Shadowland November 7, 2009
Posted by Saba Imtiaz in blogging, fashion, karachiite rants, pakistan, working words.Tags: Fashion Pakistan Week, karachi, taliban
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Ah, fashion week. Who knew it would result in such a string of articles from the foreign press, all reporting breathlessly on a four-day event happening ‘under the shadow of the Taliban’. I contributed a post to the Changing Up Pakistan blog today on how the event is anything, but under any shadow.
You can read the post here. That ends this exercise in shameless self promotion.
Mamma Mia! Here they go…(not again!) October 31, 2009
Posted by Saba Imtiaz in movies, music, working words.Tags: Abba, Mamma Mia
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For everyone brought up on a steady diet of Abba, the musical and film Mamma Mia! came as a welcome refresher course on the Swedish quartet’s music. Even if the acting in the 2008 film was nauseating at best and mind-blowingly atrocious at worst. But as Hugh Jackman triumphantly announced while hosting this year’s Academy Awards – “the musical is back!” – apparently, so is the film’s sequel.
Mamma Mia! – a musical based on Abba songs – became the highest-grossing film ever at the UK box office, and made a staggering 609 million dollars worldwide. And now a sequel is underway: Mamma Mia! 2
One of the film’s stars, Amanda Seyfried, told BBC News, “I’ve been talking to some insiders and it’s not something that they haven’t been working on. I don’t actually know anything other than that.” She also says Meryl Streep is set to sign on for the sequel, “I will do it. And I know Meryl’s game as well, so bring it on. It will be so cool. I think we all had the best time and we all got along so well. It was like some days it felt like we were just people on vacation.”
But as the Guardian (in a bitingly sarcastic piece) pointed out, what music will they use? The original film already featured all of Abba’s most popular hits, including ‘Dancing Queen’, ‘Mamma Mia’ and ‘Take a Chance on Me’. Unless the filmmakers decide to recycle their more well-known songs for the sequel, there isn’t a chance of the film being as successful.
And while the musical format – seen in recent years via films like Dreamgirls, Chicago and High School Musical – seems to have returned to Hollywood, it doesn’t always bode well. Even though the High School Musical franchise is a worldwide hit, the acting in the films hasn’t improved a notch, and the amount of bad singing that these films have featured would make anyone’s ears bleed.
Mamma Mia! may have been a hit, but for a far better glimpse into the band’s music (and a better nostalgia trip), watch the 1977 promotional film, Abba: The Movie (see point above about being raised on a steady diet of Abba). The film, which traces a radio jockey desperately trying to get an interview with the band at the height of their success, sees him get in a ridiculous chase all over Australia to find them. The music selection, the concert footage and the fact that Abba: The Movie stars all of the Abba members, is far more delightful than Meryl Streep wasting her talents to moan and cry about previous loves and Pierce Brosnan’s lack of singing ability.
Reads of the week and imploding dreams October 23, 2009
Posted by Saba Imtiaz in damascus diaries, pakistan, politics, randomness, working words.Tags: Afghanistan, journalism, pakistan, politics, syria, taliban
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First, a little heads-up on my current state of mind, brought to life by this Pearls Before Swine comic
Moving on to this week’s must-reads:
Lights Off, Diyas On Huma Imtiaz writes for Newsline about Diwali celebrations in Karachi amidst loadshedding
The curious case of Rehman Malik Rabia at the Grand Trunk Road blog wrote the best sentence ever on Rehman Malik – and points out the most disturbing part of the IIU students protesting when the much-loved (/end sarcasm) minister visited the campus after it had been attacked by two suicide bombers.
You see, in a way Rehman Malik is the perfect symbol of the Pakistani civilian government – bumbling, inept, hated by all, and a distraction from the deeper dysfunction that you have to listen a bit harder to hear
Take a Chance on Me? Faiza S. Khan points out how not attending Mamma Mia! (which was being staged in Karachi) has become such a debatable topic
سب کی چھٹی Mohammed Hanif takes a look at what’s being discussed while educational institutions in the country are closed
اور اگر آپ کو تاریخ میں دلچسپی نہیں ہے تو آپ سابقہ کشمیری مجاہد اور تحریک طالبان کے موجودہ روح رواں الیاس کشمیری کے حالات زندگی پڑھ سکتے ہیں۔ کشمیری صاحب سے پوچھا گیا کہ جب کشمیر اور افغانستان فتح ہو جائے گا تو کیا جہاد ختم ہو جائے گا۔ انہوں نے فرمایا نہیں اس کے بعد ہندوستان سے حیدرآباد اور جوناگڑھ واپس لینے کے لیے جہاد ہوگا۔ اور اس کے بعد؟ ان کا کہنا تھا کہ دنیا میں کسی نہ کسی جگہ تو جہاد کی ضرورت ہوگی پھر ہم وہاں جہاد کریں گے۔
A tale of two Pakistans Hanif again, pointing out the differences of life in and out of the culture bubble
Held by the Taliban The David Rohde series in the New York Times was one of the first things I read in the morning all this week. The five part series details Rohde’s kidnapping in Afghanistan, being shifted to Waziristan and his eventual escape seven months later.
Bashar al Assad believes in Syria. (Photograph taken April 2008 in Damascus)
Shadowland A brilliantly written article by Dan Belt in National Geographic about Syria and the man who runs it – Bashar al Assad. Gripping, gritty and grim, it highlights every point almost too perfectly.
This is the kind of article I dream to someday write. As Syria News Wire put it, Shadowland – which the blog calls the best article on Syria in a decade – “should be compulsory reading for every journalist flying into Damascus International Airport.”
Amen to that.
Just Dance! October 16, 2009
Posted by Saba Imtiaz in randomness.Tags: The Office, YouTube
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I can’t believe its taken me this long to blog about it, but I’ve been busy watching The Office on repeat and blogging here.
Anyhoo, this is by far, the best moment on any television show this season. The Office referenced the YouTube video that went viral – the JK wedding dance.
New York, New York… October 6, 2009
Posted by Saba Imtiaz in movies, working words.Tags: Bollywood, US
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Najibullah Zazi (AP Photo/Ed Andrieski)
In an ironic twist, Bollywood finally gets the plot of one of their myriad East-meets-West movies to match reality. Take a look at the reel-life cases of the film New York and the American terrorism suspect Najibullah Zazi
I believe I owe the makers of New York an apology for declaring that the subject of Muslims in a post-9/11 America had become outdated. For all of Bollywood’s twisted East-meet-West stories, one may have actually may been more realistic than earlier thought. Directed by Kabir Khan (of Kabul Express fame), New York (starring John Abraham, Katrina Kaif, Neil Nitin Mukesh and Irrfan Khan) released this summer to mixed reviews and has been widely compared to Shoaib Mansoor’s Khuda Kay Liye. (In an interview John Abraham declared that New York began where Khuda Kay Liye left off. After watching the film, one wished Khuda Kay Liye had inspired better sequels.
New York’s central character is Sameer Sheikh (played by Abraham), who evolves from a patriotic American citizen into a terrorist mastermind running a sleeper cell in New York. The real-life parallel to the film is the case of Najibullah Zazi, a patriotic American resident and coffee vendor in New York who is being held on the charge of planning to attack landmarks in New York, with the possible help of accomplices. Sounds a bit familiar? Take a look at the similarities between the two.
Starring…
Sameer Sheikh: An Indian-American Muslim.
Najibullah Zazi: An Afghan Muslim and legal resident of the USA.
Popular Avenue
Sameer Sheikh: A boisterous student (who is also a photographer) who is fairly popular at his university in New York and has a somewhat short fuse.
Najibullah Zazi: Zazi ran a coffee-and-doughnut cart near Wall Street. According to a customer, “He was well spoken. He always said good morning to everyone. He used to memorize what everyone needed in the morning.”
The Stars and Stripes
Sameer Sheikh: Sameer’s character is introduced via a sequence where he competes with another student to plant the American flag on the roof of the university. He often talks about his love for the USA.
Najibullah Zazi: Zazi had a ‘God Bless America’ sticker on his coffee cart and told a reporter: “This is one of the best countries in the world. It gives you every right.”
Reaction to 9/11
Sameer Sheikh: As the visuals of 9/11 began to unfold live on a television screen at the university, Sameer consoles his distraught girlfriend Maya (Katrina Kaif)
Najibullah Zazi: A friend says of Zazi’s reaction to the terrorist attack: “I don’t know how people could do things like this. I’d never do anything like that.”
The Age Factor
Sameer Sheikh: If one assumes Sameer was 22 by the time he graduated from university in 2001, by the time the film picks up seven years later, he’s 29.
Najibullah Zazi: Zazi is 24 years old.
New York, I love you, but you’re bringing me down
Sameer Sheikh: Sameer is questioned at a bus terminal and put into a detention facility (one can only assume) on account of his name and Muslim origin, ten days after 9/11. After nine months, Sameer is released due to lack of evidence against him. (In the film, the FBI claims that photographs of the World Trade Centre and the New York skyline that he had taken for a photography project were part of a terrorist plot).
Najibullah Zazi: Zazi’s motives are unknown. He has pleaded not guilty to the charges, but the odds stack against him as he is also reported to have received terrorist training at a camp in Pakistan.
The evidence
Sameer Sheikh: The sleeper cell has gathered a large amount of equipment (bought from some wily Eastern Europeans) to be able to carry out a large scale attack.
Najibullah Zazi: Zazi has been charged with gathering a large amount of chemicals (bought from drugstores) to carry out an attack.
The site
Sameer Sheikh: His sleeper cell plots to attack the FBI building in New York.
Najibullah Zazi: Various reports have cited the site for New York Fashion Week and other landmarks as those that Zazi was plotting to attack on the eve of the anniversary of 9/11.
Betrayal, betrayal
Sameer Sheikh: The investigating FBI officer (Roshan, played by Irrfan Khan) gets Sameer’s friend Omar (Neil Nitin Mukesh) to infiltrate Sameer’s home and the sleeper cell. Omar finall tells Sameer he’s being watched only when the sleeper cell is about to bomb the FBI building, because Sameer’s wife Maya is inside the building.
Najibullah Zazi: The New York Police Department used a religious leader as a source (an imam from Queens) Ahmad Wais Afzali, but Afzali has also been charged with telephoning Zazi to tell him he was being watched, then lying about it.
And in the end…
While New York came to a morbid and inane end (which debunked any sense that this film had), Najibullah Zazi’s case is not only serious but the evidence and testimony isn’t as clear-cut as in celluloid. In any case, it’s worth watching New York again for, as painful as it may seem.
Stay tuned for another apology if an Indian stuntman ends up dating Denise Richards and being feted by Sylvester Stallone ala Kambakkht Ishq.
- Information on Najibullah Zazi from Associated Press and the New York Times: ‘Najibullah Zazi, From Smiling Face at the Cart to Terror Suspect’, Sept 26, 2009.
Reads and rants of the week October 6, 2009
Posted by Saba Imtiaz in amman accounts, fashion, pakistan, politics.1 comment so far
I was going to post an update on my life, but then I realized no one wants to read that. There’s nothing fun about descriptions of crying while babysitting my cat or sitting in the dark during an electricity blackout discussing the merits of the various kinds of Cornettos. That’s not what you come to this blog for. (Well, according to the stats most people are here for pictures of giant rabbits, Michael Jackson and Bilawal Bhutt0-Zardari) But anyway, here’s the list of things you should read.
Firstly, the brilliant George Packer piece on Richard Holbrooke and the war in Afghanistan. I think I’m going to end up re-reading this several times during this week.
The Masood Hasan op-ed published in The News last Sunday. Masood Hasan is always incredibly acerbic, but it was worth reading the paper just for this quote:
Wearing the flag of Pakistan on their imported designer suits impresses nobody, because this kind of patriotism is not worth a rat’s ass.
And this:
The prime minister thunders as drones waltz in Pakistani airspace. No one will dare mess about with Pakistan’s virginal sovereignty, he roars. I am sorry to shatter the dream, but this ain’t no virgin. In fact it’s been had by just about everybody and the rates hit rock bottom years ago. So shout as much as you like. No one is fooled.
Also, Newsweek redeems itself whenever it runs stories like this one: The Taliban in Their Own Words, comprised of quotes from Taliban leaders on their lives post-9/11. Reads like an unbelievable film script.
Writing in the Guardian, Dan Gillmor proposes 22 new rules of news.
On a personal note, I am fairly upset that I never ran into a Hollywood A-list couple while walking on Rainbow Street in Amman. I saw that road being built, inhaled the dust, walked over the mountains of sand amassed at the site, broke in a pair of heels there, used it about 10 times a day and the only celebrity encounter I had was finding someone who resembled Saddam Hussein.
Meanwhile, I continue to be amused at the critique of the Emanuel Ungaro S/S show and Lindsay Lohan’s role as artistic advisor. I compiled some of the comments for a desk story today (mental note: repeat to anyone who thinks they got a bad review) and my favourite so far is by Hilary Alexander:
My heart goes out to Lindsay Lohan. Right now, she is getting a taste of just how brutal the fashion jungle can be when the claws are unsheathed. . .and it is not a pleasant experience. Judging from some of the comments I heard as I left the Ungaro show this afternoon, she can expect a savaging.
Jai Ho, Pakistan! September 27, 2009
Posted by Saba Imtiaz in pakistan.Tags: cricket, India, pakistan
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Rahul Dravid's ridiculous run-out (REUTERS/Mike Hutchings)
Sod the cliches. Pakistan’s victory over India in the Champions Trophy match today is the best thing to have happened to Pakistan since the Kerry-Lugar bill (sorry, most Pakistanis just want to see India being defeated in cricket),World T20 win. Apparently celebrations are already underway in the country, even though ended an hour or so ago.
While at some point during the match I was so despondent that I started cleaning my laptop’s keyboard, this was quite the match. Brilliant performances and a whole lotta luck and some truly fun gems online. Here’s my list:
- Firstly, kudos to Ahsan at FiveRupees for live blogging the match, simply for the entertainment value of the comments. A lovely fight broke out in the comments section, between a certain Sandy and Malik, who as someone pointed out, should take over the commentary box. Would be far better than Wasim Akram any day of the week
- The match had plenty of ‘awww!’ moments. Mohammad Aamir’s enthusiasm rockets off the television screen. He was a star during the match. Also, the probably-already-discussed-to-death blink-or-miss-it moment of Afridi kissing Shoaib Malik on the cheek, which I found terribly endearing. Give em a break, and yes, playing ‘Jumma Chumma De De’ in the stadium at the same time was ridiculous.
- Ali Khurshid on Facebook (who really should live blog cricket matches): “HEARS GUNFIRE!!! ANOTHER MOON SIGHTING?”
- Venkat Ananth on Twitter: “Man of the Match: Hafiz Saeed” (Before you get all upset, look up sarcasm in a dictionary)
- The appearance of Mr Jeem, our beloved friend (look up sarcasm again) from WT20 coverage
I’m sure there were countless more, but its 3:30 AM and I had a terrible day before the match started. Also, a huge shout out to KESC for not cutting off the electricity (at least at my house, can’t speak for anyone else) during the match and hence deferring my first foray into rioting.
Revelations of the 4-day Eid holiday September 23, 2009
Posted by Saba Imtiaz in randomness.9 comments
- Family dinners and calls to family members always result in one question: ‘Have you started thinking about getting married yet?’
- I haven’t figured out why Hamid Mir and other talk show hosts dominated most of the conversation at the family dinner. Why don’t people talk about their own family anymore?
- A four-day Eid weekend is great for catching up on season premieres and new episodes. In two days I’ve caught up with Entourage and Gossip Girl, and the season premieres for The Beautiful Life and the truly awesome How I Met Your Mother. How I have survived without Barney for so many weeks is beyond me.
- The four-day Eid weekend also means that nothing of any importance – or involving any intelligence – gets done. Courtesy Gossip Girl, the two things I’ve learned today are that there is perhaps no man as perfect as Chuck Bass, and that ‘Good Girls Go Bad’ (by Cobra Starship featuring Leighton Meester aka Blair Waldorf) is actually a ridiculously addictive song. Though this could just be the holiday haze.
- I give myself little credit though: finally finished reading Steve Coll’s Ghost Wars. Had to stop myself from screaming ‘But they had OBL, why didn’t they KILL him?!’ at several points.
- Television channels have gotten over their 30-day period of piety.
- Also, whoever says newspapers shouldn’t get so many days off should be forced to work the graveyard shift.
- I received a Kanye-themed Eid message. That really made my day. I’d like to think my article on Kanye West was somewhat responsible for introducing this brilliant new meme to Pakistan, but then I’d be quite wrong.
- ‘Good Girls Go Bad’ really is quite terrific. I could have spent the past three days reading the stacks of books piled up, but I exchanged such ideas in favour of singing along to profound lyics ala ‘I was hanging in the corner with my five best friends / I knew that you were trouble but I couldn’t resist’
- I have a feeling The Beautiful Life will get cancelled, but please God, let that beautiful actor find a show of his own. Preferably with Chuck Bass. Amen.
The Eid that must not be declared September 21, 2009
Posted by Saba Imtiaz in pakistan.2 comments
If you believed they put a man on the moon, man on the moon
If you believe there’s nothing up my sleeve, then nothing is cool
- REM: Man on the Moon
Every year,Ramadan brings with it a couple of nights of pure entertainment for those of us watching television news channels: the eventual debate of the sighting of the moon.
Now while the rest of Pakistan finally celebrates Eid today (or in most cases, eats tons of food and watches lots of bad television programming), the past few days have seen a war of words of sort (marking an end to the Ramadan spirit of forgiveness and patience).
It started with the maulvis in Peshawar declaring they’d be celebrating Eid with Saudi Arabia and the rest of the world yesterday, the ANP government siding with them and Ruet-e-Hilal’s Mufti Muneeb-ur-Rehman getting so riled up that he took to lambasting the entire province and the maulvis who’d decided to declare Eid yesterday.
Of course, while Eid’s a time of celebration for most, I personally don’t enjoy the holiday that much. It wasn’t helped by turning the TV on yesterday and finding the channels were airing a range of depressing shows – from a re-run of The Kite Runner to Mufti Muneeb-ur-Rehman ranting on Geo TV:
“Un ke hisse mai nakaami aayi hai, aur rahegi, unhon ne logon ka ROZA KHARAB KYA HAI”
As I tweeted afterward, when Muneeb finally had his moment of glory to announce Eid:
“Mufti Muneeb-ur-Rehman, I’m happy for you and I’ll let you finish, but Peshawar had the best Eid announcement of all time.”
Nadir Hassan at Newsline magazine’s blog (they have a great new website) blogged about the rather inane statements given during the moon debacle and Mohammed Hanif’s acerbic take on it for BBC Urdu is a must-read:
حضرت نے فرمایا کہ چونکہ مکے کے ساتھ عید منانے اور رویت ہلال کمیٹی کو ختم کرنے کا فتنہ پشاور کی مسجد قاسم خان سے شروع ہوا ہے اس لیے حکومت کو چاہیے کہ وہ اس کے خلاف کارروائی کرے۔ پھر انہوں نے حکومت کا حوصلہ بڑھانے کے لیے کہا کہ جس طرح اس نے صوبہ سرحد میں شر پسندوں کے خلاف کارروائی کی ہے اسی طرح مسجد قاسم خان والوں کے خلاف بھی کارروائی کرے۔
تو ہمارے سپہ سالار جنرل کیانی صاحب اپنی ڈائری میں نوٹ کرلیں کہ جب وہ مالاکنڈ اور وزیرستان کے فوجی آپریشنوں سے فارغ ہو جائیں تو مسجد قاسم خان پر توجہ دیں جہاں کچھ لوگ مفتی منیب الرحمان کی نوکری کے پیچھے ہاتھ دھو کر پڑے ہوئے ہیں۔
Enjoy the rest of the holiday, folks, and the Thursday blues that’ll kick in when we have to go back to work.
Mr Writer, why don’t you tell it like it is? September 13, 2009
Posted by Saba Imtiaz in randomness.Tags: Bollywood, films, journalism
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I was watching (yes, guilty pleasure) Dil Hai Ke Manta Nahi a few days ago, courtesy the cable TV operator who removed all Indian channels as soon as Ramadan started, leaving us to watch the films of his choice. (That includes Hum Aapke Hain Kaun and other 90s drivel).
Now while Dil Hai Ke Manta Nahi isn’t an original film, I actually do enjoy watching it. In the ’90s, Tiku Talsania was one of my favourite comic actors, who also played the desperate-to-inaugurate-a-jail inspector in the best Indian film ever made, Andaz Apna Apna. His portrayal of a hassled editor is hilarious and Aamir’s desperation to sell him a story for 10,000 rupees is quite a moment.
It left me thinking – (no I don’t spend my time thinking about the film but the cable TV guy reran it thrice and frankly, there’s not much to do these days) – about recent films that have showcased journalists and journalism. Bad, good, pathetic, whatever – they’re all in the mix.
Madhur Bhandarkar’s Page 3 was a fairly decent attempt to showcase the life of a journalist writing about the social scene. Konkona Sen Sharma stars as the Page 3 writer who doesn’t take the scene too seriously until she discovers that behind the glitz lurks a child-abuse scandal. Her attempt to report on the scandal gets shot down by the editor (Boman Irani) but she turns her hand to crime reporting (aided by the underrated Atul Kulkarni, whose film Satta with Raveena Tandon is a must-watch) and that’s the end of her days reporting on the high flyers.
And then there was Nayak, starring Anil Kapoor and the late Amrish Puri. Kapoor plays a TV talk show host who gets challenged by the Chief Minister to run the state instead of harping on as a host. That one day is brilliant (Kapoor manages to deal with almost every civic problem known to mankind) and a friend of mine thinks its probably the film that inspired Punjab CM Shahbaz Sharif’s second run in office. With the amount of criticism talk show hosts in Pakistan dish out, the day they get challenged to just stop whining and take charge of affairs isn’t too far away.
Mission Istaanbul, which undoubtedly was one of the worst films to have been released in 2008, showcases a television channel who has become famous for their links to the Taliban in Afghanistan and their popularity, fuelled by their release of videos by terrorists. The channel then turns out to be an operation that merely produces these videos to keep their ratings up. On paper, it may have been a somewhat plausible story, but the bad acting, unbelievably bad script and the loopholes in the story made it a viewer’s nightmare. Not even worth the pirated CD.
In Guru, Mithun Chakraborty plays a newspaper editor who makes it his mission to cut Abhishek Bachchan down to size. R. Madhavan plays a reporter who makes it his mission to reveal Bachchan’s underhanded tactics.
Apparently there’s a film on NDTV journalist Barkha Dutt in the works, and I’m sure there are a considerable number of films I’ve missed out. Anyone who watches Bollywood films obsessively, please fill in the gaps by commenting.
