milad and you would see all Christian and Muslim students preparing naats with zeal and excitement for the big day. It was not just the Islamiat (Islamic Studies) teacher who would be leading the event, it would be our Christian teachers too participating with equal enthusiasm, encouraging and coaching us all to do our best.
I was recalling one of my most favourite hymns ‘Little Drops of Water’ from back in the day, which was a classic example of the teachings of our school, that respected us all as equal human beings and not discriminating against any one student because he/she would be from a particular sect or religion. Then I wonder, this tolerance and equality and respect for humanity is also reflective of the teaching of our religion as well. So why is it that when it comes to Islam, the most tolerant of all religions in theory as far as I know, is turned so intolerant in practicality by its followers that we react to a situation before we even think about the consequences? We can at the minimum, reflect upon the situation itself in its own merit. Is it because our sense of self righteousness has inflated so much that it does not allow us to distinguish between the right of any other religion against what ‘we’ see as the right thing to do? Who has given a common man on the street the authority to assume the role of the ‘moral police’? Are all of us so pious in our own doings and actions that we can go around putting any house on fire because we ‘think’ that they have done some harm, without having any proof whatsoever? Whatever happened to unity, faith and discipline which were to be the motto of our motherland? The voice of one nation? Can we not all go back in time, and like that small school of mine, situated somewhere in a small city, learn to live together, accepting our differences and respecting each other’s right to religious freedom? Obsession with one’s religion should not come at the cost of failing to recognize the other person’s basic human rights.

I am reflecting on that little hymn we would sing in the morning in the school assembly, and can only hope that this August 14, as we all raise our national flag, we do see the white rectangular border on the left hand side of the flag as representing the minorities of our country. My flag is not complete without that white band and I cannot relate to the Pakistani flag without that beautiful white border that merges so well with the green majority.

Little drops of water,
little grains of sand,
make the mighty ocean
and the beauteous land.

And the little moments,
humble though they may be,
make the mighty ages
of eternity.

Little deeds of kindness,
little words of love,
make our earth an Eden,
like the heaven above.

So our little errors
lead the soul away,
from the paths of virtue
into sin to stray.

Little seeds of mercy
sown by youthful hands,
grow to bless the nations
far in heathen lands.

Glory then for everbe
to God on high,
beautiful and loving,
to eternity.

You can read Shaista's regualar blogs at her personal website: http://shaistathinks.wordpress.com/

Writer's Block - Lessons to Learn….by Bushra Hassan

I am cheating this week. I'm quite unwell and dont really have the ability to write (or even talk), so I am pasting an old article. Its been published before so forgive me for that. Pls note that my daughter is now older and for the record, although I wrote this, I still have not learnt from her, and passed on my own negativity to her. But perhaps, it will give you all some food for thought.

My apologies once again!

Lessons to Learn

My daughter turned one year this month. As I pondered over the highs and lows of the past year, the personal growth her father and I went through, the absence of self indulgence and a new knowledge of our capacity to nurture, there remain many things that make me anxious. My daughter has her whole life ahead of her and I wish to be a mother she can be proud of. A mother who taught her all things right, a mother who had some thing of value to offer her. Luckily I have some faith in my judgment. I married a good man, learnt from wise and loving parents, live a wholesome life and have surrounded myself with positive people. However, increasingly the challenge of parenting worries me. This concern was answered when I observed that all I need to be a good parent is to learn from what my daughter teaches me today.

When she was handed to me, she was a bundle of dependency. God put in her this instinct of self preservation and now in one year I have this blessing of a child who has taught herself to sit, stand, crawl, walk, grab, hold, smile, talk, bite, chew and much much more. In one year she has learnt so much, on her own, with little help, by simply challenging herself and she continues to do so. She tries to stand without support, although she may fall many many times in her attempts, it doesn’t stop her. Her attempts continue. She doesn’t lose heart. She can’t walk without support now but she knows she can, and she will, because she challenges herself and she tries. And when she fails, she doesn’t cry and stop trying. She continues. Failure doesn’t discourage her. She doesn’t know the term failure yet. She doesn’t know what it is and that it even exists. She just knows she has new boundaries to break and she will continue to do that until she learns to give up, like the rest of us.

She has an incredible zest for life. An enthusiasm that is never ending, inspiring, her energy can move the people around her. Her vigor can make any day beautiful and she just uses a single smile to drive all my fears and stresses away. She gives. Unconditionally she gives. She gives love and all her time and attention. She has but few needs in life. Her food and hygiene taken care of, she will be happy with almost nothing. Her life is not about needs or things. She doesn’t need toys. She simply doesn’t need. I may give her gifts, but all she needs truly, is love. And this is what she can give in return. The simple pleasures of life. The give and take of love and attention, of smiles and of caring.

In the past one year she has been through various bouts of sickness. Prone to asthma and allergies, she has been up most nights, she has had trouble breathing, was nebulised frequently. She very often had fever, diarrhea, loss of appetite, lack of energy. But here is what is strange. In the midst of it all, she never forgot to smile. She never gave up. As soon as the medicines would begin their work and her fever would start to drop, her smile would return and she would find something to amuse herself with. While, her father and I moan endlessly about another sleepless night we watch with her with astonishment, amazed at her resilience, her strength. She has but few reservoirs of strength in her, yet she is determined. But more than determination, simply, she hasn’t yet learnt to complain, to whine, to ramble non stop over the tragedies that inflict her. She hasn’t yet learnt to be an adult and oh! How beautiful that makes life.

Today as she played with her favourite play pals, I saw one of them purposely hit her. As a protective mother, I yelled as she cried. The perpetrator, himself a mere child, hid in the arms of his mother. And as I carried my child to make her feel secure, within minutes, she was exchanging smiles with her friend. She forgave, she forgot, she was ready to play again, despite the risk of another injury. She forgave. And although I had my concerns, the same boy handed her his toy, a gesture of friendship, of peace. She accepted with a smile as I watched over. She forgave and forgot. I see her do this all the time. She forgives me for my neglect. She doesn’t complain when I chat on the phone as she yearns to talk to me. She finds something else to do.

As I look for various ways to amuse myself on an empty weekend, some cooking, some book reading, catching up with friends, she doesn’t need anything to be happy. Her self reliance is amazing. She can be by herself for hours and not feel disturbed. The contentment that is on her face I long to have. She enjoys her own company, her independence, without being selfish or self involved. She will jump with joy when I try to join her game. Always welcoming my attention, but never complaining at the lack thereof.

She can adapt, simple. Adapt to new people, new places. We have taken her to new cities, new homes, around new people, all kinds of weather and she has learnt to love them all and accept them all. She is far more comfortable in new places and new people than I would ever be. It is terribly easy to make her smile, to amuse her, to make her laugh. She giggles, crackles, and I am afraid of the time when amusement and laughter becomes rarer and life becomes complicated for her.

She is the most non-judgmental person I know. Despite her purity, her innocence, her impeccable nature, she finds no fault in others. Perhaps unlike adults, she doesn’t know what a fault is, what ‘wrong’ is, what ‘fake’ is. She will love all those who offer her love, will reach out to those who genuinely seek out to her. And although I have discovered her magical ability to assess between people who genuinely love her, and those who do not, she will accept them all with her purity of soul.

But her most incredible strength, in all her self reliance, social skills, is that she knows the value of family. To her, no one comes before her mother. And although she has formed other relationships, she knows who to call when she needs help, when she is sick. Her love is not one based on need and dependency. She gives love back. Not just through smiles, and gentle touches and communication but so much more. For instance, she can sense when I am sick and even at 12 months of age will help, by crying less, by needing less, by giving me space. She knows how to value her mother, some thing we adults forget too easily.

I never knew the wisdom God put in children. It’s like a default programme which is corrupted as time goes on. My daughter will change soon. Change because she will be influenced by her father and I, by her peers and by all our friends and family. She will learn to judge, to give up, to hurt, to be hurt, to let-go of the purity that she carries today. I don’t know whether or not I want her to retain all her wonderful qualities because the world is no longer a safe place for them, but I do know I’d like to take some of these from her and keep them in me, grow them in me. So someday I may be truly worthy of her.

Writer's Block- The Ways of Our Youth-Part II- By Bushra Hassan

About two years ago, my boss, who has a penchant for delegating, asked me to become an “Intern Supervisor”. Ours is a small-ish office, with few people but lots of interns. It is one of those places where important people like to send their children to polish up their CVs and young adults come to think they can influence change. In less than two years I have supervised over three dozen teenagers. By now, I’ve acquired the talent and wisdom to judge a child before they have even sat upon the chair, prior to the interview. I know them before I meet them. I see them from their CVs, and in the subsequent time they spend in the office, my beliefs are confirmed further.

The subject of youth interests me immensely. I was the youth less than a decade ago, so I’m amazed by the changes the country has undergone in such little time. But more than that, I’m a mother who wants to understand the youth, as my child will be one of them soon and I do not want the generation gap to be too wide. This blog is about my experiences with those interns.

Interns are of different kinds and backgrounds. I may be generalizing a little, and you might think I’m making sweeping statements, but the truth remains, every word is true. Here is how it goes:

a) The “cool” only sit and mingle with the cool. The children of the elite (who come through a top-down way) only befriend children of the elite. The young interns from humble backgrounds stick together.
b) Boys and girls check each other out in the first few minutes. The girls from simpler background lose out sooner, and frankly, care less about the “love in the office”. They are more focused and hungrier to achieve.
c) Many interns are accompanied by either of their parents for the interview, who without realizing it, stifle their child’s personality and/or confidence by being over protective and over imposing. You can see the child’s discomfort, every time. I have personally seen that these kids have the worst time adjusting and finding themselves during their time in the office.
d) There are no apprehensions, whatsoever, about little lies on the reference letter. I ask them to keep a list of the tasks performed, so at the end of their internship period, in their reference letter, I may add them. In all the interns, only two have been honest. The rest copy-paste from others, or just create things to sound impressive. It is a minor thing for them to ask me to extend the duration on the letters. It saddens me, this level of morality, so early in life.
e) Most boys, if not all, smoke. I have yet to meet an intern who does not smoke. They may hide it from me, but they do.
f) Interns are angry. Within six months of graduation, the youth is bitter and angry. They see jobs going to other children, and the cry “nepotism”. There is little acceptance that perhaps, just perhaps, they did not get a job because the other person was indeed better. They all believe they are the best there is, and they deserve all there is. And any decision to the contrary is corruption of the system. Within months, if not weeks, they are convinced that the system is unfair.
g) Most young men believe that they will move abroad and all problems with automatically disappear. Going abroad either through immigration (sponsored by daddy), or through education (whether scholarship or again, by daddy) will help solve all their life’s problems.
h) The kids genuinely believe they know everything. They are less open to new ideas, as their ideas have been formed and carved in stone. It is indeed difficult to convince them and to prove that honesty does exist. That nepotism only gets you so far. They are shown around our office where every one was hired on merit and merit alone, and they toss it aside as being the only office where this is so. This hurts me most.
i) They all enter the office to be an officer. All the interns I’ve had, had to be taught, that photo-copying and spiral binding are important things to learn. That you do not get to delegate to “support staff”, that you do not get tea on your table and the support staff is not supposed to clean after you. The helping yourself and helping others, is greatly replaced by “being helped”. The office support staff is made equivalent of domestic help. And there is little respect for the work they do. Every one is in a hurry to become a big “afsar”
j) There are two kinds of girls I get to supervise every year, who annoy me most. These are the ones who are either too humble, quiet and submissive; or too clever and passive aggressive. Many have both these tendencies simultaneously, like split personalities; sing whichever one suits them most. They start out as poor victims, and within weeks become the exact opposite. There is little balance. I realize now that these girls come from households that suppress their individuality, and this is their coping mechanism.
k) There is little interest in learning how to write. Everything is copy-pasted from the web. There is little credit to individual thought and innovation. Children are afraid of making mistakes, as it would cramp their style. So they don’t take risks, ask questions. It takes me a week so build the confidence in them to make mistakes, ask questions and think of the answers. Sometimes it takes longer. Our education system has dulled their intellectual creativity.
l) Most importantly, they want to change things for the better and they don’t know how. They have no one listening to what their dreams are and what they want to do. They have parents who either don’t care, or care only for them to become engineers or doctors. They are lost and want some one to hold their hand and listen to them, and guide them.

They are lost.

It pities me to see them like this because this is not their fault. There is a fault in the system that lacks quality in both the education and the upbringing. Both the “taleem” and “tarbiyat” have flaws. Most of the observations above are simply a result of inadequate time by the parents. Perhaps I am being too quick to judge, but two years and over forty interns has taught me plenty. It worries me that perhaps too much self awareness is a bad thing, because it leaves little space for growth and change.

It is never too late to change. I have learnt the mistakes I must never make with my child. I have learnt what I need to teach these interns the most. They have become like my children, they are the children of this nation, and our future is in their hands. Perhaps, when you see some one young and confused, you can hold their hand a while. In the meantime, their hands are held in mine.

San Francisco

Ok so my visit to this enchanting city is turning into quite an adventure!

The other day I was confronted by the fact that my better half left the house to catch a bus, and had left her cell phone behind!

I knew that if I stopped to put on some socks and shoes she would have been long gone! So I charged out after her bare foot down the road trying to get her attention, after 2 blocks she finally heard me! and I gave her the phone so she could stay connected.

All the while I walked back to the apt building, I wondered if I would have been able to run bare foot on the street in my city, the pavements here are so darned clean, by comparison, of course; I still went home and washed my feet, mind you! Bare foot! on Divisadero Street, while people watched me do the 2 blocks at a run, havent run a long while mind you I was quite pleased with my performance!

Then we went to the Theatre the ‘Orpheum’ where WICKED was playing, a treat from my Son Taimoor, when we exited, the place after the show, we began to look for a taxi, as everyone was doing the same, with no luck, we headed for the bus stop, as we turned the corner on McAllister, there before our eyes was a real live scene, from Starsky and Hutch ! for the uninitiated, it was a cop serial of the 80s 4 cop cars blocking the street and surrounding the bad guys, who had assumed the position! by that I mean legs apart hands high and apart up against the wall!! I was very tempted to whip out my camera and start getting some shots, but being unfamiliar with the cop-public reactions I thought better of it. Wow! We witnessed our first real life police action in San Francisco.

But getting back to the theatre, The Orpheum, it was magnificent! the interior took me back to the old world charms of the ones in London, it truly was so beautiful inside! I wanted to photograph the interiors but was stopped my the ushers as photography was not permitted inside the theatre, what a shame! I so wanted to share the sight with you!

I was walking along the street on a pavement, oh! yes I forget we dont have them much in my city! they barely have room for the traffic! leave alone the pedestrians! and you know what the minute you step up to the edge at a crossing cars immediately slow down and make sure that they stop when the light permits pedestrians to cross!

at each crossing I also noted, while I waited for the lights to change so I could cross, was this message:

                  

That is how they make sure the streets dont fill with rain water, when it starts to pour! like its doing in another city in my country! They even encourage you to report anyone polluting the streets!

they even have a concept of citizen’s arrest! You as a citizen can arrest another citizen if you find them breaking the rules and laws of the city!!

 

View Full Album

Here are some of the areas I have seen for you to enjoy!

Made in Pakistan

MADE IN PAKISTAN.....A documentary motivated by New York Time's cover story declaring Pakistan as the "most dangerous place in the world".

Produced by Pakistani filmmakers, it follows the lives of four ordinary citizens during Musharraf's rule in an effort to break Western stereotypes about the country. More details on Pak Tea House at the following link:

http://pakteahouse.wordpress.com/2009/07/27/made-in-pakistan/

The film is being screened in Karachi, Lahore and Islamabad.

Lahore: 14-18 August09
Karachi: 31 July-2 August09
Islamabad: 8-9 August09

Venue and other details are discussed in the blog.

I think we should all make the effort to go watch the movie and to encourage such efforts by Pakistani filmmakers.

Mehr Zahra
Islamabad

Lahori Fashion

Hey readers! I'm back after a long break with a fashion update for you guys :)

All over Pakistan, especially in Lahore, summer fashion includes straight pants with loose painchas, closer to the culots style, reminiscent of the early 9O's. Shirts are also longer and for those of you who feel bad as you've got small shirts stitched worry not as you can put satin ribbons on the daman, sleeves and collar as they not only increase the length but is also in style :) Dupatta has become complimentary and even optional, depending on the style you're wearing! Pastels are IN, as are floral prints, as opposed to geometric designs.Once stepping out you need to carry a water bottle, plenty of sun block, wear your sunglasses and tie a scarf on your head to protect yourself hair from the sun and the scorching heat!!

See you next week:)

No Flowers in your hair

My visit to San Francisco this July after a whole year, it not just a trip to the city, but to actually live in it for a few weeks.

I cannot help but draw comparisons between this place and the one I call home; I tell you, there is no comparison, but then there can’t be! How can I just sit here and compare that every person on a 2 wheeler wears a helmet, even the pillion rider, and they actually wear their helmets, not balanced them on their petrol tanks like where I live.

People only cross the road when the lights permit them to, not wander off helter skelter, and challenge the motorist to the right of way! I see another glaring difference, there are garbage drums along the pavements at intervals and people actually use them; they don’t throw stuff out of their moving cars, there is no litter on the roads, and, even when they take their dogs for walks they clean up after them!! I did too when I had to take our little Havanese dog ‘Hero” out to respond to the call of nature! 

The parks, and there are many!  just like where I live, are beautiful and green no litter no mess just people sitting or strolling, kids playing, dogs running about chasing each other or their masters or playing fetch! Actually ignoring others or expressing curiosity at their fellow species, but not fighting!!! Unbelievable!

Even the dogs are well behaved and mannered!

 

People are polite, they queue up to enter a bus, they queue up to buy their tickets they even queue up to queue up! Traffic lights are not jumped, and there is always a patrol car about when you least expect it, to nab you if you choose to break the law! Now that’s not saying the people here don’t break the law! Yes they do and by the dozens, for every type of crime there is a designated punishment, (you did the crime , you pay the fine or you do the time!)but overall they are law abiding, God fearing, and they have what we don’t back home, the caring for the community to which they belong! i.e. the Neighborhood!

The architecture is so varied, their buildings all have car parks for the residents and tenants and there are parking meters on the pavements for visitors; so there is never an issue about whose parking space it is or that you cant park here because some muscle-bound sumo wrestler chooses to stop you because he can!

The law is supreme.

Talking of which, all of what I have shared with you, is governed by the laws of the city, state and country, and no one and I mean no one is above the law, not even the police chief or the President of the country; people do not cheat, lie or steal, in general but there are exceptions and that is the rule! If you are caught out you have to take the consequences.

In a restaurant, or in a café, people bring their kids, who know that they should not disturb other around them, if the child does misbehave, the parents will leave the café, rather than permit the child to play up and throw a tantrum! I saw this unfold right before my eyes, in fact I saw all that I have mentioned take place; the mother took the child outside and sat down with him on a pavement seating and proceeded to explain but when the child would not stop his tantrum, he was promptly walked home, without any treat! That’s the way it is, here.

I have watched and waited, for an opportunity to record the breaking of the rules or laws, and I continue to wait and watch!

This city has one of the most impressive transport systems I have ever experienced! For $15 one can travel all over SFO on any mode of transit, like buses, cable cars  or BART for a full month! So during the day we mostly get around like that; the buses are are very well run, there are seats for the elderly (senior citizens) infirmed/disabled and even wheel chairs!

I watched as I was asked to vacate a seat which was turned up and floor space was cleared for the motorized chair to come up the ramp which was extended from the bus while the bus actually lowered its suspension on that side where the door is located; so the chair comes up from the pavement into the bus and is parked where the place is assigned for it!

All the while the driver kept an eye on the progress and when all was secure the doors closed and away we went ! The seating is so spacious and everyone is sitting without hassle.

The Bus stops have a read-out that tells you when which bus will arrive and bang on time it is there! Their systems actually work why don’t they work in my city?

 

Lahore's Contribution to Bollywood - Rabiah Khwaja Gohar

I have been reading several arguments from our dear Indian friends about how crappy Lollywood has become, so I decided to look at this situation from a...different perspective.

What has the great city of Lahore contributed to the nation of India?

Ok first of all, India is not in an economical position to make multi-billion rupee films that it presently produces, and we all know for a fact that the films produced now are because of the BIG money being filtered in by the underworld. So if "Bollywood" made films according to THEIR budget, the films wouldn't necessarily be worth watching right? oooops...like they are now? hmmm? Its all there, the big names, the big costumes, the big tears, the big (cheesy) dialogues...the "dishown dishwon fight scenes" but whats missing..??

Before we start hating on "Lollywood" or Lahore, lets remember Bollywood has not been able to bring quality cinema in ages ..with a few exceptions....talent is essentially non-existent, the "hit" and 'super-hit" films are nothing but 'time-pass' or trunk shows for big designers like Ritu Kumar, Manish Malhotra etc... very strategically targeting desi shopaholic housewives. (apologies for the stereotype).
One might argue that Lahore played no role in the creation of "Bollywood", lets put that myth aside..shall we....and take a minute to trace the birth of "talent" through the great city of Lahore.

First and foremost, India's Taran-e-Hindi "Saray Jahan Say Acha, Hindustan Hamara" Written by Dr.Allama Iqbal from Lahore. Yes not many Indians know much about the author hence their disability to give recognition to originality.

I should stop here and rest my case, but I feel compelled to continue.

An interesting fact I recently read:
Teji Kaur Bachchan, the mother of Amitabh Bachchan ,was a prominent lecturer in Lahore University.

::::: And now before you forget what Lahore gave "Bollywood" :::::

Prithvi Theatres was established in Lahore by Prithvi Raj Kapoor a Pathan from Peshawar, who was a stage actor in Lahore at the time. (Pop Culture India by Asha Kasbekar)

Lahore's first Film studio, United Players, was responsible for launching the career of the first woman film-maker of India (Fatima Begum) who made Bulbul-e-Paristan in 1926. (Cinema Studies by Susan Hayward)

The renowned filmmaker of India, Ramanand Sagar, from Lahore, was the head of the Bollywood production company Sagar Arts Corp, wrote, directed, and produced motion pictures, and television programs. His most famous works include the Ramayan (1987) a popular 78-part TV epic. He studied at University of Punjab, Lahore. (Britannica)

The first silent film from Lahore was The Daughter of Today, released in 1924 directed by A. K. Kardar a Lahori, who went on to become one of the most famous film directors of India during the 1930's, 40's and 50's.
His works include Sharda, Dulari, Dillagi, Shahjahan, and Jadoo, all famous for Naushad Ali’s music. (History of Pakistani Cinema by Mushtaq Gazdar)
First talkie produced from Lahore was Heer Ranjha in 1932.
The actress who played the lead in Anarkali, Shahjahan, Shireen Farhan and Daasi was Ragni, also from Lahore.
Om Prakash was given his break by Dalsukh Pancholi (Founder of Pancholi Studios in Lahore) in the Film Daasi.

Lahore gave us legends like Muhammad Rafi, Om Parkash, Dev Ananad saab, Pran saab and Balraj Sahani (one of the most talented actors in "bollywood") and many many more, who started their career in Lahore. Chaitan Anand (Dev's brother) was a famous film director in Lahore. Mohd Rafi was introduced to radio Lahore by music composer Feroz Nizami (Lahori) and made his debut as a playback singer in the Punjabi film Gul Baloch.

Dalsukh Pancholi, a film tycoon from Lahore (born in Karachi) and the founder of Pancholi Studios of Lahore, studied scriptwriting and cinematography from New York, and played an important part in the careers of stars such as Noor Jehan, Ramola, Om Prakash, music composers Ghulam Haider and O.P. Nayyar. His first film was Gul-e-Bakawli (1938) starring Noor Jehan. Ghulam Haider's "shaala jawaania" one of my personal favorites of Madam, was an instant rage.
His film Khazanchi was one of the longest running movies of its time.
Master Ghulam Haider a phenomenal music director from Lahore, was the man who gave Lata Mangeshkar the break of her career in the movie Majboor (1948)

Pran established his career in Lahore as a villan in punjabi films.

Mohd Rafi's debut also happened to occur in Lahore, at the hands of music director Shayaam Sunder and Pancholi in the film Gul Baloch.

Roshan Ara Begum from Lahore was acclaimed the best interpreter of Kirana Gharana Sytle of Khayal singing in the subcontinent. Composer O.P Nayyar, Ustad Fateh Ali, BarRay Ghulam Ali (the only film he ever sang for was for Mughal-e-Azam) free of charge... only as a favor to Naushad, all are from Lahore.
According to BBC Urdu the most expensive film of India was made in Lahore in 1934. Its cost was 18 Lakh Rupees (at that time). Its name was ‘ShireeN Farhaad’
In the film Shireen farhad (the charactar of Farhad was played by Jayant a Muslim Pathan, father of Amjad Khan whose name is synonymous with the legendary villan of Bollywood Gabbar Singh)
Khurshid Begum and Shamshad Begum--the playback singer made her debut from Peshawar Radio in Lahore. (Not the classical singer Shamshad begum, Saira Banu's grandmother)

Father of the Chopras, B. R. Chopra was born in Lahore. He studied journalism, directed/produced plays, and worked as a film critic in Lahore. Yash Chopra, B. R’s younger brother was born in Lahore as well, later he joined his brother in Bombay to start their own production house.
B.R. Chopra was working on his first film Chandni Chowk when the partition riots began.

Academy Award winner lyricist Gulzar was born in Jehlum, Punjab.

Academy Award winner Shekhar Kapur of Bandit Queen and Elizabeth is too from Lahore. (He is the nephew of Dev Anand)

Grandpa Roshan (Roshan Lal) from Gujranwala, Lahore, was given a chance as an assistant by another Lahori musician, Khwaja Khurshid Anwar (who was in Bombay at the time).
Rudyard Kipling was also a Lahori.

Actress Meena Shorey (Khurshid) the "Lara Lapa" girl one of the earliest bombshells of Bollywood was from Lahore (Raiwind).
Her husband was Roop K. Shorey, a Quetta-born actor/director, and the owner of Kamla Movietone in Lahore. He later moved to India after the partition. His film Mangti ran over 75 weeks in Lahore in the forties, making it his most profitable film.

Actresses Kamni Kaushal, kuldeep kaur,and Anupam Kher are from Lahore
Suraiya (singer and actress) hails from Sialkot.

K. L. Saigal (singer) acquired fame in Lahore then later moved to Calcutta. His last film was in 1947, music composed by Khwaja Khurshid Anwar from Lahore.

Famous Musicians from Lahore who migrated later.
Pundit Amarnath, Shayum Sunder, Gobind Ram, Lachi Ram, Dhanni Ram were more than compensated by the arrival of Ustad Sardar Khan, Ustad Akhter Hussain Khan, Bundoo Khan, Nazakat Ali, Salamat Ali, Amanat Ali Fateh Ali, Bhai Lal and Ghulam Hassan Shaggan. There were musicians who were already in Lahore like Bade Ghulam Ali Khan, Inayat Bai Dheerowali, Shamshad Begum, Sohni, Alamgir Khan, Sadiq Ai Mando.

Khayyam the music composer of Umrao-Jaan fame started his career in Lahore.

Many pre-partition films were produced in Lahore. Lahore was considered the 'launchpad' for new actors, directors and producers.

Pre-partition, Lahore happened to be the Head Quarters of India's Northern Circuit in the mid-forties.
There were three major cinemas in the city that primarily showed punjabi films. (Aijaz Gul)
**Partition came with gains and losses for both countries.**
Noorjehan and her director-editor husband Shaukat Rizvi, actor-director Nazir and her actress wife Swaran Lata, director Subtain Rizvi, composers Master Ghulam Haider, Khwaja Khursheed Anwar, and producer-director W.Z.Ahmad all moved during partition.
Sahir Ludhianvi (Abdul Hayee) started his career in Lahore as a lyricist/poet, who later went on to become one of he biggest lyricist in Bollywood.

Raj Kumar of Mother India fame was born in Baluchistan, and who can forget the tragedy king Dilip Kumar (Yousuf Khan) from Peshawar, its not Lahore but yes its this side of the border.
Pundit Nehru, after watching the film Intezar(1956) lifted the ban in India on Pakistani films, and first time after the partition, a Pakistani film was shown in Indian theaters. The cinema walls in Delhi read this:
"Woh geet jo aaj tak aap ne nahin sunay, Woh naghme jo Noor Jehan ne aaj tak nahin gaey".
The love for music in the subcontinent lead Noor Jehan to jump start the careers of many music directors and filmmakers as she took over through her singing and acting talents. After listening to her voice one can forget the boundaries drawn by man. She was and is a wonder that shall remain with us forever.

Recently Lahore has given India Noor Jehan, Nusrat Fateh Ali, Sabri Brothers, Adnan Sami Khan, Reshma, Mehdi Hassan, Abida Parveen, Tassawar Khanum, Atif Aslam Ghulam Ali, Rahat Fateh, Shafqat Amanat Ali---- for their talent truly saturates Bollywood.

Numerous Bollywood films and Indian music directors have taken credit for their work.
Yet they say Lahore has given them nothing? hmm?

These are just a few examples of how Lahore has contributed to the success of "Bollywood"

I find it sad how a line drawn on the map can make people so ungrateful and hostile when it comes to giving credit to such great artists and the great city that produced them.

(The author is the grand daughter of Kh. Khursheed Anwar and currently resides in USA)

Writer's Block-.....Or forever hold your peace - Bushra Hassan

Have you seen the flags all around Islamabad? The flags that fly bold and strong, the flags that are not national but political. The flags that raise eye brows but no questions. Of course in our secret thoughts we wonder why one political party would claim its rights over the arteries and veins of the nation’s capital. Many feel dejected over how each political party must have a show of power. But here is the million dollar question: Why are we, the general public, silent?
Did you witness over half a dozen fires on the Margalla hills that mysteriously appear and disappear? The fires that usually follow a pattern, a line, as if clearing the hills for roads or some other construction fiasco. The fires that have raped the city’s monumental prize, its identity, its prestige. If you have, what have you done about it?
Here is the thought of the week. What is wrong with us that we do not raise our voice over the smallest or the largest of crimes, unless our hands are held by a foreign dictated media? Why is it that we do not rise to protect our own identity? Is it because we are afraid that any criticism of the government will land us in jail? Or because we have given up hope of anyone listening to whatever we have to say? At what point did we stop trying to make a difference? And if we have stopped trying to make a difference, is it the beginning of the end?

Quite frankly, the flags do not bother me as much as I’d like to think, it’s the silence, the fear, the apathy that concerns me. Similarly, while the fire rages in my heart as it does on the hills, I’m more appalled by the silence of the citizens that the hills have watched over, sheltered and entertained for many decades.

Of the many paranoid conspiracy theory, my favorite and most believable, is the one which states that foreign elements are responsible for creating the fires and frequent building collapses (which have been more frequent in the past 5 years than the previous sixty) to raise the level of alarm in the nation, scare them and then immune them to the fatalities, disasters and tragedies. To deprive them of their willingness to protect and rebuild by tiring them emotionally. This is my favourite because this is true. At least about our growing unwillingness to want to protect and rebuild.

Many people have refused to write to newspapers because they feel that their letters would be ignored, not published. But then, you have to choose the papers carefully as well, those known for their credibility or impartialness. More than that, what if the letters came in tens and hundreds; and not trickling in one by one by one. What if we were all one collective force, rather than individual elements trying to make our point? Perhaps then, perhaps then, we might win, we might be heard, we might create change. Perhaps then, we will no longer be dead or dying.

Like always, I will end with a note of hope. I am writing this and sharing this on a site developed collectively. It is not one person’s pursuit for recognition but a collective attempt to affect change. Youth is gathering in small units, through theatre groups or merely through students hanging out at a coffee shop discussing, inspiring and more importantly, waking up. There is still hope, albeit a tiny, flickering one. We have to capture the moment and keep trying. Not give up.

This is beyond parties and flags (although had these been Pakistan flags flying over the capital, the nationalism it would have invoked in our people at this time of crisis would have been historical and moving). This is beyond fires that one Development Authority is trying desperately to control. This is about the people of the country, their innate patriotism and passion, which is dying gradually, unless we decide, today, to change.

I am writing this blog at a time when the new Cyber Crime Act is in place. Where criticism of certain people of consequence is no longer allowed. Now, frankly, I’ve never been a fan of emails and videos that ridicule or scandalize our leaders, true or not. I truly believe that our nation must begin to rise above petty personal criticisms, and focus on policy debates. Personally I have little interest in the Governor Punjab’s family, or how this or the previous head of state spend their evenings. What I do have interest in, is the right of the people to make constructive criticism, rather than living in fear.


What we need is a change in our national outlook, the same that encourages us to judge a person by their clothes, the same that stigmatizes a woman in jeans as a slut, or a well dressed gentleman as gay. It is the passing of judgment over the other, of feeling superior than the other, that I dislike, but this change does not come from being imposed upon by the government, striving to protect itself rather than the people This act will probably have a result similar to that of a child who insists on poking fingers in electric sockets especially when told not to. What we need now, from within us and from the government is a sense of security and pride with who we are, and what we have; and a desire to protect it – be it our forests, our identity and our freedom.

Be sure to wear some flowers in your hair….

I must begin with an apology to everyone, the Blog management and to all the followers, my piece scheduled for last Thursday, got sidelined because of the trip to San Francisco.

Yes, this comes to you from the west coast of the USA, San Francisco, to be precise; having recovered from the 15 hour haul over the North Pole, we got here in relatively good condition; it was not long before I had my camera out and began my collection of Photos of SAN FRANCISCO.

So the first impressions it is always the same, its good be back in SFO! On previous trips We were based out of San Jose and used to drive out to SFO for the day, but this time we are based in the Big City, since my son has moved there 2 months ago. He works with an IT Giant.

View Full Album

Stepping out with the Family to get a feel for the neighborhood where we are staying with my son, Taimoor and daughter in law Aamnah we walk mostly because parking is always a challenge besides the MUNNI or bus service is so convenient and fun to use. This area is just off centre from the central part of San Francisco, and as you will see it is a very interesting city!

View Full Album

View Full Album

This beautiful city and very friendly people, is so full of sights and scenes worth sharing with the readers, enjoy them! more will follow.

View Full Album

View Full Album

More next time, Bye! from SFO for now!

whats going on?

So the local bodies system that has been in place since 2001 has been abolished. The commissioner raj is back. The MPA's and MNA's are back in charge of development funds. We are back to 1999. It seems anything that happened during the Musharraf era good or bad has to be rolled back no matter the consequences. Supporters of the current move point to this fact that since this system was the creation of a dictator it cant be good. Perhaps its execution at all levels has not been good but conceptually this system is the best way of empowering people at the grass roots level.  As the famous saying goes all politics is local. Yet in Pakistan our political dynasties find it anathema to devolve power. Our babus find it disgraceful to let go of their powerful perches as well. Now the all powerful commissioner will carry out the desires of their all powerful political master, the chief minister. People in Lahore will decide which lane of Mian Channu requires street lighting. The head honcho in Karachi will decide which water course to line in rural Shikarpur. Ditto for other provinces. Welcome to democracy Pakistani style. 

Whats my beef here? Well basically we are reversing a system that provides an excellent forum for participatory democracy as well as accountable local government. If lane so in so in Mian Channu requires street lights the residents of that lane can go to their local councilor who can go to the Nazim and get the funds released. This ruffled feathers. This ruffled the bureaucracy who before this systems inception were the all in all and weren't accountable to anyone locally except to someone like the "khadim e Alla" we have here in Punjab these days. It upset our LEGISLATORS (note the emphasis) both at provincial and federal level as well. It deprived our honorable LEGISLATORS of their right to control the funds for development in their respective constituencies. Their grief is understandable given that our LEGISLATORS don't actually legislate so if you take away development funds from them whats the point of sitting in one of the capital cities. Also who knows the local government might throw up future political  challengers to them in their respective constituencies. You will hear critics say that this system bred corruption. Sure it did. But as much as I'm trying to remember the pre 2001 days i cant recall a system in place that was not corrupt. In fact if Transparency international is to be believed we were much more corrupt before than we are now. So all id say is that in addition to power being devolved, corruption also got devolved.

Like any system this system's effectiveness depended on the individuals involved. I'm sure some were bad but then there were others like the Nazim of Karachi who stood out and actually delivered a lot for his city. At the end of day folks, this system gave people all over Pakistan a chance to participate in grass roots democracy where they had people at the local level they could approach for redress of grievances and whom they could boot out if those people were found wanting in their eyes. One final note regarding this system. The empowerment of women that was happening and could have happened even better if this system was retained will be lost. 33% of the 80000 odd councillors were women.

Coming to my second hot topic which is kind of related. Lately the issue regarding the number of provinces has come into the spotlight. Contrary to this nonsensical view that this is not the time to talk about this issue i believe we should have a healthy debate regarding the issue. I for one am in favour of more administrative units as long as these units are not based on ethnic or linguistic lines. The reason I'm in favour of more administrative units is the same for the local bodies system. Majority of Pakistanis don't actually live in Lahore,Karachi, Islamabad,Peshawar or Quetta. A person in some Chak in Rahim yar Khan for instance is light years away from Lahore. Its impractical for a huge number of them to travel to Lahore to have their voice heard. In my opinion more administrative units will also bury the smaller provinces vs Punjab debate. In addition, if done smartly, it could also provide more unity to us all. However there are problems with this proposal one of which is the increase of government expenditure that will happen with the setting up of new capitals. Our new CM's and governors will demand the protocol that our present lot demands and gets.

Finally on a local Lahori note, our famous Food street of Gawalmandi has ceased to exist. it seems the powers that be could not tolerate another of Musharrafs legacies especially in their stronghold of Gawalmandi. Worry not Lahoris because Karachi's famous Barbecue tonight has opened up shop in Lahore. Who needed that tourist and connoisseur magnet food street anyway?

I Have A Dream

I have a dream. Many of us relate this sentence to either ABBA’s song or the famous speech delivered by Martin Luther King. Unfortunately very few of us know that the Pakistan that we are now living in; its roots are linked to this statement.
Pakistan was given to us after the hard work of a lot of Muslim leaders; amongst them was Dr. Muhammad Allama Iqbal.

He defined the Muslims of India as a nation and suggested that there could be no possibility of peace in the country unless and until they were recognized as a nation. He claimed that the only way for the Muslims and Hindus to prosper in accordance with their respective cultural values was under a federal system where Muslim majority units were given the same privileges that were to be given to the Hindu majority units.

As a permanent solution to the Muslim-Hindu problem, Iqbal proposed that Punjab, North West Frontier Province, Baluchistan and Sindh should be converted into one province. He declared that the northwestern part of the country was destined to unite as a self-governed unit, within the British Empire or without it. This, he suggested, was the only way to do away with communal riots and bring peace in the Sub-continent.
The greatest historical significance of Allama Iqbal's Allahabad address was that it cleared all political confusion from the minds of the Muslims, thus enabling them to determine their new destination.
The national spirit that Iqbal fused amongst the Muslims of India later on developed into the ideological basis of Pakistan.
Allama Iqbal, great poet-philosopher and active political leader, was born at Sialkot, Punjab, in 1877. He descended from a family of Kashmiri Brahmins, who had embraced Islam about 300 years earlier.
Iqbal received his early education in the traditional maktab. Later he joined the Sialkot Mission School, from where he passed his matriculation examination. In 1897, he obtained his Bachelor of Arts Degree from Government College, Lahore. Two years later, he secured his Masters Degree and was appointed in the Oriental College, Lahore, as a lecturer of history, philosophy and English. He later proceeded to Europe for higher studies. Having obtained a degree at Cambridge, he secured his doctorate at Munich and finally qualified as a barrister.
He returned to India in 1908. Besides teaching and practicing law, Iqbal continued to write poetry. He resigned from government service in 1911 and took up the task of propagating individual thinking among the Muslims through his poetry.
In later years, when the Quaid had left India and was residing in England, Allama Iqbal wrote to him conveying to him his personal views on political problems and state of affairs of the Indian Muslims, and also persuading him to come back. These letters are dated from June 1936 to November 1937. This series of correspondence is now a part of important historic documents concerning Pakistan's struggle for freedom.
It was Allama Iqbal who made the Muslims wake up from his deep slumber to fight for what was theirs.
The need of the hour now is that we wake up from our deep sleep and also realise that we need to remain united to save what is ours.
Pakistan Paindabad!

Hey readers!

Today we are still in Lahore. Lahore is not only famous because of the architecture and its monuments, but because of many other things.
Our focus this week would be the bazaars especially “Anar kalli”. Along with that we shall also be looking at the Shalimar Gardens along with that the two famous festivals that are celebrated in Lahore; Basant and Mela Chiraghan and The Horse and Cattle Show.

Anar Kalli:
If you are interested in traditional shopping the place to go is Anar Kalli.
Anar Kalli is named after the favourite courtesan Anar Kalli. The bazaar has everything from embroidered clothes, glass bangles, artificial and real jewelry. Anar Kalli is located on Aibak Road.

Shalimar Gardens:
Three miles east of Lahore are the famous Shalimar Gardens laid out by the Mughal EperorShah-Jehan in 1642 A.D. The Gardens are spread out in typical Mughal style and are surrounded by high walls with watch-towers at the four corners. Originally, the gardens were spread over seven ascending terraces, but only three remain now which cover an area of about 42 acres. The brick-work of the floors of the three terraces have been repaired according to their original designs which differ on all three terraces. There is a marble pavilion under which water flows and cascades down over a carved, marble slab creating a water-fall effect. Across the water-fall is a marble throne. At the end of the second terrace is a beautiful structure called Sawan Bhadon, a sunken tank niches on its three sides. Water cascades down from it in sheets in front of the niches, producing the sound of falling rain. In the olden times, small oil lamps were placed in the niches which reflected myriad colors.



Festivals of Lahore:

Lahore is the most festive city and is famous as the heart of Pakistan. It is also known as the most happening city.

Basant:
Basant is a Punjabi festival marking the coming of spring. Basant celebrations in Pakistan are centered in Lahore, and people from all over the country as well as abroad come to the city for the annual festivities. Kite-flying competitions traditionally take place on city rooftops during Basant.

Mela Chiraghan:
Mela Chiraghan or the “Light of Festivals”; is an important and popular event in Lahore. This is celebrated at the same time as Basant, every spring on the last Friday of March, outside the Shalimar Gardens.

Horse and Cattle Show:
The National Horse and Cattle Show is one of the most famous annual festivals, held in spring in the Fortress Stadium. The week-long activities include a livestock display, horse and camel dances, colourful folk dances from all regions of Pakistan, mass-band displays, and tattoo shows in the evenings.

That’s it for this week my suggestion would be that if you are in Pakistan you must visit during Basant or any of the other festivals as it will surely add colour to your trip!

Adios
Aabi

Writer's Block - The Ways of Our Youth By Bushra Hassan

Earlier this week, I heard that a music channel is searching for a VJ in Islamabad. The auditions were being held near my office, so needless to say, I jumped at this opportunity. Why? Do I want to be a VJ? Yes, why not. Is it my passion, my goal, my dream? Not at all. But it’s an experience and life is made up of experiences, new, different and unique. With the moral support of my best bud, and half a day off from work from a very supportive boss, I soon found myself in a queue, filling out forms and pasting stickers on myself. The experience was interesting, fun, enjoyable and yet disappointing.

Okay, this is not about my audition, or the fact that I used the platform to laugh at myself and the world, and the entire exercise. Okay, it is not about me, myself, and I. Despite being my favourite subject in the world, I shall not tell you about ME.

This is about the 100 something youngsters, who were all wearing their best. From neon green t-shirts, to plaid scarves, to skin tight jeans, the boys were a plenty. It was a sheer disappointment, that there were few girls. I counted five or six, all dressed in skin tight jeans and tops, full of make up looking pretty. It hit me then, being a VJ is considered to be more about clothes and make up, than substance.

The camera was rolling, the youngsters were asked by the channel to “pretend to be nervous”, in order to get a few laughs from the viewers, at the expense of the kiddies. The kiddies and myself complied obediently. I noticed the gestures, the body movements, the language – what it takes to be a VJ – and grimaced. Is this what we have become? Is this what is “IN” and what is “COOL”? Is this what it takes to be a VJ? Or, is this what the various music channels have told us that VJs need to be? Maybe. Coolness is your ticket to being a celebrity, to being on TV. Nothing else matters, or that was the view in the queue.

The same “cool” teenagers also went outside the location for a quick smoke and proudly tossed their cigarette in the green belt, causing a huge fire. Fire truck had to be called, the older men rushed with water to fight the fire …. All in the name of coolness, I admit.

The girls I was sitting with (yes, the girls sat in the shade, while the boys smoked in the heat) kept staring at the boys disappointed with the “quality of boys”. How they are not what Islamabad is, that they are not from “good families”, and how embarrassed they were to be with them, sharing the stage with them, and how confident they were that these “paindoo boys” stood no chance.

At what point did we decide that a good family meant a family of wealth and connections, rather than morality, compassion and integrity? At what point the strength of a youth became it’s following of fashion and copying babbling celebrities rather than its potential to do good, to be worthy, to be the future of its country? And at what point did we decide that we as a nation are divided into two groups: the cool; and the uncool? How the cool judge the others to be inadequate, simply because the parents could not afford better (please read: English speaking) school for them? Is the future of our country in the hands of the children of the powerful, who look down upon the children of the powerless, simply as a birthright?

Where is our youth heading and where is the leadership? Who are our next VJs going to be? What is their biggest strength? Yes, as I discovered, knowledge of the Pakistan music industry is important, but what of honesty, humility, courage, why aren’t these the trademarks of our people?

In the end, I returned with hope and disappointment. The kids all thought they had a chance; most of them are bound to be extremely disappointed. They will feel more dejected when the children of the rich get richer, as they humbly watch on. There goes another job, another future.

All is not doomed. I may not be the youth, but I am still young. My friend who held my hand through the entire exercise, is perhaps the coolest person I shall ever know, her fashion sense is beyond superior, her intellect extraordinary, her family background shinier than the sun, and there she was giving thumbs up signs to the less cool, and sitting in the sun, eight days before her wedding, supporting her uncouth friend for a few good laughs. This same friend, along with other truly cool friends went to meet injured IDPs and troops with flowers and fruits and words of triumph. Irrespective of status, class and any air of superiority, they met the troops, who from truly humble backgrounds, fight so our youth may enjoy their freedom. Then, there is the Pakistan Youth Alliance, that is giving direction to the confused minds of our young ones. There is still hope, people! There is a future.

It’s not over yet because our children and the children of friends like mine, will indeed bring a change. There will always be people who truly define what Pakistan is all about. The country where an England returned Barrister, with impeccable style and English speaking abilities changed the plight of the poor and the future of this country. He put the poor and powerless before himself, he thought them worthy of his life.

All is not over yet. We’re the children of Quaid and some of us may forget it, in the ecstasy of our youth, we will all return to find our one unified identity.

Images courtesy:

Google

Our Unity - Our Survival

Everyday, a new story, new horrific images, new declarations by the government, new "strategies" to fight the "Taliban"!

Our survival rests in only one strategy, that is, our unity. If that weakens, the nation will not be able to withstand insurgency or extremism, or for that matter any other force willing to destroy what this country stands for.

I thought i'd share two video with you, which I watched on YouTube. A very unique and interesting way to portray the situation in NWFP using animation, without using any gory images or powerful words. But the end message still remains powerful.

You'll find the short video clips at www.youtube.com/thepeacefulpakistan.

---------

Blog Admin Highly Recommends this link contributed by a 'TCT Reader'. We request the contributor to send us their name, so due credit can be given along with the article. Thank you.

Not a Drop to Drink!

ISLAMABAD (Online)- Pakistan is fast moving from being a water stressed country to a water scarce country which could put heavy brakes on economic growth and government should accelerate its efforts for setting up new water reservoirs and dams on emergent basis to cope with the looming water crisis.
This was stated by Mian Shaukat Masud, President, Islamabad Chamber of Commerce & Industry (ICCI) in a statement.

He said according to official reports the per capita availability of water in Pakistan has gradually dwindled from 5,260-cubic metres in 1951 to about 1000-cubic metres in recent years and if this trend continued, it could go as low as 550-cubic metres by 2025, which shows the gravity of the situation.
He said the water shortage issue has not been given the level of attention it needed and cautioned that if appropriate steps are not taken country could face a water & food crisis even worse than the current power crisis.


He said in addition to the urgent construction of new water reservoirs and small dams, government should launch serious water conservation initiatives to improve the efficiency of water use, particularly in agriculture sector,which claims more than 90 percent of the available fresh water resources.
Mian Shaukat said Pakistan can save enough water by adopting latest technology and making a partial shift from lower-value, water-intensive crops to high-value and more water-efficient crops.
He said Pakistan is mostly using flood irrigation in agriculture while it should explore the use of drip or spray irrigation, which makes better and efficient use of water resources.

The report above as well as the photos are in fact obtained from the web, just to help you visualize the looming crisis that we as Pakistanis are about to face in our Motherland!

Scenes like those above have haunted me throughout my life's journey in my Motherland, while growing up while living in various cities and while driving around the length and breadth of Pakistan.
In Sindh, in Baluchistan, in the Frontier and in Punjab, the scenes are virtually the same; I have stop here to narrate a story from a friend who had served in uniform, while posted in the tribal areas of Baluchistan, he actually came across groups of settlements around what one would term a water-hole, straightaway the vision of a shaded pool surrounded by tall shady trees comes to mind, but in fact what was there was a pond of green slime, where every human and animal went for whatever their needs were; drinking, washing, and anything else that may spring to mind....no exaggeration!
This friend an officer leading his group of men were camped close by and he directed his jawans to move one of their water tanker trailers, that they tow behind a jeep, to within the settlement's perimeter. He then proceeded to encourage the curious children to take a drink of clear fresh water, but they shied away!! Wanting to know what it was!! when told it was water, their eyes popped open wide in disbelief; he had to drink some to help them grasp the reality, but while doing so the reality he was trying to come to terms with himself was the sight of these adults and children living and growing up around this stagnant stinking slimy green pond that served as their source of the elixir of life!

Later that very same day he was visited by angry disgruntled tribal members who demanded to know what on earth he thought he was trying to do; he tried to pacify them and began to explain his very innocent intentions to help the people to source good clean fresh clean water. While the tribals finally understood his honourable intentions, they demanded that the bowser be immediately withdrawn from their neighborhood, as they had no intentions whatsoever of getting them all used to this water which would only be there while the soldiers were around! "What will happen when you are gone?" they asked, where will we find or get more of it, there is no way we can bring it from wherever you have managed to get it


That was in the early 1070s! the situations have not got any better, in fact memories of water wastege, haunt me now as I observe how we hose down our driveways to remove the sand from the places where our cars are parked, cleaning women thoughtlessly pipe in hand water flowing sweep away car are washed everyday as if they are about to be taken into a mosque! on my road we have 4 such homes where a minimum of 3 cars per household get this pakofying treatment every day!! Can you believe it!??

Not to mention how we wash our faces and brush our teeth, with the water flowing away down the drain, what about the winter time when we open the tap to get hot water we let it flow till it is hot, imagine how much we waste; ever notice how the kitchen help have the tap running all the while when the dishes are being washed? Well, the truth is I too am guilty of all of the above, but, not anymore, changes have been made to conserve the water in our home, so that we save, it for our tomorrows.
Please give this precious resource some serious thought, don’t waste water in your glass while drinking save it for later don’t throw it away, I beseech you, please.

One summer when I was living in the UK, there was a terrible drought, washing cars was banned! I could not stand the sight of my dirty car so on the weekend I collected the soapy water which came out of the washing machine, and took it to wash my car, while another bucket collected the rinse cycle water, bye the time I was finishing I noticed a Bobby (cop) walking up to me and began to question me for having broken the ban! I explained what and how I had done it, he ended up telling me it was a great idea and that he would do likewise! Getting full use of the water that way!
Apparently a neighbour had watched me and alerted the police!

Jerry's Take: Bringing about a Change - Jarrar Shah

Pakistan has been in the grips of a severe heat wave. This always happens this time of the year. All of us are eagerly awaiting the arrival of the first monsoon rains. This year has been more difficult than usual because of the excessive load shedding (power outages). Here are some interesting facts about the electricity situation in the country. The total capacity of electricity in this country is 19,754MW (economic survey of Pakistan 2008-2009). the current production of electricity in this country is roughly 11,000MW. The demand in this country given the atrocious weather conditions is at its yearly peak which is 15,000 MW. Do the math folks. Should this equation result in load shedding? We are utilising 55% of our total installed capacity of power generation. so whats going on here? in a nutshell, poor governance. The government is not paying the utility companies who cant pay the producers who in turn cant pay the oil and gas companies. Our energy sector is trapped in circular debt. Here's the kicker. In the next two years roughly 10,000MW are going to be coming online in our energy grid. that's good news right? Well ill leave that judgement up to you. the overwhelming majority of power producing units coming up are going to be thermal based i.e running on gas or oil. We already aren't being able to pay our existing thermal units so how are we going to pay these new companies. Well one thing the government could do and is doing is increase the bills it sends us. Once that's done how our industries will compete globally is something beyond me. The effect on domestic inflation wont be nice either. Also what would happen if international oil prices start rocketing towards the $150/barrel mark? Another thing that could happen is that due to the shutting down of various industrial units our consumption could come down so we wont have to run all those expensive thermal units. What would happen to all those jobless youth is something we will worry about when we cross that bridge or i guess in our case not worry at all. Why?

Lately there's been some noise about the water issue. This issue is only going to get worse with time. Our capacity to store water on the Indus is limited and our population growth is not. We have politicised the issue of dams to the detriment of us all. The much awaited monsoon season is all set to hit us. The bulk of that rainfall will be wasted. Why? Because we don't have any dam downstream of Tarbela dam to catch and store that rain water. A lot of the snow that melts each year cant be stored because we only have Tarbela dam on the Indus and no dam upstream of it. We talk incessantly of being an agrarian economy yet over the past so many decades we have made the topic of dams politically taboo in this country. Why?

Apart from the obvious benefits of storing water when its in excess during the summers and monsoon, building dams will also generate thousands of jobs for unskilled workers during construction and later on during construction of new canals etc. The most obvious benefit that will be derived though is on the energy front. We will be providing our consumers and our industry alike with the cheapest source of renewable energy thus leading to massive industrialisation and job creation in this country. We have the capacity to generate 55,000MW of cheap electricity from the river Indus but unfortunately we are not the least bit interested in pursuing this option. Why?

Politics as usual can not go on in this country anymore. Our challenges are too huge and our people have been taken for granted for far too long for this to continue. We must individually and collectively start doing our part in bringing about a change.

One such group of individuals have made a collective called Pakistan Rising that intends to play a part no matter how small in bringing about this change. This group of individuals came together a couple of months back after reports of the Taliban extremists entering Buner. They helped organize a letter campaign and protest rally against extremism in Lahore, Islamabad and Karachi. They are also facilitating 400 IDP families at three locations in NWFP and 60 IDP families in Lahore. They have raised and distributed goods worth Rs3.5million in one month for these IDP families. In addition they have held two further protests and vigils one of which was done simultaneously in Lahore and Islamabad with the Lahore event being held at the site of the suicide bombing of the rescue 15 building 3 days after the bombing. Pakistan Rising has also created an awareness campaign in Lahore regarding the menace of extremism and about the need for unity amongst Pakistanis. They need your help though. They need volunteers, members and financial contribution. These are all people who care passionately about this country and have decided to do their part. The plan of Pakistan Rising is simple. They want to create awareness amongst the people of Pakistan so that people can mobilise effectively to pressurize the government of the day. They want to promote unity amongst the provinces and peoples of this land. They want all of you to join them in this endeavor. If others are doing the same thing already then collaboration and coordination would be something that could be done.

For greater details on how to contribute please check out their facebook page or go to

www.pakistanrising.com.pk

the website is still being polished and updated but it should be up and running within a weeks time. Im also a full fledged member of this collective, so if someone needs information from me id be only too happy to oblige.

Pakistan Hamesha Zindabad.

Supreme Ishq.

Pandora's Box: Jinaay Lahore nahee wakhaiaya - Aabi Asif

Hey people!

I will start my travelogue from the land of Punjab. Punjab is a derivative and is made up of two words “Punj” and “aab”; Punj meaning five and aab meaning water; thus it is the land of five rivers.

There is this famous saying : jinnay nay Lahore naee wakhaiay oh jamia nahee;
Translated: He who hasn’t seen Lahore hasn’t lived his life!

Lahore is considered to be the land of people who know how to live and enjoy life!!!

Lahore is the second largest city of and provincial capital of Punjab. Legend has that it was founded by two sons of Lord Rama about 4000 years ago. Historically it has been proved that Lahore is about 2000 years old. Hieun-tsang, the famous Chinese pilgrim, has given a vivid description of Lahore city which he visited in the early parts of the seventh century A.D.

Legend has that it was founded by two sons of Lord Rama about 4000 years ago. Historically it has been proved that Lahore is about 2000 years old. Hieun-tsang, the famous Chinese pilgrim, has given a vivid description of Lahore city which he visited in the early parts of the seventh century A.D.

For 200 years, beginning from about 1525 A.D., Lahore was a thriving cultural center of the great Mughal Empire. Mughal Emperors beautified Lahore with palaces, gardens and mosques. During the British regime many monuments sprang up in Lahore which blended beautifully with the Mughal, Gothic and Victorian styles of architecture.

Historical Monuments:
Lahore is filled with beautiful architecture that constitute our history. Some of them worth visiting are:

The first and foremost is: Minar-e-Pakistan. Minar-e-Pakistan is the monument that was built in Manto Park where in 1940, the resolution was passed. It is in memory of the event of the 23rd March where the ideology of Pakistan was presented.

Right behind Minar-e-Pakistan is the Royal Fort of Lahore. Although most parts of the Royal Fort were constructed around 1566 A.D. by the Mughal Emperor, Akbar the great, there is evidence that a mud fort was in existence here in 1021 A.D. as well, when Mahmood of Ghazna invaded this area. Akbar demolished the old mud fort and constructed most of the modern Fort, as we see it today, on the old foundations. Construction of the fort dates back to the early Hindu period.

Badshahi Mosque is another one of the Mughal creations The emperor or the Badshahi Mosque is across the courtyard from Alamgiri Gate of the Lahore Fort. The Mosque which is made up entirely of sand-stone was built by Emperor Aurangzeb, the last of the great Mughals, in a record time of the two and-a-half years. Its construction was completed by 1674 A.D
Outside the Badshahi mosque, near its steps, lies the tomb of Allama Iqbal, the poet-philosopher of the East. The mausoleum is a mixture of Afghan and Moorish style of architecture and is constructed entirely of red sandstone which was quarried and brought from Rajasthan.
So if you are ever there in Lahore make it a point to visit these places; its worth going to to get in touch with the history again :)

More about Lahore next week; this is Aabi signing off for now.
Have fun!