Wednesday, November 21, 2007

My post at Pak Tea House

Pak Tea House is a recently launched online forum to keep tradition of "chai khanas" alive virtually. They recently posted my article:

Karachi - “Basta hai iss kohar kay peechay raushanion ka shehr”

"....Its original name was Kalachi-jo-Ghote. Kalachi is said to be named after a women whom people identified as Mai Kalachi or Mai Kolachee. Kalachi-jo-Ghote was a small fishing village, made up of a cluster of fishermen huts. on the three islands of Manora, Bhit and Baba. It has also been described as having name of Kolachee, Currachee, Crochey and Kurrachee. I also found mention (but no authentic record) that Karachi was first founded when Alexander-the-Great’s admirals, sailed back home from the Greek expedition to India, stationed at a point at the mouth of the Indus, and called it Morontobara (which later became Manora). Later 3 nearby islands, Manora, Bhit and Baba became together and called Kalachi-jo-Ghote...."

Read full article here

Tuesday, November 20, 2007

Beyond calculations

Behroz ka taaluq Iran ke Shehr Tehran se tha. Kehte hain agar khubsurti dekhni hai to "Faras ka Naujawan" dekho, ke masdaq Behroz aik haseen mard tha.

Behroz jub america aaya to 13/14 baras ka hoga. Yahin school college gaya aur phir aik gori se shadi ker li. Jub Behroz ki talaq hui to woh mere barabar ke 'studio' main move ho gaya. Main tub residency ker raha ta. Kubhi kubhi main aur Behroz Chicago ki baraf bari se tang aa ker apartment building ki lobby main aa bethte aur baraf girte dekha kerte. Aesi hi aik sham Behroz ne mujh se kaha: "Boston main mere 'house' ke patio se baraf baari ka jo nazara hota tha, kaash tum woh dekh sakte".

Main ne kaha: "You have 'house' in Boston ?"

Us ne hans ke jawab Diya: "I had it. Not anymore. I made good money in real estate in Boston. I bought that house with all my savings and gift it to my wife when I got married. I lost it during my divorce".

Phir us ne jo baat kahi woh zara gor se suniye:

"You know in our eastern culture once we give things to women we are not suppose to take it back.....Mera baap kehta tha - aurat ko security chahiye. Agar woh dekhe gi ke mera shohar mujh pe itna bharosa kerta hai to woh hamesah tumhari rahe gi. Mera baap kehta - hamesah makan aurat ke naam rakho...Mere khandan main kubhi koi makan mard ke naam pe nahi kharida gaya. Mere dada ne dadi ke naam aur mere baap ne meri ma ke naam makan banwaya........ Jub meri divorce hui to main ne woh makan apni biwi se wapas nahi liya"

...Phir thori der chup reh ker bahir baraf dekhete huwe us ne kaha: "It was so hard for me to explain to my lawyer that why I can't have that house back. Few things are so beyond calculations" !

Sunday, November 18, 2007

Velona, Mambo Dance aur Be-khudi

Velona ki umer koi 75 baras hogi magar apni umer se woh kum as kum 10 baras choti dikhai deti thi. Apne aap ko hur waqt ban-sanwaar ke rakhti. Velona un aurton main se thi, jo jaanti hain ke kitna 'makeup' kerna hai - na kum na ziyada (aesi aurtain duniya main kitni hon gi !). Velona hamare hospital ke aik medical floor pe peechle 40 baras se unit secretary thi. She was very professional in her work.

Pata nahi kub kahan kese meri aur velona ki dosti ho gai. Woh aksar weekend pe jub hospital slow hota mujhe senior doctors ke scandal sunaya kerti. Us ke husband ka intiqal ho chuka tha. Us ne dusri shadi nahi ki thi. Aik sunday ki subh, jub hospital main 'census' bohut kum tha aur khirki se bahir snow storm apne urooj pe tha - main aur velona nursing counter pe coffee pite huwe batain ker rahe the. Woh mujhe aksar kehti: "Doctor, you are so young. You haven't experience life". Woh jub apne makhsoos hispanic lehje main mujhe 'doctor' kehti to usme sur ki aik ajeeb ley hoti. Mere kanon ko bara bhala lugta. Us din Velona ne mujhe bataya: "Main un chund khus-naseeb aurton main se hun, jin se un ke shohar toot ker mohabbat kerte hain. Hum ne saath zindagi guzari, makan banaya, bachhe bare kiye - magar hum dono ke nazdeek agar koi cheez zaroori rahi to aik dusre ki qurbat thi".

Main ne Velona se poocha: "Agar main tum se poochun ke agar koi aik lamha jo tumhari zindagi pe bhari ho to kaunsa ho ga - one that moment which is most precious to you".

Velona ne kaha: "Jub main aur mera shohar Mambo dance kerte huwe aik dusre main kho jaate the to us se ziyada duniya main koi bekhudi aur masti nahi hoti thi. Us ke marne ke baad main ne Mambo dance nahi kiya...Doctor ! tum kiya jano jub insaan ki mohabbat uske saath bekhud ho ker nachti hai to insaan kis kefiyat se guzarta hai".

Aur phir us ne bataya, "jub main apne shohar ki pehli barsi pe us ki qabar pe phool rakhne gai to mujhe laga mera dil phat jaaye ga. Phir main kubhi us ki qabar pe nahi gai". Us ne muskurahat se aansoo dhapne ki koshisk ki aur kaha: "Doctor! you are so young, you haven't experience life" !

Us roz poora din mere liye Chicago main snow storm yun garjta raha jese kahin mambo ki beats par rahi hon !

Friday, November 16, 2007

Karachi - 1900 (Part 3)


(Click on all pictures to get enlarge view)


Clifton Road in Karachi






Clerk Street, Suddar Bazaar [Karachi].
Frere Street, Suddar Bazaar [Karachi].

Painting - Karachi (Sind) - April 1851
Watercolour of Karachi (Sind) by Henry Francis Ainslie (c.1805-1879), April 1851. 
Inscribed on the front of the mount in red ink is: 'Sindh, part of the native town of Kurrachee, 1851.'  

Originally Karachi was a small village comprising a cluster of fishermen's huts on the three islands of Manora, Bhit, and Baba. Due to its location at the western end of the Indus Delta, the town has traditionally served as an important gateway for trade into central Asia. With the development of its harbor it gradually grew into a large city and an important center of trade and industry.

Karachi 2

Lyari

At the end of the nineteenth century the Trans-Lyari Quarter of the city was made up of a cluster of poor settlements mostly consisting of reed and mud plastered huts with some more permanent dwellings. At this time one-quarter of the population of Karachi lived in this area across the Lyari River.


The Karachi Gymkhana
The British had also developed the concept of gymkhanas or sports houses, which provided facilities for all sorts of sports and games for the colonial population in the sub-continent. The Karachi Gymkhana Club, located on Scandal Point (later Club) Road, was a large Tudor-style building constructed in 1886.

Victoria Road
Photograph with a view of Karachi looking in a northerly direction along Victoria Road, with St Andrew's Church visible in the distance, taken by an unknown photographer, c.1900

Saddar Bazaar

The Saddar Bazaar at Karachi followed a typical gridiron plan; all the major north-south streets of the Bazaar were laid out at right angles to Bunder Road, Frere, Somerset, and Elphinstone Streets, which along with Victoria Road, linked the northern part of the cantonment to the southern part. The area soon developed into the most fashionable part of the city, supplying the needs of both its civilian and military parts

Karachi 1

Napier Mole bridge


Photograph was taken by an unknown photographer in Karachi, c.1900, with a general view along the iron Napier Mole bridge connecting Karachi with Kiamari


Empress Market in Karachi

Photograph of Empress Market in Karachi, taken by an unknown photographer, c.1900. The Empress Market was constructed between 1884 and 1889 and was named to commemorate Queen Victoria, Empress of India. It was designed by James Strachan, the foundations were completed by the English firm of A.J. Attfield, and the building was constructed by the local firm of 'Mahoomed Niwan and Dulloo Khejoo.' The building was arranged around a courtyard, 130 ft by 100 ft, with four galleries, each 46 ft wide. The galleries accommodated 280 shops and stall keepers; at its construction, it was one of seven markets in Karachi.

D.J. Sind Arts College

Photograph of the D.J. Sind Arts College (now known as the D. J. Government Science College) of Karachi, taken by an unknown photographer, c.1900, from an album of 46 prints titled 'Karachi Views'. Designed by James Strachan and considered this architect's greatest achievement, the college was built between 1887 and 1893. Named after the Sindhi philanthropist Dayaram Jethmal, whose two family members contributed towards its cost, the building was constructed in the neoclassical, or ‘Italian architectural style’. A considerable amount of money was spent on the college's interior; the floors comprised mosaic tiles imported from Belgium, and the eight-foot-wide main staircase was fitted with ornamental cast-iron work from McFarlane & Company of Glasgow. Karachi, once the capital of Pakistan, is now the capital of Sindh province and the major port and main commercial center of the country. It was a strategically located small port at a protected natural harbor on the Arabian Sea north-west of the mouth of the Indus and was developed and expanded by the British when they took over Sindh in the mid-19th century to serve the booming trade from Punjab and the wheat and cotton regions of the sub-continent.

Street scene in Karachi

Photograph of a busy street scene in Karachi (year unknown - probably 1900)

Thursday, November 15, 2007

Human Psych


I sit on a man's back, choking him, and making him carry me, and yet assure myself and others that I am very sorry for him and wish to ease his lot by any means possible, except getting off his back.

- Leo Tolstoy on human psychology.

Sunday, November 11, 2007

Kitab ka aakhri safha

Zindagi main aksar aesa hota hai ke kisi baat ka aakhri safha abhi likha jana baqi hota hai. Zindagi main koi waqiya, koi shaks, koi baat, koi event bazahir khatam hone ke baad bhi dil main adhura sa reh jata hai. Kubhi kubhi woh safha likhe jaane main barson lug jaate hain - the last chapter of the book - jis ke baad woh kitab hamesah ke liye dafan ho jaati hai. Dil ko qarar sa aa jata hai. Phir woh yaad kahin chup chap bethe bethe kachoke marna chor deti hai.

Aroosa aur main saath hi aik gali main bare huwe. Woh bilkul meri sagi bahen ki tarah thi. Main MBBS ke 3rd year main tha jub aroosa ki shadi ho gai aur woh canada chali gai. Shadi ke koi 4 baras baad aroosa phir Pakistan aai. Hum bachpun ka ilaqa chor ker kahin aur shift ho gaye the. Aik din aroosa ne mujhe phone kiya ke aaj mere saath bachpan ki usi gali main chalo, main use dekhna chahti hun. Ye woh zamana tha jub gali gali MQM ke logon pe chape par rahe the. Aur woh gali MQM ke aese ilaqe main thi ke jaana khatre se khali na tha. Magar hum dono wahan chal pare. Gali ke agaz pe hi aik bara darwaza tha, jis pe MQM ke 2 lurke pehra de rahe the (Karachi main rehne walon ko yaad ho ga ke kese 1990 ke ashre main gali gali pe 'gates' bana ker poore shaher ko band ker diya gaya tha). Qissa mukhtasar, lurki saath thi to un do lurkon ne koi aetraz na kiya aur hamare liye taala khol diya. Hum gali ke ander paunche. Aroosa kafi der tuk hur makan ko takti rahi. 2/4 purane jaanne wale bhi mile. Gali ke dusri taraf ander hi aik chota sa naya cinema theatre ban chuka tha. Hum ne woh bhi dekha. Sham dhale hum wahan se nikle. 2 din baad Aroosa phir canada chali gai.

Is baat ko barson beet gaye. Main ne bhi Pakistan chor diya. Aroosa phir kubhi Pakistan nahi gai. Ab ki baar main Canada gaya to Aroosa mili. Main ne aroosa se poocha, tum phir kubhi Pakistan nahi gai, tumhara dil nahi chahta? Us ne jawab diya, "Pehli baar Pakistan chorte huwe main ne apna sab kuch chor diya tha magar koi aik cheez wahan reh gai thi. Pata nahi kiya tha magar 4 baras baad koi cheez jo pehli baar Pakistan se chalte reh gai thi, us roz us gali main mil gai. Jis din hum us bachpan ki gali main gaye, mere dil main aik itminan aa gaya. Ab Pakistan mujhe bilkul yaad nahi aata. Pakistan ki kitab us din mere dil main hamesah ke liye band ho gai".

Friday, November 09, 2007

Chai ke cup ka pehla ghunt

Zindagi ki kuch yaadain itni lateef hoti hain ke woh saari zindagi insaan ke saath rehti hain. Magar saath hi un main itni garmi hoti hai ke insaan us yaad ki aahat se hi pighal jaata hai.

Mere walid 'karak aur garam chai' peene ke shauqeen the. Jub amma abbu ke liye bawarchi khane main chai bana leti to mujhe cup deti aur kehti, jao abbu ko de aao. Main chai ka cup abbu ko dene se pehle, unke paas khara ho ker, hamesah pehla ghunt khud leta. Abbu meri is adat ko note kerte hain, mujhe is baat ka aehsas na tha. Aik din main ne abbu ko yunhi cup de diya to abbu bare piyar se bole, 'lo pehle tum to ghunt le lo'. Us din se phir ye roz ka maamul bun gaya.

Abbu ab is duniya main nahi rahe (see) magar aaj bhi jub 'karak aur garam chai' ka pehla ghunt leta hun to abbu bohut yaad aate hain !

Thursday, November 08, 2007

Ground of Saints



One of my all time favourite blogger Mezba is visiting his home country Bangladesh. He posted this story from a small place called Rongpur.

"...This was the strangest thing. The white dome like thing is the mimbar of the local Eid-gah. Right next to it is a small shelf full of little cubicles. In each of those slots is a bottle of water, with the cap left open. I am told when someone is ill or there is some misfortune in a family, the head of the family will take a bottle of water, read some prayers, then leave it here in the Eid-gah for the night. The place has a graveyard where lots of saints are buried. The villagers believe the spirits of those saints come and 'bless' the water in the middle of the night. In the morning the villagers come and get their respective bottles and drink the water. The problem is then supposedly 'resolved'..."

Kaun jaane, kisi achhe maseeha ki ruh aaj bhi us maidan main bhatkti ho aur ho sakta hai itne insaanon ki "cumulative postive energy" hi bimar ko shifa de deti ho !

Aur ye bhi ho sakta hai ke ye sub jhoot hi ho magar raat bhar maidan main paani rakhne se agar kisi bimar ko bewajah qarar aa jaata hai to kiya bura hai. Bechara insaan bara majboor aur masoom hai. Aur ye ke insaan bara darpok hai. Apni fana aur maut se darta hai. Jub bhanwar main dub raha hota hai to tinke ko bhi sahara jaanta hai !

Magar achha lugta hai. Ye raunaq lagi rahe to achha hai !

Tuesday, November 06, 2007

Cindrella

Mujhe 'Cindrella' aur 'Snow White' ki kahanian pasand nahi kiunke jub aap bachhe ki kahani ka aagaz hi kuch aese kerte hain ke...


"Once upon a time, long long ago, there was a princess whose mother was dead and she has to live with her cruel step mother and 2 cruel step sisters...."

to aap us bachhe ki psyche main bachpun hi se dur, khauf aur depression ka beej bo dete hain !


Sunday, November 04, 2007

Radio Pakistan ki aag

Aaj Pakistan ke akhbar roznama 'Jang' main aik column shaya huwa hai. Yun to Pakistan ke mojuda halat pe itna likha aur suna ja raha hai ke main is blog pe us ka izhar redundancy hi samjhta hun, magar baqol Ghalib - Dil hi to hai dard se bhar na aaye kiun

Ye column batata hai ke ilmi aur ruhani tor pe hamari qaum kitni diwaliya ho chuki hai. Ye column na to emergency ke nifaz pe hai aur na 'dhashatgardi ke khilaf jang' per hai, bulke ye parto hai hamari muflisi ka, hamari dam torti qaumi gairat ka.

Radio Pakistan ki aag by Azeem Sarwar

Ye column aap ko us Pakistan ko yaad dilaye ka jo hum sab ki aankh ka tara tha aur dil kahe ga - kubhi hum khubsurat the

Jub Azeem Sarwar jese zinda-dil log mayoos ho jayain to samjho fatiha ka waqt hai. Dil kerta hai keh dun ke - aesi qaum ko barbad hi ho jana chahiye. Magar kese keh dun - us mulk ki galion main beechi be-hisi mere dimag ko sun kiye de rahi hai. Jee chah raha hai ke is column ke aakhri jumle ko thora badal ker yun likh dun:

"Jis mulk ko main ne gulistan ki surat dekha tha, us ko shamshan ke roop main kese dekhun, himmat nahi hai...." !


Saturday, November 03, 2007

Laaga Chunari Mein Daag

Jub main residency ker raha tha to Bankok se aik lurka 'Mike' mere saath residency ker raha tha. Aik din main use bata raha tha ke, agar Pakistan main koi ye kahe ke main Bankok ja raha hun to yahi samjha jata ke ye shaks 'prostitution' ka maza lutne Bankok ja raha hai. Us waqt Mike ne mujhe aik baat batai ke - jub koi lurki Bankok main jism ka karobar kerne ke baad apne gaun wapas lautti thi to use bari izzat ki nigah se dekha jata. Wajah ye thi ke log ye 'acknowledge' kerte ke is lurki ne khandan ki gurbat ka sara bojh apne badan pe utha liya !

Sufi kitabon main ye bayan hai ke jub purane zamane main shaher pe koi afat aa jaati aur kisi ki dua qabool na hoti to badshahe-waqt tawaifon se darkhuast kerta ke woh allah se dua maange ke allah mian tawaifon ki dua kabhi nahi talta !! *

*(ye bayan main ne khud urdu ke sufi writer Ashfaq Ahmad se suna hai)

"Laaga Chunri main Daag" , old indian claasic song hai, jise manna dey ne film 'Dil hi to hai' main gaya tha aur jise Sahir ludhianvi ne likha tha. Isi naam ki hindustan main abhi aik film bani hai.