Drowning with the enemy
My daughter came back from school quite disturbed. “How can India do this to us?” she complained to me as if I was the ‘ambassador at home’ of India. “They have inundated the whole of our country,” she...
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Déjà vu: Another setback before the World Cup
The Pakistani cricket team's tale of suffering started 15 years ago. That's when Pakistan suffered a crushing defeat at the hands of Australia in the World Cup 1999 final. Four years later, Pakistan...
View ArticleThe IS behemoth, yet another Western project gone wrong
It is a typical summer flick, but it holds a great lesson for the global power politics. Hercules, released earlier in the summer, shows how the son of Zeus fights against tyrants only to realise later...
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Cult Pakistan - II: Sound and Vision
Continued from Cult Pakistan - I: Forgotten mysteries, bygone strangeness & odd folkCult Hit:A cult film/TV show, also commonly referred to as a cult classic, is a work of ‘art’ that has acquired a...
View ArticleI'm not a Hafeez fan, but Pakistan needs him now
He’s made it to the squad, time and again, despite being horribly out of touch with the bat. He’s frustrated the most dignified of fans by refusing to budge from his preferred opening position and...
View ArticleA Pakistani revolution of the Optimus Populares
I keep thinking about the Gracchi brothers. It’s Roman history stuff, so bear with me while I expand on this — I swear there’s a point to it. Halfway through the next paragraph, your eyes will glaze...
View ArticleSectarian killings: Blood and division on the streets of Karachi
Karachi is the city of death for many; the poor die here, the hapless and the penniless, the diseased also perish and political activists are popped off regularly. The bodies from these daily killings...
View ArticleNot being dead is a victory for Balochistan's journalists
To say that Pakistani journalists are under attack is an understatement. They are lucky if not assailed or killed.Beyond the veneer of prime time television shows that many think constitutes...
View ArticleHow Nepra is adding to Karachi's energy woes
Like every other Pakistani, I have always wondered who to blame for the energy crisis in Pakistan. Of late, the federal government has provided strong reasons to suggest it's them.K-Electric Limited —...
View ArticleFighting the IS: Holes in the game plan
The fight against militants of the Islamic State group may have an unintended consequence: further widening the Shia-Sunni divide.Aware of this possibility, the United States has formed a coalition of...
View ArticleDebating the dharna: No country for nuance
As yet another political crisis brews in Pakistan, political discussion and arguments steam through it. Emotions are high, and arguments equally heated and intense.For most Pakistanis, any political...
View ArticleA flood of wrong moves
As widespread flooding devastates large parts of Punjab, the PML-N government is playing the victim and asking Imran Khan and Qadri to postpone the ‘dharna’ and help with the flood relief, while...
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Histories forgotten: The crumbling tombs of Talpur Mirs
The Hyderabad which fascinates me is the one that once was, not the one that is now. It’s only when you look closely and cross the thin portals into the glorious Hyderabad of before that you realise...
View ArticleShould Pakistani entertainment cater to India?
I was once approached by a producer for making a movie. The prevailing notion was that we need to make something that sells well in India. The producers were willing to go to any lengths to ensure that...
View ArticleProtesting for Pakistan: Why change can be dangerous
The hunt for a saviour never ceases in Pakistan. The journey from Malik Ghulam Muhammad to Dr Tahirul Qadri is beset with coups, treachery, partition, regrets, hypocrisy, and lost lives. The shifting...
View ArticleHow many disasters does Pakistan need to focus on climate change?
Against the backdrop of the current political deadlock in Pakistan, many other important issues affecting thousands of people have been sidelined.The media is all eyes and ears for the fiery speeches,...
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In Italy: The art of doing nothing
Having lived in the US for almost 17 years, I very well know the taste of synthetic, engineered, hormone-injected, antibiotic-infused and preservative laden food. Which is precisely why, anytime I...
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33 days of revolution: From Facebook to Facepalm – II
33 days of revolution: From Facebook to Facepalm – IIBy Nadeem Farooq Paracha | Fasi ZakaA compilation of memes created and posted by NFP and Fasi Zaka during the PTI and PAT dharnas.Continued from 20...
View ArticleThe Pakistani Hipster: A myth or reality?
Are we all pushing to be NormCore, or can Pakistan actually embrace hipster-ism?Gavin McIness, co-founder of Vice, was once the King of Hipsters. He’s a true legend ... and a pure idiot. You have to...
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Saying goodbye: My brother, Ali Akbar Kumaili
The following piece has been written by a close cousin of Ali Akbar Kumaili (son of Shia scholar Abbas Kumaili), who was shot dead in a sectarian attack in Karachi recently.The night he was shot, I sat...
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