For a majority of the Pakistanis, the role model is India. This is more pronounced in Pakistan’s emerging middle-class, younger generation and political elite. In fact, all walks of life in Pakistan have been influenced by India’s way of life.
It is, perhaps, because of common culture, linguistics, history and heritage. You talk of music, education, films, sports, agriculture, political system or any social activity, you find India figuring prominently. Even the political system is compared with that in India, though it is a different matter that democracy, despite some efforts, has failed to take root in Pakistan.
I saw many girls coming to shop and straightway asking for Rabbi’s cassette “Bulla ki jana”. While in India, Mehandi Hasan and Gulam Ali are popular, in Pakistan cassettes of Indian film songs and Punjabi folk singers have a big market.
Wherever you go, you hear Indian songs. “Veer-Zara” seems to have become a craze in Pakistan. It is run and re-run on city channels day and night. Shahrukh Khan, Rani Mukherjee, Salman Khan and Gurdas Mann hold a sway over the minds of men and women.
When an Indian delegation entered Pakistan via the Wagah border recently, there were several college girls to welcome the guests. And the first question posed by these girls to some Indians was whether any of them knew Shahrukh Khan. There is an amazing curiosity among Pakistanis, especially youth, about Indian heroes.
They are as fond of Sachin Tendulakar’s brilliance and poise as Indians. They also love to talk about graceful Rahul Dravid and about the fiery Virender Sehwag as millions of Indians do.
Indian serials, sarees, fashion trends fascinate Pakistanis. In Anarkali Bazar, there is an exclusive saree store with a blazing signboard “Saree Mahal”. Of course, girls don’t wear jeans there, but Pakistani women are apparently more fashionable than their Indian counterparts. Women attend night parties and participate in political and non-political discussions. They drive cars as Indian women do.
Burqa-clad women are a rare sight in cities like Lahore and Islamabad, which are as crowded with foreign cars as Chandigarh and Delhi. It is for sure that Indian TV has made a strong influence on Pakistani society.
For educational institutions, the Indian education system is a path setter. Computer and information technology are most sought-after subjects. Most positive development is the focus on education for girls. Exclusive higher education institutions have been set up to promote education among women. New university campuses are being set up in rural Punjab, that has 62 per cent of the total population of Pakistan. “India is far ahead in this field”, admit Pakistan officials.
Like India, Pakistan is out to improve infrastructure. The motorway from Lahore to Islamabad is one of the best in the world. Islamabad, built in the 70s, is far more beautiful than Chandigarh. Those who have seen it at midnight from Daman-e-Koh, a hill top, will certainly agree to what I say.
There is a turn-around in Pakistan’s economy. A five-fold increase in the shares of leading Pakistan banks in the recent past is an indicator of the developing economy. Banks have pumped in a lot of money in social sectors such as housing like India.
There is a strong yearning among Pakistan politicians to have a democratic system like India which, regardless of several drawbacks, ensures a smooth transfer of power.
They appreciate the way Indians have built up political institutions. Of course, corruption is as big an issue in Pakistan as it is in India. There is hardly any difference of functioning of the police in both countries. Rough and shoddy police functioning is an eye sore.
The media is relatively free and has started emerging as a powerful institution. However, newspapers, because of the price factor, are beyond the reach of an average Pakistani.
The Pakistani establishment seems to be in direct confrontation with fundamentalists. From Afghanistan experience, it perhaps, has realised that how dangerous it can be for the country to be dominated by intolerant religious elements. Now it is trying hard for the moderation of society.
Mr Khalid Maqbool Khan had no hesitation to tell the Indian delegation that the Pakistan authorities were trying to inculcate moderation among people by making them understand that Islam is an embodiment of tolerance and progress and those who are pushing it towards bigotry and intolerance are harming the religion.
SOURCE : http://www.tribuneindia.com/2005/20050325/edit.h
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