Home of the surreptitious find, Karachi’s infamously amorphous, infinitely anachronistic market is commonly known as Lunda Bazaar. But for those who live and work in this shopper’s El Dorado…
Huma Yusuf
Articles - Reviews - Freelance Journalism
The Lighthouse
May 16th, 2009
Using Theatre as a Classroom for Civic Engagement
June 1st, 2008
Nilaja Sun’s one-woman play “No Child,” currently being staged at the American Repertory Theatre in Cambridge, is a phenomenal mix of storytelling, journalism, activism, and civic engagement. The 70-minute performance isn’t bogged down by intricate sets, costume changes, or dazzling lighting design. Instead, Sun uses three chairs, a broom, and her ability to embody and humorously animate a dozen characters to start a meaningful conversation about education reform. The fact that it is as tech-free as a theater performance can get without leaving the audience literally sitting in the dark should serve as a lesson for everyone aiming to use new technologies to facilitate social justice.
Shabana Azmi
January 16th, 2008
“I think it’s sensational to perform in front of a live audience despite the fear of making a mistake without the benefit of a retake.”
Coming of age in the Benazir Bhutto era
January 16th, 2008
Karachi, Pakistan
THE SHOCK and confusion I feel after learning about former prime minister Benazir Bhutto’s assassination is strangely familiar. One incarnation of Benazir, a woman I thought I knew and wanted to be, died on Sept. 19, 1996, when she was implicated in the death of her estranged brother, Mir Murtaza Bhutto, who was brutally shot, allegedly by police officials in a planned attack outside his home.
More stories like this:
Bhutto’s rise carved path for Pakistani women
January 16th, 2008
Karachi, Pakistan - When Tourism Minister Nilofer Bakhtiar came under attack from hard-line clerics after she was photographed embracing a man in public, Benazir Bhutto was quick to defend her.
"Benazir and I grew close when she issued a strong statement from Dubai in my favor. Her words were very encouraging because at that time, even my own party was not giving me any support and was, instead, asking for me to step down."
Pakistan policy and the US presidential election
January 16th, 2008
The relationship between Pakistan and the US is one of operatic dimensions, with at least two leading ladies and a slew of contenders for the lead male role oscillating between love and hate. The US has often interfered in Pakistani politics, with cryptic public statements, sanctions, harsh admonitions, and long phone calls in the middle of the night determining the course of this nation’s history. Now, however, a role reversal seems to be underway. Pakistan–with its centre-stage positioning in the 2008 presidential race–is all set to influence the course of US politics and thus, indirectly, the global landscape.
From Naudero to Nairobi
January 16th, 2008
Remediation
Misery, they say, loves company, which is why I can’t help but turn towards Kenya to make better sense of what is happening here in Pakistan. On December 27, 2007, while we were frantically flipping between television channels, reluctant to accept that Benazir Bhutto had in fact been assassinated, Kenyans were informed that Mwai Kibaki had been re-elected as president in what seems to be a shamefacedly rigged election. Since that fateful date, swathes of Sindh have erupted into flame, stocks have plummeted, banks have burnt, Pakistan Railways has been derailed, and senseless arson and violence have claimed the vehicles, and worse, lives of many. Meanwhile, according to the Kenyan Red Cross, over 300 Kenyans have been killed in post-election turmoil; while up to 100,000 have been displaced. The image of a smouldering church in which 50 people fleeing election violence — most of whom were children — were burnt alive is seared in the minds of horrified onlookers across the world. Much like Sindh, western Kenya remained ablaze for days.
Pomp and Circumstance
September 3rd, 2009
This article first appeared in The Herald, April 2006.
What do you think happens when 15 journalists from countries as diverse as Pakistan, Sri Lanka, Chile, Algeria, Egypt, Germany, England, Brazil, Benin, Chad, India, Colombia, South Africa, Lebanon and France get together? They become show-offs. At a recent European Commission-sponsored gathering in Brussels, Belgium, reporters exaggerated the adversity and absurdity borne of their work, much like veterans comparing war wounds, punks tallying body piercings or mistresses flaunting diamonds. The trick to being a good braggart, it seemed, was to feign nonchalance so casual that it would be more appropriate to describe it with the French term laissez-faire.
Geriatric Grumblings; Memories of My Melancholy Whores
September 3rd, 2009
This article first appeared in The Herald, March 2006.
Such a premise – the love of an aged man for a sexually ingénue – carries much literary baggage, a fact Marquez acknowledges when quoting from Yasunari Kawabata’s short story “House of the Sleeping Beauties” in the preface of the novella. Lolita, Death in Venice and Marquez’ own Of Love and Other Demons as well as several short stories have expertly explored the overwrought themes stemming from the pedophiliac urges: guilt, desire morality, inadequacy, violence, seduction, escapism, delusion and fear. In earlier works, Marquez distinguished himself from Nabokov and Mann by contrasting his characters’ perversion with the lush lyricism of his prose when describing sensuality and sexuality.
Dream Come True
September 3rd, 2009
This article first appeared in The Herald, March 2006.
It’s a proud day for Pakistan when Karachi’s glitterati and internationally renowned celebrities gather for the launch of a children’s bok. In a nation where reading is becoming an endangered habit, the hype surrounding Mo’s Star, a fable about a penguin who befriends a star, is encouraging. Authored by Mahnaz Malik, a London-based international investmen lawyer, Mo’s Star began as a joke but soon morphed into a mission. Thanks to Mahnaz’s relentless, persuasive and enthusiastic personality, Mo’s Star quickly became an international project – written by a Pakistani, illustrated by American art professor Cora Lyn Deibler, translated into Urdu by activist poet Fahmida Riaz, and complemented by an audio version directed by Oscar-nominated director Michael Radford and preformed by Joseph Fiennes.
In Pakistan, Mo’s Star has achieved the impossible by dissolving corporate boundaries. Under the umbrelly of Project Reaching for the Stars, the book will be published by the Oxford University Press which, thanks to the support of Unileverm will donate all sale proceeds to The Citizens Foundation, a not-for-profit organization that has built 230 primary and secondary schools nationwide. Much like her penguinprotaganist, Mahnaz dreamed the impossible, pitching big ideas for her little book. Indeed, her prose and philanthropic vision so inspired the likes of Bollywood star Vidya Balan and Radford that they flew into Karachi to support the initiative. Over to them.
Huma Yusuf is a freelance journaist based in Karachi, Pakistan.
Copyright Huma Yusuf 2009. All rights Reserved.
