Textile Institute of Pakistan [TIP]

I got a chance to visit TIP this Sunday with my wife, sister and two friends. It was a chance exhibition for me and I was invited there by someone called Hina Imtiaz (who by the way happens to be quite a creative soul).

I went there only to find a lonely set of guards and nothing else. The entire university / institute was closed and no cars or men or women were to be seen. Sure enough Hina wasn't making me any fool out there in the wilderness under the scorching sun of summer. And sure enough I hadn't got it all wrong.

After a few phone calls we finally got access to the cafe where the exhibition was being held. It was my first ever trip to TIP and I found the place pretty much as I had expected. It had vast space, a pond around there, huge parking area, and curvy road leading to the educational institute. By the standards of our meek University, TIP looked far better and far bigger.

Only 15 students had their works displayed out there. Some works were really excellent; others just time pass. And there was one work, something done on Lollywood, which I would like to thrash out of this world. I could not understand either the girl who had done it nor the work itself. It was neither good nor bad. It was ridiculous. I remember it because it was ridiculous.

But I really liked Hina's work although I was seriously disturbed by her lack of something known as responsibility. She had emailed me about the event and again emailed me that I should come along withe friends. But off course she was not there but I could see that her work was brilliant. She had done a theme on Karachi and KESC had been rightly kicked off on the butts. It deserves to be. And Hina had done her job well. I would like to receive some part of her work as a gift, if not as a compensation for not being there.

Another work which I really loved was done by some Parsi girl. She had got her Nani's radio from the 1960s era and made an entire theme around it. It was done nicely and I commented to her, through her notes diary, that it was something very difficult and that she had done a remarkable job.

Another good work was on jewelery making; the theme was very complex. But again the girl had done it nicely.

Full points to TIP for bringing up such nice students. But I would really like to kick that Lollywood work out of this world!

Of Pirs and Hobbies

Recently, while searching for some item at google.com, I came across a very self-centered website of an incredibly self-centered political and religious leader, Pir Pagara.

His personal website, http://www.pirpagara.com, displays his hobbies in no nonsense terms. It states, under the grand title: [http://www.pirpagara.com/hobbies.htm]

HORSE RACING - SPORT OF KINGS

* Pir Sahib is very fond of Hunting some areas as Awadh is reserved for.

* Pir Sahib hunting where no body else is allowed to hunt.

* Pir Sahib is very fond of horses and horse racings. He has many horses of high breed, which often win the races Karachi race club has been restored only with Pir Sahib's efforts.

* Forecasting is also hobby of Pir Sahib. His Political forecast often comes true.

No wonder than that most of the Pakistanis, under such Pirs and Faqeers, remain illiterate and highly charged, senseless people. No wonder that Pakistan today finds itself under immense pressure from all fronts. When our so-called great leaders have over the head hobbies such as stated above, Pakistanis can safely go to the doldrums.