India-Pakistan marriage?
Sports stars Sania Mirza, Shoaib Malik win few cheers.

Relations between India and its rival Pakistan may be at a low ebb. But the news that two of their biggest sports personalities are set to marry has sparked a media whirl in both countries and newspapers headlines like: “A New Chapter in Indio-Pak Ties.”

Sania Mirza, India’s biggest tennis star and the first Indian to win a Women’s Tennis Association tour title in 2005, announced Monday she would marry Pakistani cricketer and fellow Muslim Shoaib Malik, who captained Pakistan’s cricket team between 2007 and 2009.

Marriages between Indians and Pakistanis are not unheard of, because many Muslim families who migrated to Pakistan when the subcontinent was partitioned in 1947 have stayed in touch with relatives who remained in India. But a marriage between sporting stars, at a time of political tension, is unprecedented, say pundits.

“It’s like an American gymnast marrying a Russian sports star during the Cold War,” says M.J. Akbar, editor-in-chief of India’s Sunday Guardian newspaper.

India, which has fought three wars with its neighbor since 1947, suspended a formal peace process after the Mumbai terrorist attacks of November 2008, accusing Pakistani state agencies of involvement. Tensions mounted earlier this year after a spate of border skirmishes and a spike in separatist violence in Indian Kashmir by Pakistan-based militant groups.

When the two sides held talks last month, India reiterated its view that Pakistan is not doing enough to crack down on the Islamic groups involved in planning the Mumbai assault.

Rooting for the other team?
But Ms. Mirza said Tuesday she did not welcome comparisons between geopolitics and her engagement.

“My marriage has nothing to do with Indo-Pak politics,” Indian newspapers quoted the her saying. “This is a happy moment ... Be happy we are getting married. We both are happy. Our families are happy. I don’t think we can ask for more.”

After the April wedding, which will be celebrated both in Hyderabad, India, and in Lahore, Pakistan, according to reports, the couple will settle down in Dubai.

Mirza said she would continue to play tennis for India. Malik, who comes from Sialkot, a town near the Indian border in Pakistan’s Punjab province, plays cricket for Pakistan. But he's currently fighting a 12-month suspension from the national team by the Pakistan Cricket Board for poor performance and misconduct.

When asked which side she would support if India played Pakistan in a cricket match, Mirza said she would support both India and her husband.

‘Happier if she married an Indian’
Tuesday, Indians’ responses to the engagement were mixed. Some took the view that love matches were unstoppable; others expressed furious patriotism.

“It is strange she couldn’t find a suitable boy here,” says Lakshman Maity, a Hindu driver in Delhi. “India and Pakistan are not on good terms and Pakistan is conspiring against India every day – in such a situation how could she ever think of marrying a Pakistani?”

A local Hindu political party in Coimbatore, India, reportedly held a protest Wednesday against the Mirza's pending marriage. They demanded the tennis player be deported and that the federal government take back all the awards given to her.

Mohammad Irfan, a Muslim driver who works in Delhi, was also puzzled by the match, though for different reasons.

“Shoaib is an eligible bachelor and from her own religion, so it’s fine,” he says. “But I would be happier if she married an Indian cricket star. There are lots of eligible Muslims in our country too.”

Indo-Pak tug of war over Sania Mirza

A new war has broken out between traditional rivals India and Pakistan. It is neither over Kashmir nor on the cricketing field. The tussle is over India's tennis icon Sania Mirza's future: whether she will play for India or represent her sasural, Pakistan, on court.
While Pakistan Tennis Federation (PTF) has issued a resounding appeal to Sania to play for Pakistan, the same has been rejected by the All India Tennis Association (AITA).
PTF chief Dilawar Abbas has said that India's tennis sensation Sania Mirza should represent Pakistan in international tennis tournaments after entering into wedlock with cricketer Shoaib Malik.
"It is great news for our tennis community that Sania Mirza is getting married to Shoaib Malik. We welcome her and hope that she would become a Pakistani national and play for us in future. She has a great future ahead and we would be delighted if she plays for Pakistan," a leading newspaper quoted Abbas, as saying.
"Asian women traditionally follow their husbands which is why I'm hopeful that someday she would be inspired by Shoaib to play for Pakistan," he added.
However, All India Tennis Association (AITA) has issued a statement confirming her participation for India till the 2012 Olympics.

Sania has, however, already made it clear that she would continue representing India even after her marriage. Her father Imran Mirza said that she would surely play for India and not Pakistan.
Abbas said that even if Sania decides to continue playing for India, he hopes that she would associate herself with Pakistan tennis at some point of time.
"She can encourage our girls to take up tennis, she can inspire them to become world class players. We would hope that Sania would lend a helping hand to women's tennis in Pakistan," he said.
Abbas even suggested that Sania could team up with Pakistan's Aisam-ul-Haq on the mixed-doubles circuit.

Shiv Sena does a U turn on Sania-Shoaib wedding, terms it their 'personal affair'
A day after attacking Indian tennis ace Sania Mirza for her decision to marry Pakistan Cricketer Shoaib Malik in its mouthpiece 'Samana', Shiv Sena party did a U-turn from its earlier stand on Saturday and announced not to oppose it.
Addressing reporters here, Shiv Sena's Excutive President Uddhav Thackeray clarified that his party would not oppose the marriage of Mirza with Malik with the issue being a 'personal matter.'

"Well, there is no question as to our opposing Sania-Mirza marrying a Pakistani. Samana had its version and that was it. Yes, it concerns India-Pakistan relations and we have no objection since it is her individual decision," said Thackeray.

It may be recalled that Shiv Sena chief Bal Thackeray on Friday (April 02) slammed Sania for her decision and said that she is no longer an Indian.

In Samana's editorial Bal Thackeray said that had Sania been truly an Indian at heart she would not have chosen a Pakistani.

Pakistan’s New Media Dictionary
Posted by Nadeem F. Paracha on 12 17th, 2009 Comments (341)
Advertising:
A very important phenomenon in the Pakistani electronic media, where little, irritating films about fairness creams and mobile phone connections become the lifeline of big, irritating seths running really irritating TV channels. Also, the constant source of that wonderfully poignant line, ‘choti si break,’ which, however, may last as long as a military dictatorship in Pakistan.

Asif Ali Zardari:
A custom-made punching bag with prominent teeth for talk show hosts to practice their jihadi judo chops and passionate, ‘anti-corruption’ missionary positions on.

Aamir Liaquat:
Name of a special Pilgrimage Package offered by Peo Travels (Pvt.) Ltd. to specifically attract fitnahs to go for Haj and get God’s approval of their meaningful hatred of sub-humans (such as Jews, Ahmadiyyas, Hindus, liberals and swine flu carriers). Also the name of a hyperbolic over-actor masquerading as a ‘religious scholar’ on a TV drama masquerading as a ‘religious advice show’ on a gossip channel masquerading as a ‘news channel.’

Aishwarya Rai:
Famous Indian tree-hugger (especially on mangals), who is also a favourite of rabid anti-Hindu Pakistanis who will let her go (along with her tree, but not her husband), when they conquer India during the Ghazwa-ul-Hind in 2012 AD and slaughter all the Hindus of the world with their nuclear-powered laser-swords and bad TV shows, such as Muhammad Bin Iqbal Saladin Qasim Ka Pakistan.

Aaj TV:
A TV channel you’d rather leave for kal (as in yesterday).

Aag TV:
The favourite music channel of freckled, teenaged fascists.

ARY News:
A TV channel set up by jewellers. Get the picture?

Bobby Master:
Some guy who serves tea at a famous Pakistani TV channel. Most probably the most intelligent fellow there.

Conspiracy Theory:
A theory that is not a theory at all but a hard fact on Pakistani TV channels. Anyone disagreeing with the hard and loud factoids (conspiratorially called conspiracy theorists), is a Mossad/CIA/RAW/NASA/KFC agent and a possible swine flu carrier who would be lined up against the walls of Delhi’s Red Fort and shot dead during the Ghazwa-ul-Hind in 2012 AD.

Dr. Danish:
A dentist.

Duniya TV:
A channel on which Sohail Warraich tries to be funny, and Najam Sethi, serious.

Dawn.Com:
A place where tiny worthless dots gather at dawn to receive handouts from the many myriad enemies of Pakistan – such as, Indians, Americans, Israelites and Tellytubbies – so that they can use cyberspace to spread their anti-Islam, anti-Pakistan, anti-Shan propaganda through anti-Islam, anti-Pakistan, anti-Tigar Balm writers, columnists, subeditors, reporters, accountants, tea boys and gymnasts. Just what this article is doing on this site, I have no idea. All I know is it’s a conspiracy because Rana Naveedul Hassan said so.

DawnNews:
A groovy hang out where pleasant young men and women practice and sharpen their newly acquired American accents by toning their frequently mobile jaws. Here, cops become ‘caaps,’ jobs become ‘jaabs,’ Pakistan becomes ‘Pai-khis-tan,’ and Karachi becomes LA.

Dr. Shahid Masood:
A TV hakeem famous for his tangy concoctions and cocktails made from the equally famous witch-doctor Harun Yahya’s recipes of Vulcan stew, Martian soup, and other out-of-space (and out-of-mind) delicacies. If you look closely, you will notice that the good doctor also has a moustache, which many believe was gifted to him by Hamid Gul on his second birthday in 377 BC, during the first Ghazwa-ul-Hind.

Eeeeek!
A common female vocal response after watching Dr. Masood’s moustache fall every time someone mentions ‘PTV’ or something about him having a Canadian passport.
‘Me? No. (Plop!) Oops.’
‘Eeeek …!’

Express News:
An express-ion connoting something half-baked, done in a hurry. Example: ‘All pace and no substance makes Jack an Express News.’

Geo TV:
A Mongolian TV brand that can be watched on horseback while triumphantly marching into Hindustan during the Ghazwa-ul-Hind, Holi,Dewali, and Filmfare Awards. Shows programs hosted by hard, loud factoids bred on prime Vulcan stew and Hilal ki Ding Dong Bubblegum.

Ghazwa-ul-Hind:
A forthcoming Lollywood science-fiction blockbuster directed by Zaid Hamid, produced by Dr. Shahid Masood, and staring Maria B., Ali Azmat, Hamid Gul, Irfan Siddiqui, and Yoda.

Hamid Mir:
A wrestler.

Hamid Gul:
The guy who gave Shahid Masood his moustache and the man Masood hasn’t stopped thanking. ‘Thank you, Hamid Gul sahib, for coming on the show…’ ‘Thank you, Hamid Gul sahib, for coming on the show…’ ‘Thank you, Hamid Gul sahib, for coming on the show…’ ‘Thank you, Hamid Gul sahib, for coming on the show…’ Why can’t his show just be called The Gul-Masood Show?

Indus News:
A news channels watched on the banks of the River Indus. By fish.

Iqbal Ka Pakistan:
The show that makes the great allama roll in his grave each week.

Imran Khan:
A man who still thinks the Taliban is a brand name for a series of chubby, cuddly teddy bears.

Kashif Abbasi:
A TV anchor whose eyes turned green after he’s had a bit too much of Dr. Masood’s Vulcan stew.
Kamran Khan:
A very dry man.

Maria B.
A fashion designer who is a fan of Zaid Hamid and thus keeps getting a ‘C’ in politics. She should actually be called Maria C., or Maria Z. Or better, Maria GHB (Maria Ghuzwa-ul-Hind B).

Munawar Hussain:
A guy who believes the Taliban are bigger than Elvis.

Mushtaq Minhas:
A very strange man.

Nusrat Javed:
Another very strange man.

Nadeem F. Paracha:
An abomination brought to life by the Elders of Zion and the illuminati to misguide innocent young Pakistani patriots and mohib-e-watan-Ghazwa-ul-Hind warriors with the help of CIA money, NASA spacesuits, and KFC Zinger Burgers. Most probably has ancient Dravidian Hindu blood running in his veins and is certainly out to destroy the super-duper Muslim master-race.

Nadia Khan:
A woman who grew up watching too many Hasina Moin plays.

Nawaz Sharif:
The ‘N’ in PML-N, some of whose starlets are still trying to put an ‘N’ in the Tehrik-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) as well. Example: PTT-N. Likely to be disappointed.

PTV:
The channel only Rehman Malik and Bilawal Bhutto watch.

Qazi Hussain Ahmed:
A very old man.

Taliban:
Very hairy people who, in spite of being extremely obvious and ubiquitous, are still treated as ghosts by many TV hosts and their guests. They’d rather believe Elvis is alive than agree that it is the Taliban who are blowing themselves up in markets and mosques every now and then.
Example:
News Item: Taliban take responsibility for Pindi mosque blast.
Host: Who are these men?
News Item: Taliban take responsibility for Pindi mosque blast.
Host: Who can these terrorists be?
News Item: TALIBAN TAKE RESPONSIBILITY FOR PINDI MOSQUE BLAST!!!
Host: Who can do such a thing? Is it the Indians? Israel? CIA? Elvis?

Zaid Hamid:
A fast-talking rap artiste who stole Ali Azmat’s soul (and guitar), and turned Aag TV into the official Ghazwa-ul-Hind music channel. His biggest hits are ‘Let’s march on Delhi, y’all!’ ‘Hindus are insects, y’all,’ ‘I love wars, y’all,’ ‘M. B. Qasim is ma man, y’all,’ ‘So is Maria B, y’all,’ ‘Even though she’s a woman, y’all.’ Recently, Zaid also claimed that Ali Azmat’s tind is a UFO landing site. Ali was thrilled.

Nadeem F. Paracha is a cultural critic and senior columnist for Dawn Newspaper and Dawn.com.

The views expressed by this blogger and in the following reader comments do not necessarily reflect the views and policies of the Dawn Media Group.

Sania’s heart beats for Pakistan, not India: Thackeray

Launching a severe attack on Indian tennis star Sania Mirza for her decision to marry Pakistani cricketer Shoaib Malik, the Shiv Sena chief Bal Thackeray came down heavily on her in his editorial published on Friday in Sena mouthpiece Saamna, stating that Sania Mirza’s heartbeats were pumping fast for Pakistan and not India.
“If Sania’s heart was an Indian, it would have not had the heart beats for Pakistan. Her patriotism for the country is only money and publicity. Here people are shedding blood for the country and religion, becoming martyrs and it’s Sania who has now forgotten her national patriotism and exhibited her love for Pakistan. Shame on you and your life,” Thackeray wrote in the editorial.
Thackeray further wrote “Sania cannot claim to be an Indian now. If she had a desire to play for India, then she could have selected an Indian as her husband. For marriage and money Sania focused on Pakistan and for publicity it’s India for her. This is not acceptable and will not work. Now if she had decided to marry Shoaib and going to Pakistan, than go play as much as you want in Pakistan.”
Thackeray said “from Shoaib’s point of view, India is still the arch enemy of Pakistan and the Pakistani cricketer had many love affairs in India and he had given many false assurances to many Indian girls to marry them.”
Thackeray expressed surprise at the speed visas were issued to the family of Sania to visit Pakistan and referred to the many obstacles that were created by the Pakistan government while issuing a visa to the acclaimed Indian singer Lata Mangeshkar.
Meanwhile, Sania also came under criticism from the Samajwadi Party legislator and Maharashtra state unit president, Abu Asim Azmi, who said in Mumbai on Friday that he did not support Sania’s marrying in Pakistan and then settling in Dubai and still representing India in the tennis courts.
“If she has to represent India, then she has to be settled in India and not Dubai,” Azmi said.

Sania Mirza and Shoaib Malik set to bridge India-Pakistan divide with marriage
Pakistani cricket star Shoaib Malik and India's top female tennis player Sania Mirza plan to wed in a unique union bridging the two nations' bitter sporting and political divide.

"My wedding is going to be the biggest day of my life," Mirza said in a statement late Monday from her home town of Hyderabad, where she is recovering from a wrist injury that has seen her ranking slip from 27 in 2007 to 92.
The sporting marriage, seemingly unprecedented in the perennial rivalry between the nuclear-armed South Asian rivals, comes two months after Mirza broke off her engagement to a childhood friend.
Mirza and Malik, 28, who are both Muslim, will marry in April and live in Dubai, members of the two families told local media.
Malik, a former national captain who is currently serving a year-long ban by the Pakistan Cricket Board due to indiscipline, confirmed the imminent nuptials.
"The news of me marrying Sania is true," the all-rounder was quoted as saying. "Inshallah (God willing) we will get married in April.
"I fully understand what it takes to be an international sportsperson and I will support Sania in her career as long as she wishes to play."
He said he would be "the proudest husband" if Mirza won a medal at the 2012 Olympics, while the tennis player said she was targeting a return to fitness for the Commonwealth Games and Asian Games late this year.
Mirza broke off her engagement to childhood friend Sohrab Mirza in January, saying "we were friends for years but found ourselves incompatible as fiances".
The tennis player became an instant nationwide celebrity as an 18-year-old when she became the first female Indian to win a WTA Tour title in 2005.
Malik, who hails from Sialkot in Pakistan's Punjab province, has played 29 Tests, 190 one-day internationals and 30 Twenty20 matches since his debut in 2001.
In a bizarre twist in 2002, he was accused by the family of another Hyderabad girl, Ayesha Siddiqui, of marrying her over the telephone. The cricketer denied it, but did admit to being engaged.

Ayesha's father threatened to sue Malik for leaving the girl without awarding her a divorce.

Coming Up Next...................

It's wretched enough that our "friend" Ahmed Chalabi has become Iran's point man in Iraq. Now "our man in Kabul," President Hamid Karzai, is quietly shifting his loyalty to Tehran.
Beyond Iranian President Mahmud Ahmedinejad's recent chummy visit to Karzai -- reported by the media but downplayed by Washington -- Iran's been training Taliban forces to kill our troops more efficiently.
Karzai's people despise him; his allies distrust him; his enemies mock him. And our troops keep him in power. Does that sound like a formula for success?
Pakistan's in on Afghanistan's new deal, too, along with Islamabad's favored Mujaheddin terrorist faction, Gulbuddin Hekmatyar's Hezb-i-Islami (as I predicted in The Post last month). Our government's even welcoming Karzai's negotiations.
Scamming Americans is one thing, playing Iranians or Pakistanis another. We send sniffy diplomatic notes. They send assassins.
Also noted in previous columns, Pakistan's making a grand show of helping us by busting senior Taliban and al Qaeda officials (which they could have done years ago). Islamabad's not doing it out of solidarity with Uncle Sam, but because it needs to weaken Taliban elements and leaders it can't control in order to close the hoped-for Afghan deal.
Coming perhaps as early as this year (certainly within the next few years), the Karzai Compromise will at first look like this:
* Karzai remains the titular head of the Kabul regime.
* Iran "owns" western Afghanistan.
* Pakistan replaces the United States as the Kabul government's security guarantor.
* NATO grabs the excuse of "national reconciliation" to dash for home.
* The United States won't be far behind NATO, although we'll continue to pour in aid to "avoid destabilizing the situation."
This being the Greater Middle East, the deal won't last. Karzai holds too weak a hand; national ambitions are in conflict; the hatreds go too deep. Here's what will come next:
* The Iranians and Pakistanis will struggle for influence. The next phase of the endless Afghan civil war will be a proxy fight between Tehran and Islamabad (alongside the internal factional warfare).
* Al Qaeda will align with Pakistan, gaining clandestine sponsorship.
* Karzai will be replaced by a tougher ruler backed by Pakistan, while the Iranian side elevates its own contender for power based in Herat.
* India will side with Iran. China will support Pakistan.
* Pakistan will find itself unable to control its Afghan proxies, after all. Another military regime will take power in Islamabad, as Pakistan finds itself bogged down in an Afghan morass and violence spreads at home.
* The Taliban will fight everybody and outlast everybody.
As our troops surge slowly into Afghanistan to save the inept Karzai government, they may already be irrelevant. We're no longer in on the deal. Everybody knows it but us.
Ralph Peters' new book is "Endless War: Middle Eastern Islam vs. Western Civilization."

Filmhistory: Armaan of a nation

Armaan was released on Friday, March 18, 1966, at a time when the country was echoing with protests against the Tashkent Agreement signed by President Ayub Khan and the Indian Prime Minister Lal Bahadur Shastri. It was said that a war ‘won’ on the front had been ‘lost’ on the table. Zulfikar Ali Bhutto, the dissident foreign minister who was generally identified with a hard line stance against India, had just received an overwhelming ovation at the Lahore Railway Station from a multitude of his admirers. Then, as the film opened in Naz Cinema, Karachi, and across West and East Pakistan, it captured the imagination of the entire society. Did the masses recognise, unconsciously, their deepest ideals in the fantasy about an educated and principle-centered aristocrat stepping down from his ranks for courting an orphaned girl of humble background and himself getting transformed in the process? At least that was the gist of the hero’s journey from the festive Ko Ko Korina to the mature Jab pyar mein do dil miltay hain; and from the light-hearted rendition of Akele na jana by Ahmad Rushdi to the symphonic and cataclysmic orchestra accompanying the voice of Mala, at the end. In retrospect, one may say that this was not very unlike the expectations that people were beginning to develop from Bhutto around the same time — regardless of whether or not the politician lived up to the ideals given by poets. The film was the first Pakistani release to become a “Platinum Jubilee” (running for 75 cumulative weeks). The middle class, usually reluctant to go to the cinema, got attracted in large numbers (in some ways this shift had already started with Saheli four years earlier and Naela the last year but it reached its climax with Armaan). The hairstyle of the writer, producer and actor Waheed Murad became the default for that generation. Conservatives and liberals, rich and poor, educated and the illiterate, were equally mesmerised. The legends spawned by Armaan spread wide and were going to prove lasting. Fellow film-maker Nazrul Islam, in his greatest film Aaina (1977) eleven year later, named the heroine Najma (played by Shabnam) after the role played by Zeba in Armaan. In a subsequent film, Nahin abhi Nahin (1980), Nazrul not only named the main character Armaan, but even persuaded the lead actor Faisal Rehman to use this as a real name (recently, Faisal has directed a television sequel to Nahin abhi Nahin where the protagonist Armaan, now grown up and teaching in a college, confronts the spirit of Allama Iqbal and seeks answers to questions about the existence and destiny of Pakistan). If Armaan is one of the pegs around which threads of our collective consciousness are tied then it very well deserves that prestige. It was an offering from well-educated and imaginative youth who respected their culture and wanted to bring a healthy change through the unity of imagination. Waheed had an M.A. degree in English from Karachi University and his obsessions included James Joyce, Virginia Woolf and Henry James (one of his dreams was to make a stream of consciousness films and he arguably achieved it three year later in one of his productions). In developing the story of Armaan, he drew upon Cinderella, She Stoops to Conquer, The Taming of the Shrew, Jane Eyre and Wuthering Heights, but he used his sources ingenuously for creating a brevity that effectively conveyed the messages ingrained in the greatest cultural movements of recent history (attachment to Iqbal ran in Waheed’s family, since his grandfather Manzur Ilahi Murad was an acquaintance of the poet-philosopher in Sialkot). Director Pervez Malik, who also wrote the screenplay, had a master’s degree in film-making from California. Camera work, imagery and symbolism were on a par with some of the best masterpieces of that time: one could identify allusions to La Dolce Vita and Hiroshima Mon Amour. Later, Pervez was going to win a Pride of Performance Award for his patriotic films, including a trilogy about the awakening of the masses through the power of love: Anmol (1972), Dushman (1974) and Pehchan (1975). The second of these is also significant because a year before India discovered “the angry young man” in Deewar (1975), Pervez Malik had created the icon here and articulated its social context with much more clarity and boldness than elsewhere. Masroor Anwar, who wrote the dialogues and lyrics, had received a fresh impetus from his work in the 1965 war. A fascinating aspect of the lyrics of Armaan is that each song from this film, although so moving as an expression of ordinary love, can also be interpreted as a national song. Consider, for instance, Akele na jana. The Ahmad Rushdi version is probably what every Pakistani may like to say to Pakistan: “Diya hosla jis nay jeenay ka hum ko….” (you are a beautiful feeling that gave us the courage to live; you are the certainty that never leaves the heart; you the hope that lasts). It should surprise no one that the same Masroor Anwar later gave such national songs like Sohni dharti and Wattan ki mitti gawah rehna. Sohail Rana, who gave music to Armaan, came from a literary family. His father, Rana Akbarabadi, was a renowned poet and had approved of his son’s passion only on the condition that the talent should be used for perpetuating noble values. Sohail not only composed music for memorable national songs, including Apni jaan nazr karoon, Sohni dharti and Jeevay Pakistan but was also destined to set music to Hum Mustafavi Hain by Jamiluddin Aali, which was adopted as the national anthem of the Islamic Summit Conference in 1974 (it retains that status and is played wherever the summit is held). In the 1970s and the ’80s, Sohail was best known to the youth in Pakistan through his popular television programme in which he taught music and good manners. Armaan, in a way, had started with him. One night in 1963 or 1964 he heard a melody in his dream. He woke up and wrote it down. The words that were given to it eventually were, Akele na jana… The rest is film history, though sadly unwritten for the most part.

Advertisement goes off-track

Indian railways ad shows Delhi in Pakistan

Another media blunder on the part of India was identified when the Indian Railways showed Delhi located in Pakistan in its advertisement published in newspapers on Saturday. The advertisement also showed Kolkata in the Bay of Bengal. However, Eastern Railway, which released the advertisement, blacklisted the advertising agency after the goof.

Earlier, a Union Government advertisement had displayed the photograph of a former Pakistani air chief.

The latest advertisement was meant to announce the launch of a luxury tourist train by Railway Minister Mamata Banerjee. A small part of the advertisement showed the train’s route from Kolkata to Delhi.

Eastern Railway Chief Public Relations Officer Samir Goswami apologised for the mistake and said the advertising agency had been suspended.

Almost all leading newspapers in India published on Saturday a railways department’s advertisement that shows capital New Delhi located across the border in Pakistan.

According to zeenews.com, the Eastern Railway’s ad appeared to announce the inauguration of Maharaja’s Express, from Kolkata to Nalanda.

The railways authorities, however, absolved themselves of any responsibility, saying it was the fault of the advertising agency.

“It is a great mistake. We apologise for this. The advertising agency has been suspended,” Eastern Railway’s chief public relations officer Samir Goswami said.

The railways authorities had provided the Kolkata-based advertising agency with the route details only, and not the map, officials said.

The owner of the advertising agency said the route alignment had been given for the benefit of passengers. “The map and the alignment are an artist’s impression and not to scale. It is never our intention to create a controversy,” he said.

Newspapers in Lahore published on Friday an advertisement by the Punjab police carrying the insignia of the Indian Punjab police.

Two months ago, Indian newspapers published an ad carrying the picture of PAF’s former chief instead of the Indian air chief.

Is Pakistan ready for democracy?

“The Canadian military planners expect that Pakistan will collapse by 2016, and the territory will be occupied by India. Sound bizarre? Not so to the security analysts in Ottawa.”
Downhill for Pakistan? (Dawn) Tariq Amin-Khan. Tuesday, January 19, 2010
For the record, I want to make clear that I am a staunch supporter and promoter of democracy, but lately, I have started to wonder if Pakistan is ready for democracy after all. I don’t mean to agree with or advance the argument that Islam has no room for democracy. My argument is based on entirely different set of circumstances and it has nothing to do with religion.
We all know that unfortunately, Pakistan has been deteriorating for some time. Unlike what most anchors and jihadi elements in Pakistan would have you believe, the reality is that Pakistan has almost run out of options in terms of second and third and fourth chances. Today’s Pakistan is actually on life support (thanks to Washington) and we have to see how long would the Western world keep replenishing Pakistan’s depleted oxygen tank. And, even if this artificial support continues, it will end one day because everything comes to an end, eventually. So, will Pakistan be ready when the flow of aid will stop? This is the question that frightens a lot of people, including myself.
Even if Pakistan manages to survive despite awful shortage of food items that are vanishing from the country i.e. sugar, flour, and manages to find work for millions and millions of untrained, and uneducated youngsters in the country, and somehow, connects every house hold in to an electric grid and provide non-stop electricity, gas, water and petroleum to every citizen, the prospect of religious zealots taking over the county and destroying the society is very real. Religious gangsters have already declared war on Pakistan and these thugs are carrying out vicious attacks across the country every single day.
The rise of extreme religion is not on the rise because mullah is forcing everyone to embrace their version of religion, but the society is evolving and drifting towards hard core Wahabi school of thought. Everywhere in Pakistan you look, religious symbols have become the norm and it seems that pretty soon, every woman in Pakistan would be either in burqa or wearing a hijab and every man would be supporting long un-kept beard. And, not only is the society gravitating towards hard-core religion, but ‘I know what is right’ attitude has given a new dimension to religious bullying in Pakistan, which has forced moderate and sometime secular individuals and families to conform in order to avoid being a target or draw attention to themselves.
Add to this volatile mix of lack of economic, social and cultural depression and shrinking energy reservoir the intense and unyielding anti American sentiment across Pakistan and it is a recipe for a complete catastrophe. Pakistan, in my opinion has become a ticking time bomb.
So, in order to turn around Pakistan, can we rely on democracy? Can democratic institutions provide relief and answers for the challenges that the country faces today? Or perhaps, we should ask – has democracy been able to provide any assistance to the ordinary Pakistani? Of course not if one examines the evidence.
Therefore, if the country sticks to democratic means, it might take years, perhaps decades to make a simple decision. Take Kala Bagh Dam. It was in the pipeline for decades before The World Bank pulled its support for this vital project. Similarly, there are other examples where a quick decision is needed to save the future, but democracy dictates that you consult, debate, consider all sides and in the end, reject what is plausible and start again while the problem becomes a crisis. And, it is not only energy crisis – it is almost everything in the country that needs urgent and solid decisions without any compromise, but, we don’t see anything positive happening. The current government is struggling to stop attacks for all sides – army, judiciary, opposition, MQM, the Taliban, Al-Qaeda, population explosion, and so forth. And, democracy is not providing any answer, let alone solution for Pakistan.
Can it go on like this forever?
Maybe Pakistan’s democratic transition should be gradual. Maybe Pakistanis should be trained and educated in understanding what it means to live in a democratic society. Maybe, it would be helpful if Pakistanis were first prepared to live within the frame work of democratic traditions. The list of prerequisites can go on and on, but I think you get my point. So, given all this, I ask you to think about it.
Is Pakistan really ready for democracy?
“ Judge a man by his questions rather than his answers.”