You are on page 1of 1

20

Wednesday, April 30, 2014

I have been inspired by


Aman Ki Asha Gulzar

very time you meet Gulzar


sahab, you wonder how a
man can retain his purity as
much as he has. He is consistent, not with just his writing, but also his starched white
kurta pyjama, his golden jootis
and his immense warmth. Its
always difficult to write his interview in English - you want to
write every word in Urdu the
way he speaks it. It is
sheer poetry. He is presenting the upcoming film
Kya Dilli Kya Lahore, an
opportunity I used to have
coffee with him. Excerpts from our conversation:

By Priya Gupta

What makes you present the film


Kya Dilli Kya Lahore?
I have been inspired by Aman Ki Asha
and I have lived with this all my life. The border, and the migration from your birthplace
to another place. Even when you move, your

Gulzar presents: Kya Dilli Kya Lahore, to be released May 2

roots always remain with you. There may be


a plantation here also, but that keeps coming back.
And I keep reacting to it. Why do we say
partition and not Independence? Its not
about denying the border, acceptance of the
border between our two independent countries, India and Pakistan, is the main thing.
You have to respect each others identit.
When Kya Dilli Kya Lahore came to
me as a subject, I liked it as it is a human
story about two youngsters one from each
side of the border who are actually one. I
liked the idea of not treating it with heavy
political stuff, but it being a human story. In
our relationship with Pakistan, there is humour, but also fear. Its not all about politics
as there is a lot of culture and tradition that
we share and exchange.

Who are you most attached to


today?
My grandson Samay is my passion. Everything that concerns him concerns me
and thats a bliss. You will know when you
become a grandmother. I think its chemistry. There is something that happens when
you become a grandfather. Its the experience of bringing up a human being, not a
child. I feel that I am bringing up Bosky
(daughter Meghnas pet name) twice.
Physically you change their clothes and
make their hair. I had learnt to make a
ponytail for Bosky when she was a kid,
which I dont have to do for Samay. As parents, your responsibility always keeps you
tense. To bring up an another human
being is an ecstasy, a fear and a responsibility. You want to give them a part of you
and yet you want them to have their own
personality. You have to leave the windows
open for him to develop, but also leave
your shadow on him. You want to teach
them to believe in all religions and you
also want them to believe in your religion.
We have to give them sanskar from which
you need to find your own truth.
Your parents tie you up to so many
beliefs in your childhood and when you
grow up and become independent, you realise how that was just a bondage. And
yet, you repeat the same things with your
children, knowing fully well that they too
will feel the same thing when they grow
up. Every day, from 5.30pm to 8pm
Samay is with me and I enjoy that time the
most. I go with him to the park and play
with him.
He has started playing football and I
feel at his age he makes a big kick. He is
so fond of pets. We go out to eat out on
Sundays and when he sees the security
dogs at the hotels, we feel scared, but he
runs towards them. Animals too, have an
instinct where they will not attack a child.
He loves feeding toasts to Rakheejis cows
and copies his nani. He loves his fishes
and his rabbit. He loves pets just like
Bosky used to and like his nani and dadi.

Gulzars poems "Ankhon ko visa nahin lagta" and "Nazar mei Rehte ho" have become anthems for peace-lovers
How different were you as a father
versus being a grandfather?
As a father I was very polite, while
Rakheeji taught discipline. She always said,
Bigaadne ke liye aap hai aur savaarne
ke liye main hoon. I love spoiling children. Even when Rakheeji would tell me
dont buy Bosky more toys, I would tell her,
Main Akbar toh nahi hoon magar tu
agar mujhse Anarkali bhi mang leta toh
main la deta. I indulge children. Bosky
still remains the core of my life. I feel
scared that Bosky could scold both of us, so
I explain to Samay that, See mummy is
coming, so we cant do this, but I feel like
doing anything for him. Bosky like
Raakheeji is very strict. Again in Samays
case, the father is polite and the mother is a
big disciplinarian. I have great admiration
for Boskys discipline. She is a total mother.
When he was small, she would carry even
his vegetables for him in a suitcase if she
was going for a holiday. Even today, she
cooks for him herself. She has brought him
up very well and he is a happy child.
Boskys sense of creativity is very silent.
For instance, she writes poems but will not
show it as she feels that I will push her to
publish them into a book. I speak so much
but she remains quiet.
You still play tennis everyday?
All my friends are in tennis. We play

B R I E F S

Peace gathering at Toba Tek Singh


ast week, on April 25,
Pakistan-India Peoples
Forum For Peace And
Democracy (PIPFPD) held a
meeting with its District Chapter in Toba Tek Singh (Punjab)
Pakistan at the Gojra Bar
Room.
Kamran Islam, PIPFPD PIPFPD President Toba Tek Singh
central Coordinator, and Presi- chapter Umair Ahmad at the event
dent District Chapter Toba Tek
Singh Umair Ahmad and others participated in the meeting.
Participants of the meeting urged the Pakistani and Indian governments to ease visa restrictions and foster friendly relations.

Has your daughter Meghna visited


Pakistan?
She and her husband Govind want to
and they want to go with me.
What does a getting a Dadasaheb
Phalke award mean to you?
It means a lot. First of all, its a national
honour given to you by the nation, a nation
full of people for not just one song, but for
your entire work and contribution through
your medium to society. Its satisfying when
people appreciate you for your work. Its an
honour and you feel reassured.
Any favourites amongst todays directors and actors?
Directorially, today cinema is taking
shape with strong visual language that
has started taking it over. Earlier, in my
period, it was sound the written word,
the audio, the dialogues. I feel that the

real cinema is coming out with this generation. They are very strong. Take for instance Mani Sirs Raavan. I have not experienced that in Bollywood or any other
cinema. I insist on calling him Mani sir
and he feels embarrassed, but I tell him
that his name is not complete without sir.
He is a very sweet person and a good
human being. Real cinema needs to be visually supported by sound. And that is
where A.R. Rahman stands out. I appreciate Vishal Bhardwajs sound treatment.
And Rakeysh Omprakash Mehra. He has
a peculiar sense of image where even for
one single scene he will cross over to
Siachen to shoot.
Amongst the actors, Ranbir Kapoor is
very impressive. I have seen him in some
ads, like the old man he played in one of
them. It took me time to convince myself
that that was him. That kind of performance from inside Ive seen in Sanjeev
Kumar. Also, I admire Vidya Balans ability to play so many different characters
with such conviction and the ability to
carry herself so well.
Do you ever feel tired of writing?
I find writing relaxing. I want to keep
doing two things as long as I am alive. Play
tennis and write poetry.
TOI

WANTED: A SOUTH ASIAN UNION

International Dance Day, Pakistan


he world celebrates International
Dance Day on April 29th every year.
The event takes on greater significance in Pakistan where dancers face more
stresses than in most countries.
This years events in Karachi included an
evening of dance at the Arts Council Karachi
by Sheema Kermanis Tehrik-e-Niswan, featuring the poetry of Ameer Khusrau, Rabindranath Tagore, Shaikh Ayaz and other
classical and folk dance compositions.
A related event is Raqs Mein Hai Sara
Jahan (The World Dances), held for the
first time last year organised by the young
dancer Suhaee Abro and her father, artist
Abro Khuda Bux. It will take place on May
3 at 8 pm, at the Karachi Arts Council Open Air Theatre.
The programme includes chap, a Balochi traditional dance drama, the
Wahab Shah and Saba Rana Dance Company from Lahore performing a
Sufi piece, and Bharatnatyam dancer Munawar Chao, like Suhaee, a student of Sheema Kermani.

every day from 6am to 8am. Its important


for me to do some gupshup with them and
we talk about everything under the sun in
the morning. That opens up all my windows.
Playing tennis, I learn everyday on how to
take a defeat. We get angry and cheat and
that keeps the boy inside me alive. Bosky
did not take to sports. I wish she had as she
would then have smiled and fought a little
more.

aelhi University Students for Peace plans


to repeat their bicycle journey from last
year, this time starting from Delhi.
Last year, on
June 1, they began a
3,800 km bicycle trip
from Kanyakumari in
the southern-most tip of
India, reaching Wagah border on August 15.
The response they received from people along the
way was tremendous and
overwhelming, says the
groups convenor Praveen
Singh.
Being students we were
naturally low on money and
got all the support from
common people who had
enormous empathy and love
for other people. The idea
that we were carrying the
message of peace to Pakistan turned a lot of heads,

Delhi University Students


(cycle) for Peace
most of it positive and a
huge boost.
The group wanted to proceed to Islamabad but had to
conclude their journey at
Wagah, unable to get visas.
However, their message of
peace travelled far and wide.
The idea behind the campaign was their conviction
that India and Pakistan must
end the hostility that leads to
huge defence expenditures,
money that can otherwise be
used to fight against poverty
and hunger. We cannot, as
they
say,
substitute
Weapons for Food or
Medicines or Education.
If countries in the Euro-

pean Union, having been at


war with each other for centuries, could come together
to form an organisation for
economic cooperation (the
EEC in 1958), which grew
into the EU, why not the
South Asian countries?
The group wants Indias
political parties to include in
their manifesto a promise to
bring the countries of the region into a confederation
along the lines of European
Union.
Why is it not possible to
imagine the countries of our
subcontinent being united as
a consideration on the lines
of the EU? In our subconti-

Pakistani woman stuck in India after giving birth


35-year-old woman from Pakistan is stuck in India due to not having documents for her baby born in India. Immigration officers at
Munabao crossing detained Mai Fatima and her 10-day-old baby as
he does not have a passport or visa.
Mai Fatima and her husband Mir Muhammad Mahar, residents of
Ghotki, Pakistan had come to India two-and-a-half months back to meet
Fatimas aging father, according to Fatimas relative Rashid Khan in
Basanpir. Their original one-and-a-half months visa was later extended
by another month when Fatimas father passed away.
Fatima had come to India she was seven months pregnant and on
April 14 she delivered a baby boy at a private hospital.

Delhi University Students for Peace on their tour 2013

nent where neighbouring


countries share so many cultural similarities cutting
across man-made borders it
is not impossible to think of
a confederation. All that we
require is a new imagination, says Singh. The idea
is simple Love Thy Neighbour [Bible].
We want to sensitise people to avoid Muzaffarnagar-

like situations, he says. He


quotes the Quran: Your hatredness towards a section of
people should not induce
you to bring them injustice
and cites the Sanskrit phrase
Vasudhaiva Kuumbakam the whole world is one single
family. Heres hoping they
get the visas. Milne Do.
aka

THE FIRST STEP


LET US KNOW WHAT YOU THINK

A peace initiative whose time has come...

Feedback, contributions, photos, letters:


Email: amankiasha@janggroup.com.pk
Fax: +92-21-3241-8343
Post: aman ki asha c/o The News,
I.I. Chundrigar Road, Karachi

Destination Peace: A commitment by the Jang Group, Geo and The Times of India Group to
create an enabling environment that brings the people of Pakistan and India closer together,
contributing to genuine and durable peace with honour between our countries.

You might also like