Heartache of the subcontinent — An ode to Qawwali
"Whoever did not get killed (in the path of love and honour) does not belong to our tribe." —Naziri Nishapuri What is the culture of Pakistan? Is it the same old people's culture of the subcontinent,...
View ArticleBrexit: On witnessing history and (not) voting
Waking up to the news of Britain leaving the EU, of Prime Minister David Cameron resigning, of a second Scottish referendum in the works, felt a little like being in The Twilight Zone. Nobody thought...
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The day I saw Messi play
I looked on as dusk took over and the lights flickered on at Rio de Janeiro’s iconic Maracana Stadium on the eve of the 2014 FIFA World Cup opener against Bosnia, Argentina was taking to the pitch....
View ArticleFading voices in Pakistan: An Indian tribute to the majestic Amjad Sabri
The eldest two of my four ‘tayajis’ (father’s brothers) were born in what is now Pakistan, and were brought over to India by their parents during the migration along with their four siblings — one of...
View ArticleMy 10 days of hell at a Lahore public hospital
At around 4pm, an epileptic patient having a seizure is wheeled into the female emergency ward of a public hospital in Lahore. One after the other, the hospital's doctors come in to inspect her,...
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This Eid…
Sartaj Aziz finally reveals the source of controversial Eid-moon-sightings in Pakistan... CM Sindh is still struggling with recalling names… Imran Khan has some more startling evidence to share and...
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'Roza kyun nahi rakha?'
I reach for my water bottle, and then instinctively put it back. After hearing about the incident in Ghotki, reason dictates I should stop somewhere else. Somewhere I do not fear the possibility of...
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Between Europe and chaos — Refuge and terror in Turkey
It was more than just an outpost or a transit point — last year, the Istanbul airport was my refuge, albeit for a few hours, as I changed planes to head to Pakistan, sometimes to visit my ailing...
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Why women moral police women
When I walked in through the emergency gate of Islamabad’s largest private hospital, I started feeling smaller. On the one hand, I was looking around for information on how to get a vaccination; on the...
View ArticleAsif Ali Zardari: The man minus his mojo
Witness prisoner Dr Asim Hussain’s confessional statement on TV. He’s a shadow of the man he was as president Zardari’s top gun. Likewise, whenever his former patron was stripped of his mojo, he’d...
View ArticleAre you outraged when people behave badly in Ramazan? You shouldn't be.
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View ArticleWhat Pakistani startups can learn from India
Let’s begin with hard facts. There are reasons, simple reasons why the Indian tech industry, as of now, is far ahead of the Pakistani tech industry.The number and quality of education in engineering...
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80 smiles that made my Eid memorable
As I entered a classroom in Tauseef Memorial School (TMS), I felt nervous; I had no prior experience with children. But as the class stood up, waved and greeted me in unison — ‘Good morning, teacher!’...
View ArticleHere's everything you need to know about kheer, including this killer recipe
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View ArticleAn open letter to Ahsan Khan: that creepy meme shouldn't have been shared
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The lost art of Eid greeting cards
From the Priya Paul Collection, New Delhi. Eidul Fitr celebrations come in a multitude of unique forms in our society. As the month of Ramazan approaches its last leg, markets all across the country...
View ArticleWhy banning Zakir Naik isn't a good way to defeat his bigotry
As globalisation knits the world together, it doesn't take long for even terrible ideas to shoot down the information superhighway. So it isn't really surprising to find a Mumbai connection to the July...
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Edhi — The exception to Pakistan's faults
—Agencies/File For our entire lives, Abdul Sattar Edhi was the exception.“All Muslims are terrorists.” But, Edhi… “All Pakistanis are corrupt.” But, Edhi… “All Karachiites are violent.” But, Edhi…...
View ArticleSmokers’ Corner: The man who lived out of his skin
I used to open the batting for the cricket team of the college I studied in, in Karachi between the mid and late 1980s. One of my regular opening partners was a guy called Naveed. Naveed was an...
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Edhi: A life less ordinary
Abdul Sattar Edhi collects donations at a roadside in Peshawar. —AP Photo Here is a tribute one always expected to write. Dreaded, but expected. Because one knew nobody, not even Edhi sahib, the one...
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