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FEBRUARY 6, 2011

TheNation

STYLE TRENDS BOOKS INTERVIEWS GOSSIP Q&A SOCIETY

THIS PANELLED KAMEEZ WITH SHARARA AND LONG HEMLINES HAS CHAMPIONED TRADITIONAL ATTIRE THAT IS PERFECTLY MADE FOR THE MODERN BRIDE OF TODAY WHILE STILL RETAINING THE

S PANELLED KAMEEZ WITH SHARARA AND LONG HEMLINES HAS CHAMPIONED TRADITIONAL ATTIRE THAT IS PERFECTLY MADE FOR THE

AFFAIR A PARISIAN

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INTERVIEW

FASHION

INTERVIEW

MUSIC

HERITAGE

Meet designer Feeha Jamshed who has fashion in her genes

See the style regime’s best outfi ts from the runways

PM AJK Sardar Attique Ahmed Khan talks about the Kashmir freedom struggle

‘American Idol’ premieres with new judges and the same old show

Explore the true perspective of Babri Mosque

INSIDE THIS WEEKFEBRUARY 06, 2011

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STYLE ZODIAC

ART

PICKS OF THE WEEK

CAPITAL TALK SOCIETY

FOOD

REVIEW

Take a trip to Paris with super model Nadia Hussain

Weekly astrological forecasts

Remembering artiste Abdul Rahim Nagori

Go through the smart wish-list for best buys

Did something go wrong at the Islamabad Fashion Week?

Report on the happenings and events in your metropolis

Learn to make the best sweet treats

Bestseller ‘Pakistan Terrorism Ground Zero’

6014 JUDICIARY MUST ASSERT ITS AUTHORITYTHE KASHMIR FREEDOM STRUGGLEINTERVIEWINTERVIEW

SUNDAY PLUS

EDITOR’S NOTE

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The Sunday Plus team presents to you another exciting issue. The team has worked hard to ensure there is no let up in our exclusive stories and interviews. AJK Prime Minister Sardar Attique Ahmed Khan in an exclusive interview talks about the unprecedented wave of freedom struggle that has engulfed the Indian held Kashmir. Top leader of the lawyers’ movement Hamid Khan has urged the judiciary to assert its authority. Learn about the true perspective of Babri Mosque from Dr Shaukat Mahmood. This week bring to you new informative section on environment. Feeha Jamshed of Teejays talks about her life and style and what is till today been very confi dential. Take a trip to Paris with super model Nadia Hussain to showcase Nomi Ansari’s new collection. Style geeks get in ready for FRESH-OFF-THE-RAMP. Check the style regime’s best outfi ts from runways on the fashion pages. We await your feedback. Stay with us every week to enjoy the Sunday Plus.

Editor-in-ChiefMajid Nizami

Deputy Managing DirectorRameeza Nizami

Group Editor:Salim Bokhari

Editor Magazine:Emanuel Sarfraz

Editorial Staff : Bishakha Khadka Kunwar, Madiha Syedain, Sadaf Pervez & Navirah Zafar

Creative Head:Faiz-ur-Rehman

Creative Team: Shoaib Qadir, Faisal Fazal, Talal Waheed, HM. Nouman, & Sohail Abbas

Marketing: Bilal Mahmood, Muhammad Zaeem & Salman Ahmed

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February 6, 20118 SUNDAY PLUS

INTERVIEW

By Bishakha Khadka Kunwar

FEEHA JAMSHED: FASHION INHER GENESWatching Feeha on the runway and meeting her in person, you feel that this charming heiress of the eponymous label Teejays has turned the tables around and has managed to make her mark on the Pakistani fashion circuit with her exquisite taste and her signature style. Her sense of style and designs has taken Teejays to such extraordinary heights, which make it obvious that Feeha has her fi nger fi rmly on the fashion pulse.


INTERVIEW

Gadgets you love…Well I am more into the hand made gadgets, putting two things together to make one.Colours…all colours except lilacBook…too many to nameMovie…a very unfair question.

FAVO-METER

Before meeting Feeha at a local café, I have to admit I regarded my interview with her with just a bit of trepidation. But as I approached Feeha in the courtyard, the smile on her face and a warm hug mellowed my anxiety. I could not help but notice her remarkable innate sense of style. The black balloon dress, stacks of bangles on her refl ected the je ne sais quoi attitude that posses fi rmly in her genes. The way she is following her father’s steps, it’s safe to call her as her father’s protégé.

Besides the obvious influence of her father, Tanvir Jamshed, Feeha has turned everything, played the rules and inserted her own sartorial sense into Teejays. In every fashion show, Feeha has managed to garner accolades from many and not with-out a reason. Feeha is one of the few young designers whose forte lies in creating the easy-breezy, casual chic that has been revolutionised since Teejays evolution forty years ago.

There is a confident eccentricity in her designs that is hard to ignore which is reflected on her latest col-lection “TEEJAYS EVOLUTION” that is inspired by Teejays existence of forty years in fashion, from bohemia in the 70s, into militia in 80s and 90s and vintage during the 2000s and recently the space age.

Teejays philosophy “Style makes man, man makes revolutionary fashion” is what keeps Feeha ingenious. Consistently in-novative yet relevant, Feeha Jamshed’s designs have shot her straight to the fashion

forefront and has taken the fashion world by storm. In an exclusive rendezvous with the Sunday Plus, Feeha spills some candid secrets about her designs and her eclectic style.

Your design philosophy? My design philosophy is the same as

TEEJAYS; having designs on Pakistan. What does easy chic mean to you?

Easy chic means that it is easily avail-able and is easily worn, minimal and stitched in the best way possible with an element of style

What does success mean to you? Success is a relative term, depends

what success is measured to whether money, love fame or happiness. Success for me is to being grateful at the end of the day. That feeling can take you places.

Who is your favourite designer (Lo-cal and International)?

Locally my favourite designers are Umar Sayeed, Kamiar Rokhni and Iman Ahmed of Body Focus locally. Interna-tionally I like Alaexander Wang, Stella Mcartney, Jill Sanders and Balanciaga.

Your day starts with….A glass of warm lemon water and honey and a cup of tea. Eggs in any form is a must for me.

You are addicted to… Music

Dream destination…Somewhere up north, South America or somewhere across Europe. It’s a tough question.

An unknown fact about yourself… that I don’t brush my hair.

One thing you would like to change about yourself… too late to change anything. I have become comfortable with I am and look.

A must have for you… Good music.

Beauty crime…A dark lip liner with a nude lip colour inside.

Beauty secret…Organic way of living: eating right fruits and vegetables and exercise.

Style statement…

Wearing you. Style icon…

My mother in her youth, the seventies. Celebrities you would love to dress…

Queen Rania. Who do you think is the most over-

rated designer? There is a mix of both under-rated and

over-rated. Personal strengths…

family. Your fi rst fashion creation…

Thirteen years ago I made the kameez with the collar look for the drama serial ‘Tumhi To Ho’ for Atiqa Odhos character directed by Marina Khan.

Personal weaknesses…before I used to think twice in doing

something for myself.• Your journey so-far…

grateful.• A city that inspires you…

the street culture from any city inspires me.

• A person who inspires/inspired you the most… my father and my late maternal and paternal grandfathers.

• The best thing about being a Paki-stani…the truck art is only available in Pakistan and is now world re-known. The fact that we are a resilient nation.

• One thing I would change about Pakistan is…the attitude of living in a bubble.


CLOSET CONFIDENTIAL: 3-must haves in anyone’s closet…Good pair of jeans, basic white shirt and good innerwear. Up for grabs on your shopping list… for now because of the weather, a nice jacket and the other would be a nice printed bag. The thing I treasure most from my wardrobe is... my great grand mothers Nikkah Kameez and my mother’s Afghani shawl. Perfumes…Escada by Escada, Rose by Paul Smith and also diff erent types of itar. Brands you buy… none

INTERVIEW

INTERVIEW

SIKANDER SHAHEEN: Every year on February 5 Kashmir Solidarity Day is observed. This year it is more signifi cant in the wake of unprecedented upris-ing in Indian Held Kashmir. What more needs to be done?SARDAR ATTIQUE AHMED KHAN: The struggle for the liberation of Kashmir is a peaceful movement. The international community is realising as to what people of Kashmir want. Parliamentary Committee of Muslim Conference has declared the 2011 as the Year of Self Determination. As leader of the house in AJK LA, I an-nounced that February 5 be honoured the title of UN Kashmir Mandate Day. We would make human hands chains at all the intersection points of Pakistan and AJK. Just recently, Pakistan’s foreign minister addressed the Parliamentary Party of Muslim Conference. People of Pakistan celebrate this day as enthusiastically as Kash-miris do. Protests are held outside United Nations offi ces across the world. Kashmiris and Pakistanis share very strong religious, social, cultural and historical bonds and Solidarity Day refl ects these sentiments. The struggle for Kashmir’s independence is an unfolding process and much needs to be done but just like you said that an unprecedented wave has engulfed the Occupied Valley which is a very healthy sign clearly forecasting the accomplishment of this noble cause—liberation of Kash-mir. The US President, and the Chinese Prime Minister during their visits to India had talked about solution of Kashmir issue and just recently, the UN Special Rap-porteur on human rights pointed to the serious human rights violations. It can safely be said that India stands isolated on Kashmir issue and the world now stands with Kashmiris.

SS: What role for Pakistan do you see in this libera-tion struggle? How do you compare its role in the past compared to present and future? You said international community stands with Kashmiris, how

Prime Minister Azad Jammu and Kashmir Sardar Attique Ahmed Khan in an exclusive interview with Sunday Plus of The Nation talks about the unprecedented wave of freedom struggle blowing across the occupied Kashmir and the politics of AJK. Here are excerpts of the interview:

By Sikander Shaheen


KASHMIR ISSUE: PM AJK INDIA STANDS ISOLATED ON

do you justify this statement?SAAK: Just like I mentioned that people of Pakistan and Kashmir enjoy very close social, cultural and historical bonds. Naturally Pakistan has always stood by Kashmiris. If Pakistan goes for a passive role towards Kashmir cause, India would get an opportunity to try to sabotage the Kashmir issue through propaganda. The strength of the political leadership as well as general public in Pakistan, AJK and Occupied Kashmir, lies in unity. And our strength is India’s weakness. In the past, generally, the international community did not have a very clear understanding of Kashmir issue and India always projected at diff er-ent international forums that the struggle for Kashmir’s independence was actually Pakistan sponsored terrorism. This perception has changed. The world now realises that Kash-miris want independence from India, which is why they are fi ghting unarmed against the hundreds of thousands of Indian armed forces and sacrifi cing their lives. The world under-stands that it is an indigenous movement. The world leaders are visiting Kashmir and giving statements in favour of Kashmir issue’s solu-tion which never happened before.

SS: You have mentioned the visits of international dignitaries to India. The UN human rights Special Rapporteur, Margaret Sekaggya, in her concluding press briefi ng in New Delhi, had only discussed the secu-rity threats to the human rights defenders. She demanded repeal of Special Powers Act not because of grave human rights vio-lations in IHK but only because the lives of human rights defenders were endangered. In short, her press briefi ng lacked a word on tortures, arrests and killings of protestors and public in IHK. What do you say?SAAK: Yes I’m aware of this issue that you had taken up in print media but I think the other way. Please try to understand that Mar-garet Sekaggya is a UN diplomat and she had to abide by her diplomatic obligations. I think within the spheres of her diplomatic jurisdic-tion, she has very eff ectively demanded of the Indian Government to give up state sponsored terrorism in IHK and elsewhere. I think this was a historic event that a UN Special Rapporteur, unlike the past, visited India and advocated the

independence movement in a very beauti-ful manner. Her visit would help highlight the Kashmir cause more eff ectively. The UN diplomats do not put in place any given hostile scenario very directly. They tackle these situ-ations very diplomatically and it’s their way of doing the things and I think the UN offi cial did it beautifully.

SS: I can recall that during your last visit to Lahore, you had stated that European Union’s way of thinking about the Kashmir struggle was changing. Can you elaborate?SAAK: Yes I said that and I positively believe so. Look, EU is a combination of 27 highly industrialised and developed democracies. I often term EU as the “UN of Europe.” It is a vi-brant and powerful platform that has a strong say in world politics. Last year, the European Parliament conducted a special hearing on Kashmir case and I represented the Kashmir side. It was a unique and unprecedented event. A representative from all the three stakehold-ers, Pakistan, India and Kashmir was invited to represent their stance on Kashmir. From Pakistan’s side, Ambassador Abbas Jilani rep-resented, Ashok Mehta represented India while I was the representative of Kashmir. So the way EU thinks about Kashmir cause is really changing. The EU might not have had a very positive opinion about this issue some years ago but times have changed. Kashmir issue is very much pres-ent on UN agenda but India, through evasive and baseless propaganda, keeps trying to get it removed but organisations like Organisation of Islamic Countries (OIC) which is a joint platform of 57 Muslim states and EU, that represents the powerful and Industrialised Western Europe, are posi-tive that Kashmir issue be solved as per wishes of Kashmiris and they are playing their role which visibly does not coincide with Indian stance on Kashmir.

SS: A few months from now you would complete your term and there would be general elec-tions in AJK. Looking back

from day one since you came into power, how do you analyse your achievements and failures with regard to Kashmir issue?SAAK: Without exaggerating, I think our suc-cesses have been unprecedented and there are no regrets. You see, when leaders like US President, and Chinese PM and for the fi rst time, UN Special Rapporteur visit India and they do not follow or endorse Indian policy line on Kashmir, and instead, they oppose it, it means that we have eff ectively played our part to sensitise and mobilise international community’s opinion. As I said, the

INTERVIEW

UN envoy says Delhi must end state sponsored terrorism in IHK

India’s weakness is our strength

Muslim Conference is custodian of the ideology of Kashmir’s independence movement

February 6, 2011 15SUNDAY PLUS


INTERVIEW

European Parliament conducted a special session on Kashmir issue and I very strongly represented our case. That was an unprec-edented event in the last 63 years or so. Lately, we’ve been in contact with Red Cross for supplying food and ration items to our brothers in Indian Held Kashmir during curfew hours. The deliberations are underway and hopefully something productive would be the outcome. There is a long list of our achievements and I can go on and on recalling them. Kashmir issue is something that our government and party have nothing to regret about.

SS: The word is doing rounds in AJK politi-cal circles that you are going to dissolve AJK LA in April this year. If that’s the case, won’t it be unconstitutional?SAAK: In the fi rst place, dissolution of AJK LA is an unconstitutional act and it is completely incorrect that I’m going to do so. The general elections would be held within due time period. I took oath on July 26, 2006 and the Legisla-tive Assembly would meet its term on May 25, 2011. So, constitutionally, May 25 to July 25 is the time period for the elections and they would be held within this time.

SS: The formation of PML-N in AJK fore-casts that the coming general elections would carry a traditional fl avour of tough polls between the political arch foes, PPP and PML-N. What role do you see for MC in this regard? On the basis of your perfor-mance in the present tenure, how far do you see the chances of success?SAAK: We don’t believe in the politics of bargaining and vested interests. We have per-formed and we are positive that people would elect us on the basis of our performance. The

MC is symbol of “Kashmir banay ga Pakistan,” slogan (Kashmir would become Pakistan) and it’s the representative and custodian of the ideology of Kashmir’s independence move-ment. Everybody knows that when we came to power, we started mega developmental projects even in the electoral constituencies of our rivals. Just to report an instance here, I initiated a mega project worth over Rs 900 million in district Poonch, in the constituency of Sardar Khalid Ibrahim, and I had lost the electoral seat from the same constituency. Our performance is known to everybody. Regarding elections, well there is still a lot of time remaining and so many political ups and downs have yet to come. And you would see which way the wind blows.

SS: Can you elaborate on “ups and downs”?SAAK: If you remember, last year, I had said that Barrister Sultan Mehmood Chaudhry should join PPP and you fi nally saw that hap-pening. The “ups and downs” means there would be so many political make-ups and break ups. In politics two plus two does not necessarily have to be four. The scenario keeps changing.

SS: When are AJK Council elections going to be held? Some circles think that Council members should be elected by the present AJK LA, while others suggest that they should be elected by fresh Legislative Assembly. If elected by this LA, don’t you think it would be the repetition of what Pervaiz Musharraf did in 2007—getting elected by an Assembly that’s about to complete its term?SAAK: You tell me, if a Senator in Pakistan resigns or dies, you would want immediate

elections on the vacant seat or you would say that one-year or so is remaining in the Sena-tor’s term so let’s wait? No you never say that. Same goes for the AJKC elections. Across the world, the elected houses elect their represen-tatives in due course of time and it does not matter how many days or years are remaining for the term to expire.

SS: How do you see MC’s role in future politics of AJK?SAAK: MC is the custodian of the ideology of the very existence of AJK. It’s the symbol of Kashmir movement. It’s the custodian of our ideological essence. It is not just a political party it’s a motivational force, an ideological force and representative of the sentiments of Kashmiris. Whatever the circumstances be, the MC would always be there to serve people and to safeguard the ideological foundations of Kashmir.

KARACHI: AJK Prime Minister Sardar Attique Ahmed Khan salutes during his visit to Quaid’s Mazar to pay homage

★ ★ ★

The world now realises that Kashmiris want independence from India, which is why they are fi ghting unarmed against the hundreds of thousands of Indian armed forces and sacrifi cing their lives


FASHION

MARIA B. IN

MARIA B. PRET-A-PORTER

here is one thing to be said about Nadia and that is- You will never fi nd her stuck-in-a-designer-rut. One to always sport something diff erent, she didn’t disappoint us this time as well by wearing this jewelled neckline Nomi Ansari kameez with Ajrak printed sleeves during the recent Lux Style Awards.

potted on Maria is a fresh off -the-runway cropped military jacket by the designer herself. This is from her latest collection entitled “Tribal Militants”. From what we see, we love. This cropped black and white printed jacket with me-tallic buttons is a perfect combo. Her all black look do the trick. Her accessories are a great addition. I love the look minus the clutch. It distracts from the rock-star look.

his black/white /red argyle printed dress on Aminah looks divine. Though the one that Aminah is wearing is in a diff erent colour than the run-way look, I am more inclined to the one that she dons. I was already in love with Aminah’s look but her Lady Dior bag got me drooling. It is such a great addition to her shiny and shimmery look. Her black platform pumps complete her look.

IN NOMI ANSARI

NADIA HUSSAIN

TS T

AMINAH HAQ

IN SADAF MALATERRE

Bishakha Khadka Kunwar

NOW THAT’S WHAT WE CALL

A RUNWAY STYLE


FASHION

FRIEHA ALTAF

IN ALI XEESHANHANI TAHA

IN SAHAR ATIF

e spotted a fresh-off -the-runway Ali Xeeshan shirt on Frieha from his latest collection “The Phoenix”. The colour is doing all the justice for Ms. Altaf. We love the cut, silhouette and style of the shirt. We can already tell you that the leather tights teamed with the shirt is a winner. But her red stiletto is kind of a bummer! But nonetheless funky yet classy, Frieha’s ensemble is quiet edgy and she pulls it off ef-fortlessly.

hile some outfi ts may look fi ne on the runway, they may not look the same off it and Fareshteh’s is an example. She picked the piece from Nida’s latest collection called “Auspicious Musings” with Chinese infl uence.But the truth-O-meter tells us that the shirt looks more like a robe that you wear at night. Oops! For a more pre-cise look she defi nitely could have carried her look without the black shawl which hides all the prints on her robe. I much preferred Mehreen’s cleaner look on the runway.

ho says that journalists do not have any fashion sense? Hani defi nitely proves all the critics wrong. This was a fresh off -the-runway Sahar Atif dress on Hani at the recent red carpet event. The all white draped dress looked pretty on her. I just wish she could have done something about her hair. Also her shoes and bag don’t match at all. Her bag is blue and her heels are purple. She could have opted for gladiator fl ats or pumps for a more edgy look.

W W W

FARESHTEH

IN NIDA AZWER

In a year fi lled with tonnes of red carpet worthy moments, there are few celebrities who struted down the red carpet in some

gorgeous designer wears that were FRESH-OFF –THE-RAMP. It was no mean task to scour the best celebrities and fashionistas

who showed some oomph in their style regime with some of the best outfi ts from the runways. .While some fashionistas paraded

down the red carpet in some gorgeous couture wear, others chose to redefi ne chic in some lust worthy outfi ts. An elegantly em-

bellished argyle printed Sadaf Malaterre sequined dress on Aminah Haq to gorgeous Nomi Ansari ensemble on Nadia Hussain,

we present to you our top most stunning runway to red carpet moments.


Fashion is in the midst of a major about turn. The style police have decreed that it’s out with all things tricky. And in with a new breed of clothes that are easy to wear, relevant for modern women’s lives, and above all, fl attering. Hurrah! Along with curve loving dresses, simple sweaters and the most fl attering culottes ever, there is a new show style that suddenly looks fresh and right for now: THE POINTY-TOE COURT. The PTC has fi nally returned! Yes, you read it right: pumps that have ever been an eternal style statement in fashion are back- and not a moment too soon, we reckon.

After seasons of mega wedges and super platform heels, the time is right for a footwear detox. Now, we know it may take a while to adjust your style antennae to these quiet, refi ned shoes, which is why we are altering you to them this season. For starters, PTC is the perfect partner to this season’s key pieces. But apart from the fact that PTCs are the IT shoe of the season, we are super excited to report that their ability to lengthen any legs (thanks to the pointy toe) and make even the chunkiest of ankles seem slim-mer is second to none. What’s not to like huh?

Got a point to make? Flex your style savvy and give yourself an edge with these sharp-toed shoes. Terribly fl attering, very lady-likes and supremely comfortable; the classic pointed shoes is right on trend.

SHOES DOMAKE A POINT!

These pointed pumps and booties from Charles and Keith are what you seek in a hot fashion statement. From pointed kitten pumps in snakeskin for snake lovers or the platform heels, these heels defi nitely bring out the chic in you and you certainly have a POINT TO MAKE!

Anne Hathaway rocks her all black avatar with this feisty pointed Red Bow

pumps by Isabel Marant

Jessica Alba, who tapped into the

masculine trend with her Dolce & Gabbana suit, which she paired with Christian Louboutin

“Pigalle” studded pointed pumps

Bishakha Khadka Kunwar

FASHION

MUSIC

Same dramatic music, same talk about making people’s dreams come true, same sob stories with predictable tickets to Hol-lywood. It’s comforting, or it’s a snoozefest -- take your pick.

The show tries to ramp things up in the beginning. “FORGET WHAT YOU THINK YOU KNEW ... BECAUSE THE BEST ... IS YET TO COME” fl ashes across the screen over a montage of all the hysterical specula-tion over who would replace the departing Simon Cowell, kicked-to-the-curb Kara DioGuardi and unfortunate disaster Ellen

DeGeneres.Of course, we’ve all known for months

the slots are fi lled with singer/actress/for-mer “In Living Color” dancer Jennifer Lopez and Aerosmith rocker Steven Tyler, so the slow-motion intros are unnecessary. Randy Jackson, the only surviving judge from seasons past, pipes up to say he’s happy to share the spotlight with two industry icons. Or, you know, still be gainfully employed -- whatever. And Jimmy Iovine, the new “in house mentor” and Interscope Records chairman who will sign the winner to a


Worried that “American

Idol” would be unrecognizable

after some major revamping (new judges, new age

limits, new in-house mentor who really

runs the show, etc.) that took place over the last year? Good

news! Nothing’s changed.

‘AMERICAN IDOL’ PREMIERES

NEW JUDGES, SAME OLDSHOW


MUSIC

recording contract, gets a quick intro.Up fi rst is Rachel Zevita, 22, a

rerun auditioner because she already gave it a shot in Season 6. J-Lo claims to remember exactly who she’s looking at, even though this Rachel has her frizzy hair much more under control. She sings Leonard Cohen’s “Hallelujah,” and hits super high notes that startle the judges. Steven Tyler thinks she’s a fl ower, which they need to water and let grow. Oh good, he’s the new Paula. Then Rachel accidentally insults Randy Jackson by telling him she’s nervous because she’s sung in front of “famous” judges before, but never anyone she looks up to. Therefore, we accept when she’s given a golden ticket.

Caleb Hawley, 25, croons “Hallelu-jah I Love Her So” by Ray Charles, and Steven Tyler senses he needs some help, letting out one of his trademark screams at the end. J-Lo thinks Caleb is cute, which we soon learn is code for “You’re going to Hollywood.” And so he does.

Next up is the fi rst 15-year-old contestant, now the youngest age possible for auditions since “Idol” lowered the age limit by a year. Kenzie Palmer belts out “Young and Beauti-ful” by Carrie Underwood, and does a decent job, but the judges disagree. At this point, two contestants have cried, but both have been from joy. Where’s the deal, “Idol”? Simon Cowell would not stand for this. J-Lo seems thrilled at how easy it is to say “yes,” but then strolls in Achille Lovle, 25, who sings a Madonna tune. “Sing” may be the wrong word, as she may be tone deaf,

and Steven Tyler tells her melodies all over the place. Tiff any breaks down in tears before her audition starts, because, she explains, J-Lo is her role model. J-Lo gives her a comforting hug. This gives Tiff any all the confi -dence she needs to whip off her jacket, revealing two strategically placed metal stars over her bikini top. She sings her own song with the line, “America needs me/For higher ratings on TV.”

Then, the fi rst sad story of the night: Robbie Rosen, an adorable 16-year-old who was in a wheelchair when he was younger. With a soulful version of “Yesterday” by the Beatles, he’s reminiscent of David Archuleta without the creepy stage parent is-sues. J-Lo says they don’t even need to call for a vote; Robbie’s through to Hollywood.

Ashley Sullivan, 25, becomes the most awkward contestant to ever au-dition -- she breaks out in jittery, Brit-ney Spears-esque dance moves when she’s nervous. She maniacally belts out “Gimme Gimme” from “Thor-

oughly Modern Millie” with an angry expression on her face and stuns the judges into silence. J-Lo off ers a meek “You belong on Broadway,” but when Ashley starts hysterically begging and crying on her knees, they put her through.

Melinda Ademi, 16, has a new sad story: She’s the daughter of Kosovo war refugees. After her parents talk about all the opportunities in America, Melinda wows the judges and makes it through.

A singing waitress, 20-year-old Devyn Rush, gets insulted several

times by the judges, who are not impressed with her jeans and t-shirt. Randy notes she’s not dressed for the part, but since she has a gorgeous voice, she goes through.

A few more hopeless contestants go through before we get to Yoji “Pop” Asano, 25, this year’s watered-down version of William Hung and “Pants on the Ground” guy, as he claims he’s a great Michael Jackson imitator. He refuses to channel his Michael Jack-son impression, and instead busts out some sweet dance moves to Miley Cyrus’s “Party in the USA”.

51 people made it through to Hollywood. Watch the next New Orleans audition episode - which will probably be remarkably similar to this one.


FEATURE


DIARY OF A TREE HUGGER

By Nuzhat Saadia Siddiq

s Climate Change happens and the global temperature rises, so do the debates and the dialogues. We are at that junction in our history where discussions about water scarcity, food shortages, rising Fahrenheit and melting glaciers are crucial, and should be a part of our national policy, because they directly relate to biodiversity, which includes animal as well as human life. And last I checked…that was us.

Part of the joy of being a tree hugger means that I know through research that issues pertain-ing to environment, biodiversity and natural resources are directly related with sustainable development that ultimately benefi ts us, the humans. Rather a simplistic approach, you might say. And you wouldn’t be wrong in saying it. It is my duty as the tree hugger to detangle and clarify, remove doubt and simply so that we may all understand, and hence move on. But moving on is never possible without having an idea of where it is that you want to end up. For a tree hugger, the goal is obviously in a greener, cleaner place. This is why I have been excited by an enterprising new project taking the Lahore green scene by storm, an initiative known as ‘Green Drinks’.

As exciting as it sounds, Green Drinks is an international networking event that is organized independently in dozens of cities across the globe, where green enthusiasts, environmentalists, conservationists, activists come together to share thoughts and combine their powers to generate ideas that can take root and change the way we deal with our environment.

Nimra Amjad-Archer, who works for Pakistan Sustainability Network, is one of the key people in bringing this event to Pakistan with Kurt Archer. When contacted, she was quick to report that this event fulfi ls an essential need: to connect people for sustainability. A lot of people are starting or taking part in some pro-environment work at home or at work, but it rarely gets showcased and they rarely connect to collaborate. Green Drinks is an essential part of connecting those wanting to

take meaningful action for the environment with those that are already doing it.

A platform for the movers and shakers in the world of environmental activism, Green Drinks is also about reminding said key players to rediscover why they started working for the environment in the fi rst place. Nimra believes this kind of self awareness can lead to a trickledown eff ect. One day, she hopes, they will be able to include and involve the truly unsung heroes who work for the environment probably not even realizing the worth of their contribution to cleaner cities: those who work for WASA or solid waste management, the trash collectors. One of the underlying aims for this event is to change perceptions and empower these marginalized people.

Abdul Hannan, Incharge of Environment Data Resource Center at World Wide Fund for Nature – Pakistan (WWF – Pakistan), is a new member of Green Drinks, and has already found comrades via the platform to start advocating and actively pursuing the cause of urban farming. Urban farming may seem like a novel concept to some, but in truth, it is an art we have lost through the years, an art worth rediscovering. It’s more

than just growing one’s own fruit and vegetables. It’s cutting down on our dependence on pesticide ridden, subpar produce as well as cutting down on our carbon emissions. ‘I started on my own and now I have at least a dozen people who have joined hands with me to work on a small commu-nity based project,’ says Abdul Hannan, who also distributed free celery saplings at the last Green Drinks meeting amongst all attendants.

Projects and initiatives such as these keep the tree huggers of the world believing in the possibility of change, I say. While I try and tend to keep my very own celery sapling alive, I leave you with this thought: would it be so bad to rethink our pattern of consumption and go back to the simple tradition of having our own vegetable or herb patch? As food scarcity becomes an issue and water shortages become the stuff of record, should we not adopt simpler methods to save ourselves from problems that, sorry to say, we have created for ourselves?

Until next time, my friends: be positive, be safe, and be green.

CHAPTER I:

WHO, WHY, WHAT, WHERE, WHENEver since the green revolution started in the sixties and went beyond the decade, tree huggers have had their glory days and their dark days. As with any other movement, groups have broken apart, factions have been formed, philosophies have been shaped and manifestoes have been written.

A

HERITAGE

The decision of the Allahabad High Court announced of September 30, 2010 will go as a cruel joke in the annals of Indian judiciary. This decision about the ownership of the historic Babri Mosque has been like a joke. The fi rst version of the decision was that court has told all the confl icting parties to settle the issue by mutual dialogues. Then we were told that the site of the Babri Mosque has been divided into three portions, like a pizza, one given to Hindus, the second to Muslims and third to the state. Then came yet another decision, the Muslims were told that Hindu idols will remain inside the mosque. It seems judges were not judges but lunatics devoid of any sense of justice.

A TRUE PERSPECTIVEBABRI MOSQUE:


By Dr. Shaukat Mahmood

HERITAGE

R


ama is one of the most widely worshiped Hindu deities and is considered as the embodiment of chivalry and virtue. Hindu mythology makes references to three Ramas, namely, Parasurma, Balarama and Ramachandra. The same Rama is used for Ramachandra and he is considered to be the seventh incarnation (avatara) of Lord Vishnu.

The belief in reincarnation is the character-istic of Asian religions with no divine scriptures. The main religions among these are Hinduism, Jainism and Sikhism, all of which arose in India. In Hinduism, the process of birth and rebirth is endless unless one achieves moksa (salvation) by realizing the truth that liberates the soul (atma), thus escaping the wheel of birth and rebirth. Interestingly there is a small kiosk inside Lahore Fort known as the birth-place of Rama. It is believed that his one son Loh, founded the city of Lahore while the other, Kassu founded the city of Kasur.

References to Rama’s incarnations of Vishnu appear in the early centuries A.D. There was however, no proper worship of him before the 11th century and it was not until the 14th and 15th centuries that certain sects appeared and began treating him as a god. The belief in incar-nation is strictly associated with human beings and not with gods. The Hindu belief of treating Rama as god, therefore, is baseless. Either Rama is not the reincarnation of Vishnu if he is a god or if he is god, then reincarnation does not apply to him. Gods are neither born again and again nor do they die again and again. The question of transmigration of Vishnu’s soul into ‘Rama, therefore, does not arise.

But the popularity and reverence of Rama are an outcome of the coming of Islam to India. No one knew of Rama before the 11th 12th centuries. Till then, he was only a legendary or mythological character of the Hindu epic poem, Ramayana (Romances of Rama), which was composed in Sanskrit by Valmiki around 300 B.C. It was Muhammad ibn Qasim, Muizz-ud-din Ghuri and Qutb al-Din Aibak and religion

Islam which necessitated the ‘birth’ of Rama The arrival of the British in the subcontinent heralded a period of treacherous cons piracies vis-à-vis Hindus and Muslims of the sub-conti-nent. They spared no eff ort to create and widen the gap between Muslims and Hindus. They portrayed Mughal emperors (barring Akbar) as anti-Hindu, anti-Sikh and non tolerant. The site of Babri Mosque is not the place where Babur built a mosque in 1528. No only that, it was also alleged by British writers that Babur demolished a temple which existed at the site of Rama‘s birth and built the mosque in its place.

It is wrong that Babur ever constructed a mosque at Ayodhya. As a matter of fact, he nev-er visited Ayodhya. According to the epigraphic slab (measuring 220x55 cm) placed over the central arch. The mosque was built by one Mir Baqi Isfahani in the year 935 AH. The inscription begins with Bismillah, followed by eight couplets in Persian praising the rule and justice of Zahir al-Din Babur. Another inscription is (was) fi xed above the gate of the boundary wall. It had only Allah’s name on it. It is said that during the racial riots of 27 March 1937, these inscriptional slabs were forcibly removed by militant Hindus, but were reinstalled by a contractor, Tahawar Khan. Microfi ches of these inscriptions are available in the Nagpur Museum’s Library also.

Babari Masjid is, rather was, a small mosque of Lilliputian dimensions. It is built on the pattern of Dabgir Mosque of Thatta. Its fronton is not more than 20 meters in width. The sanctuary has three pointed arches, which are reminiscent of Sultanate architecture. The central arch is larger. On each bay there is a dome rising on an octagonal stilt decorated with pseudo-merlons. The domes are neither Mughal (bulbous) nor Sultanate (saucer shaped or segmental) but are representative of the Oudh regional style which shows a phase of transition. Each dome had an inverted lotus moulding at top but the fi nials were no longer in place when the mosque was attacked by Bhartiya Janta Party militants.

On the left of the sanctuary an exposed

fl ight of steps reaches the roof of the mosque. The parapet is adorned with embrasures and merlons. The mosque has small court in front as wide as the sanctuary itself, but only seven meters deep (approximately). Outside this wall is a chabutra (platform) in the south eastern cor-ner. This chabutra and the mosque complex are then enclosed in a girdle wall. This has a main gate. This main gate, the door of the mosque and the central arch of the mosque stand on one axis. Following the intriguing researches and revelations made by the British, this chabutra was provided to Hindus by the British on the assumption that the mythological fi gure was incarnated at this place. This was a sheer fabri-cation of British devils.

Till 22-23 December 1949, Muslims prayed in this mosque, while Hindus worshipped on the chabutra (measuring 6x7m approximately and made of wood). On March 29, 1987, Issue of Organiser, an astounding story was fl ashed, saying, “on the morning of December 23, 1949, the idols of Sri-Ramachandra and Sita Devi miraculously appeared in the janamasthan (birth place).” Hindu extremists thus rushed to see the miracle. A rumpus followed between Hindus and Muslims. The government, as planned, declared the mosque a disputed area and closed the premises. A mosque was denied to Muslims by a ‘secular’ and ‘democratic’ regime.

But the fi ndings that ensued and the investigations which were conducted by Hindu authorities themselves revealed altogether diff erent things. The report which was submit-ted by the Hindu District magistrate to the Hindu Chief Minister said that on the night when the great miracle took place, some Hindu miscreants entered the mosque when it was completely deserted and placed the idols there. In the morning, people (Hindu) gathered in the mosque compound, painted Hindu slogans on the mosque wall with giroo (red paint) and tried to demolish parts of the mosque.

★ ★ ★

FEATURE

he data available with Sunday Plus reveals quite interesting facts. The City Traffi c Police (CTP) started working in 1955 in the heart of Pakistan. Since then over 92 million traffi c licenses have been made. The story to have license is more interesting for a minor girl sitting in a lap of her old grandmother in a village located in a far fl ung area from any provincial capital in any province of Pakistan.

The CTP issued over 31292 fresh driving licenses in 2010. Out of total statistic about 5607 citizens, who applied for driving license failed in initial tests. Over 2029 women remained successful in achieving driving licenses. The statistics show through one window operation about 4428 duplicates licenses, 37690 renewal licenses, 2830 un-der cement licenses and 5397 international

driving permits were issued to the motorists in 2010.

Interestingly, notwithstanding the reality as millions of traffi c licenses have been made so far but over 45 percent motorists drive their vehicles without driving licenses on leading arteries of the City. “We have certain ways to make fool to traffi c wardens includ-ing avoiding to stop in case any warden sig-nals to stop at any traffi c signal on charges of violation,” said a 19-year-old female student Sumaira Shah of Kinarrid College for Women while driving on The Mall without any license. She further said sometime traffi c wardens - mostly young – let them go with-out issuing them challans. When asked on which grounds, smiling immensely she said usually the girls exchange their cell numbers

with traffi c wardens, which are mostly wrong, and manage to escape from the spot.

According to the data provided by the Duplicate Branch of the City Traffi c Police, the Licensing Authority of CTP millions of licenses has been issued so far. According to the statistics the driving licenses were also issued to the motorists of Lahore, Baha-walpur, Multan, Rahim Yar Khan, Dera Ghazi Khan, Sadiqabad, Chiniot, Sahiwal, Toba Tek Singh, Faisalabad, Sheikhupura, Gojranwala, Nankana Saheb, Muzafargarh, Khanewal, Vehari, and other districts in past. “According to rules and regulations the Government of Punjab has changed the procedure. Now one Licensing Authority has been established in each city, which has been empowered to conduct test on district basis and issue driv-

Interestingly, notwithstanding the reality as millions of traffi c licenses have been made so far but over 45 percent motorists drive their vehicles without driving licenses on leading arteries of the City.

TO DRIVE YET NOT PRIORITYLICENCE

T


By Jam Sajjad Hussain

FEATURE


ing license,” a senior traffi c offi cer informed requesting anonymity.

Ali Nawaz, Public Relations Offi cer to Chief Traffi c Offi cer (SSP) Cap (retired) Syed Ahmed Mobin, says four learner booths and one mobile learner van have been working round the clock. “Almost 156784 learner permits were issued to those candidates who expressed their wish to have permanent license,” he added.

Ali says the City Traffi c Police have further initiated dozens of fruitful steps in order to facilitate to the citizens. “We have uploaded sectors locations, details of banks, driving licensing procedure, one window operation and duplicate and renewal details on traffi c police offi cial website www.ctplahore.com/pk,” he adds. According to Ali one can apply to any traffi c police offi ce/licensing authority in his area using a form available from all post offi ces and traffi c police offi ces.

Talking with Sunday Plus, the CTO Syed Ahmed Mobin said now the system has been improved regarding licensing. “We have almost changed the old setup. Even the paper used for new license is being imported from UK,” he added. Caption (retired) Mobin said now doubt the procedure has been computer-ized but still the process is quite tough. “In fact if we give tough time to any motorist while the candidate is being tested then he/she should also realize that all this is being done for his/her safety,” he remarked. There are various branches including licensing branch, learner permit branch, OSI branch and etc assigned diff erent tasks but the sole purpose is to facilitate generally the citizens and especially motorists, he claimed.

The main center in the City for all kind of driving licenses related activity is the Traffi c Police Licensing Offi ce located close to the University of Education. This is the place where one can go without any reference fi rst time to get his/her Learner’s Permit. The process does not take long to complete as he/she must be over 18 years of age. But the

candidate should go to the Licensing offi ce with NADRA ID Card (with 2 photocopies), and Rs.60 in driving-license-stamps while the candidate can get the stamps from the post-offi ce behind the Kacheri.

Nowadays the learner permit application process is computerized. The candidate is photographed before getting a printed piece of paper that serves as the learner permit during driving.

This permit is valid for six-months and during this span of time the candidate need to appear for driving test to get the real license. If he/she wishes to apply for a license for car and Motorcycle both then the candi-date needs to get two learner permits.

The traffi c police offi cials say once you get learner’s permit, there is a mandatory 42-day waiting-period before you can appear for the behind-the-wheel test along with a special fi le prepared for this test and you have to sit on the road-side outside the licensing offi ce where dozens of daily wagers and labourers sit to hunt their customer.

The candidate need three passport-size photographs, a copy of NADRA ID Card, learner permit and a Medical certifi cate

attached to the fi le but interestingly after paying Rs 100 one can get a suitable person making the fi le in order to get medical certifi cate, avoiding to a trip to the hospital. Reliable sources in the City police say if candidate wishes to complete his/her fi le, the offi cials are available to off er the license made for Rs.2000 without having to go through the behind-the-wheel test.

After completing the specifi ed time pe-riod, the candidate visits the Licensing Offi ce in Thokar Niaz Baig where DSP Licensing Ali Iftikhar Jaff ery is ready to conduct a driving test also called the “Try”. But here also the candidate needs to attach Rs.150 in driving-license-stamps to application form in the fi le. After this test, further attach Rs.750 in driving-license-stamps to almost complete application. Here, a traffi c police offi cer points to a board that has various traffi c signs and asks the candidate 4-5 diff erent signs where if he/she gets two wrong he/she fails the sign test which means the candidates needs to visit another day and stand in line all over again. Also, the failure in test means the candidate forfeits his/her Rs.150 in driving test fee. Anyway after passing the sign test, the candidate needs to bring own car to the designated spot and if the test is passed, you just submit your fi le with additional Rs.750 in stamps and pick your license up from the Kacheri almost two weeks after the test.

The duration of car driving entitlement (category of motor car/jeep) will usually last until the age of 70 and then will be renewable every three years. Light Transport Vehicle including minibuses, (LTV) and Heavy Transport Vehicle (HTV) including trucks, buses, and other heavy commercial vehicles will last until the age of 65 and then renewed annually. Moreover, tighter rules apply for drivers who have been disqualifi ed for Driving Under the Infl uence (DUI) of alcohol, drugs or narcotics.

★ ★ ★

“The CTP issued over 31292 fresh driving licenses in 2010. Out of total statistic about 5607 citizens, who applied for driving license failed in initial tests. Over 2029 women remained successful in achieving driving licenses. The statistics show through one window operation about 4428 duplicates licenses, 37690 renewal licenses, 2830 under cement licenses and 5397 international driving permits were issued to the motorists in 2010.”

Chief Traffi c Offi cer (SSP) Cap (retired) Syed Ahmed Mobin

AFFAIR A PARISIAN

This panelled kameez with sharara and long hemlines has championed traditional attire that is perfectly made for the modern bride of today while still retaining the

ethnic flavours.

STYLE


FAR, FAR AWAY...IN A LAND

The exotic backdrop of Paris makes this bride even more beautiful as she is waiting for her prince charming. The blowing wind is accentuating her grandeur

making this an affair to remember.


style


style

C’EST LA VIE This cyber pink coloured kameez is fused with gota and zari with an

amalgamation of various textures in a stylized and festive mood. Expect this creation with a varied juxtaposition of chiffons, silks, voiles, organzas, laces, crepes and nets.

style


style


FEATURE

Navirah Zafar

TRÈS BELLE

Apart from the trousseau, today’s modern bride can experiment with many innovative and eccentric techniques to add an extra dose of drama that will make

many heads turn apart from the eyes of the groom.

style


FEATURE

ENCHANTINGLA MARIEE

This structured bridal silhouette has such detailing that is an ingenious mixture of dabka, zari and studded diamontes in an absolutely lust worthy shade of pink that makes one drool.

style


J’ADOREGLITTERATI

This Angrakha is basically an inspiration from Mughal Traditional Style. Here the yoke is in contrasting orange while the remaining part is blue with lace on the bottom flair. She paired her

Angrakha with a matha patti which gives an uber traditional touch to this wedding trousseau.

DESIGNER: NOMI ANSARI

MAKE-UP & STYLING: SABA ANSARI AT SABS

MODEL: NADIA HUSSAIN

CO-ORDINATION: UMER M

USHTAQ TEXT: BISHAKHA KHADKA KUNW

AR

style



ENVIORNMENT

B y Nuzhat Saadia SiddiqiPhotos: Ghulam Rasool Mughal

THE YEAR OFTHE FORESTS

ur dependence and reliance on forests has been so much that no matter what day and age, they are always an essential commodity for one human need or the other. We need timber, we need wood pulp, we need the exotic plant species that grow in forests for our medicines and cannot deny the fact that whether on fl at land or on mountains, the roots of the forests literally hold the ground together. They are water reserves and help in water catchment. They are a guard against landslides. They house animal and insect species that are brilliant and precious. Forests, in this regard, are an asset of the highest order.

Yet we have timber mafi a that cuts down and steals precious wood without thinking twice about replanting. And we have rampant ignorance about the worth of forest cover, despite the beauty, the

majesty and the necessity of forests. The United Nations has deemed 2011 as the Year of the Forests,

and World Wide Fund for Nature, both globally and in Pakistan, is pursuing several projects to save the world’s forests. Pakistan has a meager forest cover of only 2 percent, which is the lowest in the Asian region. WWF - Pakistan is using the limelight to focus on the issues of deforestation and the need for reforestation and protection of our existing forest reserves against land and timber mafi a.

Here is a pictorial depiction of what we have, and what we might lose if we do not come together to stop forest degradation in our country.

It wouldn’t be a stretch to say that human civilization has developed over the centuries because of wood that comes from trees and trees that invariably grow in forests.

O


FEATURE

ART

student of Ana Molka Ahmad, and a graduate of the Fine Art Department of the University of the Punjab Lahore, Nagori is often labelled as a colourful painter with dark themes!

Originated from the land of colours and thirst, Rajasthan; Nagori personifi ed the deserted mode of lavish panoramic vision of that very terrain, within his style and across his canvases, which was as colourful as a rainbow, and as thirsty as sand!

His frames are as vibrant as the dances

of Rajasthan; where he was born in 1938. While his themes are as dark as the nights of Pakistan today where, he breathed his last on 14th January 2011.

Being the son of a forest offi cer, his as-sociation with the darkness and mysteries of a jungle, remained haunting throughout his life and crawled transversely in his images. His paintings, at times were as thespian as the beauty of an Apsara or an Aphrodite, and at times, as deep and fatal as a Vishkanneya

(poison girl) could be. Nagori always showed a specifi c and dogmatic approach towards the fragile half of humanity, and its beauty!

Once in an interview, with a tinge of mischief, he said, “They (the sadhus) told me about beautiful women - the Apsaras – who descended from the heavens to take men away to paradise, posthumously rewarding them for their suff erings in their life on earth. The Apsaras were a mystery to me as a child, and they remain a mystery to me now, when I

Some called him a ‘free thinker’ some suggested that he was the pioneer of socio-political art in Pakistan. Critics thought that he was too radical and too drastic, while few called him as a legend! Among these voices somebody named him as the unreasonable man. Whatsoever the comment may be, but the reality is that he is yet another artist of Pakistan that we have lost forever- Abdul Rahim Nagori.

AN ARTIST, AN AGITATORAR NAGORI

AFebruary 6, 201142 SUNDAY PLUS

By Nadeem Alam

ART


am over sixty!” But this mischievous artist was very loud

and bold in his comments on society and politics. He could be found as instinctual in his palette as a Fauve could be, and as direct in his style as a Realist should be.

This amalgamation of Realisim, Moder-nity and Politics remind us the restlessness of World War-I and II. This is the same frenzy which forced artists to become Dada-ists, or to provoke artistic thinking to be transformed into action art.

Socially-conscious art and artists have never been rare in any era, whether it was Francisco de Goya (1746-1828) who was moved by the Shootings of May 3rd, or it was Eugene Delacroix (1798-1863) who expressed his deep nationalism in the paint-ing Liberty Leading the People. Later on, Gustave Courbet (1819-1877) and Jean-Francois Millet (1814-1875) under the over-whelming clout of realism were convicted of the same crime! Whilst Lunch on the Grass by Édouard Manet (1832-1883) and Potato Eaters by Vincent Van Gogh (1853-1890) mirrored dichotomy, discrimination

and dearth of society in relationship with humanism and individuality.

Nagori is amongst those who got inspired by the changing social and political scenario of their country. When the home-land lost its sovereignty after being put under Martial Law, almost all the thinkers, writers, poets and artists protested against it, but not many were those, who raised their voices through their expression. A handful was the poets and writers who burnt their pens to ablaze their lyrical themes and brave concepts, even fewer were the painters who could escape the power and authority of the dictatorship.

In a time when many figurative painters were twisting their brush and style towards calligraphic or nationalistic (rather national-ized) portrait painting, Nagori was agitating with all his colours, concepts and themes! He screamed, and screamed piercingly out of his frames.

Nagori’s socio-political paintings in the regime of Zia ul-Haq clearly display a sloganeer’s attitude within an artist. Though Bashir Mirza was also commenting on this situation in his own manner, but Nagori’s voice was loud and forceful. His series of rebellious exhibitions from 1982 to 1988 echoed stridently, with energy and lucidity.

In 1982 Nagori came up with ‘Anti Militarism and Violence Exhibition’ which got censored and banned by the martial law regime. In this exhibition he also commented on the massacres of Sabra and Shatila: the Palestinian Refugee Camps in Lebanon.

In 1983 ‘Anti Martial Law Exhibition’ got sponsored by Pakistan Federal Union of Journalists (PFUJ); this show was unique within its topic and brave connotations.

The year1986 compelled Nagori to paint against autocracy. ‘Anti-dictatorship Exhibi-tion’ was held at Indus Gallery, Karachi which was known as the most powerful exhibition of his career where he exposed sixty two different awful national events to

grope the conscience of the nation.“Road to Democracy” was an anti-dic-

tatorship exhibition that was held at Indus Gallery Karachi in 1988. That particular show was reviewed by Mark Fineman of the Los Angeles Times. In this show, Nagori dis-played the evils of society by evolving new alphabet-symbols for children, basing them on the events which took place in preceding two years; bomb blasts, crime, dacoities, guns, heroin, Ojhri Blast, Kalashnikov, rape etc. became new symbols of the alphabet.

Nagori may well be the only artist who targeted government’s stance on its nuclear policy. His paintings ‘Nuke Nights’ and ‘Nuke Delivery’ are the paradoxical expres-sion of his sarcastic agitation which he also applied in criticizing educational strategy of the government as well, by symboli-cally painting intellectual of this country as ‘proverbial monkeys’ who couldn’t see, hear or speak of any evil of the society!

With the exception of socio-political scenario, Nagori’s interest in ancient history and mythology persisted to be his spe-cific doctrine in the process of putting his seditious ideas on canvas. As the titles of exhibitions suggest Nagori was a thematic and dogmatic artist, who was very sensitive towards his surroundings and who never remained quiet. At a time when in Pakistan, even well established artists were seek-ing government patronage by condemning figural or conceptual art, and by promoting calligraphic or decorative art, Nagori painted the way he always wanted to!

Many critics blame him of being inspired by the fauves! In a way, he might be, in his palette and expression, in his clear-cut subject matter, and in his anguish. I think he was also a realist, an expressionist, an im-pressionist, an abstract painter or a surreal-ist; whenever it was a matter of expression. But above all he was a nationalist! A painter of Pakistan!

In a time when many fi gurative painters were twisting their brush and style towards calligraphic or nationalistic (rather nationalized) portrait painting, Nagori was agitating with all his colours, concepts and themes! He screamed, and screamed piercingly out of his frames.

★ ★ ★

REVIEW


COUNTER TERRORISM OR COUNTER REVOLUTION

rom FATA to Karachi, Pakistan is continuously under the reign of terror. The target area is being shifted to the Southern port city of Karachi, where almost 90 percent of NATO shipments land, including vital oil. It was reported by Asia Times in its 12 August 2008 issue, “New Al Qaeda Focus on NATO supplies.” Pakistan: Terrorism Ground Zero published from London in late 2010

too proves that fact. The work is co-authored by a Sir Lankan expert on counter terrorism and a young Pakistani. Rohan Gunaratna is a member of the Steering Committee of George Washington University’s Homeland Security. He is also Senior Fellow both at Fletcher School for Law and Diplomacy’s Jebsen Centre for Counter Terrorism Studies and the Memorial Institute for the Prevention of Terrorism, Oklahoma. The co-author Khuram Iqbal worked as senior analyst at the International Center for Political Violence and Terrorism Re-search, Singapore for three years. The book is a record of detailed analysis of the myriad insurgent groups working in Pakistan. Founder Director of the Combating Terrorism Centre at the U.S. Military Academy General Russ Howard said “this important work explains the terrorism complexities of Pakistan like no other book on the

market”.“Counter Terrorism” is the latest of terms to

describe the world and it can be compared with “Counter Communism” and “Counter Revolution” of the Cold War era. The world has witnessed the killings of thousands of intellectuals, writers, journalists, artists and peace activists in the name of combating Communism or Counter Revolution. Have we learned from such experiences of the past? When we check it at home, it seems that

Title: Pakistan: Terrorism Ground Zero | Authors: Rohan Gunaratna & Khuram Iqbal | Pages: 320

By Navirah Zafar

“Counter Terrorism” is the latestof terms to describe the worldand it can be compared with “Counter Communism” and“Counter Revolution” of the ColdWar era. The world has witnessedthe killings of thousands of intellectuals, writers, journalists,artists and peace activists in the name of combating Communismor Counter Revolution. Have welearned from such experiences of the past? When we check itat home, it seems that CounterTerrorism is heavily dependent onmilitary solutions.

FRs 1245Rs 1245

Counter Terrorism is heavily dependent on military solutions.

Counter Terrorism, however, has come under criticism over the accuracy of analysis and for misrepresenting facts. One fi ne indigenous ex-ample is linking al Qaeda and Taliban with 19th or 18th century Muslim leaders and their ambiguous viewpoints. For the consumption of their cadres, Islamists reinterpreted history and developed a thesis for their historical continuity. Some-times such reinterpretation expands into centuries, yet any researcher can detect historical jumps in it easily. Mujadad Alif Sani(1564-1624), Aurangzeb

Author: Sana HaroonPages: 258 pagesGenre: HistorySynopsis: This book examines the history of Islam—especially that of local mullas, or Muslim clerics—in the North-West Frontier (now Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa). A largely autonomous zone, the Tribal Areas was established as a strategic buff er zone for British India, and the resulting autonomy allowed local mullas to assume roles of tremendous power. After Partition in 1947, the Tribal Areas maintained its status as an autonomous region, and for the next fi fty years the mullas supported armed mobilizations in exchange for protection of their vested interests in regional freedom. Consequently, the Frontier has become the hinterland of successive, contradictory jihads in support of Pashtun ethnicism, anti-colonial nationalism, Pakistani territorialism, religious revivalism, Afghan anti- Soviet resistance, and anti-Americanism.

REVIEW

SUNDAY PLUSFebruary 6, 2011 45

Author: Ghulam Fatima ShaikhPages: 114Genre: HistorySynopsis: Born in the late 19th century as Nandni Kripalani, in a wealthy, traditional Hindu household, she witnessed the conversions of many members of her family and the consequent litigations. She endured the frequent absences of her father, a distant but romantic fi gure, for whom she does not conceal a sneaking admiration. Later, after marriage, she followed her husband’s trail into unknown lands where she faced fi nancial constraints, the World War, famine, sicknesses and dislocation but most of all a yearning for her loved ones. She coped with all these tribulations with remarkable grit, and survived to narrate this saga, with remarkable clarity at the age of 92, two years before she died in 1981.

Footprints in Time Reminiscences of a Sindhi Matriarch

Frontier of Faith(A History of Religious Mobilisation in the Pakhtun Tribal Areas C. 1890–1950)

Author: Coleman BarksPages: 510Genre: PoetrySynopsis: Rumi’s Divani Shamsi Tabriz (“The Works of Shams of Tabriz” - named in honour of Rumi’s spiritual teacher and friend) is a collection of lyric poems that contain more than 40,000 verses by this bestselling poet, and is a classic of Persian literature. It is most familiar form is as a big red book, hence the name. Coleman Barks is famous for his render-ings of Rumi’s poetry and his work on these particular poems has never been published anywhere. This book represents over thirty-three years on Rumi’s seminal classic.

Rumi: The Big Red Book(The Great Masterpiece Celebrating Mystical Love and Friendship)

Rs 525Rs 525

Rs 595Rs 595

Rs 2395Rs 2395

Alamgir (1618-1707), Shah Wali ullah (1703-62), Syed Ahmad of Rai Bereli(1786-1831), Jamiat Ulma Hind (1920), Jamiat Ulma Islam (1945) and Taliban (1992) cannot be treated as a united and contiguous whole by any means. Those who read original texts regarding these movements or personalities can easily fi nd confl icting and 180 degree opposite views among them. It proves that counter terrorism initiatives are revolving around only military solutions rather than exploring them thematically.

In their introduction, the authors point out some reports about the presence of terrorists of Chinese origin in the FATA, especially the Uighur militants whom the Chinese government has long consid-ered a security threat. That’s why in his recent visit, Chinese Prime Minister Wen Jiabao advices “double standards should not be employed”. He is the fi rst Chinese leader to address a joint session of Pakistani Parliament. “Terrorist activities in Pakistan are very complex and we have to view Islamabad’s pressure objectively,” said Ye Hailin, an expert on Asian studies at the Chinese Academy of Social Sciences.

The authors then give a 70 page detail and uptodate account of 12 organisations that have violent extremist groups. It includes LeT, LeJ, Jundullah, SMP, JeM, and MQM. Including MQM in the list may surprise some people, yet the authors are bold enough not to compromise on it. “The National Memorial Institute for preventing terror-ism (MIPT), funded by the US Homeland security department , considered MQM a terrorist organisa-tion and brackets it with dozens of other Pakistan based militant outfi ts”. The authors also point out commando training of some MQM members by Sri Lankan Tamil separatists and South African mercenaries in the 1990s. The case is complex because MQM still holds Karachi and won the elec-tions in 2008 in Karachi.

Americans want to leave Afghanistan in the next four years. From Karachi to FATA, Pakistan is in trouble due to extremism and terrorism. The most important battle in the “War on terror” is be-ing fought in Pakistan. The book reveals intensity and complexity of the matter in detail. Leaving Pakistan alone in this horrible situation will repeat the 1990s. Who will be the ultimate winner? What will be the scenario regarding regional and global peace? Pakistan: Terrorism Ground Zero makes it clear that there is an immediate need to revisit Counter Terrorism initiatives.

CAPITAL TALK

February 6, 2011 46 SUNDAY PLUS

ince last couple of years we have witnessed very successful and phenomenal fashion weeks being conducted in Karachi and La-hore. Even Peshawar is planning to come up with their own fashion week, hence speaking volumes about the Fashion Industry’s growth and the zeal among the designers. Each city on its own is trying to promote the fashion culture and also the soft image of Pakistan in these turbulent and insecure times!

Islamabad fi nally managed to have its fi rst fashion week, and of course the widely respected Tariq Amin handled it all with help of Karachi’s Triple E Events and Lahore’s Verve!

But the most important question was where did all the designers from Islamabad go?

Policies played a heavy role and many lo-cal designers from Islamabad were kept away by the imported ones. As the show began,

media and PR people commented “The event sorely lacked substance, not to mention a grueling time table that further exacerbated the situation. To showcase continuous fashion shows from noon till evening made the experience very unpleasant for a handful of onlookers who attended the event. “We want to see something new, something we will not get to see in other parts of the world,” bemoaned the international press.

As the days of the Islamabad fashion week went underway, numerous commenta-tors and fashion critics have had loads to say about the much hyped event. The slogan that this fashion week is ‘for’ Islamabad ‘by’ Islamabad, numerous top names within the Islamabad fashion scene have claimed oth-erwise. Islamabad’s top most fashion names had a lot to say against the claim that the current fashion week was showcasing talent from Islamabad.

Fashion Choreographer and Event Planner, Rezz Aly Shah delivers the social buzz from Islamabad and beyond…

By REZZ ALY SHAH

S

WAS THERE AN ISLAMABAD FASHION WEEK?

CAPITAL TALK


“This isn’t Islamabad’s Fashion week, but just the Islamabad ‘Chapter’ of the Karachi Fashion week. All the leading local choreogra-phers, the stylists and labels were left out in favour of those fl own in especially from Karachi,” said Sobia Nazir, Islamabad’s’ leading fashion designer who has represented Pakistan and Islamabad in fashion weeks at Delhi, Dubai, Mumbai and also London.

PR and Event Planner and TV Host Qsimyar Tiwana said, “If they’re showcasing the ‘Made in Islamabad Tag’ then are Islamabad’s fashion directors and event coordinators, Sobia Nazir, who’s been internationally renowned in places as far as Dubai? Where is Yasser Anis Shiekh, the man behind the successful @YAS label at F7. Where are names like Sobia Zuha, Amina Malik, Karen K and Rani Emaan’s the main-stays defi ning Islamabad fashion?”

“Even the supermodels were reserved for just the big name, while local brands had to resort with freshly trained new band of auditioned newcomers. There was a clear distinction be-tween what was already established and what was being promoted,” said Islamabad based designers Deeba & Zoe who participated in the morning show and was deeply hurt and upset.

Senior designer Rehana Saigol was so up-set that none of her guests got any invites. Mrs. Mehr Naqvi, socialite and former Ambassadors wife also commented, “What kind of event was this if you were not involved?”

While the initial press releases from the fashion week, promised greater emphasis on a more marketable prêt line as opposed to more exclusive couture designs, many have also questioned the inclusion of Karachi high fashion

labels such as Nilofer Shahid, whose couture line closed the show late Sunday evening. Coupled with the revelation that almost all of the designers had to pay a lump sum of about Rs. 200,000 in order to be able to participate in the show, the ‘for’ Islamabad ‘by’ Islamabad claim begins to look quite fl imsy if the show really was to highlight Islamabad as part of Pakistan’s fashion industry.

Even though most critics saw Islam-abad’s own faces as a fresh take on what we see on the ramp, the fact that these labels were denied access to supermodels screams volumes about how the whole event seemed to be prioritizing Islamabad. With numerous media outlets already denied access in favor of the show’s exclusive media partners, the reason for hosting the show in Islamabad has come off more as providing an easier platform for international marketability as opposed to local coverage.

The show should have been presented to showcase Islamabad as one of the fashion capitals and to prove that it has also come off age. It defi nitely should have included design-ers like Guriiya, the designer who fi rst opened a store when no one in here knew what fashion was? It should have been opened by Gurriya, the pioneer of Islamabad’s fashion! But again we must not forget that this was more like an Islamabad chapter of Karachi Fashion Week.

Well friends with that note I will say bye and you keep reading S + and I will see you next

week. Ciao!


ZODIAC

ARIES THE RAM

(21 MARCH TO 19

APRIL)

Love relationships and other partn

erships will

revolve around obsession and jealousy – issues

of control will

loom large. You will attra

ct

powerful people, both in love and in your business

life - career will prosper via such individuals. A

smouldering image w

ill be productive. Financial

matters could become intense – money will fl

ow

in your directio

n- but t

here may be upheavals.

Matters regarding children will

consume you

emotionally. Despite triv

ial issues, you are

ebullient a

nd lucky – thus people will r

espond to

you positively. W

eight gain is a distinct p

ossibility.

TAURUSTHE BULL

(20APRIL – 20 MAY)

Resentment o

r obsessive love m

ay have you in its

grip. Unconsciously,

you will seek a profound con-

nection and you will most p

robably fi nd it d

uring this

intense – and often miserable period. Status objects

turn you on and so do th

ose who have a serious,

business like approach or w

orking with someone of

a diff erent g

eneration. Career success

can happen

despite work-related delays a

nd obstacles. J

oint fi -

nances or gifts

from your partn

er will b

e successf

ul

as compared to sole ventures. Travellin

g plans could

entail delays. H

ealth particularly joints,

teeth and

bones need looking after.

CANCER

THE CRAB

(21 JUNE – 22 JULY)

The waxing Moon will make you opti-

mistic, responsive and bring faith in your

abilities. With the Moon close to m

ag-

nanimous Jupiter on the 6th and the 7th,

, there will be expansion of your fi nances

but encouraging generosity with time

and money – som

etimes, with a degree

of pomposity. Follow your im

pulses to

produce solid benefi ts in your career. Be

comprom

ising in relationships as Saturn

is retrograde. Headaches and emotional

turmoil can occur – also look after your

ankles and circulatory system.

LEO 2011

THE LION

(23 JULY – 22 AUGUST)

Here is a powerhouse of energy, which

must be expressed through physical ac-

tivity. You will take risks and be impetu-

ous. You will feel determined, aggressive

and brave. The bold traits may be taken

to the point of heroism but m

ay equally

result in overwork. The more you cooper-

ate with your spouse or business partner,

the better. Finances are also dependent

upon your social connections or partner.

Career endings can happen – so, be care-

ful. Love, marriages and close friendships

can form suddenly. Your vitality is consid-

erably increased with the Sun so close to

Mars. Fasten your seat belt while driving.

SCORPIO

THE SCORPION

(23 OCTOBER – 21 NOVEMBER)

Love and obsession will go hand in hand.

Jealousy, intrigue and passion are the

watchwords for this pairing of Pluto

with Venus. You can become fi xated on

someone or som

ething. Financial luck is

on your side. Home and fam

ily are cen-

tral. Family m

embers, elders and parent

fi gures will be temperam

ental. There will

be an emphasis on siblings, neighbours

and travel – avoid being argumentative

regarding these matters. You m

ust com-

pete for the top slot – career success will

demand initiative. Your health is good

but you need to avoid excesses.

YOUR STAR

THIS WEEKDr. Zaibun NisaDr. Zaibun Nisa


ZODIACGEMINI

THE TWINS

(21 MAY – 20 JUNE)

An independent and original thinker, you will

be quick in availing any unusual opportuni-

ties. But you can become so attached to an

idea that you can become infl exible, refusing

to let facts – or people – stand in your way. Fi-

nances will be favourable as the Moon is wax-

ing – fi nancial windfalls and luck in specula-

tion can happen on the 6th and 7th. Jupiter

close to unexpected Uranus will bring about

sudden marriages, new friendships and busi-

ness alliances – all extremely fruitful for the

future. Children could be destructive in nature

or may fall ill. Neck, throat and skin problems

can occur.

VIRGO THE VIRGIN

(23 AUGUST – 22 SEPTEMBER)

Skilful and effi cient, you will immerse your-

self in work probably becoming obsessed

with it. You are the master of make-work.

Job opportunities will be numerous. A good

period for investment, stocks and bonds –

inheritance matters will be easily handled.

As Saturn is retrograde, money will be con-

sumed – saving plans will be disrupted or

delayed. Change of residence can happen

suddenly or renovation or construction at

home is likely. Spouse and partners will be

unconventional and rebellious. Children

may be compulsive. You will worry need-

lessly and may become a hypochondriac.

Take positive steps to guard your health.

SAGITTARIUS

THE ARCHER

(22 NOVEMBER – 21 DECEMBER)

Unexpected opportunities and abrupt

changes in your circumstances will m

ark

this period. Unplanned pregnancies or

diff erent family dynam

ics can occur. You

have the courage to take risks - an ex-

citing time of positive change. Be wary

of fanciful friends – you can be easily

swindled. Finances can become a source

of obsession. You will be generous and

over-confi dent, but these traits can lead

to recklessness and extravagance. Non-

serious love is on the horizon. Reproduc-

tive organs need looking after.

PISCESTHE FISH

(19 FEBRUARY – 20 MARCH)

From the 10

th onward, your ruling planet N

ep-

tune being close to the Sun will make you a

dreamer, a poet, a

n inspired id

ealist. Sensitiv

e,

psychic, you will d

isplay a great creative ta

lent

for both m

ystical and artistic endeavours which

will leave litt

le room for p

ractical matte

rs. Don’t

trust your partn

er with regard to money. Per-

sonal ability

to generate fi n

ances is favourable.

Career opportunity will

come suddenly – but

you can easily miss it

– you must a

ct promptly.

Health issues can occur. D

rug and alcohol abuse

may become a problem.

AQUARIUS

THE WATER BEARER

(20 JANUARY – 18

FEBRUARY)

You will assert

yourself eff e

ctively and take

an active role on your o

wn behalf – enhanced

physical energy is evident. S

urprising opportu-

nities m

ay bring a longed- fo

r chance to

break

away from confi n

ing circumstances. Reckless

behaviour and overconfi dence will

lead no-

where. Relationships and m

arriages could entail

issues and confrontatio

ns. Career w

ill improve.

Finances will be slow. Your a

bility to

communi-

cate is one of your strengths, and it d

raws people

to you. Health issues are minor. Recuperative

powers are excellent.

LIBRA THE SCALES

(23 SEPTEMBER – 22 OCTOBER)

You are constant in your aff ections, but

cautious about revealing your emotions.

You will value stability, propriety and rec-

titude. In love, you understand the need

for control. Despite Saturn in retrogres-

sion, you will decorate your home. Social

connections, marriages and business

partnerships are favoured by Jupiter in

your 7th house. Finances are favourable.

Greater responsibility may com

e to you –

you will feel restrained and overworked

– it can cause inhibition, lack of self-con-

fi dence and bouts of depression. Career

will improve steadily. Health will suff er.

The knees and shins are vulnerable.

CAPRICORN

THE GOAT

(22 DECEMBER – 19 JANUARY)

Saturn represents the system. W

ith Sat-

urn, your ruling planet in backward mo-

tion, you will feel a sense of limitation,

harsh boundaries, extra duty and exces-

sive fear. In your career, you will have to

pay your dues before you achieve suc-

cess. One of your parents may be diffi cult

to deal with or may be ill. Relationships

and marriages will im

prove. A good self-

image will go a long way in easing your

situation. Financial opportunities will be

numerous. It is an ideal period to plan for

a house or improving your living condi-

tion. Self indulgence is likely. Moderation

is the key word.

SOCIETY

Ufone introduced Uth Records, an exciting music initiative to help young Pakistani musicians develop and showcase their talent professionally. The event was managed by Lotus Client Management & Public Relations.

Fathma Amir Omran Shafi que & Eva Shafi que

Gumby

Sara Taher Khan & Shazya Akbar Khan

Ayesha Omar & Zeeshan Parwez

Omran Shafi que, Zohair Ayub, Babar Wasi, M Omer, Akbar Khan, Khuram Leghari, Gumby, Zeeshan & Anas Ali Khan

UTH INITIATIVEKARACHI:

1 2

4

5

6

1

Shahrukh11

2

6

3 4

10

5

7

3

8


Omran Shafi que, Zeeshan Parwez & Akbar Khan Ayesha Omar

Bilal Khan, Sara & Shayan

Anas Ali Khan

VJ Faizan Zurain Imam

Mohammad Omer, Gumby & Zeeshan Parwez

Madeeha Syed

SOCIETY


SOCIETY

Hina Minhas recently launched ‘Aman’s Salon’ in DHA. The event was managed by Bilal Mukhtar Events & PR and was attended by their friends and socialites.

SALONSASSYLAHORE:

1

2

3

5

6 7

Bilal Mukhtar, Salma & Khalid Amna, Saim & Sadia Sandeep Raj1 2 3 Rima & Sakib4 Faheem & Hina5


4

8 9

Nimra, Saman & Maham76 Huma, Sadia & Lubna Sam Ali Dada8 Madiha & Annie9

Hina & Abdul Qayoum

Uzma & Saboohi

Sadaf & Verdah Mahroosh & Sakib Kuki

SOCIETY


Samrah

Amina Saeed & Shireen Sahar & Amna Amna Kardar & Tahura

Khadija & Ubaid

Fariah

Khadija & Sherbano Amna & Adeel

Wafa

Azmat, Humera & Zara

Aman & Mona

Mahnur

Rootaba

SOCIETY

T U Dawood Robert Gibson Dr. Ishrat Husain & Nasreen Jalil Asma Kazmi T U Dawood & Ishrat Husain Ameena Saiyid

Fariha Saluddin

INFLUENTIAL WOMEN

150 of the top women decision makers in business in Karachi attended the fundraising LADIESFUND® Women of Infl uence Luncheon series at Acton House, Runnymede. Hosted jointly by the British Deputy High Commission and Dawood Capital Management Ltd., managers of LADIESFUND®, this luncheon was the fi rst professional women’s networking lunch to be held in Karachi. The focus of the lunch was to build professional friendships, mentorships and lobbying amongst professional and infl uential women in Pakistan.

KARACHI:

1

2

54

1

Sameera Raja Talat Hashimi Rizwana Amin Fahim & Dr. Mahnaz Shah7

2 3 4

Hafsa Shamsie Dr Mahnaz Shah Fawzia Naqvi Bushra Fazli AudienceShamaeel AnsariAmin Gulgee 9 10 11 12 141385 6

7

3

8

Sheema Kermani


6

SOCIETY


9

10

8

11

12 13

1514

SOCIETY

Film actress Laila celebrated her birthday with her celebrity friends.

BASHBIRTHDAY

LAHORE:

1

2

3

5 6

7

Sunbul Raja, Mr & Mrs Shamil Khan Mariam Aftab, Meera, Laila & guest Khushbo & Arbaaz Khan1 2 3 Meera & Laila4


4

8 9

Laila & Babrik Shah5 Babloo & Sangeeta76 Sahiba & Afzal Khan QYT, Asim Yar & Saim8 Apple, Neeli & guest9

Mr. Bashir Ali Mohammad, Chairman received the prestigious award from the chief guest, the ambassador of France, H.E.Daniel Jouanneau

Mrs. Sadia Khan, Mr. Bashir H. Ali Muhammad, H.E. Daniel Jouanneau(The French Ambassador in Islamabad) & Mr. Muhammad Ali Haleem

Mr. Muhammad Ali Haleem , Mr. Francis Widmer (The French Commercial Counsellor)

Mr. Zain Bashir

Mr. Christian Ramage (The French Consul General), Mrs. Sadia Khan & Mr. Bashir H. Ali Muhammad

team Mrs. Sadia Khan, Mr. Bashir H. Ali Muhammad , H.E. Daniel Jouanneau (The French Ambassador in Islamabad) & Mr. Muhammad Ali Haleem

H.E. Daniel Jouanneau, Mr. Jamil Hamdani [President of P.F.B.A & Managing Director of Credit Agricole

SOCIETY

FRENCH CONNECTION


Recently Gul Ahmed Textile Mills Limited has been announced as the largest exporter to France in Home Textile category. Mr. Bashir Ali Mohammad, Chairman Gul Ahmed Textile Mills Ltd and President International Textile Manufacturers Federation received the prestigious award from the chief guest, the Ambassador of France, H.E.Daniel Jouanneau.

KARACHI:

INTERVIEW

February 6, 2011 60 SUDAY PLUS

By SAJID ZIA

Hamid Khan, former President Supreme Court Bar Association and a front line leader of lawyers’

movement for the restoration of judges in an exclusive interview with Sunday Plus of The Nation

explained the situation with regard to pro-active role of judiciary. He shared his views on the

performance of Supreme Court especially on the decision with regard to the 18th amendment.

JUDICIARY MUSTASSERT ITS AUTHORITY

Sajid Zia: Did the lawyers’ movement carry the objective of restoration of a certain number of judges or to cause a change in the whole judicial system of the country?

Hamid Khan: The movement had multi purposes starting from restoration of the deposed judges which was the most vital objective, then to purge the judiciary of the PCO judges, followed by a complete overall revamp of the justice system and lastly, to get structural changes and improvement in therein through the restored judiciary. And also to clear it of the corrupt and dishonest elements. SJ: Has the movement met its objectives?

HK: No, it has yet to achieve its goal sprawled over four phases. The movement has successfully completed the fi rst two phases and the third being a lengthy one still needs focus. Judicial policy has been framed but it is quite insuffi cient to ameliorate the system as a whole. As to bringing about a comprehensive improvement in the system, the lawyers are still waiting this objective to materialise. SJ: Who do you think were behind the killing of lawyers and the people during the movement?

HK: Rulers at that time were behind the destructive activ-ity during the movement. It is crystal clear that MQM had a role in creating May 12 incident wherein a large number of people lost their lives. The occurrence was owned by Musharraf him-self as a show of his power. So there is no two-opinion about May 12 being a state managed incident. As to immolation of lawyers and torching of their chambers in April 2008 in Karach, according to their information, it was also carried out by the same elements who were responsible for the May 12 carnage and were deadly opposed to the movement.

An inquiry held on May 12 killing is lying in the backburner which now should be revived to fi x responsibility for the killings and punish the culprits.

INTERVIEW

SUDAY PLUSFebruary 6, 2011 61

SJ: Do you think ouster of Pervez Musharraf was outcome of the lawyers’ movement? What about the PPP claim on this count?

HK: The whole credit of both events goes to the lawyers and had they not launched the movement in the wake of March 9, 2007, denial by Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry, Musharraf’s ouster was impossible. This is fortifi ed by the fact that by that time political parties had miserably failed to cause any dent to Musharraf’s position then enjoy-ing a complete carte blanche. The move-ment made Musharraf’s hold on power weak and forced him to hold elections and that too, relatively free and fair. He later on had to doff his uniform and quit. As for PPP, it was opposed to Musharraf in the primary phase of the lawyers struggle wherein it rendered sacrifi ces but later, it deserted the movement by entering NRO deal with Musharraf. PPP used it as bargaining chip to share power with the dictator and let him rule the roost for another fi ve or ten years. NRO deal in fact aimed at attaining the power and getting a clean chit for all corrupt in the PPP. The deal was a bid to sabotage the lawyers movement. Had the deal not been made Musharraf might have lost the power much earlier. SJ: What would you comment on the statement of President Asif Zardari that retention of Justice Abdul Hameed Dogar for certain period of time and reinstatement of Justice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhary were a part of his political strategy?

HK: It is absolutely wrong. Rather PPP was much pleased with Justice Dogar and made full use of his presence in the offi ce by way of getting waiver of degree condition for contesting election which also paved the way for Zardari to contest the presidential election. The PPP did not want to restore Chief Jus-tice Iftikhar Muhammad Chaudhry and it was evident from the statement of Chief Minister Punjab that Zardari had sought PML(N) help to give extension to Justice Dogar. The PPP wanted a judiciary that

was helpless, corrupt and danced to its tunes. It is afraid of the present judiciary for it was taking action against the corrupt and the dishonest. PPP feels threatened from any institution which held its men accountable. SJ: Should the present judiciary hold the corrupt rulers accountable?

HK: Of course it should. But the Judiciary has not asserted its authority in a befi tting way. Decision against NRO was excellent but 13months have elapsed. It has not been implemented in letter and spirit. This is big challenge for the judiciary. People are looking towards the judiciary.

The judiciary must use its powers, including the power to take action under the Contempt of Court law to come up to public expectations. The judiciary I believe is so far giving time to the gov-ernment to see better sense. If it realised the judiciary lacked spirit to take con-tempt action, it would let the subordi-nate offi cers become scapegoats to save the big fi shes. The rulers are intentionally keeping a fi reball to keep the judiciary engaged with the subordinates.SJ: Do you think long march of March 2009 was a political move or was it in line with the need of lawyers’ movement?

HK: It was a brainchild of the lawyers but the February 2009, suspension of Shahbaz Sharif government and state of emergency in Punjab were certainly a catalyst to make the march a big show and make it a success. Originally it was lawyers show but they could not alone make it a success. SJ: What were the reasons of dif-ferences with other leaders of the movement?

HK: The diff erences surfaced when the others wanted to wind up the move-ment after restoration of the judiciary to let it go with the inclusion of the PCO judges. Restoration was not the end but a start of putting all things in order and it sowed the seed of diff erences with others. SJ: Does the movement exist at any

level in the legal fraternity?HK: The movement is dormant at the

moment but it is there. It would resurrect if the government continued to suppress the judiciary and deny implementation of its decisions against the corrupt. The rulers are trying to beset the judiciary on all sides, to paralyse its functioning. A large number of lawyers are clearly see-ing this picture.

SJ: There was an impression during the movement that some leaders were protecting their politi-cal interests rather than that of the lawyers and their struggle for the independent judiciary?

HK: I have always given precedence to the lawyers interests. This is evident from the fact that during the 2002 referendum my party (Pakistan Tehrik-e-Insaaf) was supporting Musharraf but I was with the lawyers. For me rule of law and independence of judiciary is most important. SJ: It is often said that you did not suff er the hardships that other leaders of the movement had to go through. For example you were never arrested. Would you like to com-ment?

HK: During crackdown on lawyers the strategy was that leaders would not court arrest. If I avoided arrest it was in pursuance of that policy to ensure the continuity of the movement. My deten-tion orders were also issued and raids were conducted at my house to take me into custody. SJ: How do you rate the performance and working of the superior judiciary?

HK: Supreme Court has certainly improved its performance. However, I have certain reservations on its decision on 18th Constitutional amendment which in my view is a weak decision for judiciary. Also the judiciary failed to get its decision on NRO implemented. Many things are on the reverse and in order to prevent that judiciary needs to assert its authority. The people would stand with judiciary if it does so.

MQM involved in tragic events of May 12, 2007

CULINARY DELIGHTS

SWEET TREAT


Pumpkin HalwaFruit Nut Halwa

INGREDIENTS • 1450g/1lb pumpkin, courgettes, bottle gourd or carrots• 550ml/1 pint milk• 1 tsp cardamom seeds, crushed• 1 tbsp sultanas• 2 tbsp clarifi ed (or unsalted) butter• 8 tbsp sugar• 3 tbsp halved cashews, fl aked almonds, and pistachio slivers, lightly toasted • 1 tsp rosewater or screwpine essence (optional, but do not be tempted to add more)• silver leaf, chirongi nuts and watermelon seeds (available in Indian grocers), and red rose petals to garnish (optional)METHOD1. Trim, peel and fi nely grate the vegetables.2. Combine them with milk, cardamom and sultanas in a large

no stick frying pan.3. Heat gently and bring to a simmer, stirring occasionally.4. Cook until the vegetables are tender and almost all the liquid

has evaporated, stirring frequently as the mixture thickens.5. Add butter, sugar, nuts, and rosewater or screwpine essence if using, and stir well.6. Spread halwa out in a shallow pan to cool and garnish it.7. When cool, cut into squares and serve.

INGREDIENTS • 1 tin - Condensed milk • 100 g, powdered - Cashew nuts • few drops - Almond essence • few drops - Rose essence• 100 g, chopped - Dates• 50 g, chopped - Figs • 50 g, chopped - Soft dried apricots • 50 g - Sugar • 75 g, chopped - Mixed nuts

METHODTO PREPARE KHOYA: 1. Empty a tin of condensed milk in a microwave proof dish. 2. Cook without covering, on medium power for 5 minutes, stirring twice. 3. Cook further on medium low (30%) power for 10-12 minutes, stirring every two

minutes till you get khoya of required consistency. 4. Remember that the khoya will continue to cook for few more minutes while its cool-

ing down. 5. Cool completely, knead till smooth and use as required. TO PREPARE FRUIT NUT HALWA: 1. Mix khoya with cashew powder and both the essences. Spread in a shallow glass dish. 2. Combine all the fruits together. Add sugar and just enough water to cover the fruits. 3. Simmer gently till the fruits are soft and the mixture is a soft lump. Stir in ¾ of the

chopped nuts. 4. Carefully spread this mixture on top of the khoya. Sprinkle remaining nuts on top.

Serve warm or cold.


lus

We at Sunday Plus

hav

tart wish-list

have brought a smart wish

rought a smart best

for all our readers that are the best

ll our readers that are the beds

brands

buys which range from the trendiest bra

s which range from the trendiest bde

to the most delicious palate to à la mode

e most delicious palate to à la mo

popular gateways. So get ready as we

ular gateways. So get ready as ws ere’s

present our picks for the week. There

nt our picks for the week

something for everyone.

The Fish Mussalam B.B.Q Special at the authentic Pun-jabi restaurant, Dera, is originally a traditional Punjab recipe that is true to its traditional style. Fish Mussalam is served as a complete meal in one course. The dish arrives on a platter topped with chutney, french fries and salad. The fi sh is spe-cially marinated with local spices and garnished with slices of salads. Tangy and mildly sweet to the palate, it is generally not spicy. For a more feisty bite, request to fi re it up! This is a seasonal dish and should not be missed. The atmosphere at Dera is authentically traditional and service is great.

Fish masalaAccessorize is one of UK’s famous High Street Fashion

Brand that brings the most exciting and eclectic products into the local Pakistani market. Accessorize is not just a fashion brand, it’s a trend. The sale at the store near you is on. The product range consists of various fashion acces-sories for women and young girls and consists of bags, purses, jewellery, hair accessories, belts, shoes and more! So girls accessorize yourself for the season ahead!

Sale! Sale! and more Sale!

Tucked away is a cosy niche in DHA market is “Tempting Treats”, a speciality bake shop, off ering a range of scrumptious and beautifully decorated cakes, pastries and tarts that simply melt in your mouth. Tempting treat is also stocking up on a selected range of cakes, famous and renowned in diff erent regions of the world. A must mention is their health breads and granola bars, chocked with nutrition! Located behind Shell Petrol Pump, Masjid Chowk, this is one place not to be missed.

Tempting treats

Rs. 650/plate

This chair made of spade is one of the exclusive creations of Kalamkaar that is a testament not only to the state of art designs but to such innovative ways of using local Pakistani materials inspired by originality. The ideas at Kalamkaar are replete with fl ashes of local craftsmanship that is custom-made to fi t into your modern taste and lifestyle.

Ace of Spade

Spade Chair: Rs.11,000

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