A Taj in our lives
Last week, I wrote my column on the demise of Dr Haroon Ahmed. This was its first sentence: “When someone you had known for ages passes away, you are left…
Baloch imbroglio
IT’S always troubling when relatively peaceful protests incur a violent response from governments that claim to be combating terrorism. Back in the early 2000s, the Musharraf regime, in its futile…
Tax-fueled chaos
The government of Pakistan is in the business of buying and selling electricity. It has so far lost Rs2.4 trillion in this business. The government of Pakistan is in the…
A different kind of export
Pakistan has struggled in recent years to keep pace in the global export market. The textile sector, once a defining industry, has seen rapid growth in countries like Bangladesh, Vietnam…
The soul of music
The passing of Sir Zakir Hussain, arguably the finest tabla nawaz of his generation, sparked waves of obituaries and tributes across the world. Yet in Pakistan, his death barely registered…
A tale of literary events
Hardly a month passed since the World Cultural Festival enthralled the denizens of Karachi when the Arts Council offered another fairly successful ‘Aalmi Urdu Conference’ coupled with ‘Jashn-e-Karachi’ from December…
Ties that bind
The cooperation between Pakistan and China in media and culture is deeply rooted in history, and strengthened by political, economic, and strategic collaborations. Diplomatic ties between the two countries were…
Privatisation and SBP
Heads should roll in the aftermath of the fiasco of the Thursday bidding of Pakistan International Airlines (PIA) as there were ample prior indications that an extremely embarrassing failure awaited…
Paper cuts
I AM not alone in worrying about the future of journalism. I learned this in my conversations (in person and online) with journalism instructors in the US, Canada and Armenia.…
Mental health
I CONSIDER myself open-minded but I remember being taken aback when a new friend showed up at a café in Chicago, where I was a graduate student, wearing a “This…
