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Behind the barbed wire
By: Shivendra Kumar SinghAdaptation: Saurabh KapoorI am no stranger to Pakistan. I am an Indian. I have lived in Lahore with the immortal characters of Saadat Hasan Manto and I have stalked the streets of Karachi in reflections of Ismat Chugtai.
By: Shivendra Kumar Singh
Adaptation: Saurabh Kapoor
I am no stranger to Pakistan. I am an Indian. I have lived in Lahore with the immortal characters of Saadat Hasan Manto and I have stalked the streets of Karachi in reflections of Ismat Chugtai.
The wrench of partition pinched me as much as it must have pricked Amrita Preetam, when I read of them through her. And like many on both sides of the divide, I, too, have always believed that India and Pakistan are two sides of the same coin- indivisible and inseparable.
Each day spent in Pakistan covering the historic one-day series in Pakistan only made my belief stronger.
March 10, 2004: Our short 40-minute flight came to an end for good. We landed at the splendid Lahore Airport . The temptation to check out the most flamboyant city of Pakistan was overwhelming. But time was not on our side. The first one-day was in Karachi, so there was just no time sweet jaunts across Lahore to make good friends with in the city. And more over there were too many questions to answer. There were people who wanted to know about Shahrukh Khan and Amitabh. And there were those who expected answers on Kashmir and Gujarat.
Few were answered and few kept on hold with a promise that we would return to go over our shared sensibilities once again. Though we knew that was not going to happen.
Karachi greeted us with open arms. It was so Indian that it didn’t feel Pakistan. Meeting Mumbai’s distant cousin leaves you in awe; more than anything else it’s the surprising familiarity between the two cities. There’s a beach and happening beach life like our very own Mumbai. But its not the ambience but the people which make it so much like ‘home’.
Just like friends on this side they won’t let you pay for your food and insist that you have more. They would hug you so that the warmth would seep through your soul. And even the police would search you more for information of your native land than disruptive aids, they suspect some might be hiding.
Enter a conversation and they would permanently give you that insatiable look yearning for more about those who despite being so much like them are not one of them. At the end of it all, you are left with a little doubt and a question- Why a barbed wire divides us when there are no divisions in the heart. March 13, 2004: First one-day in Karachi had obviously raised cynical questions about the way crowd would behave. And God didn’t spare Karchites a Test. Pakistan was on verge of defeat. Aashish Nehra was ready to bowl his last over with Pakistan needing 9 runs to win. Pakistan would lose but how would Karachi react to that loss was more of question than anything else that moment.
Karachi rose to the occasion after heir players failed them and made cricket win. Though India won the match Karachi was the only winner of hearts.
They set a precedence for cricket that was to follow. After that cricket was played and enjoyed like a game and not war minus the bullets.
But nothing’s perfect, right! So there was talk of match-fixing, losing to make PM Vajpayee win the elections and what not. But it just failed to hurt the spirit of good will and camaraderie that 22 men from both sides came together to create.
At the end of it all, three weeks spent in Pakistan testify one thing for sure the political climate in the countries may change for good or for bad, divisions may turn into schisms or may be bridged for ever-the differences are only on maps and not in the hearts of millions on both sides of the barbed wire.
Adaptation: Saurabh Kapoor
I am no stranger to Pakistan. I am an Indian. I have lived in Lahore with the immortal characters of Saadat Hasan Manto and I have stalked the streets of Karachi in reflections of Ismat Chugtai.
The wrench of partition pinched me as much as it must have pricked Amrita Preetam, when I read of them through her. And like many on both sides of the divide, I, too, have always believed that India and Pakistan are two sides of the same coin- indivisible and inseparable.
Each day spent in Pakistan covering the historic one-day series in Pakistan only made my belief stronger.
March 10, 2004: Our short 40-minute flight came to an end for good. We landed at the splendid Lahore Airport . The temptation to check out the most flamboyant city of Pakistan was overwhelming. But time was not on our side. The first one-day was in Karachi, so there was just no time sweet jaunts across Lahore to make good friends with in the city. And more over there were too many questions to answer. There were people who wanted to know about Shahrukh Khan and Amitabh. And there were those who expected answers on Kashmir and Gujarat.
Few were answered and few kept on hold with a promise that we would return to go over our shared sensibilities once again. Though we knew that was not going to happen.
Karachi greeted us with open arms. It was so Indian that it didn’t feel Pakistan. Meeting Mumbai’s distant cousin leaves you in awe; more than anything else it’s the surprising familiarity between the two cities. There’s a beach and happening beach life like our very own Mumbai. But its not the ambience but the people which make it so much like ‘home’.
Just like friends on this side they won’t let you pay for your food and insist that you have more. They would hug you so that the warmth would seep through your soul. And even the police would search you more for information of your native land than disruptive aids, they suspect some might be hiding.
Enter a conversation and they would permanently give you that insatiable look yearning for more about those who despite being so much like them are not one of them. At the end of it all, you are left with a little doubt and a question- Why a barbed wire divides us when there are no divisions in the heart. March 13, 2004: First one-day in Karachi had obviously raised cynical questions about the way crowd would behave. And God didn’t spare Karchites a Test. Pakistan was on verge of defeat. Aashish Nehra was ready to bowl his last over with Pakistan needing 9 runs to win. Pakistan would lose but how would Karachi react to that loss was more of question than anything else that moment.
Karachi rose to the occasion after heir players failed them and made cricket win. Though India won the match Karachi was the only winner of hearts.
They set a precedence for cricket that was to follow. After that cricket was played and enjoyed like a game and not war minus the bullets.
But nothing’s perfect, right! So there was talk of match-fixing, losing to make PM Vajpayee win the elections and what not. But it just failed to hurt the spirit of good will and camaraderie that 22 men from both sides came together to create.
At the end of it all, three weeks spent in Pakistan testify one thing for sure the political climate in the countries may change for good or for bad, divisions may turn into schisms or may be bridged for ever-the differences are only on maps and not in the hearts of millions on both sides of the barbed wire.