Bollywood, India’s Hindi language cinema, has millions of ardent fans across the world. Among them are the people of Pakistan. People like me. Now that love affair is souring. Unlike a lot of other Pakistanis, my interest in Bollywood developed much later in life. I was already in my late 20s when I took the…
Tag: Pakistan
Of Ramiz Raja and Najam Sethi
Ramiz Raja is out. Najam Sethi is again in charge of the Pakistan Cricket Board. Monkeys are flying and the Brontosaurus is roaming earth again. Or so the anti-Najam Sethi camp would have you believe. People put in charge of certain positions should have some level of expertise in the mentioned field, and cricket should…
Pakistan’s Attack On Christmas
For a lot of people, Christmas this year was the first one post Covid restrictions. As people everywhere passed along Christmas wishes to others, large sections of Pakistanis moved in a different direction: Christmas is haram. Wishing it is haram. Celebrating it is haram. Doing so is Shirk for it means that Jesus is the…
That Naseem Shah Spell
MCG. World Cup Final. Versus possibly the greatest white ball team in history. It’s a spell that I’ve gone back to watch, and then re-watch and then watch again one more time. Make no mistake, Naseem Shah isn’t the kind of bowler that ignited that raw Pakistani fast bowler emotion in me during the early…
Short Story : MashAllah Man
“Sister Humaira has a question now…” Raees Ahmed, the bushy moustached bespectacled host, had the camera on him as he read out a message from a card infront of him. “She says Asalamualikum Aalim Sahib..” “Walakumasalam “ muttered a voice in the background. The camera was still on Raees. “My daughter recently completely her Intermediate…
South Asia and Black Lives Matter
It’s not easy looking at images of burning, looting and rampant violence. Not today, when the modes of inflicting said damage have become faster and more co-ordinated than at any point in our history. The only thing worse than looking at those images, is living through it and that is what African Americans have been…
Pakistan and the Ahmaddiya Community
We have been here. This is not the first, nor will this be the last time. The Ahmadiyya community is under attack again. Surprised? You shouldn’t be. Remember Ashfaq Ahmed, the veterinary? Remember the chakwal mosque burning? Remember the signs outside Hafeez Centre in Lahore? Remember the US based doctor, Mehdi Ali Qamar? Remember Professor…
ISIS and Pakistan
There is the lush screen scenery. There are the picturesque Margalla Hills. There are the curve-friendly roads on these hills that remind one of Vital Signs and Junaid Jamshed. There is the crisp and cool weather. There is a particular calm never found in other major cities of the country. Then there is the Lal Masjid – the antithesis of everything in Islamabad –…
How To Tell a Pakistani and Indian Apart : 101
A shared history, a shared border and shared languages, ( or different variants of them ) and almost similar dress codes are among some of the things that are similar about India and Pakistan. Combined demographically, they make up some of the largest immigrant populations in Canada. However, Pakistanis like myself are regularly mistaken for…
Psychotherapy for Civilians, not Traffic Wardens
A recent news piece mentioned traffic wardens in Lahore being given psychotherapy sessions in light of their unruly behavior. It appears to be a good move on the surface, but is It only the traffic wardens who need these sessions? If one makes a list of the most disliked authority figures in Pakistan, it would…
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