Knight Returns

Just a heads up to the knight readers out there, more stuff is on its way. I have a few unpublished articles to post on the blog, which I am currently reviewing. I know I have been way for some time because of personal commitments that took me away from regularly writing on the blog. I am also a contributing writer at suite101.com and have an article published there. I will be writing more articles for both the blog and suite101.com soon.Thanks for the patronage. Hope you like the upcoming stuff on this blog as well. Thanks!

Tweet

Knight Memories

I remember I was only ten years old when the 1992 World Cup was on. I remember everyone being glued to their television sets. This was going to be skipper Imran Khan's last world cup. He wanted to go out with a bang. This was the tournament that gave our team of eleven future national heroes the "cornered tigers". Imran Khan was known to lead from the front. He had the intelligence, charisma and leadership to take his men to the top. It was his vision and determination that would take us to the final. I remember watching the semi final against New Zealand and the classic final against England. We all had goosebumps. My mom was praying so hard for our victory. before that day, I did not know what it meant to be Pakistani. There was a time in the final, when we thought the English were going strong, until a trailblazer came in the form of the great sultan of swing, Wasim Akram. Akram took out Lamb and Lewis in quick succession. It was Imran's brilliant captaincy that made the decision to bring Akram at this time.It seemed like he knew it all along. It was when Ramiz Raja took that catch which sealed the deal, I was all green and white. The entire nation rejoiced, it was possibly one of the biggest moments of my life. I remember jumping on the bed, when we won the cup. My mother had tears of joy. Imran Khan's smile just said it: he knew his destiny all along. The cornered tigers roared and destroyed the union jacks. It was that day my country was on top of the world. In front of 87000 people, we won the cricket world cup. If that does not make you feel proud of your country, I wonder what does. It is unfortunate, that until today this is the one and only time we came on top of the world. We got very close in 1999 under Wasim Akram's leadership. It was Akram's dream to emulate the lion Imran Khan. We lost a poorly contested final, but we realized there will be another day.

Even though we have won the 20/20 world cup in recent years, and that brought back memories of 1992, that day can never be replaced in history. Imran's cornered tigers are a symbol of determination of the spirit of Pakistan and its citizens to have courage in the face of any challenge, big or small. With good leadership and teamwork, the cornered tiger, our country Pakistan, will rise to be one of the greatest nations in the world Godwilling one day. Back to cricket, that day in 1992 is perhaps one of my greatest childhood memories ever, and it will be remembered forever by all Pakistani cricket fans alike who witnessed that day and rejoiced in celebration and we still do celebrate the memory of that day every time the new world cup rolls around, 1992 will always be special for the cornered tigers, the crystal trophy, the heroics of Wasim, Inzi and company and the brilliant leadership of Imran Khan. I hope that next year, we can try to relive the greatness of 1992 once again or at least try to. Here's to the future: game on!

Tweet

A Good Knight's Work

My blog gets its first recognition in Pakistan's  newspaper Dawn. The post "Day turns into Knight" is published in Dawn's letters to editor (http://www.dawn.com/wps/wcm/connect/dawn-content-library/dawn/the-newspaper/letters-to-the-editor/power-outages-a-blessing-730) as "Power outages a blessing?" on March 7. I am planning to get more interesting write ups  soon, so keep a look out as your favorite knight writer comes back with more excellent food for thought. I am hoping to chose some of my best posts and send them to newspapers in Pakistan. Feel free to post suggestions and comments on the posts and I am always glad to look at constructive criticism. Stay tuned to the Knight Writer!

Tweet

Lost Knight- my two cents on identity crisis

Thankfully, I have been blessed to see more of the world outside Pakistan. In my travels overseas, especially during my stay in the US as a college student, I have noticed a case of identity crisis amongst us Pakistanis. Now I want to state a disclaimer: this is my point of view, do not take it as fact. This is based on observations during my visit and stay overseas. I have noticed as soon as we walk on the Jetway at the Jinnah Terminal after bidding our loved ones goodbye, we leave our identity behind. Its like we are embarrassed of our own culture and identity. We decide to blend in when we reach university, thinking we would be mocked and ridiculed, worse yet feel left out. First of all, we think its embarrassing to speak in our native tongue! I have noticed the Chinese students, they are never afraid to talk in their own tongue amongst themselves. However, I know many groups of Pakistani students who had no issues with Urdu at all, when conversing amongst each other. Besides language, we seem to loose our values. I used to be very upset seeing a low turnout at the Friday congregation. It was always some excuse: classes, lunch, this and that. We feel pressured to party hard and get intoxicated, because if we cant beat them, might as well join them. I don't see the point in this at all. We dump our values and morality right there. We just can not seem to establish our own identity at all. We feel like we have to be Americanized. It has to start with the accent, and then the slang, and then the crazy partying. My partying friends tell me that there is no better feeling than getting wasted or blacked out. I beg to differ. I think I would like to keep my self respect intact instead of passing out in my own filth! What's so great about having a hangover? There are better ways to have fun and enjoy the nightlife. Who says you cant party? There is something called moderation. I am not preaching any fundos here. We all have our weaknesses, but why cant we be Pakistanis overseas?

Some readers may argue that regular cricket matches, culture shows, and eid dinners are examples of displaying our culture. That is all wonderful. Kudos to everyone who organizes these activities and actively participates in them. My question is why leave this only for special occasions? We should be showing off our culture on a daily basis, to identify us as Pakistanis, to show our foreign friends that we are truly proud of our culture. Just playing cricket and speaking in Urdu is not enough. There should be more and more activities showcasing our culture, and our identity. Establishing regular congregational prayer activities, Iftar events in Ramadan, weekly screenings of films and documentaries from Pakistan are some examples of what more we can do. When I speak of films, I do not talk of Lollywood. We have had many art films directed by talented film makers from our part of the world. Mehreen Jabbar and Shoaib Mansoor are prime examples. In fact, Hasina Moin's Urdu language plays have been so successful, that television channels across the border also broadcasted them. Pakistan has an ever growing music industry, possibly the biggest in South Asia. We can show highlights of classic cricket matches featuring our country. We can invite luminaries from Pakistan who are currently in the US, such as Salman Ahmed of Junoon fame who frequently visits universities to showcase his documentaries and play sets of his hits with his live band.

The whole purpose of my post is to create awareness of our own culture, and that we should not shy away from it. We, as Pakistanis, have a responsibility to promote and safeguard our rich culture. This is the only way we can erase stereotypes the Western media has of us. Even though I myself am away from home, I miss it a lot, but because I miss it, I am never afraid to talk about my culture. It is our duty to show the rest of the world, we are far from the portrayals of popular media. This has to come from within. Until and unless we do not realize our potential and the richness of our culture and embrace it, we will always be lost knights, victims of an identity crisis. Why should we bite the hand that feeds us? Why should we take our nation, and our culture for granted. Admitted, our country is not perfect, and our problems are never ending, but they will never end, unless we get out of this identity crisis.

Change comes from the grassroots level. It was in our country, we got the best of education that allowed us to go overseas, we should never forget that. We feel cool embracing western culture, but imagine how cool would it be for the West to embrace ours. That can only happen if we allow it to. If we hide under a shell, and never break out of the cocoon, we will be followers , not trendsetters. If even one of us decides to proudly display our culture to the rest of the world, others will follow suit. I have always believed that one man can make a difference, and that one person has to be amongst us.

Tweet

4 Idiots!

Bollywood recently released the hit comedy blockbuster 3 Idiots. Apparently, us Pakistanis beat them to it, not by having 3 but 4 idiots. I am talking about the 4 delightfully entertaining men who grace television sets in Pakistan and are also a hit on Youtube. These guys arent really idiots at all but they together are a band of 4 merry men, who call themselves the "4 Man show". My last blog post was on comedians in Pakistan, and I thought to myself, how could I miss these guys out. These guys are probably the most daring comedians I have ever seen in the country. These guys honestly have portrayed political figures, sports figures, celebrities, religious and political analysts better than anyone else I have seen. They even have done comic portrayals of Shahrukh Khan and Big B Amithabh Bachan himself. Its hilarious how they portrayed Jawed Miandad and former cricket captain Inzimam. I do not have to say more beyond this. I am sure many of you have already seen their episodes on TV, and Youtube, and if you have not, go to youtube now and search for 4 man show and see how they make your day. Comedy is alive and well in good hands in Pakistan and lets hope these 4 idiots continue to make us laugh and inspire a new generation of comedians to come.

Tweet

Pakistanis can be funny too!

So, you think we can't be funny? The past few months or so, I have been checking out many comedians from the land of the pure and honestly speaking, this new generation of comedians are awesome. These guys have boldly gone where no comedian has gone before. These guys have cracked me up so much, that I think if every one of us start being as funny, Pakistan would become Funny-istan, meaning land of the funnies. There is no doubt that the past few decades, Pakistan has produced many comedians, whose sharp tongue and wit have scored laughs by generations of Pakistanis home and abroad. Honorable mentions go out to Anwar Maqsoon, Moin Akhtar, Bushra Ansari, Hanif Raja and incomparable Omer Sharif. Moin Akhtar and Anwar Maqsood, since the 80s have been the funniest pair on television I have ever seen. Long before Loose Talk, they parodied serious talk shows, with Anwar Maqsood playing the serious host, while Moin would parody politicians, cricketers, Mullahs, and sterotypes of various ethnicities. Moin Akhtar himself played a great role of a man dressed up as a woman, trying to emulate Dustin Hoffman in Tootsie, and did it so well. That show was known as Rosie.

My latest post is on the latest generation of comedians in Pakistan. These guys have used the latest technologies of Youtube and made their way to homes all over the world. Some of the best comedians I have come across are Saad Haroon and his partner in crime Danish Ali, of Real News and Black Fish fame. Black Fish was the first ever improvisational comedy troupe started by Saad Haroon, who is also my namesake. The Real News was the Pakistani version of John Stewart's Daily Show, parodying a Pakistani news show, focusing on satirical views on the latest news in the world and issues touching every Pakistani. Another person I have been lately impressed with is Sami Shah. I knew Sami back when I was a student at Foundation Public School. He was a few years senior to me, and since then he had the knack for intelligent comedy. He later became famous as the host of News Weakly on Pakistan's Dawn News channel, and has been doing many stand up routines all over Pakistan. His blog is on my blog list as well. I give kudos to these guys for being bold and brave to talk about today's issues in a comedic fashion, and doing it very well. Here's the hope that these guys carry on the good work, and keep the laughs coming, because as we all know, we all need a smile once a while in our chaotic world. Honestly, more than an apple, a smile a day keeps the doctor away. No wonder why it has been said that laughter is the best medicine.

Tweet

I want my MTV- back!

Yes folks. You heard it from the Knight Writer. I want my MTV back. MTV stands for Music Television, and for many years, that's what it was. In the past 10 or 15 years or so, it has become just another network featuring mostly reality TV shows. MTV was once a global phenomenon playing music from all over the world 24/7. Back in the day, MTV revolutionized music videos, and this prompted many rock bands of the 80s and 90s making artistic music videos. Duran Duran, for example, was very famous for their music videos. From Hungry like the Wolf to Wild Boys, every video was unique and fun to watch. Michael Jackson, in 1983, with Thriller made some of the best music videos of that time, especially the award winning Thriller. This is when MTV noticed and took on MJ, as he was at the time the first black artist to be featured on their network. The whole point of this is that the network stands for Music Television, but why does their content today has nothing to do with music videos. Now they have MTV2, and MTVU, and other spin-offs, that show music videos. For my Pakistani readers, I do not know if you guys knew this. Junoon and Strings were the first Pakistani rock acts to be featured on MTV Asia. Back in the early 90s, this was a big achievement. Junoon's ground breaking "Talaash" and String's magnum opus "Sar Kiye" were the first videos from our homeland to air on MTV. Today, Pakistan is blessed to have MTV Pakistan, which is a rebranded version of Indus Music. Either way, its cool to have MTV in Pakistan that actually focuses on music in Pakistan and serves as a platform for new bands to launch themselves in the country's growing rock scene.

Basically, in the US, if the original MTV channel tries to go back to its roots, it will recapture lot of its lost audience who originally tuned to see the latest rock videos from all around the world. I am sure my Pakistani readers remember how MTV Asia back in the 90s was replaced by Star TV with their own Channel V, which at the time was a very cool name for a music channel. Their programming was very similar to that of MTV Asia and retained many of their VJs. V was to MTV what Indus Music was to MTV Pakistan. I remember VJ Nonie and Trey who hosted Asian Top 20 and By Demand respectively. My other favorite show was Rewind which featured classic videos from the 80s. Asian Top 20 was my show to keep updated with the latest international music as I watched it religiously after coming from school. I usually catch V on my trips to Karachi, but lately I do not even watch MTV because MTV is not MTV anymore. This is why I want my MTV back!

Tweet