Karachi is home to many different people and cultures for the past many years now and the festival will focus on their traditional aspects. The festival has been planned in such a way that the less privileged people of the city will also be able to avail the luxuries and facilities that have been limited to the privileged class, said Jalil. She added that above all, the festival will provide a unique opportunity to create harmony amongst different religious schools and religious sects including non-Muslims.
The events of the previous festivals included Qawwalis, debate competitions, Mushaairas, sea carnivals, free boat rides, painting contests, exhibitions of historical documents and manuscripts, flower shows, visits to historical buildings and monuments in the city and particularly special shows for women and children, added Jalil.
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Mensa Pakistan is organizing its Karachi Grand Test on 28 February 2009

Timings: 11am – 3:00pm (test sessions every 30 minutes)
 
at: New Horizons Pakistan (formerly TEC)

49-C, Block 6 PECHS (Behind Habib Bank Limited (HBL), behind main Nursery Bus stop)
off main Sharah-e-Faisal, Karachi
Tel: (021) 4554772
4382352 - 53 – 54 (3 lines)

Test fee Rs. 500
Walk-in registration facility at the venue

More on Mensa: www.mensapk.org

We always complain and vain about Karachi’s transportation system and here I am doing that again. I was traveling in a public bus. We know their conditions but some are so bad (like the one in which I was commuting) that you never know if flooring would collapse and your feet might touch the ground. Then one rickshaw literally skipped the chance of accident with the bus and it’s side mirror only got affected or else it would have rock n’ roll-ed on the ground. Btw I love Rickshaws but I equally value safety. Motorbikes walon ke liye tou my lips are sealed.

Then most of us Karachites don’t have any civic sense and many of us don’t even know how to drive, forget the etiquette. Now during such incidents, I sometimes wonder why is it that we get silent after bomb blasts in Karachi. Why are there no reservations at channels to show dead bodies? May be we don’t value human life or maybe the apathy in us has deepen its roots.

Most of us here in Karachi seem to think that the agreement of our government with the Taliban in SWAT has no affect on our urban lives in Karachi. This could not be further from the truth as the government has basically sold out the people of Swat to the Taliban who are now going to impose the most radical form of shariah known even to the muslim ummah on the poor population of the area.

Their influence in our city has been increasing over the passage of time as well and a stark example of it was the “attack” of 40-50 armed mullahs on a concert being held on valentines day in nisar shaheed park in defence. Although people may claim that the concert was creating problems for namazis at the adjacent mosque it was organized with proper permission from D.H.A authorities and the mullahs had no right to take the law into their own hands.

Police has to intervene and the concert had to be abandoned, these mullahs have now realized that it is in their power to disrupt anything they want on the name of Islam. I am not condoling valentines or the loud music interfering with someones namaz, but if I hear noise during Isha prayers does it give me the right to go over and threaten the noisemaker with a beating?

The civic agencies responsible for maintaining law and order have no idea how to deal with these mullahs and I am afraid the time is not far off when all of us will have to make a choice. Who will pay back the organizers or the people who bought tickets at this event? Who is going to hold these people back from taking over Karachi like they did in Swat?

In the end it will be between us and them.

Former Nazim of Karachi Naimatullah Khan has raised concerns over the imposition of the ‘infrastructure tax’ by the City District Government and said that the Sindh Local Government Ordinance does not cover any such amendment.
You can read the rest of the story here.

What I wanted to know is what visitors at Karachi metblog think? Is the imposition of this tax justified and will benefit Karachiites in the long run or is it just another excuse of making some money.

Malir River bridge was inaugurated on 4th Feb,2009 by Governor Sindh. The 5km bridge is the longest in Pakistan. It links Korangi to Shah Faisal Colony via Malir River. Here are some pictures for the same. Well done CDGK. Around 43 houses were demolished on the site after payment of compensation to their owners. There was also a park proposed about which we don’t have any latest but if the project is still ON it would be really great.

[Credit : Urbanpk]
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Yesterday Kara hosted five documentaries which includes Askini Ver Bana(Give me your love) by Nameera Ahmed who teaches filmmaking at Karachi University, Sheedis by Muhammad Imran, Talking Faith by Naveen Qayuum.

The first discussed about the importance of Music in Sufi tradition and how Ney and their dance supports a spiritual allegory. Second was about the Sheedis who are mistaken as either Baloch or Makrani but they are actually of the Afro-Indian origin who live in Sind and many have migrated to Karachi. The documentary highlights important issue of social marginalization that they face but at the same beautifully portrays their culture. Third was Talking Faith which was about Muslim and Christian Inter-faith Dialogue.

Also Thekey pe kya Kartey ho? by Spandan Banerjee which is a story about friendship of three kids who earns their livelihood by opening beer bottles for endless customers; and lastly Shame by Mohammad Naqvi which is a 95 minute documentary on the heroic saga of Mukhtaran Mai, who spoke out against her community and government after she was sentenced to gang rape for her brother’s alleged infraction.

All of them were a treat to watch but what disappointed me was the Question and Answer session which became a mess as these movies were discussing Religion and Myths and I felt a very insulting approach in framing of questions by the public.

Today Kara will be hosting a number of films but the major attraction is the unreleased FIRAAQ, the directorial debut of Nandita Das.

How healthy or effective if at all ?
The local tooth powder , which claims to cure all tooth problems.

Today on the 12th of February 2009 KOEL art gallery opened it’s door to the public for the first time with an opening exhibition titled “White On White”.

  An antique door greeted me as I entered the gallery for the first time, The open space soon after, is a garden with a champa tree in the center surrounded by a bed of rounded pebbles, with a beautiful wooden bench sitting against the gallery’s main window. On the side a huge sculpture and on the other a huge leafless tree, with branched and barks crisscrossing sheltering every thing under it. I am sure it would cast beautiful patens of shadows at daytime when the sun’s up for the shine. Upfront is the entrance to the main exhibit area.

 The exhibition area though large is divided by a staircase right in the middle but the stairs are so beautifully adjusted that rather then posing a hindrance it compliments the interiors adding a rich element to it. This area is divide into three portions and the ceiling is lined with a number of halogen bulbs highlighting the beautiful texture of the walls and illuminating the artwork on them. (more…)

Aga Khan University Hospital hosted a lecture on ‘A journey back in the time – The glorious centuries of Muslim Rule’ by Dr. Iftikhar Salahuddin. Dr. Saheb discussed the rise and decline of Ummayids and Abbasids and emphasized on the sad course of oblivion in Muslims today. The lectures briefly touched upon the magnificent monuments and contributions in philosophy by prominent figures like Al-Kindi, Al-Ghazali, Ibn-e-Sina naming a few. Ms. Fatima Suriya Bajiya ki wah wah ne mahol aur acha kardiya.

The major criticism was that he didn’t include the biggest contributions by Fatimids. Rather a very childish and ill-informed comment was made by Dr. Saheb on one of the leaders of Fatimids which was then largely clarified to him by the audience and they deserve a kudos for it. This shows a great appetite for knowledge and respect by all. Ethical values have been the major backbone of Islamic Glory and selfish-indulgence has been one of the reasons for decline.

One of the most important suggestions made in Question and Answer session was that we should now move away from the approach of looking Islamic contributions in sectarian or communal view, rather we should inquire it in the spirit of knowledge and then such remarks would always be avoided.

Great effort by Aga Khan University as always (Abida Parveen, Karen Armstrong, Sheema Kermani, Nahid Siddiqui and a lot more guests have been part of such lectures previously). Though the speaker didn’t come up to the marks for me at least but then it is a personal view. On the whole, he best thing was that both audience and speaker got to learn something from each other this time in a big way.