Creativity VS Effectiveness?
Printed at http://www.ihaveanidea.org
October 2007
By Fariha Rashed
The distinction between "effectiveness" and "creativity" is structural, reflecting different goals and needs of different departments (Ibarra, 1992).
Within the local Pakistani and global advertising industry, there seems to be an inexhaustible struggle between those who create the advertising ("creatives") and those advertising managers who are adamant that it be "effective." Advertising agencies exist, sometimes unsteadily, in unsound environments. Therefore, stability in both organization and output generally are favored whenever possible by agency management. Management's goal is to have stable output which is predictable and "effective." Effectiveness, however, has many different dimensions by which it can be measured; the key element is some reliable measurement on which agency management and clients can agree. Usually, that measurement is an aspect of persuasion or (ideally) marketplace sales.
Creatives, on the other hand, typically sneer at the criteria used by management and clients and allege they have little to do with the way advertising really works. Within a typical agency structure, the advertising product is formed by people in the "creative department." Creative people (copywriters and art directors) believe that creativity is necessary for effectiveness, that the creative factor pushes the message into viewers' minds. In fact, some even feel that creativity IS effectiveness (Kover, 1995). This belief seems general despite a few creative people who believe that creativity is merely a front for self-indulgent "artistic" attempts (Bensman and Gerver, 1958; Ordahl, 1993). Therefore, as might be expected, many agency managers mistrust creative advertising. Creativity as defined by "the creatives" can be bothersome, costly, and time-consuming. Creative advertising may win awards but may have little to do with advertising effectiveness (Gaylord, 1994). Creativity, after all, is unpredictable and can upset the appearance of stability and predictability that smoothes the lives of bureaucracies (Martin, 1994).
The fact is that the ads that are generally loved are not necessarily the ads that sell stuff. Even if consumers love them too it doesn't always follow that they'll remember what's being advertised. Or want to buy it if they can. Furthermore, the ads that shift products off shelves or build long-lasting brands are not necessarily the ones that ‘tickle the jurors at the big creative love-in awards’. Effectiveness doesn't always come with creative fireworks attached, and vice-versa.
The relationship between creativity and advertising is long, rich and textured.
Creativity is considered to be an important determinant of advertising effectiveness and advertising textbooks normally devote one or two chapters to creative strategy and tactics. Major industry awards are given to ‘creative’ advertisements and salaries to ‘creative’ personnel represent a considerable portion of ad agencies’ expenses. Furthermore, there is a strong focus on creativity in advertising trade papers [e.g. Aurora].
Despite the importance attributed to creativity, there has been very little research on this issue in marketing and advertising. Unfortunately, this lack of systematic theory development in advertising creativity has created a vacuum in the literature.
According to Webster’s dictionary to ‘create’ means: to bring into existence, to invest with a new form, to produce through imaginative skill. The Encyclopedia Britannica uses a similar definition: the ability to make or otherwise bring into existence something new, whether a new solution to a problem, a new method or device, or a new artistic object or form. These definitions highlight two primary determinants of creativity. First, there must be something new, imaginative, different, or unique – this component is generally referred to as ‘divergence’. Second, the divergent thing produced must solve a problem or have some type of ‘relevance’.
People are creative when they produce ideas, solutions, inventions, or products that are divergent and relevant. Note that divergence and relevance are determined by context or the ‘social recognition criteria’ (Getzels and Csikszentmihalyi, 1975; MacKinnon, 1962). This means that an ad that is creative to one group (e.g. senior citizens) may not be considered to be creative by another group (e.g. teenagers). Ultimately, ads are products of people, just like ideas and inventions. Accordingly, the concepts of divergence and relevance can be applied to anything people create including advertisements. This is important because three different types of creativity are related to advertising. First, there is the creative team that develops and implements the creative strategy and actually produces the ad. Second, there is the level of creativity that the ad is perceived to possess by the target market. Third, there is the level of creativity in the audience members who are exposed to the ad. While there are likely to be interactions among these three types of creativity (as hypothesized below) the defining characteristics of creativity – divergence and relevance – do not change. Instead, it is the context that changes. In an attempt to note the important differences that do exist among these contexts, the term ‘personal creativity’ will refer to the divergence/relevance of creative talent (e.g. creative directors, copywriters, etc.); ‘ad creativity’ will refer to the divergence/relevance of an ad (or campaign) as perceived by the target market; and ‘consumer creativity’ will refer to the divergence/relevance of the audience members exposed to the ad.
Various people spoken to about this subject, described Advertising Effectiveness in their own words. The majority said that effective advertising is something that impresses. Others said it is an ad that is concise and to the point and if your target market is talking about the ad, it’s Effective Advertising. It was also described as advertising methods that lead to significant product circulation both at the brand and consumer level with obvious augmentation of product sales and consumer satisfaction. Another opinion about Effective advertising was that it is more informational than promotional, it tells us when, where and how to get the product; Effective ads are ones which present a clear communications about the product / goods that you are trying to sell. Furthermore, it was thought that advertising effectiveness is a way to advertise in a way which might create an influence on a consumer’s mind about a particular product that he/she may remember for a long time. One respondent said Effective Advertising would constitute an ad that achieves popularity amongst all strata of society – a good example would be the Pakistani telecommunication company Ufone’s Prepay ad – everyone loves the ad, the images and the jingle, and it has according to her invoked customers to go for a switch. Another respondent said Advertising Effectiveness means presenting the right content in a different style which catches the attention of the customer and gives him/her all the information he/she needs to know about the product. It should have enough repetition (if via T.V or Radio) but no too much since it can bore the prospective customer. And if it is in the form of print then it should cover as much area as possible and at the right time. Another answer expressed that effective advertising is an evaluation of the extent to which a specific advertisement or advertising campaign meets the objectives specified by the client. It was also said that when an ad manages to get its message across to the audience it is considered effective. Additionally, if the audience undertakes an “action” based on the correct interpretation of the ad, it is an effective ad. Effective advertisement always respects the product it seeks to promote; marketing professionals have no business debating the caliber of a product, a practice very evident in the Pakistani advertising agency: what they don’t understand they put down. Effectively capture the essence of the product, create the mood, entice the consumer, pique their interest and trust the product to do the rest. If you do not have faith in the product, then just step away.
Most people believe that creative advertising uses images and forms not used before; originality is the keyword. An ad that is distinguishable from others, conveys the message across and creates the need for the brand/product/service is a creative one in most respondent’s minds. Some believe creativity can be seen as the “fine arts” employed in advertising, that lead to increased consumer recall about the product in relation to the advertisement, while being present in markets, thereby leading to at least a consumer curiosity about the product. Others believe creative advertising would drive the seller to be more strategic. Instead of spending too much on recurring informative ads, they’d rather develop a distinctive image in the consumers mind so that the consumer would associate the ad to the brand wherever they see it or hear about it. Hammad Azim who is Brand Activation Manager at U-Fone Pakistan says that creativity in advertising endorses the message so that the communication is retained in the minds of the consumer! An ad needs both creativity and effectiveness to be successful. However marketers / ad agencies have also proved that without creativity an ad in never successful, especially with High Involvement products such as CARS, Hand SETs, Airlines, Holidays destinations! FOR FMCG goods, the ads need to have an effective communication! These products are low involvement goods being used in our daily lives! “So I guess it’s only fair to say Creativity / Effectiveness is dependent on the product / goods / services you are trying to sell!” says Hammad with an exclamation.
Ads that force you to pay attention to the screen/billboard/newspaper and make you sigh with pleasure, are creative ads says another respondent. Creativity can vary differently depending on the product so giving one definition is not possible says a 29 year old businessman. Insiya Syed, a journalist, says that creative advertising is easy to comprehend creative ideas for the target market and not being creative for the sake of being creative. Nadeem Farooq Paracha who is in advertising and a journalist says creative advertising is an abstract idea based on a rational strategy, while Mr. M.A Niazi of ‘The Nation’ newspaper describes it as an ad that registers itself in the consumer’s mind. Sajid Ghafoor, Law Professor and a musician says that creativity is something that can put life into a lifeless product, something that enhances the characters of the product but in such way that the product and the advertisement do not lose harmony; both should compliment each other properly. It should be presented in an artistic fashion so that the viewer sees more than what he pays for. The initial pull should be captivating. What makes a product stand apart from the others is how it’s presented. Salman Khalid a fashion designer from Lahore says creativity in Advertising must inherently be used to communicate something that is interesting and of some value or worth to your potential customer. Sambreen Rashed who is a product manager at ABN Amro Bank Karachi says creative advertising is an unusual yet effective manner of advertising a product or service. Creativity encourages audiences to “connect” the meaning meant to be conveyed with the product/service. Shaheryar Khan Niazi, Creative Director of a Fashion label says Creativity in an ad campaign is directly related to its effectiveness. If it creates the required mood, piques the interest etc then you are creative. When handling marketing, your job is to be the liaison between the consumer and the product. If the projected targets are met then the marketing campaign is a success, otherwise forget about it. “The confusion I have noticed in our country is that everybody wants to prove that they are creative, usually sacrificing the task at hand. Creativity in advertisement is all about effectively creating the perfect plane of existence, which every product in the world warrants. Let the creative people create the product and let the marketing people creatively make the product effective” says Shaheryar.
The findings from the little study done above, suggest that the debate regarding Creativity vs. Effectiveness continues, especially in the corporate and media world. However, the majority of people believe that they will remember and recall an ad that is creative and effective at the same time, rather than one that simply supplies information about the product/service. This balance between creativity and effectiveness, will entice the customer to act on what he has seen, or heard and he might just go out and buy the product or pick it up when out for shopping. Effective advertising ensures that the customer is told where, how and at what price he/she can purchase the product/service. At the end of the day both effective advertising and creativity do sell and sell better together.
I like to write when I'm spiteful; it's like having a good sneeze. (Collected Letters; (1962) Volume 1, page 246)
Monday, October 01, 2007
Sunday, September 02, 2007
Ever Heard the Word 'Blog'?
Ever heard the Word 'Blog'?
By Fariha Rashed
Weblogs or blogs are the recent trends and hip happenings on the virtual, intelligent world of the cybernet. Many of the regular internet users still confuse blogs with chat rooms, bulletin boards, and other web communication platforms. However, blogs are simply logs of interesting websites hosted by individuals who input information on massively diverse subjects. Furthermore, authoring a blog, sustaining a blog or adding an article to an existing blog is called "blogging". Individual articles on a blog are called "blog posts," "posts" or "entries". A person who posts these entries is called a "blogger".
It probably will be quite interesting to know that the initial weblogs were websites full of a mixture of different links, personal experiences, essays, jokes, recipes, gossip and so on, created by web enthusiasts, who knew how to formulate a website. In 1999, a whole community of blog readers sprang up, crowding the cyber world.
The term "weblog" was coined by Jorn Barger on 17 December 1997. The short form, "blog," was coined by Peter Merholz. He broke the word weblog into the expression "we blog" in the sidebar of his weblog in April or May of 1999. Justin Hall, who began eleven years of personal "blogging" in 1994 while a student at college, is generally accepted as one of the earliest bloggers. After a slow start, blogging rapidly gained in popularity. Blog usage spread during 1999 and the years following, being further popularized by the arrival of the first hosted blog tools, round about the same time. In early 1999, Eatonweb Portal, comprising of a detailed list of weblogs was created by Brigeitte Eaton. Brig kept on compiling the rapid growth of blogs, until mid 1999, when the first free build- your-own-weblog tool, Pitas was launched. After Pitas the band wagon began, practically all and sundry having interest got opportunity to build there own weblog.
According to a Technrati report there were almost three million blogs up till mid 2004, which has been rapidly growing. Since blogs aren’t taken as a mainstream source of entertainment or job, bloggers i.e people who keep their own blog are considered as its best consumers. They equal to about 2.9 million based on Blog Count Report. Don’t get awed by it, it is only 4% of the online users who use blogs. These can be categorized in four main types.
Personal bloggers habitually create blogs with personal information, thoughts, experiences, and views etc. These blogs proved to be useful to those people whose interests match those of the personal bloggers. There are business bloggers who create blogs for the purpose of promoting their product or services. These blogs contain detail information which would other wise have reached you through brochures, or leaflets. Furthermore, there are organizational bloggers, who externally or internally communicate with people through blogs. Blogs related to NGO’s, community clubs, and institution details are an example of their creations. Lastly there are certain people who are actually paid to create blogs by other companies or clients. These are known as professional bloggers.
Having been around for a number of years blogs have now become a source of sharing and community building. Blogs such as BBC Urdu’s blog section, allow people to post their views, and opinions. It comes as a great surprise that many web experts like Sheila Coggins, consider blogs as a cross between bulletin boards and an ink list. Although most of the blogs are a complete waste of time, there are a number of them tilted towards specialized skills that are worth paying a visit. Journalists and weblogs also work hand in hand to help disseminate, filter and break news to the world. It has been discovered that weblogs can actually do an amazing job at breaking news and that journalists must harness that power by starting their own blogs. Also, a few rare bloggers transform into amateur journalists, a status which brings with it great ethical responsibility. However, most bloggers tend to be more like columnists rather than hard core journalists. The question and concern in the world of print media is whether bloggers have given birth to a new type of grassroots level journalism, one that threatens the extinction of journalism in its truest form. I personally feel that bloggers and journalists have a mutually beneficial relationship, just like symbiosis in Biology. They work together to report, filter and break news. In this way a blogging biosphere is created which can be thought of as an ecosystem. Bloggers have decided to describe this ecosystem as a blogosphere which is a living, breathing media biospehere of sorts.
I tried gathering info about the grounds on which people read blogs. The rationale that I found was honestly quite simple, and frankly, quite depressing. Out of 80 net users whom I interviewed, 65 didn’t know the difference between a blog and a website. “What difference does it make if I am using a website or a web blog, as long as I get what I want?” was the majority's reaction.
The basic difference between a website and a blog is rather technical. Blogs are usually updated on a regular basis with posts or entries with date and time stamps. Websites do not have to be updated that frequently until and unless it belongs to a media body like Al-Jazeera or BBC. Furthermore, blogs are generally text based, where as, websites might also have pictures, flash files, or sound waves. Furthermore, blogs have posts in a reverse-chronological order. Thus, the newest piece of information is what users are confronted with at the top of the page, when they visit a blog. For readers this gives them a sense of immediacy with no extra effort being done on their part. Also the reader does not have to browse the page to see what new stuff has been added or changed. Blog pages commonly appear uniform in layout and design because some are created using blog software which often uses a template technique for making each page. As a result, blogs typically don't suffer from the problems new users can have with formatting Web pages.
Amongst the respondents, those who did know about blogs or use them gave several reasons for using blogs. These included gathering information on various topics and issues, learning more about a particular topic, being entertained with humorous content or interesting reports, finding people with similar interests and concepts.
I managed to find two real life bloggers who had their blogs on really interesting issues.
Asad (27) made his blog about racing cars, because he could not find the required information. To his surprise he not only managed to get that information on his blog, but professional racers also started posting there. “Now we are a small community and discuss various racing and car issues. It really helps,” he confided.
Rehab (26) on the other hand actually gets paid for his blog making. “It all started when I made a weblog during summer vacations and posted it on the net for the sake of fun. My blog was about imaginary hair oil that would make hair grow. I was amazed at the response that I got. Initially, it was hilarious, but then I started taking it seriously and got hired by some company who wanted to build a website for advertising.” Rehab convinced them that a blog would be cheaper and as efficient. He was actually earning money, while performing a hobby.
The trend of blogging in Pakistan is increasing gradually. The motivation, being its self publishing, automated technology. One such application is “Blogger”, the web service, which allows you to launch your own blog inside the cyber world without any difficulty or time wastage. Many websites also provide their users some space to put their blogs online. On Blogger one can add a myriad of images to support one’s blogs and can paste various links also. A Blogroll is also present, which is a list of links to other blogs, often included in a vertical column down one side of the weblog: usually a way of identifying the blogs one reads or esteems. Blogger is held in liking by many longer-term bloggers, even though it fell out of fashion, as the service was run for some time by only one person - Evan Williams - after the dot.com crash. Blogger was subsequently bought by Google, the search engine, for an undisclosed sum.
Blogs are one of the easiest and inexpensive mechanisms of putting information on the internet. Without any hassles or stress, a blogger can make his ideas, opinions, and concepts available online. In easy words a blog, is like an electronic personal diary. Any thing a person feels like narrating to others can be presented to them, through the e–media. Blogs are also used as a source of commercial promotion or e-marketing. It is also a means of communication and interaction amongst a particular community with same interests. Although, there are only 4% of the net users, who put blogs to exercise, it is becoming a rapid trend. I myself had to use blogs in order to get all this information about them; hence, I would definitely be recommending their use. They can be quite handy!
By Fariha Rashed
Weblogs or blogs are the recent trends and hip happenings on the virtual, intelligent world of the cybernet. Many of the regular internet users still confuse blogs with chat rooms, bulletin boards, and other web communication platforms. However, blogs are simply logs of interesting websites hosted by individuals who input information on massively diverse subjects. Furthermore, authoring a blog, sustaining a blog or adding an article to an existing blog is called "blogging". Individual articles on a blog are called "blog posts," "posts" or "entries". A person who posts these entries is called a "blogger".
It probably will be quite interesting to know that the initial weblogs were websites full of a mixture of different links, personal experiences, essays, jokes, recipes, gossip and so on, created by web enthusiasts, who knew how to formulate a website. In 1999, a whole community of blog readers sprang up, crowding the cyber world.
The term "weblog" was coined by Jorn Barger on 17 December 1997. The short form, "blog," was coined by Peter Merholz. He broke the word weblog into the expression "we blog" in the sidebar of his weblog in April or May of 1999. Justin Hall, who began eleven years of personal "blogging" in 1994 while a student at college, is generally accepted as one of the earliest bloggers. After a slow start, blogging rapidly gained in popularity. Blog usage spread during 1999 and the years following, being further popularized by the arrival of the first hosted blog tools, round about the same time. In early 1999, Eatonweb Portal, comprising of a detailed list of weblogs was created by Brigeitte Eaton. Brig kept on compiling the rapid growth of blogs, until mid 1999, when the first free build- your-own-weblog tool, Pitas was launched. After Pitas the band wagon began, practically all and sundry having interest got opportunity to build there own weblog.
According to a Technrati report there were almost three million blogs up till mid 2004, which has been rapidly growing. Since blogs aren’t taken as a mainstream source of entertainment or job, bloggers i.e people who keep their own blog are considered as its best consumers. They equal to about 2.9 million based on Blog Count Report. Don’t get awed by it, it is only 4% of the online users who use blogs. These can be categorized in four main types.
Personal bloggers habitually create blogs with personal information, thoughts, experiences, and views etc. These blogs proved to be useful to those people whose interests match those of the personal bloggers. There are business bloggers who create blogs for the purpose of promoting their product or services. These blogs contain detail information which would other wise have reached you through brochures, or leaflets. Furthermore, there are organizational bloggers, who externally or internally communicate with people through blogs. Blogs related to NGO’s, community clubs, and institution details are an example of their creations. Lastly there are certain people who are actually paid to create blogs by other companies or clients. These are known as professional bloggers.
Having been around for a number of years blogs have now become a source of sharing and community building. Blogs such as BBC Urdu’s blog section, allow people to post their views, and opinions. It comes as a great surprise that many web experts like Sheila Coggins, consider blogs as a cross between bulletin boards and an ink list. Although most of the blogs are a complete waste of time, there are a number of them tilted towards specialized skills that are worth paying a visit. Journalists and weblogs also work hand in hand to help disseminate, filter and break news to the world. It has been discovered that weblogs can actually do an amazing job at breaking news and that journalists must harness that power by starting their own blogs. Also, a few rare bloggers transform into amateur journalists, a status which brings with it great ethical responsibility. However, most bloggers tend to be more like columnists rather than hard core journalists. The question and concern in the world of print media is whether bloggers have given birth to a new type of grassroots level journalism, one that threatens the extinction of journalism in its truest form. I personally feel that bloggers and journalists have a mutually beneficial relationship, just like symbiosis in Biology. They work together to report, filter and break news. In this way a blogging biosphere is created which can be thought of as an ecosystem. Bloggers have decided to describe this ecosystem as a blogosphere which is a living, breathing media biospehere of sorts.
I tried gathering info about the grounds on which people read blogs. The rationale that I found was honestly quite simple, and frankly, quite depressing. Out of 80 net users whom I interviewed, 65 didn’t know the difference between a blog and a website. “What difference does it make if I am using a website or a web blog, as long as I get what I want?” was the majority's reaction.
The basic difference between a website and a blog is rather technical. Blogs are usually updated on a regular basis with posts or entries with date and time stamps. Websites do not have to be updated that frequently until and unless it belongs to a media body like Al-Jazeera or BBC. Furthermore, blogs are generally text based, where as, websites might also have pictures, flash files, or sound waves. Furthermore, blogs have posts in a reverse-chronological order. Thus, the newest piece of information is what users are confronted with at the top of the page, when they visit a blog. For readers this gives them a sense of immediacy with no extra effort being done on their part. Also the reader does not have to browse the page to see what new stuff has been added or changed. Blog pages commonly appear uniform in layout and design because some are created using blog software which often uses a template technique for making each page. As a result, blogs typically don't suffer from the problems new users can have with formatting Web pages.
Amongst the respondents, those who did know about blogs or use them gave several reasons for using blogs. These included gathering information on various topics and issues, learning more about a particular topic, being entertained with humorous content or interesting reports, finding people with similar interests and concepts.
I managed to find two real life bloggers who had their blogs on really interesting issues.
Asad (27) made his blog about racing cars, because he could not find the required information. To his surprise he not only managed to get that information on his blog, but professional racers also started posting there. “Now we are a small community and discuss various racing and car issues. It really helps,” he confided.
Rehab (26) on the other hand actually gets paid for his blog making. “It all started when I made a weblog during summer vacations and posted it on the net for the sake of fun. My blog was about imaginary hair oil that would make hair grow. I was amazed at the response that I got. Initially, it was hilarious, but then I started taking it seriously and got hired by some company who wanted to build a website for advertising.” Rehab convinced them that a blog would be cheaper and as efficient. He was actually earning money, while performing a hobby.
The trend of blogging in Pakistan is increasing gradually. The motivation, being its self publishing, automated technology. One such application is “Blogger”, the web service, which allows you to launch your own blog inside the cyber world without any difficulty or time wastage. Many websites also provide their users some space to put their blogs online. On Blogger one can add a myriad of images to support one’s blogs and can paste various links also. A Blogroll is also present, which is a list of links to other blogs, often included in a vertical column down one side of the weblog: usually a way of identifying the blogs one reads or esteems. Blogger is held in liking by many longer-term bloggers, even though it fell out of fashion, as the service was run for some time by only one person - Evan Williams - after the dot.com crash. Blogger was subsequently bought by Google, the search engine, for an undisclosed sum.
Blogs are one of the easiest and inexpensive mechanisms of putting information on the internet. Without any hassles or stress, a blogger can make his ideas, opinions, and concepts available online. In easy words a blog, is like an electronic personal diary. Any thing a person feels like narrating to others can be presented to them, through the e–media. Blogs are also used as a source of commercial promotion or e-marketing. It is also a means of communication and interaction amongst a particular community with same interests. Although, there are only 4% of the net users, who put blogs to exercise, it is becoming a rapid trend. I myself had to use blogs in order to get all this information about them; hence, I would definitely be recommending their use. They can be quite handy!
Wednesday, August 22, 2007
Broken Bodies
Broken Bodies
Published in the 'Quiet Panic' section of NICHE Lifestyle
Vol 1, Issue 3, 2007
By Fariha Rashed
June 6th, 2004. A 6-year-old boy named Talha is reportedly sexually abused by his Quran teacher but religious groups pressurize the boy's family to withdraw the complaint. He was allegedly assaulted by a maulvi (Islamic religious priest) at a Mosque on College Road, in Green Town. Talha's grandfather registered the First Information Report (FIR) at Green Town Police Station against the maulvi under Section 12/7 of the Hudood Ordinances on 7th June 2004. According to the FIR, during the afternoon of 6th June 2004, Talha's mother went to the Mosque because Talha, who went to there to study, did not come back home at his usual time. When she arrived in the mosque, she found that her son was lying in the corridor. He was bleeding and unconscious. At that time, the maulvi who had abused him was not in the mosque. Talha's family asked for help from their neighbors and they helped to ensure that the maulvi in question was found and taken into police custody. Later, Talha clearly identified the said maulvi as his attacker in front of the Green Town police and gave his statement about the incident. The initial medical report confirmed that Talha was sexually abused. The maulvi is currently detained at Kot Lakhpat Jail. However, according to Talha's family, various religious groups, where the maulvi reportedly studied, pressurized them to withdraw the case. It was reported that some of their neighbors in Nasir Colony were also pressurizing the family to withdraw the charges against the accused. The family got worried that the Islamic Religious Priests might threaten the whole community. In addition, in such circumstances, police investigators are also allegedly pressurized by religious groups. According to Mr. Mahmoodul Hassan, the Green Town Investigation Deputy Superintendent of Police, the police called a meeting of the maulvis and the family on 17th June 2004. An investigating officer Aftab Pervez said the police's job was to investigate the case and if the complainants and accused wanted to reach a compromise that was up to them.
This is just one extreme case. Shockingly, a huge percentage of our kids are being exposed to sex for the first time in their lives through their qaari's [religious teachers]. It is estimated, that nearly every second person has been abused in childhood and the usual culprits are religious teachers. Unfortunately, no accurate data is available for us to be able to estimate to what degree child sexual abuse is being practiced in Pakistan, because it is an issue which everyone either prefers to deny or hide. However, statistics from a few small-scale studies by some daring NGOs (Non governmental organizations) provide critical evidence of its existence in society. This horrific phenomenon is a major problem but an unexplored subject in Pakistan. According to statistics, it appears that girls are more likely to be molested by family members, acquaintances and neighbors, whereas the majority of boys are molested by teachers and total strangers. Notably, both girls and boys have a high risk of being molested by shopkeepers as well.
People hesitate while discussing this issue due to strong taboos inherent in our society. They do not want to talk about this shameful act even if they come to know that their child is a victim of sexual abuse. They want to hide it. They prefer to be silent over the safety of their child so that they can protect the honor of their family. This attitude stems from a number of factors ranging from the concept of (izzat) honor to the difficult and cumbersome effort of seeking retribution. The fact is that child sexual abuse is prevalent in Pakistani society irrespective of relations, community, status, gender or age group. Today parents are not giving proper attention to their children. Their children are being abused by religious teachers, right under their noses. The home, a place where a child is meant to feel the safest, is being turned into a place he/she associates abuse with. The ‘qari’, a person who is meant to be associated with knowledge and religion, is being seen as a monster by these unsuspecting children.
There is actually no universal definition for child sexual abuse. But when an older person, such as a ‘qari’, uses his/her authority with a sexual intent, to indulge in any sort of sexual activity with a child, it is termed child sexual abuse. Many of us are unaware of how children around us are being abused by others. If, parents, elder siblings, teachers and other people take this issue seriously and vigilantly track the activities of their children then this abomination can certainly be eradicated. Every child is innocent and trusting by nature. A sexually abused child loses his peace of mind and in most cases gets severe psychological and behavioral problems. It affects his daily life, education, character and interactions with others.
Wrong actions and impressions of others leave permanent harmful side effects on the overall personality of a child. Media, which calls itself socially responsible, should be strongly urged to play a vital role in this regard and help get the desired results. Today we are providing children with easy access to the internet, Indian and English music and movie channels. Our children are not equipped with proper information and guidance to decide what is right and what is not, and their parents and teachers are further failing them in this regard. Therefore, they are easily trapped, and abused by others.
Media’s power should be used to address the matter in an effective manner. TV channels, children pages in newspapers and children’s magazines can play an important role in this respect. I suggest that these programmes and articles be produced by experienced psychologists only, who are the best judges about at what age what sort of information should be effective for a particular child. Teacher training programmes must be launched in every school to raise awareness and help eradicate sexual abuse from our society.
Every child, despite his individual differences and uniqueness, is to be considered of equal socio, economic, civil and political status, so that he may fully realize his inherited potential and be able to share equally in life, liberty and happiness. How can child abuse be wiped out from the society? It is a centuries old tradition for children to be obedient, silent, subservient and accept abuse as their fate. It is high time for them to speak out, speak up and act on the premise of their rights. There is great need to make them aware and also educate people about their child’s rights. Illegality and the consequent devastating impacts of the sexual exploitation of children must also be addressed. The basic problem continues to be that people do not want to acknowledge that they are living in a sordid society.
It is also high time parents and especially mothers start realizing the damaging effect this grave problem is having on their children, and in the broader sense, on the basic fabric of society. Then only, can a concrete solution be developed to eradicate this curse from our society. The role of community, religious leaders and school teachers is key to countering the sexual exploitation of children. Unfortunately, when we come to this point, there is ambivalence at times. There are members of these very groups who themselves contribute to or participate in the sexual exploitation of children. There is a need to sensitize parents and teachers on the crucial issues around child sexual abuse and mobilize them to form networks to protect children. With regard to religious leaders, there is much room for re-enforcing the Convention on the Rights of the Child on non-sectarian terms with the understanding of the child as an ultimate value. Let us strive as a community that cares to stop any further accumulation of ‘broken bodies’.
Published in the 'Quiet Panic' section of NICHE Lifestyle
Vol 1, Issue 3, 2007
By Fariha Rashed
June 6th, 2004. A 6-year-old boy named Talha is reportedly sexually abused by his Quran teacher but religious groups pressurize the boy's family to withdraw the complaint. He was allegedly assaulted by a maulvi (Islamic religious priest) at a Mosque on College Road, in Green Town. Talha's grandfather registered the First Information Report (FIR) at Green Town Police Station against the maulvi under Section 12/7 of the Hudood Ordinances on 7th June 2004. According to the FIR, during the afternoon of 6th June 2004, Talha's mother went to the Mosque because Talha, who went to there to study, did not come back home at his usual time. When she arrived in the mosque, she found that her son was lying in the corridor. He was bleeding and unconscious. At that time, the maulvi who had abused him was not in the mosque. Talha's family asked for help from their neighbors and they helped to ensure that the maulvi in question was found and taken into police custody. Later, Talha clearly identified the said maulvi as his attacker in front of the Green Town police and gave his statement about the incident. The initial medical report confirmed that Talha was sexually abused. The maulvi is currently detained at Kot Lakhpat Jail. However, according to Talha's family, various religious groups, where the maulvi reportedly studied, pressurized them to withdraw the case. It was reported that some of their neighbors in Nasir Colony were also pressurizing the family to withdraw the charges against the accused. The family got worried that the Islamic Religious Priests might threaten the whole community. In addition, in such circumstances, police investigators are also allegedly pressurized by religious groups. According to Mr. Mahmoodul Hassan, the Green Town Investigation Deputy Superintendent of Police, the police called a meeting of the maulvis and the family on 17th June 2004. An investigating officer Aftab Pervez said the police's job was to investigate the case and if the complainants and accused wanted to reach a compromise that was up to them.
This is just one extreme case. Shockingly, a huge percentage of our kids are being exposed to sex for the first time in their lives through their qaari's [religious teachers]. It is estimated, that nearly every second person has been abused in childhood and the usual culprits are religious teachers. Unfortunately, no accurate data is available for us to be able to estimate to what degree child sexual abuse is being practiced in Pakistan, because it is an issue which everyone either prefers to deny or hide. However, statistics from a few small-scale studies by some daring NGOs (Non governmental organizations) provide critical evidence of its existence in society. This horrific phenomenon is a major problem but an unexplored subject in Pakistan. According to statistics, it appears that girls are more likely to be molested by family members, acquaintances and neighbors, whereas the majority of boys are molested by teachers and total strangers. Notably, both girls and boys have a high risk of being molested by shopkeepers as well.
People hesitate while discussing this issue due to strong taboos inherent in our society. They do not want to talk about this shameful act even if they come to know that their child is a victim of sexual abuse. They want to hide it. They prefer to be silent over the safety of their child so that they can protect the honor of their family. This attitude stems from a number of factors ranging from the concept of (izzat) honor to the difficult and cumbersome effort of seeking retribution. The fact is that child sexual abuse is prevalent in Pakistani society irrespective of relations, community, status, gender or age group. Today parents are not giving proper attention to their children. Their children are being abused by religious teachers, right under their noses. The home, a place where a child is meant to feel the safest, is being turned into a place he/she associates abuse with. The ‘qari’, a person who is meant to be associated with knowledge and religion, is being seen as a monster by these unsuspecting children.
There is actually no universal definition for child sexual abuse. But when an older person, such as a ‘qari’, uses his/her authority with a sexual intent, to indulge in any sort of sexual activity with a child, it is termed child sexual abuse. Many of us are unaware of how children around us are being abused by others. If, parents, elder siblings, teachers and other people take this issue seriously and vigilantly track the activities of their children then this abomination can certainly be eradicated. Every child is innocent and trusting by nature. A sexually abused child loses his peace of mind and in most cases gets severe psychological and behavioral problems. It affects his daily life, education, character and interactions with others.
Wrong actions and impressions of others leave permanent harmful side effects on the overall personality of a child. Media, which calls itself socially responsible, should be strongly urged to play a vital role in this regard and help get the desired results. Today we are providing children with easy access to the internet, Indian and English music and movie channels. Our children are not equipped with proper information and guidance to decide what is right and what is not, and their parents and teachers are further failing them in this regard. Therefore, they are easily trapped, and abused by others.
Media’s power should be used to address the matter in an effective manner. TV channels, children pages in newspapers and children’s magazines can play an important role in this respect. I suggest that these programmes and articles be produced by experienced psychologists only, who are the best judges about at what age what sort of information should be effective for a particular child. Teacher training programmes must be launched in every school to raise awareness and help eradicate sexual abuse from our society.
Every child, despite his individual differences and uniqueness, is to be considered of equal socio, economic, civil and political status, so that he may fully realize his inherited potential and be able to share equally in life, liberty and happiness. How can child abuse be wiped out from the society? It is a centuries old tradition for children to be obedient, silent, subservient and accept abuse as their fate. It is high time for them to speak out, speak up and act on the premise of their rights. There is great need to make them aware and also educate people about their child’s rights. Illegality and the consequent devastating impacts of the sexual exploitation of children must also be addressed. The basic problem continues to be that people do not want to acknowledge that they are living in a sordid society.
It is also high time parents and especially mothers start realizing the damaging effect this grave problem is having on their children, and in the broader sense, on the basic fabric of society. Then only, can a concrete solution be developed to eradicate this curse from our society. The role of community, religious leaders and school teachers is key to countering the sexual exploitation of children. Unfortunately, when we come to this point, there is ambivalence at times. There are members of these very groups who themselves contribute to or participate in the sexual exploitation of children. There is a need to sensitize parents and teachers on the crucial issues around child sexual abuse and mobilize them to form networks to protect children. With regard to religious leaders, there is much room for re-enforcing the Convention on the Rights of the Child on non-sectarian terms with the understanding of the child as an ultimate value. Let us strive as a community that cares to stop any further accumulation of ‘broken bodies’.
Wednesday, August 15, 2007
Sajid & Zeeshan Interview
Sajid & Zeeshan Interview
1. What kind of a response have you had after the recent release of your debut album 'One Light Year at Snail Speed'?
Sajid: The response was quite good considering we had a few problems regarding the distribution initially. But over all the response was good and
we're happy with that.
2. Any particular reason for choosing such a long title?
Sajid: The title says it all. I believe the reason is right there.
3. When preparing for a gig, how do 'Sajid & Zeeshan' plan their performances? Do you try and do something different every time?
Zeeshan: Our performances have different intros and outros. The way we perform is that some of things (drums and bass) are sequenced before hand and we play on top of that. The reason for me to be sequencing things for stage is that we don't want to give up our electronica sound. The beats used are different from the album to some extent and we do try to play differently as well.
Sajid: Yes we do try to do different things, and one should do too. It makes
it all the more enjoyable and not just for the audience but for us as well.
4. When performing live what are some of the things you pay particular attention to as artists?
5. How do you respond to the comment by certain media publications that any artist's success is rated by how many live show they are doing, and that you might not be doing enough?
6. When is your next video coming out and for which song? Do you have any particular director in mind for it?
Sajid: I'll let Zeeshan deal with that question.
7. Have you started working on the second album and can you give us a little inside info on what kind of an album it's going to be this time?
Sajid: Yes we have started working on our next album and to be honest I
really cant say what kind of an album it will be. We're just trying to go
with the flow. At the moment we've only recorded a couple of tracks and plan
to have more recording sessions soon. The only thing that I can say for sure
is that, we're letting it take its own shape. Once we see what it turns
into, I'll let you know.
8. Now that you have entered the mainstream, how important has making money off of your talent become for you? Is it your top priority?
Sajid: Making money of music never was our top priority. In fact if that was our top priority, we wouldn't be doing music in English. So our top priority is now to make better music, better than what we've done before. It's hard to do that really since one feels pushed in a certain way, but then its fun too.
9. Are 'Sajid & Zeeshan' planning on going international? If so, in what capacity?
Sajid: Planning? Yeah our bags are packed and we're ready to go.
Just kidding. No, nothing at the moment really. Frankly speaking, we don't have any such contacts and until we do, we can't say much about that. But of course if our music can reach beyond borders, we'd love that.
10. What kind of a working relationship do the both of you share? How do you separate friendship with professionalism?
Sajid: Its pretty easy, when we're working, we try to do it with all
seriousness and passion. Of course being friends makes it all easier
too, but when we're deciding matters related to Sajid and Zeeshan, we try to
be fair towards each other.
11. There is a lot of leg pulling in the music industry. How do you feel about this as artists and how would you go about dealing with it if it happened to you?
Zeeshan: This is a major problem in the industry where some artists or their managers forget their professional responsibilities and cut off somebody else's gig and that too, at times, right at the end near the date of the concert. I feel the act is immoral, unethical, greedy and paints an ugly picture of people who do this sort of thing to make a living for themselves but leaving other people suffered. I would tackle it first by looking everything from a legal point of view, whether the party can be sued or not. If there is not much material that would give out a proper legal stance I would then tackle this by doing nothing, because I do realize it's a dog eat dog world out there and in many ways, our world is unfair, cruel and not just. I'm a strong believer of the saying "What goes around, comes around". I do feel that these guys will meet their match one day in the oddest situation ever.
Sajid: Of course we don't feel good about that. Wish we didn't have that. I
just hope we all snap out of this cheap trick sooner than soon. It doesn't
do any one any good. And as every case is subject to its own circumstances,
so if any of that sort happened to us, we'd go about it in a way which we
consider most appropriate.
12. Has coming out with an album in English put you at a disadvantage in any way?
Sajid: From a listener's perspective? No, but from a wider range of
13. It has been rumored that you might be coming out with a song in pashto. Can you tell us a little about this and why you have decided to do it?
14. What are some of the upcoming 'Sajid & Zeeshan' activities we can look forward to witnessing? Concerts? Videos? Tours?
Sajid: yes to the concerts, yes to the videos and yes to the tours.
15. How many times a week do you both take out time practice? How important is keeping up a practicing regime for you?
Zeeshan: Practice is crucial. We have to jam together a few times per week to keep up with the sort of stuff we would like to showcase. And in the process, we're coming up with new material. I don't like practicing as much as Sajid does, but it's something you have to do, there's no way out.
16. You have recently re-launched your website. How important is it for you to have an updated site and why?
Sajid: It's important because then we have a chance of sharing our music with the
rest of the world. The more listeners the better.
17. 'Sajid & Zeeshan' has a team of people working to market and manage them in all major cities. Why have you decided to create such a team?
Zeeshan: Well, musicians usually have a bunch of people with them who look after their interests and who work in getting them concerts and etc. It's like this worldwide. The other reason is that we do need people from mainstream cities like Lahore and Karachi to represent us. That is the only price you pay for living in Peshawar.
Sajid: Just because we're all the way here in Peshawar and we need people who
can help us out in other cities. If we didn't have them things would be
difficult to handle.
18. How do you both deal with any criticism that may appear, about your
music, in media? Have you had to face any that concerned you?
Sajid: I think criticism is very important, especially when it is fair
criticism. It helps us in seeing things which we might over look and so if
we can counter that at the expense of someone else pointing it out, I'd say
its still not a bad way to go about it, as long as we can counter it.
19. Any shout outs for your fans?
Sajid: Hey guys! Please keep listening to good music and please keep
supporting your local bands.
Published in 'In Chorus'
August 2007 Issue
By Fariha Rashed
1. What kind of a response have you had after the recent release of your debut album 'One Light Year at Snail Speed'?
Zeeshan: At first, the response was somewhat OK because there were distribution problems. Later on, MashAllah, we got good reviews from different sorts of people and our inboxes were flooded with good responses. There were very few criticisms about different things in the album, but that to me is a very healthy sign. It'll be one complete year in July, I can't believe how fast time flies by.
Sajid: The response was quite good considering we had a few problems regarding the distribution initially. But over all the response was good and
we're happy with that.
2. Any particular reason for choosing such a long title?
Zeeshan: The title was chosen by Sajid and it's seems sound, because he was the one who wrote all the lyrics (with the exception of one in the album) and he was the closest one in defining concepts for all the tracks.
Sajid: The title says it all. I believe the reason is right there.
3. When preparing for a gig, how do 'Sajid & Zeeshan' plan their performances? Do you try and do something different every time?
Zeeshan: Our performances have different intros and outros. The way we perform is that some of things (drums and bass) are sequenced before hand and we play on top of that. The reason for me to be sequencing things for stage is that we don't want to give up our electronica sound. The beats used are different from the album to some extent and we do try to play differently as well.
Sajid: Yes we do try to do different things, and one should do too. It makes
it all the more enjoyable and not just for the audience but for us as well.
4. When performing live what are some of the things you pay particular attention to as artists?
Zeeshan: I don't pay attention to anything to be honest. Like I'm the sort of a person who won't even try to look up at the crowd when I'm playing because I'm busying doing the job of 2 people. I just pay close attention to my playing and what my next moves are going to be.
Sajid: the sound, lights (because too much in your face just kills the mood), our place on the stage, basically all those things which need to be looked at.
5. How do you respond to the comment by certain media publications that any artist's success is rated by how many live show they are doing, and that you might not be doing enough?
Zeeshan: Success lies in a lot of things in my opinion. One part of it comes with the degree of how much the tracks of that particular are liked and how much his art is being appreciated. The other part is of course how many gigs the artists are playing. Lastly, it also depends on downloads and album purchases. Let's analyze us now. Mashallah, our songs have been appreciated a lot when heard, at least that's the general perception I get to hear and we're damn happy about it. Our gig rate, on the other hand, is low because most of our shows are sponsored ones and the music we deliver satisfies a small crowd. Just like our concerts, our album sales have been low as well, not because people didn't want to buy it, because it's distribution / promotion was not done as it was promised by our record company and we suffered greatly in that. It was physically unavailable in the stores since its launch and even now, I'm sure you won't find it in the racks.
Sajid: I'd say there are many who'd over play themselves but then they might
have a good reason for it. Usually its money, because if success was just based
on playing more live shows then I guess the small little bands that play in
marriage ceremonies would've been the top artists by now. Having said that,
yes more shows also support the “supply and demand concept” but that works
for a very few artists in this country.
have a good reason for it. Usually its money, because if success was just based
on playing more live shows then I guess the small little bands that play in
marriage ceremonies would've been the top artists by now. Having said that,
yes more shows also support the “supply and demand concept” but that works
for a very few artists in this country.
6. When is your next video coming out and for which song? Do you have any particular director in mind for it?
Zeeshan: Our next video in the pipeline is for our Pushto track "Lambay" and I'm directing it. We shot it in Peshawar some weeks back. It's in the editing process as we speak.
Sajid: I'll let Zeeshan deal with that question.
7. Have you started working on the second album and can you give us a little inside info on what kind of an album it's going to be this time?
Zeeshan: I have started recording for our 2nd album just some weeks back. It pretty much follows the same pattern of Sajid's song writing in the current album. The recording ethics in the studio are the same, totally relaxed, laid back, full of tea and coffee and only on those days when we're both comfortable with it. However, in terms of arrangements and instrumentation, we'll be experimenting a lot this time so that it totally differs from OLYASS. We'll be trying things we haven't done before.
Sajid: Yes we have started working on our next album and to be honest I
really cant say what kind of an album it will be. We're just trying to go
with the flow. At the moment we've only recorded a couple of tracks and plan
to have more recording sessions soon. The only thing that I can say for sure
is that, we're letting it take its own shape. Once we see what it turns
into, I'll let you know.
8. Now that you have entered the mainstream, how important has making money off of your talent become for you? Is it your top priority?
Zeeshan: I have chosen not to do a job for sometime. So that is why I would expect to generate revenue through things I've associated myself with - music and video direction. That is why I would expect to get paid well when I perform at concerts. I enjoy doing what I do the most but on the other hand, I treat it as my job as well.
Sajid: Making money of music never was our top priority. In fact if that was our top priority, we wouldn't be doing music in English. So our top priority is now to make better music, better than what we've done before. It's hard to do that really since one feels pushed in a certain way, but then its fun too.
9. Are 'Sajid & Zeeshan' planning on going international? If so, in what capacity?
Zeeshan: We do have an international fan following, but to say we're going international remains to be seen. We have been asked to play at different music festivals worldwide, but that's going to take some time to materialize. Our stuff is played in different radio stations in some countries but let's hope we get an international deal for an album release abroad.
Sajid: Planning? Yeah our bags are packed and we're ready to go.
Just kidding. No, nothing at the moment really. Frankly speaking, we don't have any such contacts and until we do, we can't say much about that. But of course if our music can reach beyond borders, we'd love that.
10. What kind of a working relationship do the both of you share? How do you separate friendship with professionalism?
Zeeshan: I love working with Sajid. We have a productive relationship because he absorbs my ideas as much as I'm open to his. We don't have to separate anything, because we're totally casual with each other. If there's something that needs to be discussed professionally, we'll deal with it like it's any other thing for. We try not to give too much weightage to small things around us.
Sajid: Its pretty easy, when we're working, we try to do it with all
seriousness and passion. Of course being friends makes it all easier
too, but when we're deciding matters related to Sajid and Zeeshan, we try to
be fair towards each other.
11. There is a lot of leg pulling in the music industry. How do you feel about this as artists and how would you go about dealing with it if it happened to you?
Zeeshan: This is a major problem in the industry where some artists or their managers forget their professional responsibilities and cut off somebody else's gig and that too, at times, right at the end near the date of the concert. I feel the act is immoral, unethical, greedy and paints an ugly picture of people who do this sort of thing to make a living for themselves but leaving other people suffered. I would tackle it first by looking everything from a legal point of view, whether the party can be sued or not. If there is not much material that would give out a proper legal stance I would then tackle this by doing nothing, because I do realize it's a dog eat dog world out there and in many ways, our world is unfair, cruel and not just. I'm a strong believer of the saying "What goes around, comes around". I do feel that these guys will meet their match one day in the oddest situation ever.
Sajid: Of course we don't feel good about that. Wish we didn't have that. I
just hope we all snap out of this cheap trick sooner than soon. It doesn't
do any one any good. And as every case is subject to its own circumstances,
so if any of that sort happened to us, we'd go about it in a way which we
consider most appropriate.
12. Has coming out with an album in English put you at a disadvantage in any way?
Zeeshan: Not at all. We don't have the attention of the general mass at large, but I never opted for that anyway. All I can say that it was a sincere step and I'm glad we took it.
Sajid: From a listener's perspective? No, but from a wider range of
listener's perspective? Yes, since it's an English album and so we cant
access the masses.
access the masses.
13. It has been rumored that you might be coming out with a song in pashto. Can you tell us a little about this and why you have decided to do it?
Zeeshan: I've always wanted to do a Pushto track as well since our inception. Both of us have this strong attachment with our native language and we thought we should do it. Sajid wrote "Lambay" (flames in Pushto) quite some time back and I further enhanced arrangements on it. We were supposed to come out with it last year, but due to our album launch and concert activities, we were unable to. I guess this is the right time to do it.
Sajid: I wrote a Pashto song just for fun but then we decided to record and
release it since we think it's a lot different than the usual Pashto music.
Just felt like giving something back to Pashto, not much though.
release it since we think it's a lot different than the usual Pashto music.
Just felt like giving something back to Pashto, not much though.
14. What are some of the upcoming 'Sajid & Zeeshan' activities we can look forward to witnessing? Concerts? Videos? Tours?
Zeeshan: There are a few concerts in the pipeline though we're not sure about the dates and yes, there are more videos coming.
Sajid: yes to the concerts, yes to the videos and yes to the tours.
15. How many times a week do you both take out time practice? How important is keeping up a practicing regime for you?
Zeeshan: Practice is crucial. We have to jam together a few times per week to keep up with the sort of stuff we would like to showcase. And in the process, we're coming up with new material. I don't like practicing as much as Sajid does, but it's something you have to do, there's no way out.
Sajid: Actually we only jam like 2 weeks before any gig. Though jamming is
very important, we make sure we jam enough to feel comfortable playing what
we play, otherwise there's no point. It's like fooling others and yourself at
the same.
very important, we make sure we jam enough to feel comfortable playing what
we play, otherwise there's no point. It's like fooling others and yourself at
the same.
16. You have recently re-launched your website. How important is it for you to have an updated site and why?
Zeeshan: Websites are considered to be an important marketing and promotional tool that gives convenience to everyone worldwide when they want to know more about their artists. For the last two years, I managed our website and I sucked at it because we didn't have a proper team setup to do this for us, nor did we have the funds to be honest. I did whatever I could to design pages from whatever I had learnt in my HTML and Dreamweaver classes that I took a couple of years back. We gave our account to some people I know in Islamabad and I'm happy that it's their headache now.
Sajid: It's important because then we have a chance of sharing our music with the
rest of the world. The more listeners the better.
17. 'Sajid & Zeeshan' has a team of people working to market and manage them in all major cities. Why have you decided to create such a team?
Zeeshan: Well, musicians usually have a bunch of people with them who look after their interests and who work in getting them concerts and etc. It's like this worldwide. The other reason is that we do need people from mainstream cities like Lahore and Karachi to represent us. That is the only price you pay for living in Peshawar.
Sajid: Just because we're all the way here in Peshawar and we need people who
can help us out in other cities. If we didn't have them things would be
difficult to handle.
18. How do you both deal with any criticism that may appear, about your
music, in media? Have you had to face any that concerned you?
Sajid: I think criticism is very important, especially when it is fair
criticism. It helps us in seeing things which we might over look and so if
we can counter that at the expense of someone else pointing it out, I'd say
its still not a bad way to go about it, as long as we can counter it.
19. Any shout outs for your fans?
Zeeshan: Thank you so much for sticking around with us since the last few years. We love you very much and we'll make sure you guys don't get disappointed in the future InshAllah.
Sajid: Hey guys! Please keep listening to good music and please keep
supporting your local bands.
A Business of Hemlines
A Business of Hemlines
By Fariha Rashed
Saturday night at the Royal Palm Golf & Country Club saw the official launch of Pakistan Fashion Week, currently running in its first year. The ambience created at the Dome [hall], was nothing less then magnetic. The room was swarming with celebrities, designers, models, photographers, stylists, actors and media. This was an unprecedented and very professionally organized media launch. Glamorous and tasteful are the words that best define the evening. The Fashion Week is scheduled to open on November 4-8 in Lahore at the Royal Palm. According to Jodi Pritchard, head of International Marketing Director and Special Projects [IMG Fashion], Lahore has been chosen as the city to host fashion week, because of its inherent culture that truly represents Pakistan as a whole.
Initially, guests were directed into a large lobby elegantly divided into separate enclosures. Each enclosure was exclusive to various top news channels. All celebrities present, took a stroll around the winding white ramp-like flooring interestingly created on the hall’s otherwise dull carpet. TV hosts invited designers and celebrities one by one to sit in their respective channels’ enclosures, to be interviewed in front of large plasma screens hanging at the back. People walked around sipping on cocktails and chattering as the interviews continued. Tall, yet rather lopsided mannequins, displaying Pakistani high fashion were scattered about the room. One witnessed a media explosion never seen before in Pakistan. One also witnessed a shocking unity between the Lahori and Karachi industries, unseen prior to this event. It seems took only for an international organization such as IMG [International Management Group] World to get involved, for our opposing forces in the fashion world to come together and work hand in hand for a promising Fashion Week all set for November this year. Film stars Reema, Meera and designers from the fashion capitals of Pakistan including Nomi Ansari and Deepak Perwani showed up at the event, although arriving late due to flight delays owing to bad weather.
IMG Fashion, which for decades has been organizing a surplus of fashion weeks all over the world, New York, Sydney, LA, Miami, Moscow to name a few, will be staging Pakistan’s very first Pakistan Fashion Week. This will be done in conjunction with media partners, Jang Group and GEO TV. The event will be largely organized by Events Unlimited, a Karachi based company headed by Mr. Asim Qureshi. This event management company is the first to be appointed as organizer member of the prestigious AEO based in the UK. Pakistan Fashion Week will showcase some of the best designers from Pakistan, to important buyers, media personalities and industry insiders. Therefore it promises to be one of the most significant moments in fashion history, for Pakistan.
Eventually, the guests and media persons were directed towards the main conference area which had a stage set with sofas, a table and a backdrop reading ‘Pakistan Fashion Week’ in big bold letters. Low, comfortable sofas were placed all across the area to seat everyone and plasma screens were fitted at both sides of the room playing an exclusive package related to global Fashion Weeks. Subsequently, a unique press conference organized more like a chat show unfolded. Leading the conference, Simon P Lock, Managing Director, IMG Fashion for Asia Pacific, welcomed three different sets of three guests each onto the stage for a brief question and answer session. Simon welcomed his first set of guests on stage with a touch of humor which lasted throughout the conference. ‘Welcome to Simon’s couch’ he said to Imran Aslam - President GEO Television Network, Sarmad Ali, Managing Director/Marketing - Jang Group and Asim Qureshi, CEO Events Unlimited, as they took their places on stage. Simon expressed his pleasure at having GEO and Jang involved in this venture as “they passionately want the message of Pakistani fashion to get across at an international level”, he said. Imran Aslam pointed out that they wanted to provide a platform for Pakistani designers and that they needed to ensure that Pakistani fashion does not go out of style. “Fashion never goes out of style”, he said. “It’s really going to paint a new image for Pakistan and make household names of Pakistani fashion designers”, agreed Simon.
Imran enthusiastically exclaimed “This is going to be one hell of a show!” With great passion he went on to say that Pakistan should not become a country known for its handicrafts alone. “The issue is to take our fashion out there into the world of retail. We’re known for our embroideries but Pakistan should now be a place for business,” Imran said excitedly with the crowd nodding in agreement. He also said that Pakistan was a well guarded secret that needs to be let out there. “Take our fashion out to the retail stores of the world. It’s a business of hemlines”, said Imran as the entire audience broke into a laugh. Imran also revealed that Pakistan Fashion Week would be promoted and covered in new segments, for one hour daily, on Geo and Aag TV. This would be coupled with pictorials running in The News and Jang. Simon added that viewing of online video streaming related to Pakistan Fashion Week would be available the world over. Sarmad Ali explained that 70% of their online traffic comes from abroad and the Pakistan Fashion Week website would be linked to that of IMG, thus pulling in more international traffic.
At this point Asim Qureshi said, “Simon, I really want to thank you for putting Pakistan on the international circuit! Hats off to you man!” The three went on to explain how Pakistan Fashion Week would be promoted through widespread media coverage. This would include radio and TV broadcasts as well as web casts [live coverage on the internet]. This kind of coverage, though standard practice for international fashion weeks, is completely new to Pakistan. “Our job as the organizers is to get the industry empowered” said Asim. He also warned that industry unity is vital for the success of PFW. He commented further that there is a lack of awareness in terms of the business of fashion in Pakistan, and the success of PFW also heavily depends on creating this awareness. “Our training in Sydney was very important with regard to achieving this goal” he explained.
Every individual’s role in PFW was discussed and two very important announcements were made. Simon Lock confirmed that Colin McDowell, one of the world’s most renowned fashion historians and pioneer of Fashion Fringe, has been placed on board as Special Advisor for Pakistan Fashion Week. Subsequently, while on stage, Nabila, Hasan Sheheryar and Sonya Battla, making up the advisory board for PFW, revealed that Pakistan Fashion Week would be taking a teaser to India during Lakme India Fashion Week in September. PFW would be organizing a fashion show in India in which Pakistani designers would be sending select outfits to give international buyers a feel for PFW. The show would have a certain mood and be thematic in nature. It would serve as a trailer of sorts for Pakistan Fashion Week. The main purpose for setting up this show would be to highlight to buyers the difference in Indian and Pakistani fashion. Nabila also jokingly added while addressing Simon that “we will be holding workshops to help our industry learn from your mistakes”. The workshops would apparently aid Pakistani designers learn from and improve upon the West’s work. Simon expressed that the Pakistani industry, through PFW, would undergo a transition. They would be transitioning from producing couture to producing ready-to-wear.
The media launch of Pakistan Fashion Week was unique and undoubtedly a roaring success. It’s quite obvious that IMG and Events Unlimited are geared up to take Pakistani fashion to another level altogether. One would like to believe that with time and with the help of ventures such as PFW, the industry will be united and redefined. Simon Locke is right in saying that this is a good first step.
Published in 'In Chorus'
August 2007 Issue
By Fariha Rashed
Saturday night at the Royal Palm Golf & Country Club saw the official launch of Pakistan Fashion Week, currently running in its first year. The ambience created at the Dome [hall], was nothing less then magnetic. The room was swarming with celebrities, designers, models, photographers, stylists, actors and media. This was an unprecedented and very professionally organized media launch. Glamorous and tasteful are the words that best define the evening. The Fashion Week is scheduled to open on November 4-8 in Lahore at the Royal Palm. According to Jodi Pritchard, head of International Marketing Director and Special Projects [IMG Fashion], Lahore has been chosen as the city to host fashion week, because of its inherent culture that truly represents Pakistan as a whole.
Initially, guests were directed into a large lobby elegantly divided into separate enclosures. Each enclosure was exclusive to various top news channels. All celebrities present, took a stroll around the winding white ramp-like flooring interestingly created on the hall’s otherwise dull carpet. TV hosts invited designers and celebrities one by one to sit in their respective channels’ enclosures, to be interviewed in front of large plasma screens hanging at the back. People walked around sipping on cocktails and chattering as the interviews continued. Tall, yet rather lopsided mannequins, displaying Pakistani high fashion were scattered about the room. One witnessed a media explosion never seen before in Pakistan. One also witnessed a shocking unity between the Lahori and Karachi industries, unseen prior to this event. It seems took only for an international organization such as IMG [International Management Group] World to get involved, for our opposing forces in the fashion world to come together and work hand in hand for a promising Fashion Week all set for November this year. Film stars Reema, Meera and designers from the fashion capitals of Pakistan including Nomi Ansari and Deepak Perwani showed up at the event, although arriving late due to flight delays owing to bad weather.
IMG Fashion, which for decades has been organizing a surplus of fashion weeks all over the world, New York, Sydney, LA, Miami, Moscow to name a few, will be staging Pakistan’s very first Pakistan Fashion Week. This will be done in conjunction with media partners, Jang Group and GEO TV. The event will be largely organized by Events Unlimited, a Karachi based company headed by Mr. Asim Qureshi. This event management company is the first to be appointed as organizer member of the prestigious AEO based in the UK. Pakistan Fashion Week will showcase some of the best designers from Pakistan, to important buyers, media personalities and industry insiders. Therefore it promises to be one of the most significant moments in fashion history, for Pakistan.
Eventually, the guests and media persons were directed towards the main conference area which had a stage set with sofas, a table and a backdrop reading ‘Pakistan Fashion Week’ in big bold letters. Low, comfortable sofas were placed all across the area to seat everyone and plasma screens were fitted at both sides of the room playing an exclusive package related to global Fashion Weeks. Subsequently, a unique press conference organized more like a chat show unfolded. Leading the conference, Simon P Lock, Managing Director, IMG Fashion for Asia Pacific, welcomed three different sets of three guests each onto the stage for a brief question and answer session. Simon welcomed his first set of guests on stage with a touch of humor which lasted throughout the conference. ‘Welcome to Simon’s couch’ he said to Imran Aslam - President GEO Television Network, Sarmad Ali, Managing Director/Marketing - Jang Group and Asim Qureshi, CEO Events Unlimited, as they took their places on stage. Simon expressed his pleasure at having GEO and Jang involved in this venture as “they passionately want the message of Pakistani fashion to get across at an international level”, he said. Imran Aslam pointed out that they wanted to provide a platform for Pakistani designers and that they needed to ensure that Pakistani fashion does not go out of style. “Fashion never goes out of style”, he said. “It’s really going to paint a new image for Pakistan and make household names of Pakistani fashion designers”, agreed Simon.
Imran enthusiastically exclaimed “This is going to be one hell of a show!” With great passion he went on to say that Pakistan should not become a country known for its handicrafts alone. “The issue is to take our fashion out there into the world of retail. We’re known for our embroideries but Pakistan should now be a place for business,” Imran said excitedly with the crowd nodding in agreement. He also said that Pakistan was a well guarded secret that needs to be let out there. “Take our fashion out to the retail stores of the world. It’s a business of hemlines”, said Imran as the entire audience broke into a laugh. Imran also revealed that Pakistan Fashion Week would be promoted and covered in new segments, for one hour daily, on Geo and Aag TV. This would be coupled with pictorials running in The News and Jang. Simon added that viewing of online video streaming related to Pakistan Fashion Week would be available the world over. Sarmad Ali explained that 70% of their online traffic comes from abroad and the Pakistan Fashion Week website would be linked to that of IMG, thus pulling in more international traffic.
At this point Asim Qureshi said, “Simon, I really want to thank you for putting Pakistan on the international circuit! Hats off to you man!” The three went on to explain how Pakistan Fashion Week would be promoted through widespread media coverage. This would include radio and TV broadcasts as well as web casts [live coverage on the internet]. This kind of coverage, though standard practice for international fashion weeks, is completely new to Pakistan. “Our job as the organizers is to get the industry empowered” said Asim. He also warned that industry unity is vital for the success of PFW. He commented further that there is a lack of awareness in terms of the business of fashion in Pakistan, and the success of PFW also heavily depends on creating this awareness. “Our training in Sydney was very important with regard to achieving this goal” he explained.
Every individual’s role in PFW was discussed and two very important announcements were made. Simon Lock confirmed that Colin McDowell, one of the world’s most renowned fashion historians and pioneer of Fashion Fringe, has been placed on board as Special Advisor for Pakistan Fashion Week. Subsequently, while on stage, Nabila, Hasan Sheheryar and Sonya Battla, making up the advisory board for PFW, revealed that Pakistan Fashion Week would be taking a teaser to India during Lakme India Fashion Week in September. PFW would be organizing a fashion show in India in which Pakistani designers would be sending select outfits to give international buyers a feel for PFW. The show would have a certain mood and be thematic in nature. It would serve as a trailer of sorts for Pakistan Fashion Week. The main purpose for setting up this show would be to highlight to buyers the difference in Indian and Pakistani fashion. Nabila also jokingly added while addressing Simon that “we will be holding workshops to help our industry learn from your mistakes”. The workshops would apparently aid Pakistani designers learn from and improve upon the West’s work. Simon expressed that the Pakistani industry, through PFW, would undergo a transition. They would be transitioning from producing couture to producing ready-to-wear.
The media launch of Pakistan Fashion Week was unique and undoubtedly a roaring success. It’s quite obvious that IMG and Events Unlimited are geared up to take Pakistani fashion to another level altogether. One would like to believe that with time and with the help of ventures such as PFW, the industry will be united and redefined. Simon Locke is right in saying that this is a good first step.
Tuesday, August 14, 2007
Theatre: A Mirror of Social Issues
Theatre: A Mirror of Social Issues.
Published in 'Khaleej Times'
14th August 2007
By Fariha Rashed
Social Theatre should not merely instigate change, it IS the change. It is with this objective in mind that theatre groups around the world perform with utmost zest and sincerity. If alternative and social communication theatre can today be held as a vibrant form of political expression and a mirror of social issues, a large share of the credit goes to the theatre companies that dare to speak out under oppressive regimes. In Pakistan for instance, where Social Theatre groups are these days the busiest, Ajoka Theatre, Tehrik-I-Niswan, and the Punjab Lok Rehas can be highlighted as some of the most vibrant. The connection between postmodern capitalism and the re-emergence of Islamic fundamentalism has been made explicit through the theatrical work of many such alternative theater groups.
Madeeha Gauhar, a talented Pakistani theatre director and human rights activist heads Ajoka Theatre and has been doing so for over 20 years. Ajoka as a theatre group continues to be a vital part of the struggle for a secular, democratic, humane, just, and egalitarian Pakistan. “Ajoka emerged out of extreme diversity… angry and full of fiery zeal to bring about a change, spurred me on to set-up Ajoka theatre in 1984”, explains Gauhar. Not just Ajoka, but all other such theatre groups were formed when Zia-ul-Haq's Martial Law was at its oppressive height and all forms of opposition were punishable by imprisonment and lashes. Since then these groups have been producing theatre plays promoting mostly issues related to human rights and social change. Ajoka for example, set the wheels turning with their ‘cultural marathon’, which marked the “beginning of the Theater for Social Change movement in Pakistan”. Most of their plays have depicted and addressed daring social subjects such as dowry, honor killings and discriminatory laws. The first play performed by Ajoka was ‘Juloos’ (procession), a play written by Badal Sircar. Due to the absence of the ‘no objection certificate’ from the Government, which scrupulously examined every script through and through, the play, could not be performed in any of the public halls or auditoriums of the city. Therefore it was performed in Begum Khadija Gauhar’s lawn in the Cantonment, Lahore. Madeeha recalls: “our activities were not discovered by the intelligence until the last portrayal of the week-long performances. However, they banned the second play we were to perform there. By then we approached the ‘Max Mueller’ institute and the German institute accommodated us by lending us space to perform. In the meantime I also went to London to get a Masters degree in theatre from University of London”. Some other prominent street plays and stage plays by Ajoka are ‘Kala Qanoon’ [Black Justice] which revolves around the Hadood Ordinance; ‘Kala Meda Bhes’ which dwells on a real life incident which took place in Sindh, where a woman was exchanged for an ox; ‘Dukhini’ which portrays the ugly practice of trafficking by luring and deceiving Bangladeshi women, living in rural areas, to come to Pakistan. Shahid Nadeem, Madeeha’s husband and playwright for Ajoka, has also done a Punjabi adaptation of Brecht’s ‘Arturo UI’, in the play ‘Bala King’.
Writer Fawzia Afzal-Khan in her book – ‘Exposed by Pakistani Street Theater: The Unholy Alliance of Postmodern Capitalism, Patriarchy, and Fundamentalism’, writes “Many of the more recent plays in the repertoire of several of the groups I have been researching do indeed make these linkages, especially a play entitled Dukhini (Suffering woman) by the Ajoka Theater group, which brings these issues to light through the theme of the trafficking of women who are smuggled from poverty-stricken Bangladesh across India and into Pakistan under the false promise of a "better life," only to find themselves sold into prostitution to the highest bidder. These women are victims not only of postmodern consumerist ideology that treats women's bodies as commodities to be bought and sold in the marketplace, but also of Islamist/traditionalist ideologies that work to keep them oppressed….” This excerpt helps to expose the hard hitting themes that street theatre can adopt, to try and touch people, with the intention of bringing about a change in their mind set. However, Imran Peerzada, one of the founding members of the Rafi Peer Theatre Workshop believes that “although theatre groups such as Ajoka have done a great job in addressing important social issues, with theatre one does not plan to make a huge change. Somewhere, someone might be touched by a performance and a message might hit home, but it has to be done subtly.” Imran Peerzada suggests that “since audience members do not like to be lectured and ultimately shy away from such attempts, creating awareness through theatre can have a greater social impact than any other form of expression.” Iffat Nazir who has been an audience member at countless Ajoka performances agrees with this assessment and says that “projection of social issues, which might otherwise escape attention in the helter skelter of our daily lives, through vibrant theatre attract and hold our attention and, entice us to reflect upon these relevant issues even after we have left the theater halls. Effective and thought provoking performances agitate our lethargic minds and perhaps, energize us enough to make a concerted effort to try and bring about even the minutest of changes in societal imbalances.”
Ajoka Theatre’s mission to mirror social issues inspired many others to follow the same path. Safdar, a painter by training, graduated with distinction in Fine Arts from the National College of Arts, Lahore. As a student in the dictatorial Zia ul-Haq regime, Safdar became active with theatre and women's groups that sprang up all over the country in protest against the repression. She even courted arrest a number of times with other women activists. Looking back, Safdar says: “Although I had set out to be a painter, activism intervened. Those were times when it was very important to take the message to the people and theatre was a more potent medium than fine arts.” She joined Madeeha Gauhar's Ajoka theatre group as an actor. Later, she formed her own group, Lok Rehas, committed to raising consciousness on social issues and rediscovering roots, traditions and folklore. In the same way, cultural action group Tehrik-I-Niswan headed by Sheema Kirmani put up plays last year to help create awareness about and to put an end to the so-called honor-killings. Ms Kirmani pointed out that it was very difficult to create a play on this issue. “There were so many aspects to be taken into consideration. It had to be performed in those areas and for that audience where these crimes take place almost every day. We invited a group of men and women from rural Sindh and with some members of the Tehrik team started brainstorming workshops. During these sessions, two of the Sindhi women shared with us their personal experiences of being accused as Kari,” she recalled.
Madeeha Gauhar is saddened by the fact that besides Ajoka, Tehrik-I-Niswan and Lok Rehas, there are not many other theater groups emerging in Pakistan, especially since the possibilities for artistic expression is much greater now. She feels that since 1947, “there has been an active discouragement by the State of performing arts…the government was never clear about its direction and consequently, we landed in a quagmire of a manufactured identity, which was a mixture of our own fabricated ideas about arts and stress on Islamic values.” She believes that the situation has improved a lot in recent times and says “Now, the environment is very encouraging. Motivation and freedom is a prerogative of an artist. Our collaboration with the government has been very successful. We have done two plays, Bullah and Bala King with the Arts Council. We can change the trend if the government pays the expenses of productions, provide facilities and pay actors”. However, with the recent ban on her play ‘Burqavaganza’, which is a satirical comedy commenting on the sometimes hypocritical wearing of the veil, Madeeha sees support for Social Theatre as being bleak.
On the other hand, the government’s apparent leniency in Pakistan has given birth to young theatre troupes such as ‘Black Fish’. This theatre company was founded in 2002, and is the first improvisational theatre troupe in Pakistan. Black Fish makes use of stand-up comedy to address social issues and get their message across to audiences. The troupe has a huge following and is very popular among the youth, although it does cater to all age groups. In 2004 Black Fish was also selected by the British Council to represent Pakistan in an International Youth Theater Festival Manchester called ‘Contacting the World’. Also, a young stand-up comedian, Saad Haroon, who got a strong footing in the world of comedy through his work with Black Fish, has now gone solo. Saad recently performed at the Dubai Community Theatre in Dubai with the tag line ‘Looking for Comedy in the Muslim World? Set Your G.P.S on Saad Haroon’ plastered all across his promotional posters. Saad is talented and has the means to spread his social messages globally. At the end of the day, no matter where we live in the world, we are all plagued by the same problems of daily existence.
The continued existence of groups like Ajoka, Tehrik-I-Niswan and Lok Rehas is viewed by many as a story of resilience, courage and personal sacrifice. Social Theatre seeks to empower rather than persuade. It encourages and teaches team work, ideas about body language and the whole realm of communication. Being part of a Social Theatre group also allows actors to work on building confidence and self-awareness. Furthermore, international theatre groups such as Bond Street Theatre in New York, create innovative theatre works that communicate across lingual and cultural borders and bring these works to varied audiences worldwide. Theatre groups utilize the performing arts as a means to address social, political, and environmental issues with thought and intelligibility. Groups such as the Bond Street Theatre group, also further cross-cultural understanding by participating in and initiating community arts projects and humanitarian outreach programs in a wide range of communities globally, particularly areas of conflict and post-war rehabilitation. They stimulate other artists towards these ends through association, exchange, and creative relations with artists and organizations around the world. In this way, the institution of Social Theatre is bound to survive as a mirror of social issues and be a global revolution in itself fighting and raising a voice for freedom and rights of the individual.
Published in 'Khaleej Times'
14th August 2007
By Fariha Rashed
Social Theatre should not merely instigate change, it IS the change. It is with this objective in mind that theatre groups around the world perform with utmost zest and sincerity. If alternative and social communication theatre can today be held as a vibrant form of political expression and a mirror of social issues, a large share of the credit goes to the theatre companies that dare to speak out under oppressive regimes. In Pakistan for instance, where Social Theatre groups are these days the busiest, Ajoka Theatre, Tehrik-I-Niswan, and the Punjab Lok Rehas can be highlighted as some of the most vibrant. The connection between postmodern capitalism and the re-emergence of Islamic fundamentalism has been made explicit through the theatrical work of many such alternative theater groups.
Madeeha Gauhar, a talented Pakistani theatre director and human rights activist heads Ajoka Theatre and has been doing so for over 20 years. Ajoka as a theatre group continues to be a vital part of the struggle for a secular, democratic, humane, just, and egalitarian Pakistan. “Ajoka emerged out of extreme diversity… angry and full of fiery zeal to bring about a change, spurred me on to set-up Ajoka theatre in 1984”, explains Gauhar. Not just Ajoka, but all other such theatre groups were formed when Zia-ul-Haq's Martial Law was at its oppressive height and all forms of opposition were punishable by imprisonment and lashes. Since then these groups have been producing theatre plays promoting mostly issues related to human rights and social change. Ajoka for example, set the wheels turning with their ‘cultural marathon’, which marked the “beginning of the Theater for Social Change movement in Pakistan”. Most of their plays have depicted and addressed daring social subjects such as dowry, honor killings and discriminatory laws. The first play performed by Ajoka was ‘Juloos’ (procession), a play written by Badal Sircar. Due to the absence of the ‘no objection certificate’ from the Government, which scrupulously examined every script through and through, the play, could not be performed in any of the public halls or auditoriums of the city. Therefore it was performed in Begum Khadija Gauhar’s lawn in the Cantonment, Lahore. Madeeha recalls: “our activities were not discovered by the intelligence until the last portrayal of the week-long performances. However, they banned the second play we were to perform there. By then we approached the ‘Max Mueller’ institute and the German institute accommodated us by lending us space to perform. In the meantime I also went to London to get a Masters degree in theatre from University of London”. Some other prominent street plays and stage plays by Ajoka are ‘Kala Qanoon’ [Black Justice] which revolves around the Hadood Ordinance; ‘Kala Meda Bhes’ which dwells on a real life incident which took place in Sindh, where a woman was exchanged for an ox; ‘Dukhini’ which portrays the ugly practice of trafficking by luring and deceiving Bangladeshi women, living in rural areas, to come to Pakistan. Shahid Nadeem, Madeeha’s husband and playwright for Ajoka, has also done a Punjabi adaptation of Brecht’s ‘Arturo UI’, in the play ‘Bala King’.
Writer Fawzia Afzal-Khan in her book – ‘Exposed by Pakistani Street Theater: The Unholy Alliance of Postmodern Capitalism, Patriarchy, and Fundamentalism’, writes “Many of the more recent plays in the repertoire of several of the groups I have been researching do indeed make these linkages, especially a play entitled Dukhini (Suffering woman) by the Ajoka Theater group, which brings these issues to light through the theme of the trafficking of women who are smuggled from poverty-stricken Bangladesh across India and into Pakistan under the false promise of a "better life," only to find themselves sold into prostitution to the highest bidder. These women are victims not only of postmodern consumerist ideology that treats women's bodies as commodities to be bought and sold in the marketplace, but also of Islamist/traditionalist ideologies that work to keep them oppressed….” This excerpt helps to expose the hard hitting themes that street theatre can adopt, to try and touch people, with the intention of bringing about a change in their mind set. However, Imran Peerzada, one of the founding members of the Rafi Peer Theatre Workshop believes that “although theatre groups such as Ajoka have done a great job in addressing important social issues, with theatre one does not plan to make a huge change. Somewhere, someone might be touched by a performance and a message might hit home, but it has to be done subtly.” Imran Peerzada suggests that “since audience members do not like to be lectured and ultimately shy away from such attempts, creating awareness through theatre can have a greater social impact than any other form of expression.” Iffat Nazir who has been an audience member at countless Ajoka performances agrees with this assessment and says that “projection of social issues, which might otherwise escape attention in the helter skelter of our daily lives, through vibrant theatre attract and hold our attention and, entice us to reflect upon these relevant issues even after we have left the theater halls. Effective and thought provoking performances agitate our lethargic minds and perhaps, energize us enough to make a concerted effort to try and bring about even the minutest of changes in societal imbalances.”
Ajoka Theatre’s mission to mirror social issues inspired many others to follow the same path. Safdar, a painter by training, graduated with distinction in Fine Arts from the National College of Arts, Lahore. As a student in the dictatorial Zia ul-Haq regime, Safdar became active with theatre and women's groups that sprang up all over the country in protest against the repression. She even courted arrest a number of times with other women activists. Looking back, Safdar says: “Although I had set out to be a painter, activism intervened. Those were times when it was very important to take the message to the people and theatre was a more potent medium than fine arts.” She joined Madeeha Gauhar's Ajoka theatre group as an actor. Later, she formed her own group, Lok Rehas, committed to raising consciousness on social issues and rediscovering roots, traditions and folklore. In the same way, cultural action group Tehrik-I-Niswan headed by Sheema Kirmani put up plays last year to help create awareness about and to put an end to the so-called honor-killings. Ms Kirmani pointed out that it was very difficult to create a play on this issue. “There were so many aspects to be taken into consideration. It had to be performed in those areas and for that audience where these crimes take place almost every day. We invited a group of men and women from rural Sindh and with some members of the Tehrik team started brainstorming workshops. During these sessions, two of the Sindhi women shared with us their personal experiences of being accused as Kari,” she recalled.
Madeeha Gauhar is saddened by the fact that besides Ajoka, Tehrik-I-Niswan and Lok Rehas, there are not many other theater groups emerging in Pakistan, especially since the possibilities for artistic expression is much greater now. She feels that since 1947, “there has been an active discouragement by the State of performing arts…the government was never clear about its direction and consequently, we landed in a quagmire of a manufactured identity, which was a mixture of our own fabricated ideas about arts and stress on Islamic values.” She believes that the situation has improved a lot in recent times and says “Now, the environment is very encouraging. Motivation and freedom is a prerogative of an artist. Our collaboration with the government has been very successful. We have done two plays, Bullah and Bala King with the Arts Council. We can change the trend if the government pays the expenses of productions, provide facilities and pay actors”. However, with the recent ban on her play ‘Burqavaganza’, which is a satirical comedy commenting on the sometimes hypocritical wearing of the veil, Madeeha sees support for Social Theatre as being bleak.
On the other hand, the government’s apparent leniency in Pakistan has given birth to young theatre troupes such as ‘Black Fish’. This theatre company was founded in 2002, and is the first improvisational theatre troupe in Pakistan. Black Fish makes use of stand-up comedy to address social issues and get their message across to audiences. The troupe has a huge following and is very popular among the youth, although it does cater to all age groups. In 2004 Black Fish was also selected by the British Council to represent Pakistan in an International Youth Theater Festival Manchester called ‘Contacting the World’. Also, a young stand-up comedian, Saad Haroon, who got a strong footing in the world of comedy through his work with Black Fish, has now gone solo. Saad recently performed at the Dubai Community Theatre in Dubai with the tag line ‘Looking for Comedy in the Muslim World? Set Your G.P.S on Saad Haroon’ plastered all across his promotional posters. Saad is talented and has the means to spread his social messages globally. At the end of the day, no matter where we live in the world, we are all plagued by the same problems of daily existence.
The continued existence of groups like Ajoka, Tehrik-I-Niswan and Lok Rehas is viewed by many as a story of resilience, courage and personal sacrifice. Social Theatre seeks to empower rather than persuade. It encourages and teaches team work, ideas about body language and the whole realm of communication. Being part of a Social Theatre group also allows actors to work on building confidence and self-awareness. Furthermore, international theatre groups such as Bond Street Theatre in New York, create innovative theatre works that communicate across lingual and cultural borders and bring these works to varied audiences worldwide. Theatre groups utilize the performing arts as a means to address social, political, and environmental issues with thought and intelligibility. Groups such as the Bond Street Theatre group, also further cross-cultural understanding by participating in and initiating community arts projects and humanitarian outreach programs in a wide range of communities globally, particularly areas of conflict and post-war rehabilitation. They stimulate other artists towards these ends through association, exchange, and creative relations with artists and organizations around the world. In this way, the institution of Social Theatre is bound to survive as a mirror of social issues and be a global revolution in itself fighting and raising a voice for freedom and rights of the individual.
Sunday, August 12, 2007
Searching For Destiny
Searching for Destiny
By Fariha Rashed
Well organized premiers of privately produced tele-films are a rarity in Pakistan. Imran Malik, an aspiring Director based in Lahore, recently took the brave step of premiering his film ‘Justaju Jiss Kee Thee’ for a selected audience at Sozo Gold located at Fortress Stadium, Lahore. Imran’s decision not to hand his film over to any one channel before its official release to the public was commendable. The decision went in his favor. Imran has now been offered
the opportunity to premier his film at the headquarters of various large national and international companies. Publicity and promotion of his film will be better accomplished by the holding of small, yet meaningful viewings of his film for select targeted groups of influential people.
Imran Malik is no stranger to the world of film making. Having done his Video Production from NCA in 2004, he moved on to making a short film called ‘Bushra Kahan Hai’ in 2005. The film was well received and covered in various leading dailies. After completing his Film Making from the New York Film Academy in 2006, Imran made a short film called ‘Last Kiss’ as his final project at NYFA. He received the second position among a total of 18 projects. In 2002 Imran has also tried his hand quite successfully, at directing a music video for Ibrar-Ul-Haq’s song ‘Teray Rang Rang’.
Imran found himself in a fix when trying to decide what to title his latest tele-film. However, after analyzing the essence of the story which revolves around every human being’s search for their destiny in this world, Imran felt that ‘Justaju Jiss Kee Thee’ was apt. “It is a powerful and brave social drama, which highlights the frustrations of our youth, represented in the film by three friends belonging to a lower income bracket, and their ‘justiju’ to achieve their dreams”, explains Imran. Unfortunately, as seen in the film, the three friends’ biggest goal in life is to attain money in whatever way necessary, even if it means coning others. This eventually leads to a sacrifice of friendship among the three and the death of one of them. On the other hand, Sakina [played by Myra Khan], a beautiful girl also living in the three friends’ neighborhood, and striving to achieve the same destiny as them, fulfils her ‘justiju’ of becoming rich. However, she does this at the cost of her self-respect as a woman.
Imran, who has a very Stanley Kubrick come Satya Jeet Ray style of directing, has tried to show a true ‘mohalla’ friendship between three youngsters, living in a lower middle class area of Lahore. He very realistically manages to represent the boys’ leisure time, their sexual issues, their needs, and how their immature minds can sway towards violence. While studying film making in New York last year, Imran felt that most Americans have a wrong image of Pakistan. With regard to the Danish cartoons printed in the papers, he feels that the Americans viewed the consequential Lahore protest based riots to be the work of Muslim fanatics. Through ‘Justaju Jiss Kee Thee’ which touched upon this issue, Imran wanted to give a message that poverty and desperation exist everywhere in the world, and should not be linked to Islam. “I couldn’t give this message directly so I knitted it in with a story showing people’s miseries which often turn them violent”, explains Imran. He believes strongly that someone has to show the true face of our society and although some of the issues he has highlighted in the film may be taboos for the vast majority, Imran sees it as his responsibility as a Director to speak out about them through his work. “I want to give a message to the decision makers of Pakistan to please do something to help the masses instead of always trying to exploit them”, states Imran. As shown in the film, youngsters who can’t talk about their problems in a society like ours, or get counseling of any kind, eventually end up making mischief in the backseats of rickshaws, in cubicles of net cafes, and the dark corners of their homes. According to Imran, all these activities amalgamate to become the dark corners of their lives instead.
It took Imran almost three months to complete the film, including pre-production and post production. He spent almost two months writing the script – two weeks on character development, two weeks on dialogues and a full month on the screenplay. To research for the film, Imran personally visited the lower middle class areas of Lahore many times in order to get a real feel for the lives of the people living there. He also visited net cafes and auto garage workshops. One of the three friends in the film, Shoki [played by Atta Ullah], works as a mechanic in an auto workshop. Another, Ali [played by Ali Zain] owns a net café. Imran also had long sessions with real motor mechanics and the lads owning net cafes. It helped the director immensely in understanding the characters he created for the film.
Lahore was chosen as the right place for the premier because the film’s events are based in the city. The premier was a success evidenced by the fact that the movie hall was jam-packed. One saw celebrities such as Sarmad Khoosat sitting in the front row. Most people liked the theme of the film, while others appreciated the treatment adopted, as well as lighting. A few had mixed reviews on the performance of the cast as some liked them and others didn’t. Acting done by Myra Khan and Ali Zain in particular was good. Their facial expressions and body language were in sync with their dialogues. They also succeeded in showing the emotion needed for various scenes in the film. Background music was not jarring and coincided well with the film. Camera work was innovative and not run-of-the-mill. The shot angles were paid a lot of attention to and rendered the film visually pleasing. Close-up shots of character’s faces are the hardest to achieve, yet they were nicely done.
While choosing a perfect cast for the film, Imran initially contacted senior people of the industry but did not receive a positive response. Imran eventually decided to cast a whole new lot of fresh talent. He advertised in various institutions for auditions and ended up choosing from among a 100 people. The majority of the cast members are from BNU and the senior cast members were referred to Imran by Mr. Shaukat Zain-ul-Abaideen.
One of the strongest points of the film has to be how it very realistically represents Pakistani culture, society and the mentality of the majority of our people. It also manages to highlight the many problems we have, forcing anyone who watches the movie to relate to the characters and contemplate. Imran has boldly touched upon quite a few topics related to youth intimacy. He acknowledges that it was a risk to do so but he also feels that it is important to accept that they exist and are a very real part of our society. Most of the frustrations inherent result from these issues and denying their existence. A premier to be held in Karachi is on the agenda next. Imran is also sending the film in to different international festivals – Vancouver Film Festival, Toronto Film Festival, New York Film Festival, TriBeCa Film Festival, London Film Festival, Calcutta Film Festival, India Film Festival and Venice Film Festival. Imran also plans to have the film air on a leading satellite channel. A deal is in process. The film will also run on the channel’s USA, Canada and UK beams. Imran’s next project is a film based on a working woman – a Creative Director of an Ad Agency.
Cast & Crew
Written & Directed by: Imran A. Malik
Story & Screenplay: Imran A. Malik
D.O.P: Shabahat Qamar
Edited By: Yasir Rohaila
Asst. Directors: Akhyar Ahmed, Jalal-u-Din Babar
Production Manager: Akhyar Ahmed
Lighting: Imran A. Malik, Shabahat Qamar
Background Music Selection: Imran A. Malik
Ali: played by Ali Zain
Sajjad/Saju: played by Hamad Shah
Shaukat/Shoki: played by Atta Ullah
Sakina: played by Myra Khan
Sahil: played by Fawad Shah
Sughran: played by Razia Malik
Humera: played by Abida
Shakeela: played by Shabana Bhatti
Perveen: played by Fazeelat
Policeman: played by Ali.
Published in 'Images' [Dawn]
12th August 2007
By Fariha Rashed
Well organized premiers of privately produced tele-films are a rarity in Pakistan. Imran Malik, an aspiring Director based in Lahore, recently took the brave step of premiering his film ‘Justaju Jiss Kee Thee’ for a selected audience at Sozo Gold located at Fortress Stadium, Lahore. Imran’s decision not to hand his film over to any one channel before its official release to the public was commendable. The decision went in his favor. Imran has now been offered
the opportunity to premier his film at the headquarters of various large national and international companies. Publicity and promotion of his film will be better accomplished by the holding of small, yet meaningful viewings of his film for select targeted groups of influential people.Imran Malik is no stranger to the world of film making. Having done his Video Production from NCA in 2004, he moved on to making a short film called ‘Bushra Kahan Hai’ in 2005. The film was well received and covered in various leading dailies. After completing his Film Making from the New York Film Academy in 2006, Imran made a short film called ‘Last Kiss’ as his final project at NYFA. He received the second position among a total of 18 projects. In 2002 Imran has also tried his hand quite successfully, at directing a music video for Ibrar-Ul-Haq’s song ‘Teray Rang Rang’.
Imran found himself in a fix when trying to decide what to title his latest tele-film. However, after analyzing the essence of the story which revolves around every human being’s search for their destiny in this world, Imran felt that ‘Justaju Jiss Kee Thee’ was apt. “It is a powerful and brave social drama, which highlights the frustrations of our youth, represented in the film by three friends belonging to a lower income bracket, and their ‘justiju’ to achieve their dreams”, explains Imran. Unfortunately, as seen in the film, the three friends’ biggest goal in life is to attain money in whatever way necessary, even if it means coning others. This eventually leads to a sacrifice of friendship among the three and the death of one of them. On the other hand, Sakina [played by Myra Khan], a beautiful girl also living in the three friends’ neighborhood, and striving to achieve the same destiny as them, fulfils her ‘justiju’ of becoming rich. However, she does this at the cost of her self-respect as a woman.
Imran, who has a very Stanley Kubrick come Satya Jeet Ray style of directing, has tried to show a true ‘mohalla’ friendship between three youngsters, living in a lower middle class area of Lahore. He very realistically manages to represent the boys’ leisure time, their sexual issues, their needs, and how their immature minds can sway towards violence. While studying film making in New York last year, Imran felt that most Americans have a wrong image of Pakistan. With regard to the Danish cartoons printed in the papers, he feels that the Americans viewed the consequential Lahore protest based riots to be the work of Muslim fanatics. Through ‘Justaju Jiss Kee Thee’ which touched upon this issue, Imran wanted to give a message that poverty and desperation exist everywhere in the world, and should not be linked to Islam. “I couldn’t give this message directly so I knitted it in with a story showing people’s miseries which often turn them violent”, explains Imran. He believes strongly that someone has to show the true face of our society and although some of the issues he has highlighted in the film may be taboos for the vast majority, Imran sees it as his responsibility as a Director to speak out about them through his work. “I want to give a message to the decision makers of Pakistan to please do something to help the masses instead of always trying to exploit them”, states Imran. As shown in the film, youngsters who can’t talk about their problems in a society like ours, or get counseling of any kind, eventually end up making mischief in the backseats of rickshaws, in cubicles of net cafes, and the dark corners of their homes. According to Imran, all these activities amalgamate to become the dark corners of their lives instead.
It took Imran almost three months to complete the film, including pre-production and post production. He spent almost two months writing the script – two weeks on character development, two weeks on dialogues and a full month on the screenplay. To research for the film, Imran personally visited the lower middle class areas of Lahore many times in order to get a real feel for the lives of the people living there. He also visited net cafes and auto garage workshops. One of the three friends in the film, Shoki [played by Atta Ullah], works as a mechanic in an auto workshop. Another, Ali [played by Ali Zain] owns a net café. Imran also had long sessions with real motor mechanics and the lads owning net cafes. It helped the director immensely in understanding the characters he created for the film.
Lahore was chosen as the right place for the premier because the film’s events are based in the city. The premier was a success evidenced by the fact that the movie hall was jam-packed. One saw celebrities such as Sarmad Khoosat sitting in the front row. Most people liked the theme of the film, while others appreciated the treatment adopted, as well as lighting. A few had mixed reviews on the performance of the cast as some liked them and others didn’t. Acting done by Myra Khan and Ali Zain in particular was good. Their facial expressions and body language were in sync with their dialogues. They also succeeded in showing the emotion needed for various scenes in the film. Background music was not jarring and coincided well with the film. Camera work was innovative and not run-of-the-mill. The shot angles were paid a lot of attention to and rendered the film visually pleasing. Close-up shots of character’s faces are the hardest to achieve, yet they were nicely done.
While choosing a perfect cast for the film, Imran initially contacted senior people of the industry but did not receive a positive response. Imran eventually decided to cast a whole new lot of fresh talent. He advertised in various institutions for auditions and ended up choosing from among a 100 people. The majority of the cast members are from BNU and the senior cast members were referred to Imran by Mr. Shaukat Zain-ul-Abaideen.
One of the strongest points of the film has to be how it very realistically represents Pakistani culture, society and the mentality of the majority of our people. It also manages to highlight the many problems we have, forcing anyone who watches the movie to relate to the characters and contemplate. Imran has boldly touched upon quite a few topics related to youth intimacy. He acknowledges that it was a risk to do so but he also feels that it is important to accept that they exist and are a very real part of our society. Most of the frustrations inherent result from these issues and denying their existence. A premier to be held in Karachi is on the agenda next. Imran is also sending the film in to different international festivals – Vancouver Film Festival, Toronto Film Festival, New York Film Festival, TriBeCa Film Festival, London Film Festival, Calcutta Film Festival, India Film Festival and Venice Film Festival. Imran also plans to have the film air on a leading satellite channel. A deal is in process. The film will also run on the channel’s USA, Canada and UK beams. Imran’s next project is a film based on a working woman – a Creative Director of an Ad Agency.
Cast & Crew
Written & Directed by: Imran A. Malik
Story & Screenplay: Imran A. Malik
D.O.P: Shabahat Qamar
Edited By: Yasir Rohaila
Asst. Directors: Akhyar Ahmed, Jalal-u-Din Babar
Production Manager: Akhyar Ahmed
Lighting: Imran A. Malik, Shabahat Qamar
Background Music Selection: Imran A. Malik
Ali: played by Ali Zain
Sajjad/Saju: played by Hamad Shah
Shaukat/Shoki: played by Atta Ullah
Sakina: played by Myra Khan
Sahil: played by Fawad Shah
Sughran: played by Razia Malik
Humera: played by Abida
Shakeela: played by Shabana Bhatti
Perveen: played by Fazeelat
Policeman: played by Ali.
Wednesday, August 01, 2007
You Have To Let Go Sometime
You Have To Let Go Sometime
Published in 'SHE'
August 2007 Issue
By Fariha Rashed
Saturday 7th July -- the infamous duo from Peshawar, Sajid and Zeeshan, wait in anticipation, all geared up for their first performance in the city, at the Lahore University of Management Sciences [LUMS], due to begin at 8pm sharp. As sweat pours down their foreheads, owing to the extreme humidity in the air, they realize that it’s already 7:30pm and sound hasn’t even been set up properly as yet. Farhad Humayun fumbles about trying to get sound and light ready at the LUMS Central Courtyard, so the duo can begin their sound check. The stage is all set, and a large backdrop highlights the three collaborations made for this specific event, namely Djuice, Sajid & Zeeshan and the LUMS Music Society.
By 9pm the gig is well on its way. The courtyard is filled with at least 600 enthusiastic fans. Unfortunately, much to everyone’s anger and frustration, the LUMS Music Society does not allow Sajid & Zeeshan onto the stage anytime before midnight. This serves to aggravate fans, media and not to mention the sponsor. It is quite obvious that the Music Society is too busy promoting their own underground bands, who go on to play for three hours straight. During the stretch of this time, Sajid & Zeeshan are seen standing on the side waiting to be given a chance to perform at what is supposed to be their own concert.
After a few heated words are exchanged between the Music Society, the sponsor’s brand manager and the duo’s Lahore manager, Sajid & Zeeshan are finally seen mounting the stage. Half of the crowd, which had left the courtyard and was standing outside waiting to hear the duo, are seen rushing back as Amar, the host for the night, finally introduces Sajid & Zeeshan onto the stage. Loud clapping is heard and fans scream out the duo’s individual names. The energy in the courtyard suddenly heightens as Sajid strums the first chords on his guitar. He stands in the middle of the well lit stage, before a microphone, completely involved in his playing. Zeeshan, located to one side of the stage, is surrounded by tables that support his various gadgets. What the crowd witnesses Zeeshan do next, with what is known as an AirFX [gadget], is unbelievable. Coupled with Sajid’s powerful vocals that were hitting all kinds of notes, the effect is nothing less then mind blowing. The duo performs seven songs off their recently released album called ‘One Light Year at Snail Speed’. The songs most enjoyed by the crowd include ‘King Of Self’, ‘My Happiness’, ‘Close to You’, and ‘You Have to Let Go Sometime’. After the completion of every song the audience breaks out into an uproar of appreciation. Zeeshan is seen dancing along to every fast paced song they do as he continues to improvise with his electronic gadgets. Suddenly Sajid pulls out a harmonica and adds its flavor to the performance, driving the crowd even crazier.
Lahore has never before been subjected to such music or such a wild performance. Sajid & Zeeshan have taken the fun of going to a live performance to new heights. As the duo performs their last song the crowd shouts for an encore of ‘You Have to Let Go Sometime’. They oblige and once again the entire courtyard sways from side to side. The concert finally comes to an end at 1am and as Sajid & Zeeshan say their thank you’s, a flock of girls rush towards the stage and ask for autographs. When they finally start packing up their instruments, both Sajid and Zeeshan have huge grins plastered across their faces. It is apparent that they feel they had a good show.
Published in 'SHE'
August 2007 Issue
By Fariha Rashed
Saturday 7th July -- the infamous duo from Peshawar, Sajid and Zeeshan, wait in anticipation, all geared up for their first performance in the city, at the Lahore University of Management Sciences [LUMS], due to begin at 8pm sharp. As sweat pours down their foreheads, owing to the extreme humidity in the air, they realize that it’s already 7:30pm and sound hasn’t even been set up properly as yet. Farhad Humayun fumbles about trying to get sound and light ready at the LUMS Central Courtyard, so the duo can begin their sound check. The stage is all set, and a large backdrop highlights the three collaborations made for this specific event, namely Djuice, Sajid & Zeeshan and the LUMS Music Society.
By 9pm the gig is well on its way. The courtyard is filled with at least 600 enthusiastic fans. Unfortunately, much to everyone’s anger and frustration, the LUMS Music Society does not allow Sajid & Zeeshan onto the stage anytime before midnight. This serves to aggravate fans, media and not to mention the sponsor. It is quite obvious that the Music Society is too busy promoting their own underground bands, who go on to play for three hours straight. During the stretch of this time, Sajid & Zeeshan are seen standing on the side waiting to be given a chance to perform at what is supposed to be their own concert.
After a few heated words are exchanged between the Music Society, the sponsor’s brand manager and the duo’s Lahore manager, Sajid & Zeeshan are finally seen mounting the stage. Half of the crowd, which had left the courtyard and was standing outside waiting to hear the duo, are seen rushing back as Amar, the host for the night, finally introduces Sajid & Zeeshan onto the stage. Loud clapping is heard and fans scream out the duo’s individual names. The energy in the courtyard suddenly heightens as Sajid strums the first chords on his guitar. He stands in the middle of the well lit stage, before a microphone, completely involved in his playing. Zeeshan, located to one side of the stage, is surrounded by tables that support his various gadgets. What the crowd witnesses Zeeshan do next, with what is known as an AirFX [gadget], is unbelievable. Coupled with Sajid’s powerful vocals that were hitting all kinds of notes, the effect is nothing less then mind blowing. The duo performs seven songs off their recently released album called ‘One Light Year at Snail Speed’. The songs most enjoyed by the crowd include ‘King Of Self’, ‘My Happiness’, ‘Close to You’, and ‘You Have to Let Go Sometime’. After the completion of every song the audience breaks out into an uproar of appreciation. Zeeshan is seen dancing along to every fast paced song they do as he continues to improvise with his electronic gadgets. Suddenly Sajid pulls out a harmonica and adds its flavor to the performance, driving the crowd even crazier.
Lahore has never before been subjected to such music or such a wild performance. Sajid & Zeeshan have taken the fun of going to a live performance to new heights. As the duo performs their last song the crowd shouts for an encore of ‘You Have to Let Go Sometime’. They oblige and once again the entire courtyard sways from side to side. The concert finally comes to an end at 1am and as Sajid & Zeeshan say their thank you’s, a flock of girls rush towards the stage and ask for autographs. When they finally start packing up their instruments, both Sajid and Zeeshan have huge grins plastered across their faces. It is apparent that they feel they had a good show.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)