Aga Khan Youth & Sports Board for Karachi organized Youth Film Festival on 7th and 8th August with an objective to give youth a platform to showcase their creative and cinematic abilities. The idea was to encourage original content rather than run of the mill kind of stuff.

The team worked for more than 3 months for conceptualization of the program and the participants made it a success with their hard work in less than three weeks. The participants included both amateurs and professionals. Each trying to make most out of their skills and appreciation or criticism they got would really help them to improve because the aim was to provide a platform rather than exclude anyone due to some lacking in any aspect of film-making. Believe in minds and not mindless entertainment! And to do the mindful and needful judgment, the jury consists of media personalities from Geo and Dawn News network.

I being a team member in all my limited capacity, photographer and audience at the same time, had a great time to see this event shine its glory. The movies which caught my attention personally:

In Drama, Sawaal by Zohair Alibhoy (student of Media Sciences) which questions on lost opportunities and discrimination against the lower segment of society. This movie was impeccable in acting, sound and screenplay. Makhee Bhaee by Danish Ali and Shahrukh Ali, a short experimental (made on handycam with funky chroma effects) having a fun take on how flies can be terrible nuisance and at the same time a fun ride, I know its hard to comprehend such sentence :p This movie proves that if you have creativity, nothing can stop the wonders. The ultimate survival by Lubna Ladhani was also a decent effort on issue of kidnapping and inspired from a real story, giving the message that it’s better to live in simplicity.

In Documentaries, KCR made by Alishan (a graduate of NAPA) which talks about Karachi Circular Buried Railway which is not in use and the rail track itself is worth billion of rupees. Two efforts by Sohail Noorani (Animator at Aaj TV Network) were impressive given that all work he did were on handycam. Dire but Truth, a short documentary on problem of asthama pertaining in sweepers and I Judge/I Act, a short drama about self-introspecton and guilt.

Animations were a real treat and each one of them stood to its merit. Especially Give me More by Sunny Sadruddin who studied at Vancouver Film School and In Search of the Light by Malik Gillani, a student of Karachi School of Arts. Both were amusing and thought provoking with technical brilliance.

In Music Videos, Alvida had a good concept while Josh by Safar Band brought some pumping patriotic music on the cards.

Flow of films with proper categorized slots and audience interaction could have been improved. Overall execution of the program was good and the platform deserves its due credit. The Awards Night is planned this week.

Here are the links of some videos that can also be viewed online:

Animations:
In Search of The Light

Give me More!

Garlic Maniac

Promos:
http://www.facebook.com/video/video.php?v=149245189128&oid=105235734858

http://www.facebook.com/video/video.php?v=109464737110&oid=105235734858

Only two days left, and on the night 13 of August, as soon as the clocks will strike past midnight, shifting the date to 14, the independence day of Pakistan Celebrations around the country will begin and I am sure this year too like the last year in Karachi, we will resort to celebratory firing marking the first half hour of the independence day celebrations, of this land of pure with a gesture of violence which will leave several injured, and may be a few others dead just like we did a few months back to celebrate out victory in the twenty20 World Cup cricket.

Has violence become such an integral part of our lives that it has dominated our protests, arguments, jokes, and even celebrations ? Do we not realize how our irresponsible actions are disrupting the peace of our city destroying it’s warmth and sense of security and what a negative image of our country are we painting for the rest of the worlds ?

And please I know many of you will think this post somehow responsible to tell the world what faults we have, But really do you thing shoving the dirt under the carpet will solve any thing? Has it ever, till this date solved anything ? NO, It is about time we take ownership of our faults, accept them, address and confront them and eliminate them from our lives and tell the world what a wonderful nation we are.

I hope, this year midnight, 14 of August, 2009 the sounds which will fill the air would not be of gunshots but of national anthems and songs of peace and love. I hope this year we will celebrate the independence day of Pakistan in it’s true sprite of joy, peace and love.

Rehman dakait , the Liyari Nuisance is killed in an encounter with police while coming back from Hyderabad in Steel town area More. Reports of some violence, read here. What is strange is the 3-day mourning announced by ” peace committee” man Zafar Baloch. I mean to mourn a dakait !!! . Tells you enough about the general psychology as to what category of people are heroz here.

Background: (also Read) We heard about different “gardiz” but the most prominent of all is this Mulla Gardi which has spread like a cancer in our nation especially after 80z. While this topic was in my mind for a long time the gojra incident (though factually unrelated but fully related in essensce) forced me to highlight this issue. Its not just specific to that area only. Look everywhere in your city and you can see how religion has been hijacked by retards acting like self certified thaikedarz of faith. Their religious terrorism needs no explanations. From building constructions to land grabbing and politics to sports they consider it their birth right to poke their nones in every domain. And their nose is not enough, they use militancy to further their objectives and put a religious cover to hide their designs. This in short is known as Mulla Gardi.

The evil ZIA was the main culprit to first introduce us with this cancer to strengthen his power. Karachi which then known to be a progressive, highly educated city which produces artists, engineers,doctors of class is now producing militants on religious and ethnic grounds, charas and arms heaven, and a big bunch of ill-literate degree holders. Roam around to see how many of religious constructions are LEGAL (since these thaikedarz act more worried abour morals and legalities).

The Issue: But this is not the point actually. My main point was a suggestion which is why not make a new law titled “Tauheen-e-insaniat” which should auto-activate once “Tauheen-e-Risalat” is not established and this means if one person accuses other of TR, failure in court to justify should automatically result him punished him under Tauheen-e-Insaniat with same punishment as of TR since a person using PROPHET’s (pbuh) name/reference to blackmail/terrorize another person is himself guilty of a TR (logically speaking ? no ?) and the state should now register him under TR law and not any other law. There is no need to go back and do an FIR and all the time-wasting procedures. This should provide good safety check for innocent victims. If there is any such law present it should be further strengthened.

“as i see it”, a four person art show in mix media including paintings, digital prints, digital photographs, and sculptures opened yesterday at the Canvas Art Gallery, Karachi, Pakistan.

The show exhibits different art work by four brilliant artists each one of them expressing their observations in thought provoking statements invoking strong emotions and feelings in their own individual way, from some of the most ordinary scenes of out of our daily lives.

(more…)

One more reason to love google. So well, Google Urdu Transliteration engine is launched. Start with short lines and within minutes you gonna love it. Check it out !!

The automatic help is the best part in this. If you type a word and move on and then realize its not what you expected, come back (BACKSPACE) and it will popup a small window for your help. Also check detail help

The cause of this accident was envicrete blocks which constructing company just dropped on the main road without any caution.
(more…)

Iqbal Academy Pakistan is offering a series of weekly workshops about the basic ideas of Allama Iqbal and related subjects. Participation is free for the following three sessions but due to limited space, advanced registration is mandatory and punctuality is a virtue (seats will be given on “first come first” basis).

Resource Person:
Khurram Ali Shafique, author of The Republic of Rumi: A Novel of Reality
Venue: Teachers’ Development Center, 129-G, P.E.C.H. Society, Block 2, Karachi. Phone: (021) 4392949
Timings (for all workshops): 4:00 pm to 6:00 pm

Contact for further information: Dr. Hena Javid henajawaid000@hotmail.com

New horizons in Iqbal Studies – Saturday, August 1

Why do we need to know about Iqbal? What do we know? What are the new questions which are becoming important in Iqbal Studies now? On what criteria can we assess what has been done before? These are the questions which will be explored in this workshop. Note: participants will receive a complimentary copy of Andaz Mehramana (2009), a little book published by Iqbal Academy Pakistan on this subject.

Shikwa: the story behind it – Saturday, August 8

The story behind the writing of `Shikwa’ is being given out in full detail for the first time since the famous poem got written by Iqbal in 1911. Recently presented in the second volume of the comprehensive biography Iqbal: Tashkeeli Daur, the details will now be discussed by the biographer and participants will be asked to participate in an open discussion.

Why Iqbal chose Rumi? – Saturday, August 15

The question has often been asked but the material required to properly address it had never been collected in one place as it has been in the recently published Iqbal: Tashkeely Daur. This workshop enables the participants to discuss the question and arrive at their own conclusions based on evidence provided in the workshop.