Check out the map, it is too big to embed here. LaWhore is marked as a possible springboard outside USSR. This is Aug 1945!List of good targets prepared by Khan's military for dropping atomic bombs in the USSR overlaid with the ranges of nuclear-capable bombers,
That sounds absolutely incredible. They shut down the freight and passenger railway service for months due to lack of locomotives and spares ? For a country and economy of that size ?? I understand they don't have much of an industry - steel production is barely 1MT - but it's amazing that they went so far as to stop railway service. If IR was out of service for a day the consequences for the economy would be catastrophic.Pakistan, despite its moderate size, has a largely dysfunctional railway system. As of mid 2011, it was decided to stop all goods train haulage due to severe shortage of locomotives and fuel. The financially bankrupt organization, despite bailouts, has not been able to emerge out of its troubles leading to cancellation of as many as 115 railway services. The decision has left ordinary Pakistanis at the mercy of bus operators for long distance travel. As of 2011, the PR network cancelled many trains and AC services in many trains were stopped. On 29 December 2011, PR restored freight train service from Karachi to upcountry.
The 'Martial Race'! They are learning Practical Fizikis. While SDRE kids are imagining projectile motion and calculating velocity, distance etc., TFTA kids put theory into practice and experience the real deal!
This is incredible. The implications being, Jinnah sold his (and Pak's) soul to the west even before Pakistan became independent. Was he offering a sweetener to them for going along with his demands? This by itself could explain western pampering of Pakistan after independence, or even the UK's eagerness to make Pak as strong as possible against India even before independence. The USSR probably threw a spanner in the works by testing in '49.Roperia wrote:Friday Image: Targeting the USSR in August 1945
Check out the map, it is too big to embed here. LaWhore is marked as a possible springboard outside USSR. This is Aug 1945!List of good targets prepared by Khan's military for dropping atomic bombs in the USSR overlaid with the ranges of nuclear-capable bombers,
It seems djinnah had already done a deal with khan's munna UK.
But the mere fact that she spoke openly of such change may raise eyebrows in the South Asian nation where the military is highly skilled at both mounting coups and running a business empire spanning everything from banks to bakeries.
The military lost all of the nation's wars with India, has been accused of widespread abuses by human rights groups, and has failed to break the back of al Qaeda-linked Taliban despite several offensives.
ISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s military has less sway over it’s foreign policy, and a new power equation is emerging, said the foreign minister. Foreign Minister Hina Rabbani Khar said new dynamics were now taking hold in the country.“I want you to also understand that things have changed in Pakistan,” she told Reuters in an interview. “I think this overbearance of the role of the military in the foreign policy of Pakistan is something which will recede as time passes.”“I think all institutions in Pakistan are realising that there is a place and role for every institution,” said the foreign minister.“And it is best to serve Pakistan’s interests that each of the institutions remains within the boundaries of the roles which are constitutionally defined. It’s a new sort of equilibrium.”Khar, one of a number of rising women politicians in Pakistan, started her political career with a party affiliated with former military dictator General Pervez Musharraf, and eventually rose to junior finance minister. She later switched to the ruling Pakistan People’s Party (PPP).The foreign minister said the current government’s staying power in a country prone to coups had given it sway and room to manoeuvre, on issues ranging from ties with the United States to trade with India.“As far as the new equilibrium … you have consistent four years of democracy, it’s the longest term a democratic government has had in Pakistan,” said Khar, who is from a political family in southern Punjab
partha wrote:Pakistan's fauj is being recognized finally world wide for what it is famous for
But the mere fact that she spoke openly of such change may raise eyebrows in the South Asian nation where the military is highly skilled at both mounting coups and running a business empire spanning everything from banks to bakeries.
The military lost all of the nation's wars with India, has been accused of widespread abuses by human rights groups, and has failed to break the back of al Qaeda-linked Taliban despite several offensives.
http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/04/ ... C820120426
How neatly Yawn has removed parts of Reuters report which glorifies the army to protect its H&D! Seems to me they have learned a lesson from Murtaza Razvi's incident.Jhujar wrote:http://dawn.com/2012/04/26/role-of-mili ... says-khar/
Role of military in foreign policy receding, says KharrISLAMABAD: Pakistan’s military has less sway over it’s foreign policy, and a new power equation is emerging, said the foreign minister. Foreign Minister Hina Rabbani Khar said new dynamics were now taking hold in the country.“I want you to also understand that things have changed in Pakistan,” she told Reuters in an interview. “I think this overbearance of the role of the military in the foreign policy of Pakistan is something which will recede as time passes.”“I think all institutions in Pakistan are realising that there is a place and role for every institution,” said the foreign minister.“And it is best to serve Pakistan’s interests that each of the institutions remains within the boundaries of the roles which are constitutionally defined. It’s a new sort of equilibrium.”Khar, one of a number of rising women politicians in Pakistan, started her political career with a party affiliated with former military dictator General Pervez Musharraf, and eventually rose to junior finance minister. She later switched to the ruling Pakistan People’s Party (PPP).The foreign minister said the current government’s staying power in a country prone to coups had given it sway and room to manoeuvre, on issues ranging from ties with the United States to trade with India.“As far as the new equilibrium … you have consistent four years of democracy, it’s the longest term a democratic government has had in Pakistan,” said Khar, who is from a political family in southern Punjab
Billionaire Lakshmi N. Mittal and an Indian oil (IOCL) company are formally opening a $4 billion refinery on the northern border with Pakistan as the countries that have fought three wars seek to stimulate trade.
Indian Prime Minister Manmohan Singh is slated to inaugurate the plant tomorrow, a project of Mittal Energy Investments Pte and Hindustan Petroleum Corp. (HPCL), the venture said in an e-mail. The unit, which can process 9 million metric tons a year of crude oil at Bathinda in the northern Punjab state, will help boost India’s exports and may open fuel sales to Pakistan, said Nisha Taneja, professor at the Indian Council for Research on International Economic Relations in New Delhi. The project marks a thaw in relations between the nuclear- armed neighbors. India, which bars investment from Pakistan, is preparing to lift the ban and broaden their reconciliation. The two nations, which waged two of their wars over conflicting claims to the territory of Kashmir, have agreed in recent months to increase trade, expand travel across their frontier and grant more business visas. “The refinery is the tangible asset that shows India is serious about trading with Pakistan and can help meet its demand for energy,” said Jagannadham Thunuguntla, a strategist at SMC Global Securities Ltd. (GLBS) in New Delhi. “Robust trade is the basic building block of a healthier relationship between the twoPakistan allows imports of fuels including gasoline and diesel from India, after removing non-tariff barriers on Nov. 2, Taneja said by phone on April 26. The distance between Bathinda and the Pakistani city of Lahore is about 100 miles (161 kilometers). Reliance Industries Ltd. (RIL)’s refining complex, the world’s biggest, is located in Gujarat state, near the border with Karachi, Pakistan’s most populous city.
Cunningham writes that he had asked Ghulam Haider of Sherpao village to meet each Maulana on an individual basis, prepare him to serve the supposed true cause of Islam, give him forty- fifty rupees, and tell him that he will receive another visit after four months, at which time he should be prepared to brief the authorities about his activities to date. Cunningham asked the Khan Bahadur to hint to the Maulanas that if their work proves satisfactory they could expect a government pension. In return, Khan Bahadur told Cunningham that certain Maulanas were most untrustworthy and should be called in every month, but they should be well paid. Cunningham had given Ghulam Haider of Sherpao village Rs 600. The list of Maulanas from districts Naushera and Peshawar was handed to the Deputy Commissioner, Iskander Mirza.I have not been in touch with any of the smaller Mullahs myself. I have done it through me following agents with whom practically all my connections have been verbal, as little is put on paper as possible. Ghulam Haider of Sherpao village...he told me that he thought he could work through about nine or ten Mullahs including those of the following villages: Razzar, Kot, Tarnab, Tongi, Utmanzai and Umarzai later Prang and Charsadda.
Cunningham, then gave a detailed account of the activities of Kuli Khan and the Maulanas whose work was spearheaded through the Jamiat-ul-Ulema-e-Hind who organized assemblies, passed motions, printed pamphlets and made contacts by touring various areas. Cunningham also set them against the congrez :My arrangement uptil now with him [Maulvi Barkatullah of Asmos] has been that he comes to see me once or twice a year. Barkatullah said he could also do a good deal through ten or twelve Maulvis in different places throughout Bajaur Mohmand country.... I paid him Rs 1000. I asked him to recruit ten or twelve Maulvis from Bajaur within this amount, and contact me in a couple of months.
Cunningham wrote that the Pir of Musa Zai came to visit him at Peshawar. He was friendly with Sher Ali. The latter was able to enlist the support of the Pir Taunsa. In Khyber the political agent entrusted his work to Maulana Abdul Baqi. He placed implicit trust in him and claimed to have given him Rs 1000."Maulana Mohammad Shuaib toured the Mardan district, condemning Satyagraha. A pamphlet by Maulana Midraullah condemned war situation and was anti-Congress[...] Hazrat Ali, Wazir-i-Azam of Swat, is doing excellently in Swat and Buner, he uses Pir Baba Ziarat. Hazrat Ali now covers the whole of Swat, Buner and Mardan border."
Cunningham further writes that Maulana Mohammad Shuaib and Maulana Midrarullah came to see him at Nathiagalli. They brought a detailed, Urdu pamphlet which was intended for distribution in the districts (Zillahs) and tribal areas to get it approved.Jamiat-ul Ulema toured in Kohat District in June of 1942, and in Peshawar and Mardan in July, doing intensive propaganda; anti-Axis, on the Islamic theme, generally, and anti-Congress on the Pakistan theme. Mullahs in Peshawar and Mardan intensified their anti-Congress propaganda in July/August 1942.[...] Wazir-i-Aam of Swat is now employing eighteen Mullahs at Mardan and thirty two at Pir Baba Ziarat, paying each one of them thirty rupees per month."
The key to note is that - the maulanas were ultimately able to sway the people a lot. That is the key to be noted.Maulana Mohammad Shuaib and Maulana Midrarullah came to see me at Nathiagalli on the 26th August and produced a long draft in Urdu of the pamphlet which they proposed to issue both in the Districts and in Tribal Territories; all good anti-Congress, anti-Japanese and anti-Marxist stuff. They were extremely friendly.
Chronicle of a death foretold
The gate of the iconic Evernew Studio once extended all the way to the Multan Road. That gate was recently demolished when the road was renovated. The entrance to the studio is most of the time unmanned, allowing any person to enter and roam around. At the center of the courtyard is a fountain, which doesn't run any more. The entire area around it is decorated with bright flowers and the buildings are painted colorfully. However, behind the facade the offices are in a dilapidated state. The paint has weathered. Empty bottles of Pakistani vodka are found lying in corners. One can smell the smoke of hash from the offices. This is an exclusive all-men domain: they are sitting out in the open, on their plastic chairs, among the flowers, smoking away the evenings. Women are present too, but only on film posters, which have been put up on the walls of the different film production offices. Some of them are posing erotically, wriggling on the floor, while others are covered in blood and brandishing Kalashnikov. Wehshi Haseena says one of the posters.
"There was once a time when people had to use high contacts to get permission to come to the studios and watch shootings. Families would come. They were entertained with tea and biscuits, after which they were taken to the floors and shown only one scene. They were then requested to leave. Senior bureaucrats and politicians would request to come," says the 66 year-old Altaf Hussain, a famous film director, smoking More cigarettes on a verandah at the Evernew Studio, where he comes every day.
Hussain, a religious man, left his home in Multan and came to Lahore to join the film industry in the early 60s. His family was conservative and considered performing arts to be an unacceptable profession for their son. A lot of people in Pakistan still consider professions like music, acting, etc. the domain of certain castes, commonly lumped into the category of 'mirasi', a low caste in the social hierarchy. Another caste associated with the dance and performing arts is that of the kanjar, from whom the courtesans of North India traditionally come. A lot of women singers and actresses in the Indian and Pakistani film industries have their roots in this particular caste.
"All the producers, directors, studio owners were Hindus, who left for India [at partition]"
After leaving his family Hussain started working for a film magazine, which was his way of getting into the industry. Eventually he came under the tutelage Anwar Kamal Pasha, the famous film director from the 50s and the 60s known for his movies Do Ansoo (1950), Anarkali (1958) and Watan (1960). Hussain initially wanted to become an actor, but Pasha recommended that he train as a director. There were no formal film institutions available at that time and onset learning was the only option. Hussain, like many other future directors, cameramen and artistes, became his student. In his film career, spanning over 4 decades, he has directed 87 movies and has had numerous successful ones, including Sala Saab (1981), Dhee Raani (1985) and Mehndi (1985).
Punjabi classics of the later decades include Wehshi Jutt, Bashira and Maula Jutt, all of which have Sultan Rahi as a revenge-driven masculine hero, always armed with a weapon and fighting several villains at once
Evernew Studio was established in 1956, only 9 years after the creation of Pakistan, on the Multan Road, then far away from the hubbub of the city. Now it finds itself in the center of an ever-expanding metropolis. Next to it is the famous Shahnoor Studio, which derives its name from those of Syed Shaukat Hussain Rizvi and Madam Noor Jehan, the once-married couple who were also the biggest pioneers of the Pakistani film industry. Before the Evernew, this was the most famous studio in Lahore. Now most of the studio is dysfunctional, its premises serving as warehouses to different industries. Only a fraction of it is still open for shooting.
Bengali lumaries of Pakistani film industry
"Lahore, along with Bombay and Calcutta, has been the center of the Indian film industry," says Usman Peerzada. He is a film producer, director and actor. His father, Rafi Peer, was the pioneer of the theatre in India. After the partition Peer decided to move to Pakistan. "The condition of the Pakistani film studios at that time was horrible. All the producers, directors, studio owners were Hindus, who left for India. There were Muslims involved with the industry, but at lower posts. They took over the studios and started running them without any expertise. For some time the industry survived but it eventually collapsed because the studio owners, who had no prior relationship with the cinema, started selling off the technology," explains Peerzada. He also elaborates on how the government, unlike that of India, has never taken the role of cinema and its industry seriously. He believes that the attitude of considering all performing arts to be reserved for mirasis and kanjars was also prevalent among government representatives, which translated into a lack of interest, in fact a scorn towards the industry and its practitioners.
But it is also true that the Pakistani film industry was able to stand on its feet after the partition. While there was a 'brain drain' from this side of the border, there were also an inflow of highly skilled Muslim practitioners from India, with years of experience behind them, explains Aslam Dar, another famous Pakistani film director known for Bashira (1972) and Dil Lagi (1974). These migrants included Shaukat Hussain Rizvi, Ashfaq Ahmed, Santosh Kumar, Darpan and many more. Given their experience in the Bombay and Calcutta film industries, they helped lay the foundations of the Pakistani film industry.
In a style reminiscent of the 'golden era' of the film industry of the 60s and 70s, Dar still runs his production house from Royal Park, Laxmi Chowk. Ever since partition this location has been the center of the film industry in the city. All major production houses and distribution offices were found here. In the evenings, the industry's major players could be found here.
Even today the area retains some of its charm from that era. Numerous production houses run from here. Most of the buildings are covered with film billboards. But the themes in most of them remain the same: violence, bloodshed, gun-touting heroes and scantily dressed chubby women in sensual poses, the film titles dominated by the notorious but upwardly mobile caste of Gujjar.
By the 50s, the Pakistani film industry was able to lift itself out of the shock of partition. These were the years when legends such as Anwar Kamaal Pasha, Santosh Kumar, Noor Jehan and Sabiha Khanum were actively involved and were able to make the industry lucrative. A rapid increase in the number of films produced also led to an increase in the demands of the cinemas. Just around the Laxmi Chowk there were several dozen cinemas. One reason for the success of the movies was the focus on social and familial issues, something that continued into the 60s, when the industry was dominated by actors like Mohammad Ali, Waheed Murad and Nadeem, and movies like Andalib, Devar Bhabhi and Chakori reigned supreme. The movies were also rich in melodious songs, with artistes like Noor Jehan, Mehdi Hassan and Runa Laila doing the playback singing.
"The studio was a beautiful place to visit at that time," says Bahar Begum, a film actress from the 50s and 60s. After taking a break from the industry for about a decade, she returned in the 70s and then continued working till 2003. (She received a lifetime achievement award in 2002 from the Nigar Awards for her services to film.) "There was a sophistication of language, manners, and voice at that time. There was so much to learn here. One didn't feel like leaving once one entered," she adds.
Hussain adds: "In the evening one could see Santosh Kumar, Sabiha Bhabhi and other legends sitting outside of their offices here. That atmosphere and those people are gone and now we have these new producers, who look more like criminals, with their gunmen and their Kalashnikovs. Instead of an atmosphere of sophistication there is a climate of fear because of these people. We were competing with our Indian counterparts at that time. There was a time during the 70s when we were making as many as 170 movies a year. Now we only make 10-15 movies."
Talking about the financial aspect of the film industry, Dar says that the budget for Pakistani movies was always a fraction of Indian movies. He says that Indian actors at their peak during the 50s and 60s would take about 4-5 lakh rupees, whereas in Pakistan even Santosh Kumar would work for Rs 50,000. Because of their low cost, Pakistani movies were also cheaper for international buyers, in England primarily, where because of the South Asian expatriates there is a high demand for Hindi-Urdu movies. "Slowly they started preferring Pakistani movies over Indian ones, as the rewards for a successful Pakistani movie were much more."
The 50s were also a time when Indian movies were being played in Pakistani cinemas and vice-versa. Things took a turn for the worse when in 1954 a Pakistani film meant to be played in India was not played there because of the outcry of the Indian film industry. In response, the fraternity of Pakistani producers, directors and actors also formed an alliance to ban Indian movies in Pakistani cinemas. This movement came to be known as the Jaal agitation (Jaal was the name of the Indian movie being opposed here). Due to pressure this lobby was successful in banning Indian movies from Pakistani cinemas.
Energized by a patriotic rhetoric, the Pakistani film industry played an important role in disseminating nationalistic sentiments in the subsequent years. The patriotic fervor reached its zenith during the war of 1965 between India-Pakistan. Noor Jehan's songs became a rallying cry for the entire nation.
However, this was not the case during the war of 1971, which led to the creation of Bangladesh. Perhaps this can be explained at least partly by the heavy presence of Bengalis in the Pakistani film industry; Runa Laila, Robin Ghosh and Shabnum are a few of those Bengali luminaries. Urdu movies were popular in Dhaka, which contained the largest film-consuming population in Pakistan. The movie Chakori, released in 1966, which launched future superstar Nadeem, a West Pakistani, was shot and produced in East Pakistan. Most of the characters in the movie are also East Pakistanis.
"We would meet our Bengali friends at the studios, and we would sympathize with them, denouncing the highhandedness of the army, but no filmmaker or writer ever dared oppose it through film," says Hussain. Even so many years after 1971, Pakistani filmmakers have tended to shy away from the sensitive topic of the war. Pakistan lost some of its most talented artists, and its biggest market, after the fall of Dhaka.
"The war of 1971 is the defining moment for the Pakistani film industry, whose downfall began then," says Samina Peerzada, the wife of Usman Peerzada and another famous actor, director and producer. "The Bengalis are much more attuned to their cultural sensibility, which means that they appreciate and encourage cultural expressions like dance, music, singing and acting. In addition to this, caste stratification, because of which performing artistes are looked down upon here in Punjab, now the biggest market of the film industry, doesn't exist in East Pakistan. The artistes there weren't looked down upon and neither the industry. Since East Pakistan was the largest consumer, filmmakers from West Pakistan would cater to their sensibilities," says Samina Peerzada. She also feels that the massacre of fellow Pakistanis at the hands of the Pakistani army was something that West Pakistani artistes failed to deal with. This has permanently scarred the psychology of the country, according to her. She even attributes the violence that crept into the movies of the 80s to the state-sponsored violence of 1971.
"This change didn't happen over a year. It took many years to make. For a decade at least, the film industry suffered from that hangover, during which it still hung onto its Bengali sensibilities and sophistication," she adds. This change in the style and genre of the movies is identifiable when comparing Pakistani movies from different decades. In the 1950s a Punjabi classic movie was Heer-Ranjha, based on the folk story of Punjab. The movie was remarkable for its music, dresses, and soft use of the Punjabi language. The success of the movie can also be attributed to the tapping of Punjabi culture, which like its Bengali counterpart is rich in history and cultural sophistication. In contrast to this folk story, the Punjabi classics of the later decades include Wehshi Jutt, Bashira and Maula Jutt, all of which have Sultan Rahi as a revenge-driven masculine hero, always armed with a weapon and fighting several villains at once. The language of Pakistani films changed too; by the 70s and 80s the dialogues were audibly louder and coarser. "When I returned to the industry in the 70s, it had changed," says Bahar Begum. "The tone of Punjabi cinema had become louder. It took me some time to adjust."
Usman Peerzada recalls that during his college days in the 70s there was a vibrant middle-class culture of going to cinemas. Well-to-do men along with their women and children would flock to the cinema to see a new movie. In Lahore there were premium cinemas like the Regal, Moonlight and Prince near the Laxmi Chowk, which also played classic Hollywood movies that were seen by locals in large numbers. He remembers how there were a number of American and foreign movie companies working in Pakistan. "All of them wrapped up their businesses after the nationalization of the Bhutto era in the 70s," says Peerzada. Coming to power with his populist socialist slogan in 1971, Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto over the next few years nationalized the major industries, schools and colleges of the country. This was a severe blow to the economy of the country, and the film industry also suffered its toll. Bhutto's nationalization program, according to Usman Peerzada, is one of the major reasons behind the downfall of the film industry in Pakistan. But he also adds: "The only government to have considered cinema as a higher art form is the Bhutto government." During the Bhutto years a central government authority by the name of NAFTAC was established for the promotion of Pakistani cinema. Whereas most film people believe that this was a positive step, they can't deny its bureaucratic fallout. "First of all it became much more difficult for movie makers to make movies," says Usman Peerzada. "Earlier all the equipments required to make a movie were available in the market, now it could only be purchased through this organization. This acted as a hurdle." He also laments how, when foreign movie companies such as MGM left the country, cinema goers and movie makers lost access to high quality foreign cinema. Instead NAFTAC, which was responsible for approving foreign films, started approving "Kung-Fu type" movies from the markets of Hong Kong. These were cheaper to purchase and hence served as quick money-making opportunities for cinema owners. Peerzada believes that a lot of violence that later seeped into the Pakistani film industry is because of its exposure to these "Kung-Fu type" movies, which lacked an artistic cinematic value.
Hussain believes that there has always been a conspiracy to destroy Pakistani cinema. He believes that the formation of NAFTAC, even though it was for the ostensibly good purpose of supporting and promoting cinema, destroyed the local industry because of all the red tape.
And he cites another reason for the death of Pakistan's film industry: "The Hindus can never do any good for us [i.e. Muslims]." He explains how when Pakistani cinema had managed to stand on its own feet after the setback of the partition of 1947, Indian movie makers conspired with a few Pakistani counterparts to bring the film industry down. "There were many people from this side who started working with the Indians. At the forefront was J.C. Anand, the owner of Everready Studio. He was a Hindu who stayed back after partition." Dar describes how Pakistani filmmakers from here would go to Kabul to get prints of famous regional Indian movies, get them translated into Urdu or Punjabi and then make a movie in their own language out of them. Since usually they would be regional movies, and not Hindi ones, Pakistani audiences never suspected them of plagiarism. The first movie that was copied in this way was Naukar (1955), according to Dar. "However, eventually when VCRs became popular, people learned that the movies were being copied from India, and that brought a bad repute to Pakistani filmmakers. Once you start copying Indian movies, you don't need a script writer. Then if you copy their songs too, you also render the music director useless. Eventually whole sets, costumes and everything was being copied so all the professionals became useless." This led to the unemployment - and eventual death - of the film professional.
For the last 5-6 years Indian movies have been regularly released in Pakistan. This, Pakistani filmmakers feel, is because of the lenient policies of the government. The local cinema owners feel that Indian movies perform much better than their Pakistani counterparts, drawing in better revenues for them. The screening of Indian movies has in a small way revived the culture of cinema-going that had pretty much died by the 90s. Many cinemas have closed down. The production of local movies has also decreased immensely. But ever since local cinemas started showing Indian movies, there has been a surge in the demand for cinemas. New cinemas have emerged in Lahore, Islamabad and Karachi, some of them providing facilities at par with international cinemas.
Local filmmakers like Hussain and Dar are skeptical of this revival. They believe that the screening of Indian movies in Pakistan is detrimental to the local industry, part of the larger conspiracy, and tantamount to treason. For the past many years they along with various other important members of the film fraternity, like well-known director Syed Noor, are trying to ban the screening of Indian movies again. At the moment they are failing, because film distributors and cinema owners, who are making money from the screening of Indian films, are prevailing.
Another reason given for the deterioration of cinema culture in Pakistan, shared by all the film professionals interviewed for this article, is the "vulgar" imagery that arose during the late 80s and then reached new levels during the 90s.
In 1979, General Zia-ul-Haq overthrew the democratic government of Z.A. Bhutto and came to power. For the next decade he led an all-encompassing movement to Islamize the country, more in line with his ideological strand of Wahabi Islam, which was partly financed by Saudi money. The film industry was not spared these changes; performing arts like dancing, singing and music, already demeaned by caste, were now termed un-Islamic. The censor board, which had earlier hardly interfered with the artistic creation of movies, became much more moralistic in its interventions, a trend that still continues.
"Some of the laws passed during that time defeat common sense," mocks Usman Peerzada. "For example it was forbidden to show a woman wearing red on screen. A girl and boy could never be shown alone in a room, even if it were husband and wife," he adds. He explains how different filmmakers had to work around these laws to make movies, which naturally took its toll. The only solution to government interference was bribery, explains Peerzada.
The "vulgar" element, which predictably centered itself on the bodies of women actors, reached its zenith during the 90s. "Families stopped coming to cinemas during this era," explains Hussain, who during his career has focused on stories revolving around female characters. "Everybody started following the current and it got out of hand." This trend also attracted a lot of "unprofessional" people into the industry, who didn't view the industry as an art, according to Hussain. "People started coming with their particular agendas and started making movies around that," he adds. Most of these men came from criminal backgrounds, and that got reflected in the kind of movies they were producing. They had the money to sponsor the project but new ideas. He gives the example here of producers requesting script writers to write movies around their ancestors, who were often small-scale criminals in need of glory.
Zulfiqar Attre, the famous film music director, who composed the music of the famous movie Chooriyan (1998), which had super-hit songs, including Laiyan laiyan mein tere naal dholna, also sits in Altaf Hussain's office at Evernew Studios. He joined the industry in the 70s through his uncle Rashid Attre, a well-respected music composer. He recalls that in the early days the director would tell him the situation and location of the songs, and then the music director was free to do whatever he wanted. But that doesn't seem to be the case now. These new breed of producers, Attre says, who have no experience in filmmaking, force their way into all the creative processes, which drags down the overall quality of the work. He says there is no respect for their jobs anymore. The new producer feels he is Mr Know-It-All.
"Once," recalls film critic Azhar Javed, "a producer slapped the famous film actress Anjuman on the set of a movie."
And the now-retired Bahar Begum says: "By 2003 I realized that I could no longer work in the industry without compromising on my dignity. If the environment improves, I will go back today."
Jinnah did not actually control Lahore in 1945, but the British knew the Muslim/non-Muslim demographics of the area. Actually the Congress had earlier resigned from government giving extra power to Jinnah. His Muslim league did not have much support but the Unionist Muslim League (Unionist party) that had Hindus and Sikhs as well were "allowed" to represent Jinnah's Muslim league. So the Brits were on a sure footing as far as Lahore was concerned.sudarshan wrote:This is incredible. The implications being, Jinnah sold his (and Pak's) soul to the west even before Pakistan became independent. Was he offering a sweetener to them for going along with his demands? This by itself could explain western pampering of Pakistan after independence, or even the UK's eagerness to make Pak as strong as possible against India even before independence. The USSR probably threw a spanner in the works by testing in '49.Roperia wrote:Friday Image: Targeting the USSR in August 1945
Check out the map, it is too big to embed here. LaWhore is marked as a possible springboard outside USSR. This is Aug 1945!
It seems djinnah had already done a deal with khan's munna UK.
Bullshit.Kakkaji wrote:Folks:
There is an interesting article in this week's TFT. Even though it is about the history of Paki cinema, it has a subtext which I found very illuminating. I am posting the entire article, and have bolded the parts I found interesting.
History of Paki Cinema
people in Pakistan still consider professions like music, acting, etc. the domain of certain castes, commonly lumped into the category of 'mirasi', a low caste in the social hierarchy. Another caste associated with the dance and performing arts is that of the kanjar, from whom the courtesans of North India traditionally come. A lot of women singers and actresses in the Indian and Pakistani film industries have their roots in this particular caste.
Per wikiAfter the partition in 1947, Pakistan inherited the historical red-light districts in Lahore and Multan including the infamous Hira Mandi and Shahi Mohalla area. These were well-developed areas and attracted both wealthy clients and those looking for singers and actresses. These set of people are very particular about their caste system. Those having knowledge and skills about the music and dance are called 'mirasi' and those who indulge in sexual activities are called 'kanjars'. It is a great honor for a mirasi to marry in a pure mirasi family and a kanjar to marry in a pure blood of kanjars.
The Mirasi of Pakistani Punjab
In Pakistani Punjab, the Mirasi are now mainly a community of entertainers, having providing many of the country's singers and entertainers. The community's preferred self-designation is Qureshi. Most Mirasi are now bilingual, speaking both Urdu and Punjabi. They are found throughout Punjab, and most villages contain their settlements.[14]
The Mirasi are no longer just the traditional genealogists of the Jat and Rajput communities, and many village Mirasi are now agricultural labourers, as the traditional payment in kind paid to village artisans, has been replaced with commercial transactions. Beside their traditional occupations, the Mirasi are involved in diverse types of hawkers jobs. Finally, the community are professional musicians, who still entertain other communities in the village.[3]
Many members of the community have completely abandoned their occupation, and have attempted to change their caste identity. This is known to anthropologists as ashrafization, where a Muslim community, which is perceived of being of lower status, tries to improve its status. This has included conversion to the Shia sect, by many members of the community.[15]
Yes Yes. Hindu actors used to stand with choppers in the studios of Pakistan waiting to rip open the bellies of Pakistani pregnant women to eat the fetus inside. Muslims. as you know, do not kill Muslims. Islam is a religion of peace. India and Pakistan have fought four wars over the state of Kashmir which remains a nuclear flashpoint because of the persence of 700,000,000,000000,00 billion Indian troops raping all Kashmiris all day long to impose the Brahmin Bania caste ridden conspiracies of Hindu dominated India a country of a billion hungry skinny cowardly people who do not have toilets and are forced to pray in dark narrow holes.Kakkaji wrote: And he cites another reason for the death of Pakistan's film industry: "The Hindus can never do any good for us [i.e. Muslims]." He explains how when Pakistani cinema had managed to stand on its own feet after the setback of the partition of 1947, Indian movie makers conspired with a few Pakistani counterparts to bring the film industry down. "There were many people from this side who started working with the Indians. At the forefront was J.C. Anand, the owner of Everready Studio. He was a Hindu who stayed back after partition."
Kakkaji wrote:Dr. Shiv:
That is what I found interesting in that article.
While in India the film actors and singers come from all backgrounds, including from wealthy families, in Pakistan it seems the caste stratification still exists.
In Pakistani internet forums, I find that they commonly make derogatory references to someone as "kanjar, Kunjra, Bhaand, Mirasi, Choora, Chamaar, etc", I rarely hear such words used in North India nowadays. I heard a couple of such words being used by my parents' generation.
Caste-based put-downs are disappearing from India, whereas in Pakistan, even the younger generation is still stuck in pre-independence soocial stratification.
MB Naqvi wrote in the Jang of Pakistan (70):
Historically the majority of Muslims, originally low-
caste Hindus, affected a superiority complex, especially
in Northern India. They feared being falling down into
the vast assimilative sea of Hindudom surrounding them
wherein they will be at the bottom of social heap. Maybe
they would be punished for former uppishness and for real
or imagined wrongs. That explained their demonstrative
adherence to Islam, which is what distinguished them from
Hindus. Their religious exhibitionism and a superiority
complex led to emphases on differences with Hindus and
regarding themselves as rulers' kith and kin deserving
privileges and safeguards -- the leitmotif of pre-
independence Indian Muslim politics.
I was listening to this event - Pakistan and the Terror Threat: One Year after the Death of Bin Laden. Bruce Riedel is asked by Michael O’Hanlon that why has LeT not attacked since 26/11, even though we see no evidence that Pakis are cracking down and US hasn't had any success in dealing with LeT either. If they are so lethal and they are stronger than they were a decade ago, why have we been lucky enough to not see anything like Mumbai.Muppalla wrote:The intel agencies don't like them and hence we see 26/11 and then other stuff to stop him. This circular battles go on with no one benefitting but with occassional blood flow.
Folks, here is a poser based on the above quoted text. I will re-quote the relevant bits:Roperia wrote:
I was listening to this event - Pakistan and the Terror Threat: One Year after the Death of Bin Laden. Bruce Riedel is asked by Michael O’Hanlon that why has LeT not attacked since 26/11, even though we see no evidence that Pakis are cracking down and US hasn't had any success in dealing with LeT either. If they are so lethal and they are stronger than they were a decade ago, why have we been lucky enough to not see anything like Mumbai.
Bruce Riedel says that it is pure speculation to answer questions like - why hasn't a terrorist attack occurred. He confidently asserts that a big LeT plot was foiled by Indian, BDeshi and US CT efforts in late 2009/ early 10, scheduled to take place in Dhaka, BD. They have been trying but were foiled in that case. The other answer may be that TSPA is practicing what is referred to as "contain and corral", which is - you don't actually crack down on the group, you don't discourage it from doing its thing but you encourage its leadership to not rock the boat right now. We don't want another crisis with India at this point!
Pakistan not cracking down. US is failing in checking LeTLeT not attacked since 26/11, even though we see no evidence that Pakis are cracking down and US hasn't had any success in dealing with LeT either.
The Pakhani army does not want another crisis with India "at this point". And they are doing the "containing and coralling" of the LeTTSPA is practicing what is referred to as "contain and corral", which is - you don't actually crack down on the group, you don't discourage it from doing its thing but you encourage its leadership to not rock the boat right now. We don't want another crisis with India at this point!
Shiv, you have a very incisive mind and intellect. For me the important thing is that my observation and feeling got validation from another well-respected source.shiv wrote:Surinder my quest for more info and conclusions did not come out of a vacuum. I had, at the back of my mind, impressions posted by you and Sandeep Bajwa.
A large part of Punjab was under the hoofs of the Turks, most notable the Afghans who were brutal in their treatment. They both converted the Punjabis by force, and also settled in Punjab. This collective memory is not lost. The Pakjabi hates his roots, admires Urdu on one side and Pathans on the other. In an ideal world (Pakjabi wet dream) his father is Pathan and his mother is from Lucknow. As a matter of fact, a Paki came to BRF a few years back claiming this exact lineage.Once Islam came Punjab had no culture worth talking about until Guru Nanak came. I would describe Sikhs as the resurgence of historic Punjab. Not only did Guru Nanak's vision give a positive identity to a Punjabi culture that had been dead for 6-7 centuries, he also reintroduced the Indic concept of Dharma (common to Hindus and Buddhists) and reconciled that with deity/God. The Pakjabi musalman essentially represents the raped ba$tard child of Punjab born out of a dying Buddhist realm and dominated by - of all things a rapine marauder from Afghanistan. Naturaly it took a Ranjit Singh to reset history, but it was certainly the Brits who have given undue prominence to the least noteworthy and most forgettable section ot Pakistan - the Mussalman Punjabi. No wonder Pakjabis are shit scared of Pasthuns. they may admire rapists as their fathers but somewhere in the back of their miniscule brains exists a memory of what it feels like if your mother is raped.
VikasRaina wrote:Why would there be large scale conversion post 1801 when Ranjit Singh was crowned and later Brits ruling part of Punjab. The conversions should have subsided after that period. Am I missing something ?
Will X-post it to GDF thread.
Very true. Census was done, reported, and analyzed with one and only aim in mind--the propagation of British power and subjugation of others. So all their data is suspect. We have this slavish mentatilty that anything that says "British survey" is automatically accurate to the 20th decimal point.brihaspati wrote:Further, the brits officials might themselves have had a hand in overreporting - when it became important to push up the "Islamic".
It may help clear lots of confusions or false starts if people remember the axiom -
anything and everything was possible by any British ruling regime in what they thought was their "national" interest. Nothing is too low, too inhuman, too gross, too crude, too sadistic, too immoral, and too unethical where the British ruling mindset is concerned. Here there is a mighty overlap with the theology that emerged out of the deserts of 7th century Vanayu pradesh.
No such thing as containing &K coralling sir. containing and coralling = moleycoddling and nurturing!The Pakhani army does not want another crisis with India "at this point". And they are doing the "containing and coralling" of the LeT
What's wrong in being a Slav? No racism allowed on BR!We have this slavish mentatilty that anything that says "British survey" is automatically accurate to the 20th decimal point.
ramana wrote:Shiv, I think its time for you, surinder, sbajwa to collaborate and write a book on The Pakjab Mind on lines of Patai's book the Arab Mind.
Offcourse it won't be as extensive
shiv wrote:http://www.chaf.lib.latrobe.edu.au/dcd/ ... record=709
Gives great clarity to some things happening in Shitistan today
Musalmans of PunjabTHE MUSALMÁNS OF THE PUNJÁB.
... Indeed the same may be said of Sakhi Sarwar, who probably lived at least a century earlier.
More than that its a pathetic attempt to copy Mumbai flash mob. Just look at the way these guys were dancing, or trying to dance, whatever. No energy, no synergy whatsoever.shiv wrote:The wheel has turned full circle!
What amazes me is how skinny these PakiBoys are in the Kolaveri video.
In India any self respecting male over 16 hits the gym and the number of hunks/stud machaans around is amazing.
I read it was delivered via the USS Indianapolis to Tinian island in the Marianas. Well, most of it anyway. Some of the parts were delivered via aircraft from Guam. And the Enola Gay took off from Tinian island (and got there via Guam as well)harbans wrote:Just for perspective, August 1945 the bomb that was dropped at Hiroshima was flown out on Enola Gay on it's last leg from Kalaikunda Air Base.
I have mentioned here before, that the cultural caste based discrimination in India came dominant and entrenched with the absorption of Islam into India. The ability of the Islamist to accuse Brahmins whilst himself being guilty of the worst kind of discrimination is amazing. Being beaten for stepping intlo a Muslims shadow was common in some areas..but this was attributed to Brahmins. This bias is even visible in comments from presumably Paki based posters in ToI and rediff boards. What struck me how shallow caste is in INdia is in school and college..i never ever remember anyone asking anyone which caste they came from, friendships, acqaintances being made because of that..never ever.While in India the film actors and singers come from all backgrounds, including from wealthy families, in Pakistan it seems the caste stratification still exists.
In Pakistani internet forums, I find that they commonly make derogatory references to someone as "kanjar, Kunjra, Bhaand, Mirasi, Choora, Chamaar, etc", I rarely hear such words used in North India nowadays. I heard a couple of such words being used by my parents' generation.
Caste-based put-downs are disappearing from India, whereas in Pakistan, even the younger generation is still stuck in pre-independence soocial stratification.
Kanjar is a bad word in Punjabi. Most Punjabis don't even know that it refers to a caste, and is not a word by itself. I did not.Kakkaji wrote:Dr. Shiv:
That is what I found interesting in that article.
While in India the film actors and singers come from all backgrounds, including from wealthy families, in Pakistan it seems the caste stratification still exists.
In Pakistani internet forums, I find that they commonly make derogatory references to someone as "kanjar, Kunjra, Bhaand, Mirasi, Choora, Chamaar, etc", I rarely hear such words used in North India nowadays. I heard a couple of such words being used by my parents' generation.
Caste-based put-downs are disappearing from India, whereas in Pakistan, even the younger generation is still stuck in pre-independence soocial stratification.
I think the confusion stems from because Kalaikunda used to host B-29 bombers for a while (used by the 468th group), until the Marianas were captured. Then, most of the B-29s ops shifted out from Kalaikunda to flying out of the Marianas (Saipan and Tinian in particular) because of distance reasons.harbans wrote: Armen Ji..i read it was via Kalaikunda..and this is from a long time. It would be good to have this clarified. Kalaikunda was used by American bombers in WW2. Also recently there was an article about search for Airmen buried in Indias NE.
That is easy to answer: DRUGS.shiv wrote:The wheel has turned full circle!
What amazes me is how skinny these PakiBoys are in the Kolaveri video.
In India any self respecting male over 16 hits the gym and the number of hunks/stud machaans around is amazing.
hmm..what if people in Heera Mandi are declared kafirs. Problem solved? No need to ban Heera Mandi then.surinder wrote:
Why did anyone not make a go for it in its entire 60 years of Paki existence?
So, What's the final verdict on this, saars?ArmenT wrote:I think the confusion stems from because Kalaikunda used to host B-29 bombers for a while (used by the 468th group), until the Marianas were captured. Then, most of the B-29s ops shifted out from Kalaikunda to flying out of the Marianas (Saipan and Tinian in particular) because of distance reasons.harbans wrote: Armen Ji..i read it was via Kalaikunda..and this is from a long time. It would be good to have this clarified. Kalaikunda was used by American bombers in WW2. Also recently there was an article about search for Airmen buried in Indias NE.
Muslim power was already symbolic when the Marathas crossed Narmada and went into Delhi. So much for Muslim claims on minority Muslims ruling India for 1000 years. <10% of population of current Paki territory who were Sikhs ruled over the Muslims.surinder wrote:VikasRaina wrote:Why would there be large scale conversion post 1801 when Ranjit Singh was crowned and later Brits ruling part of Punjab. The conversions should have subsided after that period. Am I missing something ?
Will X-post it to GDF thread.
I would seriously doubt anyone converted to ROP post-RS.
I think the conversions maxed out during the later Auranga period, maybe overshooting by a few decades into 1700's. By 1800 (rise of Ranjit Singh), Muslim force in India was dead.
