ISSUE #19
Peshawar A Rediscovery
A Walkabout in
Ander Shehr with Aimal Khan & Mobeen Ansari Personalities of
Peshawar
48Hrs
An Insider’s Guide To
Nathiagali Travel Like A
Fashionista
contents.
ISSUE #19 On the cover
p.36
From
Purushapura to
Peshawar Aimal Khan
PESHAWAR A REDISCOVERY 36 58 73 81 118 126
From Purushapura to Peshawar: A Journey through Time Blue Eyed Boy Peshawar The First City An August Audience The LÉL Connection Straight outta Pesh’: A Tale Of Homecoming
88 96 102 110
The Wonder Years The Ties That Bind Holding Fort A River Runs Through
Personalities of Peshawar p. 118
Mehrunnisa Asad Khan
The
LÉL
The
CONNECTION
Ties Bind
That Syed Khurram Shah
p. 96
HOW TO TRAVEL
LIKE A p. 28
Sania Maskatiya takes on
p. 138
NEAR & AFAR 24 26 28
naran
p. 170
&
the magic of
Dream Destinations Destinations Desires How to Travel Like a Fashionista
CITY GUIDE 132
DESTINATION
FASHIONISTA
48Hrs: An Insider’s Guide to Nathiagali
WANDERER
138
Destination Naran & the Magic Of Lake Saif ul Mulk
OFF THE BEATEN TRACK
lake
146
SAIF UL MULUK
Back To Basics: Cycling, Happiness & The Great Outdoors
MY SQUARE MILE
154
An Artist in Vienna
ART SPEAKS
164
Flirting with Abstraction
THE FASHION FIX
170 174
Sania Maskatia takes on NYFW The Shoe Edit
Back To Basics:
CYCLING,
Happiness p. 146
&
The Great Outdoors.
PUBLISHER & EDITOR-IN-CHIEF ASMA CHISHTY MANAGING EDITOR : MARIAM MUSHTAQ EXECUTIVE EDITOR : ZAHRA HIDAYATULLAH DESIGN & LAYOUT : ZOHAIB AKHTAR OBAID-UL-MOHSIN WALI AKHTER SEEMAB UL HASSAN MEDIA SALES : NAEEM ULLAH CIRCULATION INCHARGE : SHAHRAIZ BILAL PUBLISHED BY : Daewoo Pakistan Express Bus Service Ltd. 231, Ferozepur Road, Kalma Chowk, Lahore, Pakistan +92.42.111.007.006 , +92.42.3583.5132 GM MARKETING & SALES (DAEWOO) : SHERIAR HASSAN DEPUTY GENERAL MANAGER, MIS (DAEWOO) : AMIR MEHMOOD LEGAL ADVISOR : BASIT WAHEED WATTOO CONTACT (SALES) : +92 334 423 4681 (NAEEM ULLAH) naeem.ullah@daewoo.com.pk +92 333 488 8203 (KHAWAJA AMMAR) khawaja.ammar@daewoo.com.pk DISTRIBUTORS: NATIONAL NEWS AGENCY PRINTERS : TOPICAL PRINTERS
destinationspk
destinations.com.pk www.destinations.com.pk
destinationspk
contributors Afia Salam
Salman Rashid
Destination Naran & the Magic Of Lake Saif ul Mulk p. 138
Peshawar The First City
A freelance journalist, media development practitioner and social activist, Afia Salam is also Pakistan’s first female cricket journalist. Having worked with some of the leading media houses and advertising agencies in the country, she is now a development communications specialist and provides journalism trainings in the fields of environment, climate change, gender issues and media ethics. A visiting faculty member at IoBM, where she teaches media laws and ethics, she tweets as @afiasalam
Madeeha Syed
Iftikhar Firdous
p. 73
Back To Basics: Cycling, Happiness & The Great Outdoors p. 146
From Purushapura to Peshawar: A journey through Time p. 36
Fellow of the Royal Geographical Society, Salman Rashid is author of nine travel books. He is the only Pakistani to have seen the north face of K-2 and trekked in the shadow of this great mountain. His work – explorations, history, travels – appears in leading national publications. He tweets at @odysseuslahori.
Madeeha Syed is a journalist, an awardwinning documentary filmmaker and radio correspondent constantly looking for excuses to travel. She hates heights but loves mountains; is a long-distance cyclist and certified one-star CMAS diver. And by the end of most trips, a broke backpacker.
Iftikhar Firdous is Editor Investigations for Samaa TV and Digital Properties. Formerly Regional Editor for Express Tribune, KP Bureau, he tweets @IftikharFirdous
Blue Eyed Boy Mobeen Ansari p. 58
editors note from the
Up until the late 70s, Peshawar was a dusty town bordering Afghanistan in what was then simply called the North West Frontier Province; almost akin to what the Wild West was to East Coast America- a land untamed and far out. What remained less-talked-about back then, and what remains less-talked-about even now, is the fact it is possibly one of Pakistan’s oldest living cities with recorded history dating back 2500 years. A city of artisans and craftsmen, of music lovers and story tellers, of kehvadrinkers and genial hosts. Today, it is a place that is broadly defined by its geological proximity to the global war it has been pulled at the forefront of. However, there is more meaning to it for the discerning eye. Despite years of conflict and turbulence, Peshawar has not lost its intrinsic spirit for creating beautiful objets d’art. This ancient town is fighting one battle at a time to reclaim its space amongst the world’s most authentic centers for art and culture.
This issue is dedicated to the unbeatable spirit of this historic city. This land as old as time itself was once ruled by Kanishka, the greatest of the Kushan kings, visited by many conquering forces, and homed many a weary traveler- giving birth to cross-cultures, coexistence between ethnicities, religions, languages and a tradition of story telling, sipping tea together and playing soft music.
ASMA CHISHTY
PUBLISHER & EDITOR-IN-CHIEF
Present day Peshawar celebrates this legacy through all the wonderful people who call it home. While most continue to live there, there are others who despite moving away to farther corners of the world keep coming back periodically. Afan Aziz remains a bona fide resident, and so does Aamer Shafiq of the music band, Khumaariyan making music that is wildly popular. Noted journalist and a lover of his hometown, Iftikhar Firdous also continues to call it home and so do the talented ladies at Lél - Farhana and Mehrunnisa Asad Khan, creating world class furniture and home accents in their workshop with local artisans. Khurram Shah has moved to Lahore and so has Farid Jan. Zeb Khan now lives in the South of France. They all remain deeply rooted and are frequent visitors. This month all eyes are on Peshawar as it embarks on a new journey of rebuilding, restoration and resilience. In a bid to bring the city’s public transportation at par with other modern functioning cities around the world, the Government of KP has initiated the much-needed Bus Rapid Transit System. There’s news of opening Fort Bala Hissar and the Governor House to the public. Planting further trees. Setting up more schools. It seems every few hundred years, time automatically sets things straight here. As the wheels of progress are set in motion, this time we hope peace and glory are here to stay.
ZAHRA HIDAYATULLAH EXECUTIVE EDITOR
MARIAM MUSHTAQ MANAGING EDITOR
NEAR & AFAR
Whether you’re craving a domestic getaway or eyeing a more exotic trip abroad, we pick out the best places to help you plan your travels.
How to get there:
CHITTA KATHA LAKE By Faheem Rao Chitta Katha Lake is located in Shounter valley at the elevation of 13,500 feet, making it the highest lake in Azad Kashmir. In the local language, “chitta” means white and “katha” means stream. It is surrounded by huge glaciers on three sides, giving its water a milky white reflection. The valley is a combination of 10 to 12 small villages steeped in natural beauty. 24
The lake is situated to the northeast of Muzaffarabad. You will have to travel a distance of 155 kilometers from Muzaffarabad on a very good road to reach the lush green town of Kel. From there, it’s a 4-hour difficult jeep track which takes you to the base camp village of Chitta Katha Lake known as Domel. After that, there is a beautiful riverside trail of 6 to 8 hours to the lake which will test your trekking skills and patience. To ensure easy access, a public 4x4 jeep facility is also available between Kel and Domel every 3 to 4 hours.
aid, mobile communication, basic trekking equipment and comfortable accommodation at reasonable price. It is highly recommended to hire a porter/ guide from Deck-1 so that you can enjoy the journey without worrying about the luggage and directions
What to do:
Camping under the crystal clear skies of the valley is an unforgettable experience. If the weather is clear, you may be lucky enough to catch rainbows at the 3 famous waterfalls before the lake. Once you are done with the exploration of Chitta Katha Lake, take the opportunity to drive up to Shounter Waterfall. On the way, you will cross a green water lake named Chamach (spoon) Jheel because it is shaped like a spoon. The valley is The locals have now established dotted with beautiful wooden mosques where you can offer prayers and very good camp villages on also interact with the friendly locals. Deck-1 (Neelum Hauz) and Deck-2 If you get a chance, don’t miss the (Chitta Katha village – the last opportunity to attend a local wedding dwelling before the lake) where ceremony to get to know about their you can easily find quality food, interesting norms and traditions. fresh fruits, fountain water, first
Where to stay:
CUSCO, PERU
Located in south-eastern Peru, just miles from the city of the kings, Cusco has its own rich history. Once the capital of the great Inca Empire, its archaeological sites give testimony to its heritage. As the oldest city to be continuously populated since 1200 A.D., its ancient locations have attracted tourists for decades
How to get there: The city of Cusco is located 573 km from Lima. Lima can be reached from Pakistan through connecting flights in 1 day, depending on the route taken. Cusco can then be reached through either via air or by road.
Where to stay: From luxury hotels and spas to inexpensive hostels and adventurous sky lodges, Cusco offers a place for every budget and taste. The Belmond Palacio Nazarenas, especially, is a treat for every tourist.
What to do: From cathedrals, museums and markets to authentic Peruvian cuisine and ancient sites, Cusco offers a plethora of activities that make it a tourist’s dream. A few must see places include the Qorikancha Temple, Sacsayhuaman, the Inca Museum and ChocoMuseo, Sacred Valley of Incas, Tipon and the Rainbow Mountain. But the one site that beats all is one of the new Seven Wonders of the World, Machu Picchu. With its intricate irrigation system, the Temple of the Three Windows, the Water Mirrors and the sun temple, Torreon Machu Picchu is a magical journey.
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NEAR & AFAR Our guide to what we’re currently loving.
desires
1 Daachi Arts and Crafts Exhibition The bi-annual Daachi Arts and Crafts Exhibition returns yet again this November at Qasr-e-Noor, Model Town. Featuring a variety of products ranging from pottery to jewellery, shawls to stone carvings, the three-day event will bring together artisans and entrepreneurs from all across Pakistan as they display their eclectic wares under one roof. Whether you’re looking to add an ethnic touch to your home, or find the perfect off-beat present for a special someone, a visit is a must. Daachi Arts and Crafts Exhibition will be held from the 3rd to the 5th of November at Qasr-e-Noor, Community Centre, Model Town, Lahore
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Wusaaq Taking you back to the mid-century grandeur of the subcontinent, Wusaaq is a private guesthouse located in Gulberg, Lahore’s vibrant centre. Lovingly restored to its former glory, the architecture as well as with the terracotta flooring, multilevel terraces, a glowing courtyard and sun-drenched corridors create a home away from home. Enjoy an eclectic art collection, homecooked local delicacies served al-fresco and all the comforts of a modern hotel. Bookings can be made through airbnb.com.
DIL Hong Kong’s Annual Gala DIL Hong Kong is hosting their annual dinner as they celebrate 20 years of educating and empowering underprivileged children, especially girls, in Pakistan on November 17, 2018 at Cipriani Restaurant. Saad Haroon, the first Pakistani stand-up comedian, will be performing at the gala. The Hong Kong Chapter of DIL was incorporated in 2013. In line with the organisation’s vision, the chapter has adopted two schools from underprivileged areas in Pakistan and has been funding their full set of expenses including teacher training, staff salaries, construction and maintenance of classrooms and laboratories, among others. For more information visit www.dil.org
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Faiz International Festival A blend of music, art and literature, the Faiz International Festival has become a highly anticipated event on Lahore’s cultural calendar. This year, as always, the festival will feature theater performances, musical evenings, film screenings, art exhibitions, discussions, folk nights and much more. The threeday event is free and open for all to attend. Faiz International Festival will be held from the 16th to 18th of November at the Alhamra Arts Council, Mall Road, Lahore
Meat the Cheese Describing itself as an “urban cheese cellar lounge and a steakhouse”, this Karachi import has recently opened its doors to Lahore and has been winning rave reviews since its launch. From the juicy steaks to the perfectly cheesy fries and the delicious burgers, this is the perfect place to go to satisfy your carnivorous cravings.
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Shawls Niche With the festive season right around the corner, the hunt for the perfect accessory is on, and a Kashmiri shawl presents the ideal solution. Shawls Niche is a brand that with strong roots in Kashmir, producing the finest artisan-made goods handcrafted on the basis of fair-trade and ecofriendly principles, by economically disadvantaged and marginalized producers. The exquisite, handmade shawls are available at Saleem Fabrics, Liberty Market, Lahore.
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Address: C-3 Gulberg III Noor Jehan Road, Hussain Chowk, Lahore
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NEAR & AFAR
HOW TO TRAVEL LIKE A
FASHIONISTA Cityscapes or the great outdoors – what’s your travel vibe? Whether you seek urban adventures or an escape into nature, our favourite celebrities show you how to do it in style.
Tabesh Khoja in Doha
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Iqra Aziz in Cappadocia
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NEAR & AFAR
Amber Liaqat in Khaplu
Iqra Aziz in Cappadocia 30
Faisal Kapadia & Bilal Maqsood in Istanbul
Anoushay Ashraf in Naran
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NEAR & AFAR
Ayesha Omer in London
Hasnain Lehri in Venice Aroosa & Rashid Rana in New York
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Juju Haider & Redah Amir in London
Umar Sayeed & Mahira Khan in Istanbul
Umar Sayeed in Istanbul 33
PESHAWAR – A REDISCOVERY
Sethi Haveli
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From
Purushapura to Peshawar A Journey through
Time
By Iftikhar Firdous
Noted journalist and a native of Peshawar, Iftikhar Firdous takes us on an enchanted journey of his beloved ancient hometown through times present and times past. As you trawl through old bazaars and cross historical monuments, you get to soak in the vibe of a city that has been alive for almost 2,500 years now, homing and enabling multi-cultural and multi-lingual communities to converge and coexist in complete peace. Photography: Mobeen Ansari
PESHAWAR – A REDISCOVERY
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It is a city wrapped in nostalgia. The sense of belonging here relates to a past that, while one never witnessed, one can easily conjure up. As you utter the word ‘Peshawar’, before the plosive “P” can reach the rhotic “R”, your eyes roll back into their hammocks and a city begins reconstructing itself. Before you know it, you’ve entered the Asmai Gate, the shimmer of gold in the ornate shops almost too much for the gaze, softened only by the alluring lapis lazuli brought from Badakshan. You won’t stop there for long; with the next step you’re in the year 1892 and the Hastings Memorial is being inaugurated. In a moment, it is renamed Chowk Yadgar, it’s 1965! The clangour of metal utensils from the Raiti Bazaar brings you back to the present. But something adamantly pulls you to return to the times gone by.
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Sethi Haveli
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Jharokas in Qissa Khwani Bazaar
Metalsmiths busy at work before dawn, Qissa Khwani
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You find yourself looking into Karimpura, where the bells of the mandir, Dargah Sri Peer Rattan Nath Ji, are being rung. Traders from the Bazaar-e-Kalan look out of their jharokas (an overhanging enclosed balcony, ornamental in design) to hear the azaan from Masjid Mahabat Khan. It’s all there, even the little-known Rishi Midwifery Hospital established by the Jewish community that once lived in the Muhalla Kheshgi. And while you feel the diversity of the city with closed eyes, you’re almost shaken by its symmetry – the entire edifice of culture and faith folds into the Gor Khatri citadel: Islam, Hinduism, Buddhism, Sikhism and the Raj all packaged like a gift called the Walled City. You wait to hear more, you think it can be sustained but then a long prelude to silence ends and when your eyes finally open, you are bound to ask, “Where did that Peshawar go?” Fa Hien, the Chinese travelling monk of the 4th century called it Polusha (Purusha). Three hundred years later, during the Tang dynasty, the historian Hiun Tsang who journeyed to collect scriptures of Indian and Chinese Buddhism through the city, referred to it as PoloshaPulo (Purushapura) while the Mas’udi, Al Beruni, Abul Fazl described it as Parashawur. The present name, Peshawar, is ascribed to Emperor Akbar – which the historian SM Jaffar wrote “means Frontier Town”. It is one of the oldest cities of the world, located at the confluence of Persian and Indian civilizations and has been nurtured by diversity and culture. Growing up in Peshawar in the 90’s was a medley with bits of Pashto, Hindko, Farsi, Dari and Punjabi. The silent murmurs of the Afghan war in school became violent protests in college. It’s as though the city jumped a quantum of a millennium, literally by the year 2000.
With this thought in mind, the KP Directorate of Archaeology and Museums has set out to build a heritage trail aiming to restore historical sites and adding facilities to make it tourist-friendly. The PKR 300 million worth trail makes its way through a number of landmarks that tell stories of the city’s historical past. The trail begins at the Cunningham Clock Tower, locally known as Ghanta Ghar. The historical clock tower illustrates history even if it no longer tells the hour. Dating back to the 20th century, the tower was erected on Queen Victoria’s diamond jubilee celebrations and named after AFG Cunningham – then commissioner of Peshawar and its surrounding districts. Now home to an illegal fish market, the tower’s foundation is eroding due to the water used to keep seafood fresh. Although the directorate managed to restore part of the clock tower, unfortunately it could not succeed in moving the fish market elsewhere; its efforts to preserve the richness of this antique beauty marred by a lack of regard for historical conservation. The trail then leads you to Bazaar-e-Kala and the Sethian Mohalla – once an upscale neighbourhood housing seven palatial wooden havelis (mansions) built in 1882 by the Sethis, a trading family who benefitted from international transactions mostly in connection to Central Asia. After the Bolsheviks toppled the Czarist Empire of Russia towards the close of the First World War, the Sethis’ fortune fell (they lost both Central Asian markets and valuable bonds that no longer held value in the face of new age currency). But to this day, the havelis (known as the jewels in Peshawar’s crown) serve as a reminder to their opulent and lavish lifestyles. In 2006, the archaeology department acquired the rights to one of the havelis and began its conservation process. The haveli is truly a sight to behold; it stands as a testament to mastery over delicate woodwork carved into floral and geometric patterns. The renovated structure was opened to the public in February 2013 and continues to receive local tourists every day.
Everything begun crumpling; the ideals of diversity and acceptance faded into historical books. The red bricks of the Mughal architecture were impeded by sand bags, barbed wire and concrete blocks. For more than a decade the city reeked of dynamite and Moving forward, the trail brings you to Gor Khatri – a blood. Many left, those who stayed back clung to a caravanserai built over the site of ancient ruins. The thin bark of hope: “There will be good times again.” complex, partly restored by the KP Government, boasts remnants of history from the 16th through the 20th And now when the war has subsided amid perishing century. historical structures in the Walled City of Peshawar, some crumbling monuments stand strong. The iconic In the 16th century, Mughal Princess Jahanara Begum architecture may be marred by time yet the residual built the caravanserai – Sarai Jahanabad – aiming to grandeur remains the city’s pride. provide shelter to traders travelling between India and Asia. It housed a mosque, a sauna bath and two wells. Recognising the worth of rich history, the Khyber Pakhtunkhwa government plans on fostering the The refurbished Sarai Jahanabad rooms are protected architecture as a tourist attraction. The historical by aluminium gates and rented out to artisans buildings, if restored, along with the lush green displaying a variety of crafts promoting Pakhtun valleys of the province, can provide a wholesome heritage. The building is also used for exhibitions and experience to tourists and generate revenue for the local art events. government. In the 20th century, the fortified compound was
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Ghor Khatri Photo by Uzair Aziz
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Gorakshanath mandir, located inside the premises of Ghor Khatri excavation site
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Mahabat Khan mosque Photo by Uzair Aziz
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Mahabat Khan mosque
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Ceiling patterns in Mahabat Khan mosque
Mahabat Khan mosque
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Vendors in Qissa Khwani Bazaar
declared Peshawar’s first Governor House when Italian mercenary general Paolo Avitabile – made governor by Ranjeet Singh – adopted it as his residence in 1838. The Italian mercenary general added two tall gates on either sides and rooms on the top floor that boast skyline view of the city as the structure lies at the tallest point of the old city.
architecture but the majority are now just part of history books.
During the Sikh rule, a Lord Shiva temple for Hindus and a gurudwara for the Sikhs were constructed within the compound. The 17th century Guru Gorakhnath Gurudwara and Lord Shiva Temple maintain their original structure with an added wall surrounding them. The temples are open for worship.
Once you enter through the Asmai Gate, you find yourself in the Ander Shehr, in the goldsmiths market, a narrow serpentine street with glittering gold everywhere. The Vishnu Bairagi Temple of Asmai, named after Asa Devi whose Asthan was visited by Guru Nanak, the founder of the Sikhism, can be found here. The temple was damaged after it was sold to a merchant from the Khyber tribal district, who wanted to demolish it. However, it is now being reconstructed.
The site saw further additions during the British Raj – the most famous is a firehouse built in 1912. The fire brigade exists to date with two vintage fire engines manufactured in 1918 and 1921 by Merryweather and Sons of London respectively. In January 2014, the KP Government, backed by the President of the Vintage and Classic Car Club of Pakistan, Mohsin Ikram, and Karachi-based expert Romano Karim, breathed new life into the engine remnants. The restoration cost almost PKR 25 million.
Close to the temple is the Masjid Mahabat Khan, the biggest and the most beautifully built of all Mughal mosques in the city. It was built by Zamana Baig, also known as Mahabat Khan, an officer of the Mughal Emperor Shahjehan. The white marble of the mosque has a cooling effect like no other place and its pool of water has a blue texture to it, much similar to the Badshahi Mosque in Lahore and Delhi’s Jamia Masjid.
The government also restored the firehouse in 2016. After three years of conservation work, the building is considered a popular tourist attraction for both locals and foreigners.
Outside the Ander Shehr was the Hastings Memorial that carried inscriptions in no less than three languages – English, Persian and Pashto, to perpetuate the memory of Colonel EC Hastings who died there December, 1884. It once stood between the Mahabat Khan Mosque and the Cunningham Clock Tower. However, the memorial was taken down to construct an underground parking.
Archaeologists have excavated the Gor Khatri complex in attempts to establish an exact historical profile of the city. The artifacts removed from the site are displayed at the city museum within the compound. The four-year-long excavation study, published in the British Journal of Current World Archaeology under the title ‘The deepest and the biggest excavation in the world’, revealed 20 layers of the city ranging from the British to the pre-Indo Greek era. The research found traces of Peshawar as a province in the 4th to 6th century Persian Achaemenid Empire. Where the trail shows potential for tourism, it has been beleaguered by lack of a working traffic plan and reluctant locals who fear losing control of their beloved history. The heritage trail is definitely a great effort and its significance cannot be undermined, but to say that the diversity of the historical beauty of the city is only limited to the trail is a severe reduction of history and what other architectural wonders the city has to offer. The Asmai Gate is one the 16 gates that the Walled City of Peshawar once had. The wall around the city, built for its protection by General Avitabile, was 15 feet high and 2 feet thick and its remains can still be seen. Some of the gates have been resurrected as part of the restoration project of the city’s
It is from here that you turn towards the Dal Garan Bazaar, where the aroma of green and black tea floats through the air and busy shopkeepers keep their customers engaged in determining the perfect brew. And when the trail ends, you find yourself in Qissa Khwani Bazaar. The famous storytellers market where no longer will you find camels and horses and traders from Samarkand and Bukhara but thriving local businesses and hardly an empty space to step on. The stories here have changed but the atmosphere and the essence of conversation remains the same. There are other places in Peshawar that carry countless stories and distant memories – Khudadad Hamam, Chitrali Bazaar, All Saint’s Church, to name a few – because while time may run out to visit the history of Peshawar, the list of places will not. Sometimes it seems that even living through 2,500 years of history is still not enough to uncover all the secrets of the past.
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Mahabat Khan mosque Photo by Uzair Aziz
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SOHAIL ABAD
DESTINATIONS EXCLUSIVE This original map has been developed as part of our Peshawar special edition to highlight the key sights and monuments along the city’s historic Heritage Trail and beyond.
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Blue Eyed PESHAWAR – A REDISCOVERY
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Light eyed and fair skinned, supermodel Aimal Khan is the quintessential Pathan. His ties to the region, however, are more than just skin deep. Having grown up in Peshawar, the city has not only shaped his identity and his values – it continues to hold a deep attachment for him, beckoning him to return to his native land whenever he gets the chance. On his last visit to his home city, Aimal took us around some of Peshawar’s most captivating historical spots. From the mystical aura of the Qissa Khwani Bazaar to the architectural splendour of the Sethi Haveli, he soaks in his favourite spots as the country’s most celebrated travel photographer, Mobeen Ansari captures the walkabout.
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Aimal Khan Mobeen Ansari Republic by Omar Farooq Borjan Shoes Toni & Guy
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PESHAWAR – A REDISCOVERY
Peshawar The First City By Salman Rashid
Peshawar is Pakistan’s oldest living city. Much of its history remains shrouded in clouds of dust revved up by the hooves of conquering forces and centuries of political upheaval. At the heart of it all is the city of flowers that retains its mystique in crowded bazaars, in qehvakhanas and in caravanserais that homed many a weary traveller. Explorer and travel writer Salman Rashid narrates a compelling tale as he weaves through 2500 years of its recorded history, noting down conquests and observations made by famous historical figures through time.
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eshawar is not about the clatter of armoury, the tramp of soldiers’ feet and the raging din of battle; it is not of a city on fire and the cries of the dying. Peshawar is about murmured prayer, of the ringing of the temple bell and the call from the minaret, the clang of the jaras – the bell around the camel’s neck in the caravan – and the soft plop of the animals’ feet on unpaved streets, it is of the vendor crying his wares in streets where rows of shops run on either side and which are crowded with buyers and sellers. Peshawar is about long distance travellers, of caravanserais and story-tellers.
It was April 1977, and I was wandering about Namak Mandi in Ander Shehr (Inner City) Peshawar. In a narrow street lined with stores and qehvakhanas, it leapt straight out of a story-teller’s repertoire: the caravanserai with its open-to-the-sky courtyard and spacious rooms on all four sides. A timber staircase led to the floor above where smaller rooms were equipped with fireplaces. But in 1977, the fireplaces were cold, the rooms empty and dusty, unused for perhaps a couple of decades and the downstairs rooms served as warehouse for packaged goods. The men working in the warehouse did not mind my pottering around and in those few minutes I was taken back through the centuries. I saw the caravans work their way along the street, the camels – all double-humped Bactrians – coming through the high gateway of the sarai and crouched in the courtyard to be unloaded. The travellers, dusty and tired, wishing only the bath and then the tryst with the story-tellers of the nearby bazaar. There, after the meal, the tales would flow over endless cups of qehva. Peshawar was the stuff of stories written centuries before our time. By all accounts, the city’s ancient name was Pushpapura – City of Flowers. Two thousand years after being bestowed this beautiful title, Pushpapura enthralled Babur. In 1504, the first Mughal king of India: waxing eloquent, recounts the colours of the flowers grown in plots to ‘form a sextuple’. Here ‘as far as the eye reached, flowers were in bloom’. He concluded that in spring the fields near the city were truly beautiful with blossoms of every colour.
THE REAL STORY OF PESHAWAR In the year BCE 520, Skylax, the sea captain from Karyanda, mispronouced the name of the city. Commissioned by Darius the Great of Persia to map the Indus River, Skylax set down the Kabul River near the city he calls Kaspatyrus. His work, cited by later Greek and Roman authors, is lost and we know of no other detail the explorer noted on the city. Shortly after Skylax’s reconnaissance, by BCE 515 Darius annexed all of what is now Pakistan to his empire. And so, Peshawar together with the rest of the country became a tribute payer to the King of Kings. Two centuries of peace ensued and here in Peshawar followers of the new religion of Buddha lived besides singers of Vedic hymns and followers of Zoroaster. In BCE 326, Alexander’s generals Krateros and Haphaestion brought down through Khyber Pass two divisions of the army and rested a few days in Peshawar. The Greeks were as tolerant of different beliefs as their predecessors and even if the governor was changed, life went on undisturbed. But Alexander’s kingdom was short-lived. No sooner had his body lost the colour of life in distant Babylon, there began the great struggle among his generals to be ‘the strongest’. That is what the comatose king had said when his generals asked him who the kingdom would go to. The Greek governor left Peshawar to find his fortune in that struggle and Chandragupta Maurya took control of the country. The year was BCE 322. Even if Chandragupta and his grandson Asoka are celebrated for the brilliance of their rule, it is only the nature of empires to decay. The fall of the Mauryan Empire gave way to the Greeks whose grandsires had first entered India with Alexander. Having taken over Afghanistan, the Indo-Greeks, as historians today refer to them, established themselves by BCE 180 over much of Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa and Punjab. This was only the beginning of the great pageant of dynasties that ruled over the City of Flowers.
The Greeks gave way to the Persian speaking Parthians who were supplanted by gold-wearing Scythians who, in turn, succumbed to the Kushans under the brilliant builder Kanishka (c. 127- 150 CE). Noted as the greatest among the Kushan kings, Kanishka ordered the building of one huge stupa said to be no less than a hundred and twenty metres tall (an obvious exaggeration). According to prominent Chinese pilgrims and Buddhists of the time, beside this towering edifice, a smaller one appeared miraculously after the main dome was raised. They record that on his visit to Peshawar, Buddha had foretold not only the name of Kanishka but also that he would build a stupa and a monastery. By the end of the 3rd century of the Common Era, the wheel turned full circle to the Persians, now it was the Sassanian dynasty.
A hundred years later, in CE 518, came the famous Chinese pilgrim, Sung Yun, who lamented the ‘most barbarous atrocities’ of the ‘cruel and vindictive’ Mehr Gul passing only a hundred years before his time. He too stood before the great stupa in silent prayer with folded hands and told us that a pipal tree shading the stupa with ‘thick foliage’ was the very one the great Kanishka had himself planted. No sooner had the barbarians passed on to the east to be finally defeated by a confederacy of Rajputs in Cholistan in CE 528, Peshawar rebounded. Once again trading caravans came down the Khyber; the bazaars thronged, the story-tellers regaled their audiences and the flowers grew. Once again peace returned to Peshawar, this time for five hundred years.
By the end of the 3rd century of the Common Era, the wheel turned full circle to the Persians, now it was the Sassanian dynasty.
In the early 5th century (CE 400), Fa Hian, the Chinese Buddhist pilgrim, arrived in the city he called Purushapura. Kanishka had been dead for over two centuries, but he noted that his magnificent stupa was almost as good as new and it was the centre to which every Buddhist gravitated.
In the last quarter of the 5th century, the savage Huns poured down the western passes to ravage Peshawar. And if the great Buddha had indeed said that the stupa to be built by the pious Kanishka would be destroyed seven times and rebuilt, the first devastation was upon it. Without remorse and without regard for woman, man or child, the Huns, first under Tor Aman and then his son Mehr Gul, raped, killed and sacked. In centuries of political upheaval, Peshawar had seen a few battles, but never such wanton brutality and destruction. The city was left a smouldering ruin.
In the year CE 631, Peshawar was visited the most celebrated Buddhist teacher Xuanzang. He described the gilded dome of the main stupa and mentioned a hundred other stupas surrounding it. He also noticed the pipal tree which would now have been over four hundred years old. Buddhism, the master lamented, was on the decline and the monastery in decay, however. That all these luminaries setting out of China on their quest for the true word of the great Buddha in India came through Purushapura tells us that the city lay on a major travel route. As the great trans-Asian highway now called the Silk Road dipped down from Samarkand to cross the Hindu Kush Mountains into Kabul, it extended eastward across the barren rocks of the Khyber Pass to make Peshawar. 75
PESHAWAR – A REDISCOVERY In these years of peace in the Khyber Pass, the powerful Hindu Shahya rulers of Kashmir extended their sway through Peshawar to Kabul and all remained well. Now amid the ruins of Kanishka’s monastery, the sound of Buddhist hymns gave way to the Vedic. And then in the closing years of the 10th century came the plundering Turks. After the initial excursions of Subuktagin, his son Mahmood was unstoppable. Ostensibly driven to spread the glory of Islam to heathen India, the man was in reality a common robber with his eye on the wealth of the subcontinent and Peshawar suffered greatly. In time, however, the city came to be spared vengefulness because of the growing number of Muslims among its populace. Thereafter were another five hundred years of repeated upheavals as the Ghaznavides gave way to the Slave Dynasty, then briefly the Mongols and, from the early 16th century, the Mughals. In the Middle Ages, the flowers of the city may have already been celebrated, but now the roadweary travellers were only intent on reaching India, the land of culture, learning and wealth untold. The City of Flowers became Pesh-Awar – the First Comer – the first city of the subcontinent. On his first visit to Parshawar, Babur, the founder and first Emperor of the Mughal Empire, divulges something very interesting: tales of Gorkhatri had been told him and that it was a ‘holy place of jogis and Hindus who came from far places to shave their heads and beards there.” Gorkhatri, signifying House of the Hindu, was located in
the precinct of Begram in the city. Thence he rode from his camp at Jamrud. He toured the place and even remarked on the ‘great tree’, surely the very one Kanishka had planted nearly thirteen centuries earlier and which the Chinese pilgrims had marvelled on. But our warrior poet made no mention of the great stupa. That the place was now called House of the Hindu shows that by this time Buddhism was all but forgotten in these parts. But Babur found nothing of interest. His guide, Abu Said, thinking his esteemed guest would find the dark and the cramped space unsavoury did not show Babur the underground vaults. When, back in Jamrud, Babur complained about uninteresting Gorkhatri, the guide confessed he had on purpose not shown him the vaults because of the difficulty of getting into them which. The man was roundly upbraided, but as the way back was long and the day almost over, Babur deferred the dungeons for a subsequent visit. In March 1519, on his way to establish the Mughal Empire in India, Babur paused at Gorkhatri, ‘a smallish abode’ much like a hermitage. All around was a large number of smaller cells as in a Buddhist monastery recalling the time when it was indeed that. Holding a lamp, he crawled on all fours into the dark oubliette through a mess of human hair. The man was disgusted. He recalled his earlier visit and how he had rued being denied a peek. Now he wryly noted, ‘but it does not seem a place to regret not seeing.’ After the decay of the Mughal Empire, the Turk Nadir Shah of Persia set his eyes on its wealth and mounted repeated incursions on this land. Peace finally returned with Ranjit Singh’s reign as the Khalsas took over.
PESHAWAR – A REDISCOVERY THE WALL OF PESHAWAR’S SPOKEN WORD, BRICK BY BRICK Peshawar was never a city of Pakhtuns who spoke a language rising out of ancient Avestan. It was a city of traders, professionals and scholars who spoke a language derived from Punjabi and Kashmiri with a sprinkling of Gujarati from a long way off to the south. Even in the Middle Ages, natives of Pushpapura would have been surnamed Chawla or Arora or Piracha rather than Afridi or Yusufzai. Sometime after the Pakhtuns converted to Islam, the language of Peshawar and indeed of other cities of the province came to be known as Hindko after the largely Hindu population. As a city whose businessmen dealt with traders from distant lands, Peshawar was multi-lingual. The Hindko speaker was equally comfortable in the Pashto of the man come down from the Khyber defiles or from Waziristan as he was in Uzbek or a couple of other Turkish dialects.
PESHAWAR, UNDER THE BRITISH RAJ That is how British administrators of the East India Company found the city in the mid-19th century. It was an island of peaceful businesspeople surrounded by a host, staunchly religious, sometimes peaceful and friendly, otherwise turbulent and troublesome. They could be seen swaggering about in their large turbans, baggy shalwars and flowing collar-less kurtas with a tassel, rather than buttons, on the side to tie as they did business with the dhoticlad storekeeper. Upon taking over, the British repaired the old fort and set about constructing a cantonment. Among the earliest buildings was the deputy commissioner’s residence built in 1849. On a natural mound that very likely conceals the remains of an ancient past, they raised an edifice that was a clean break from the traditional fortified houses of tribal chiefs just outside the cantonment. Visiting Pakhtun dignitaries would surely have found madness in the exposed veranda and the absence of crenulations or loopholes along the parapet of the building. It was either that or some hidden strength they failed to see. Whatever was thought of it, the administrators did not change the building. It was only added to and it eventually became the Governor House.
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LIFE BEFORE 1979 Even as the British built their churches, mission schools and the Saddar Bazaar, life in the old city remained unchanged. And so it continued to 1977 when I first became acquainted with Peshawar as a grown up. It was a city to fall in love with. The flowers that Babur had exulted over were everywhere: in parks, in every private garden, in the sprawling grounds of Islamia College and even along the roads and amid the tombstones of the Christian cemetery. In spring when the millions of roses were in full bloom in Peshawar, the city was swamped with fragrance and I wanted to call it The Rosary: for if a vine-growing orchard is a vinery, surely a city of roses was a Rosary. Though there were no double-humped camels plodding in with their loads from the marts of Samarkand and Fergana, the bazaars somehow retained the ageless colour. In open-fronted stores, the gentleman shopkeeper with his dark vest and karakul cap leaned forward to speak softly to the Khan from some village in Tirah or deeper still from the land of the Orakzais. You could tell the visitor was a Khan for his chin was clean-shaven, his moustaches neatly trimmed, his shalwar kameez crisp and he too wore the dark vest and karakul hat. But he also carried his pistol and a belt full of ammo slung across his shoulders. They could well be talking of the next crop of maize to be brought in from the uplands or the set of copperware needed for a wedding in the Khan’s family, but the very air of frontier town Peshawar made me feel they were conspiring. The bazaars of Ander Shehr (inner city) were replete with scenes from an imagination honed by Kipling. The air was so clean, that in the winter of ’77 when it rained in Peshawar, we could espy new snow on the hills of Landi Kotal. Peshawar was just like that when I left it in August 1978 telling my friends I would come to live here when I retired.
LIFE AFTER 1979 I returned in 1985. It was as if centuries had affected the huge change. Countless boxy vans with ‘TRP’ registration plates emitting dark clouds of smoke drove roughshod around the city. Boy conductors shouted in the Kabul dialect of Pashto (sometimes in Dari) to draw commuters and there were Afghans everywhere. They were either ‘mujahedeen’ or refugees. But they altered the personality of Peshawar. It was no longer the city I wanted to retire to. Five years ago, my friend Dr Syed Amjad Hussain who migrated decades ago from his Meena Bazaar home in the city to Boston, took me walkabout in the old streets. We ended up at the excavation near Gorkhatri. There we stood looking down the pit into the layers of habitation spread across two and a half millenniums. They were all there: the Persian Achaemenian, Punjabi Mauryan, Greek, Parthian, Scythian, Kushan, Sassanian, Hun, Hindu Shahya, Ghaznavide, Ghorid, Mughals and Sikh. The archaeologists at hand said there were layers below the bottom and boasted that Peshawar was the oldest living city of Pakistan. I knew it was no empty brag. No matter what they said about Lahore, those of us who have read their ancient geography and history know that Lahore was a city only when Peshawar was already fifteen hundred years old. If Peshawar could live through all the upheavals that the layers of cultural remains show in the Gorkhatri excavation, surely it can come out of the damage inflicted upon its soul in the years during and after the Soviet invasion of Afghanistan. Call it what you will: Pushpapura, Kaspatyrus, Purushapura (from which our pious Chinese called it Polu-sha-pu-lo), Parshawar or Peshawar, its flowers still bloom and channel their fragrance.
Upon taking over, the British repaired the old fort and set about constructing a cantonment. Among the earliest buildings was the deputy commissioner’s residence built in 1849.
Peshawar will come through for it is still the City of Flowers.
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An august audience By Iftikhar Firdous
A unique institution that binds the community together by building a keen sense of camaraderie and brotherhood, by serving democratic ideals and justice and upholding knowledge over all else, the Hujra is an integral part of the Pakhtunwali code that governs the life of the Pakhtun tribes and people. Due to political upheaval in the region, it has transitioned from the physical realm to a more secure and economically viable, digital one. Leading journalist, Iftikhar Firdous, narrates the story and significance of this wonderful convention steeped in rich history, culture and its transition into modern consciousness.
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s the sun settles on the PakAfghan border in Mohmand Agency and tribesmen from the Khugalkhel tribe gather under the starry night in a compound that’s nothing more than a façade of brick walls, a slight humming of the rabab relaxes the intensity that surrounds a region ravaged by war. It’s been a difficult decade and while the families of most of the men in the compound live in Peshawar, tribal tradition demands their presence in their native areas to settle disputes and quench their yearning for entertainment in the rugged terrain that has little to offer of what the modern world holds. As the dark edges of the night singe the twilight, the Hujra comes to life, the music of the rabab with chatter over endless cups of kehwa is routine. This gathering is not only an institution that resolves problems but is considered to be a vital part of the Pakhtun tradition to uphold what it stands for. Any mention of the Pakhtun tradition in today’s time would be incomplete without an explicit reference to conflict and migration. But at the heart of it lies a core value system based on hospitality and justice that is now trying to sustain itself in the new world. The Hujra, as an institution to uphold those values, is also evolving. The origin of the Hujra, as an idiosyncratic space of Pakhtuns, is as old as recorded history. Together with the kor (household) and jumaat (mosque) it forms the basis of a tradition, as Professor Raj Wali Shah Khattak, an authority on the subject, has pointed out in his book “The Pakhtun Culture.” As the Pashto tappa goes – Hujra Da Qaam o Kalee Sara – “the Hujra only has value with a tribe and its village.” This folk song captures the essence of the institution. The Hujra serves as a community center for men only. Rokhan Yousafzai, a contemporary historian of Pakhtun culture says that the Hujra was originally a shared space of a tribe or village. “It was considered to be the first school of every Pakhtun child,” says Yousafzai, explaining nostalgically, “it was a gathering where a generation of boys became men.” 82
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PESHAWAR – A REDISCOVERY Yousafzai argues that the ever-expansive city and the knowledge outburst in the form of radio, television and now social networking has altered the way the Hujra is viewed. “It’s impossible to maintain and afford a shared space in the city,” he says, adding that while the younger generation was interested in learning from the elders in the Hujra, it’s the other way round now. “The Hujra will have to evolve or it will die out,” he says, suggesting the ultimate prognosis of the institution. Massive urban migration and displacement in the Pakhtun lands has resulted in several social anomalies. The traditional Hujra usually had courtyards and pathways leading to large rooms, mostly for the guests who stayed back for the night. The design of the Hujra was such that it reflected the Pakhtun value system of equality within a tribe; there were no hierarchal spaces, although respect for elders was considered to be of utmost importance. The furnishing would be a number of charpoys known as the kat. The rabab and chelam were essential commodities and this structure was looked after by the people of the locality. Any transgression against this delicate fabric often resulted in bloody feuds and conflicts. The violation into the personal space of anyone in the Hujra is considered to be the worst form of violation amongst the Pakhtuns. Even the worst of rivals when seated in a Hujra have to maintain adherence to the Pakhtun code called the Pakhtunwali which is an amalgam of three main ideals. Mimastya, Hospitality – All tribespeople are obliged to display their hospitality towards others, whether they are strangers or members of one’s own tribe, and guarantee their security. There are no markers of distinction between guests based on caste, race or religion. Hospitality to travellers and strangers is an obligation. Anyone that cannot be hospitable to his guests is not considered to be a Pakhtun, such is the significance of this convention. The security and protection of visitors is so important that it takes precedence over all other claims including that of justice or retaliation.
This folk song captures the essence of the institution. The Hujra serves as a community center for men only. 84
Nanawati, Pardon – The concept of forgiveness and submission plays an integral role in the Pakhtun way of life. Pukhtunwali demands that it is a duty to grant asylum and provide an abode to a person, even an enemy, who comes to seek protection in peace. This also applies to people who are escaping their enemies. Any harm to a person who has sought Nanawati is considered to be an act of war against the tribe that has given him protection. Badal, Justice – The term literally translates to ‘exchange’ or ‘retaliation’ and implies seeking justice or taking revenge against the wrong done. Justice can be sought in many ways, ranging from redressing through shedding of blood to less drastic measures.
The institution of the Hujra guarantees that the code of Pakhtunwali remains intact by placing the jirga headed by the council of elders into that space and resolving disputes through mutual discussion as opposed to individual action. When a decision is made, every single individual is bound to follow the decision. Noreen Naseer, a professor of Political Economy who has been researching the economic impact of migration and terrorism, believes that the Hujra has been reduced to a baithak in cities. This is an individual’s home space with no rules of Pakhtunwali guarding it, as was the practice. “The Hujra is an expensive space, a luxury for the elite in the cities,” she says. “For a large majority of Pakhtuns, capital management and shaping their economic conditions is now more important than living with an institution of the past they deem as more of a socio- economic liability with no apparent returns.” However, the cultural adaptability of this oncemighty institution has been rapid. In the face of sociological changes, the Hujra has now evolved into a closed Facebook group. Several localities in even some of the most remote areas of the Federally Administered Tribal Areas (FATA) have now created closed groups with only their own village-folk to keep their Hujra intact. “Since it’s not safe to go out of one’s home and maintain a Hujra the way it used to be, we decided to move
beyond the physical realm to a digital one such as Facebook,” Malak Hasim Khan from Bajaur Agency says. “Many of our people in the village have smartphones with internet access and can connect to Facebook, even though there are no official cellular network providers in our areas,” he says. “We have to maintain some sort of tradition, even if it means uploading green tea [virtually],” he concludes with a smile. In the city, the Hujra is now a Whatsapp group with a large number participants from all walks of life and individual backgrounds. “Nobody has the time to meet up daily and discuss their issues,” says Imran Bukhari, the admin of one such group. “Some of the members of the Whatsapp group are even living in a different country, so it just keeps us all connected and updated when someone shares information or requires help.” Bukhari’s group is not about a tribe or community, it is a network of varied individuals ranging from journalists to police officers, politicians to antique dealers, he’s got them all. “The concept behind the group was the realization that if no one can come to the Hujra anymore it’s better to take the Hujra to them; and what better way to do it than using the cell phone,” he says, quoting the famous Pashto poet Hamza Baba, “Jaam De Naway Wee Taaza Sharab Pakar Dee – Renew the Cup, Let the Wine Be Refreshed.”
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Personalities
of Peshawar
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There is no better way to understand the spirit of a city than to meet its people. DESTINATIONS brings you some of Peshawar’s most notable personalities as they discuss their roots and heritage, their values as Pakhtuns, their cuisine and their craft, in an effort to shed light on its rich past and vibrant present.
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The
WonderYears Peshawar native Zeb Khan left her ancestral city many years ago to live in some of the most beautiful cities of the world, eventually settling down in Nice, in the South of France. As the capital of the French Riviera, Nice is known for its elegance, charm and gorgeous views; yet despite the abundant beauty around her, for Zeb the pull of Peshawar remains ever strong – a longing for a place of warmth, comfort and love; a place that she will always call home. In an evocative trip down memory lane, she pens down some of her fondest memories of Peshawar, its culture, heritage and traditions.
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“Where we love is home - home that our feet may leave but not our hearts.”
he ache for home lives in all of us. You can be living in paradise and still miss home. I have been fortunate to have travelled a lot, seen beautiful places and lived in lovely houses all over the world but home is where our story begins. No matter how small a city or dusty or crowded Peshawar is, to me it will always be home sweet home. Every time my plane lands in that city, my heart flutters with happiness and every time I leave, my eyes brim with love of my family and friends, carrying with me fond memories until I return the next time. Falling along the old Silk Road trade route, you can still spot Peshawar’s old grandeur in now-decrepit taverns for travellers where they once sipped green tea and swapped tales of their travels, engaging in commerce and story-telling. This is how Peshawar’s fabled Qissa Khwani Bazaar got its name. The inner city specialised in merchandise that was staple of the old Silk Road trade – silk, copper, spices, dry fruit. In time, the streets came to be known after the wares they specialised in.
Rudyard Kipling wrote
“When spring-time flushes the desert grass Our kafilas wind through the Khyber Pass Lean are the camels but fat the frails Light are the purses but heavy the bales As the snowbound trade of the North comes down To the market-square of Peshawar town.”
My childhood
Every Eid we used to go to my paternal grandfather’s house in Charsadda village. It was about an hour or so away from Peshawar. I so vividly remember a homemade swing in the middle of the open courtyard. It was basically a pole with several ropes hanging from the top part that was moveable. The idea was for two to six kids to hold on to those ropes separately and run around the pole as fast as they could. That way we would be “flying” in the air with both our feet off the ground; when we slowed down we would lower our feet and run again to gain speed. It was good exercise and a lot of fun. The local kids were much better at it and would laugh at us city kids while we clumsily tried to get a hang of it. Childhoods! 90
One of the other highlights of our trip would be to visit the village “garai” where gur (jaggery) was made. People from the North like to use gur (for several purposes) – plain or with different dried nuts mixed in it called masalaydar gur. The man who would be making gur – in a huge flat pan over a high fire in a little mud house – would hand us each a short piece of sugarcane dipped with the fresh gur, the most delicious sweet that I had ever had. It would be warm and soft and, most of all, so fresh! I remember years later taking my kids to revel in that experience. I can’t forget the fascination on their faces when they saw “candy” being made.
What I miss most about my home city
Like many other prominent families, my maternal grandparents had moved to the city from their nearby village decades before I was born. I miss going to my grandmother’s home in the heart of the old city every Sunday (holiday) when we used to live in Peshawar in the early 70’s. It was not so crowded then. She had a lovely house with a fountain in the centre of an open courtyard, coloured stained glass windows, very high ceilings and a huge carved wooden main door with a little hujra outside for the menfolk. All my uncles and aunts and their families would get together to catch up and most of all to enjoy the sumptuous lunch that would be prepared by my grandmother with a lot of love and effort in her huge kitchen on burning wood. There would be several dishes but the one dish all of us thoroughly enjoyed devouring was called shola (spicy khichri) – rice cooked with meat and spices garnished with pure hot ghee and fried crisp onions served with yogurt, salad and pickles. A meal would always end with a big pot of green tea. Always. My grandmother’s was the best. My mother is also known for making it quite well. Me, I try… I miss so many things about Peshawar every day. Those family get-togethers on Eid… living abroad for so many years that opportunity hardly arises now, alas. The fragrance of orange blossoms in the air in spring; the smell of wet earth when it starts to rain. I smile when I smell orange blossoms here in France… takes me back to my happy childhood. Every time. And, of course, the fresh chapli kebabs and naans from the local tandoor! Yummy!
PESHAWAR – A REDISCOVERY
Raj Kapoor
What people may not know about Peshawar and Pakhtuns
Us Pakhtuns are a key ethnic group in Peshawar, intermingling with the city’s culture for centuries – and often setting the city’s underlying cultural norms. Many are unaware that the 2,000 year-old Grand Trunk Road – started by Emperor Chandrakanta Maurya, and eventually finished by Sher Shah Suri – starts in Calcutta and flows all the way through to Peshawar before proceeding on to Kabul. Rudyard Kipling described GT Road thus: “Look. Look again!” A river of life for 1,500 kms unlike any that exists anywhere else in the world. And of course, Peshawar equals Pakhtuns! A Pakhtun is delighted and honoured to receive guests. The simplicity, generosity and warmth with which a Pakhtun welcomes their guests is unmatched. Hosting guests with warm hospitality is considered a sacred duty for Pakhtuns, taking immense pleasure in preparing delicious meals. Us Pakhtuns welcome our guests with traditional greetings like “pa khair raghlay”, “starray mashay”, “her kala ra shai”, “jor takra” – “welcome”, “may you not be tired”, “may you come often” and “hope you are well, hale and hearty.” When the guest leaves he or she is bade farewell with these words, “pa makha day kha” (may your journey/path be good and safe). A fun fact that the people of Peshawar feel somewhat pleased about is that Indian film actor Dilip Kumar was born in Qissa Khwani Bazaar. Actor Shah Rukh Khan’s family still lives in the area. The famed actor Raj Kapoor was born in Peshawar.
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Kapoor Haveli where Raj Kapoor was born
Introducing Peshawar to my children
When my three daughters were young and were growing up in other parts of the world, we used to take them to Peshawar to visit their grandparents and other family members every year. What a wonderful time they all had, running around wide-eyed… and forever clinging to their Babajaan and Nano – their Nano’s chicken rice forever beckoning. Staying in touch with your roots is so fundamentally important. I know they carry deep in their hearts precious memories of Peshawar and the love they received unfailingly. They got every single one of their little wishes fulfilled – there was even a mini zoo put up for them in my Babajaan’s backyard with various local and imported chicken (big German ones!), rabbits, goats, birds, cats, sheep, chicks and last but not the least, a little donkey for them to ride! Today, they are all elegant young ladies building a life for themselves in three corners of the US. Two of my daughters are married now; all three juggling their lives, careers, families… They anxiously wait to take time off from their busy lives to fly to Peshawar – especially to show their husbands around. The periodicity of their visits has reduced somewhat – but the love abounds.
Always happy to see their Babajaan
Playing in their mini-zoo
I try to visit every year to see my family and dear Witnessing a change friends. My mother waits for my March visits and I Peshawar has been continuously developing and to be back in her cajoling care. March is the time growing over the years. The old city, in innerPeshawar, where many historic monuments for orange blossoms in Peshawar. and bazaars exited, used to be a walled city and was surrounded by several main gates that served as the main entry points into the city. The gates would be closed at night for security. With Peshawar’s growth, these ancient gates are no longer in use. Population growth has led to some congestion, leading to traffic issues at times. But, that larger population has also contributed to additional schools, universities and hospitals. Newer residential areas are springing up beyond the somewhat crowed centre. The BRT (Bus Rapid Transit) that is currently under construction will definitely improve the traffic situation. Life certainly appears to have modernized, with newer facilities of entertainment, international food chains and new availability of even designer brands. In the past I remember we had to go to the nearest big city Islamabad to enjoy certain kinds of shopping and food. No longer. The local music scene is surely gaining popularity. Singers and bands like Khumariyaan, Zeb & Haniya, Gul Panra and more are doing wonders for Pashto music. 93
PESHAWAR – A REDISCOVERY The Pakhtun values I want to pass on to my children
“For you, a thousand times over”: The Kite Runner. Brave yet humble, a Pakhtun is deeply respectful and kind. His integrity is beyond question. His sense of dignified hospitality can’t be beat. My daughters are true Pakhtuns, though now with accented-Pashto. I smile when their green/hazel eyes flicker at injustice. They are unafraid to take a stance for the positive. I feel eternally grateful when I witness their strengths in defying so many daily adversities. I feel equally proud watching them spread the Pakhtun vibration in different cultures – unafraid, respectful, strong.
My girls and I playing dress-up as Koochis
My friends and I. Rifle training at our university in Peshawar
Peshawar’s hidden gems
Qila Bala Hesar – the imposing fort and ramparts are a must-see. It still appears to monitor movement along the Grand Trunk Road. Babur built this fort in 1526 after he captured Peshawar, it was later rebuilt by the British. It is now the headquarters of the Frontier Corps. Amongst those streets is the Bazaar-e-Misgaran, the street of copper sellers, once a major draw for tourists and traders seeking the prized brass and bronze ware immaculately crafted by smiths who have lived and worked in Misgaran for generations. Some of the old shops are still there.
Khyber Pass and Qila Jamrud
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Local cuisine
Chapli kebabs, karahi tikkas from Namak Mandi or Charsi Tikka, the freshly baked naans from the local tandoors and the green tea are some of my lifelong favourite local dishes. And of course, shola (spicy khichri) continues to be a firm favourite in the family. Also, a summer drink prepared by my aunt with gur, lemon and ice is an unforgettable taste and pleasure from my childhood I dream of on summer nights.
Peshawar’s best buys
Once upon a time Peshawar was known for its Koochi Bazaar where women loved to go shopping for all kinds of unstitched dress materials. It was an adventure for me to choose cloth for my to-be tailored dresses. Parts of that market still exist. It is such a joy still meandering through those tiny lanes. Peshawar is famous for Afghan carpets, semi precious stones, Peshawri chappals and copper utensils (there is an entire market devoted to this in the old city). People from all over love to visit Bara Bazaar – a market on the outskirts of Peshawar where all kinds of imported household goods including toiletries, crockery and electronics are sold at a fair price. I had a pair of Peshawari chappals custom made for me on my last visit by my local cobbler. They are extremely comfortable and look quite chic when I wear them walking around in France – even though I say so! And, there are these crispy, deep-fried rice flour biscuits (amrassas) available at a particular sweet shop that I can’t have enough of. 95
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Ties Bind
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Growing up in Peshawar, Khurram Shah, Director Communications for Asia, Middle East and North Africa at PepsiCo, was strongly aware of his Pakthtun heritage and the city’s multi-cultural history through the ages. It beckoned him through the wide verandahs and open courtyards of his grandfather’s haveli, built during the Sikh era, where he played as a child. It whispered through the lush green of the colonialera Peshawar Golf Course, built for officers of the British Raj and the site for his numerous victories as a golf champion. It lapped gently along the banks of the Kabul River, an ancient body of water that bore witness to the rule of Alexander, as he spent weekends picnicking nearby. While a respect for Peshawar as one of the oldest cities and cultures in the world is embedded in his conscience, the promise of a new era of progress is what excites him. In this conversation with DESTINATIONS, he shares some of his fondest memories of his city of birth as well as hopes for its future generation. 97
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hare a favourite childhood memory of living in Peshawar.
We used to live on Fort Road, a lovely residential area bordered by ancient chinar trees on either sides of the road. I remember walking to my school, Edwardes College School, in the mornings, under the shade of these trees, with far less traffic around than there is now. I used to love it then. Even now when I visit Peshawar, I make sure I pass through that area and stop over at the college’s cafeteria for a quick cup of chai.
What do you miss most about growing up in your home city?
My childhood friends and family members with whom I grew up and spent so much time, whether playing sports together or just gathered around my grandparents’ house, listening to their stories. I also miss the regular family weekends where indulging in the local delicacy of barbecued lamb was a must. The dish is a specialty of the Pathans of the tribal areas. It is unlike any other, simple but delicious; the key is to choose the right lamb meat and the ingredients (including the kind of charcoal) to cook it.
What is the one thing that most people don’t know about Peshawar and would be surprised to discover?
Peshawar is such a historic city, almost 2,000 years old, and the Old City still holds many wonders and surprises. But I feel the most surprising thing for people is to learn that growing up, my life was in no way conservative or restricted, contrary to common belief about the city. I had a wonderful time in school studying with foreign teachers, and had a normal life at university – carefree and fun, like any other student. 98
Do you visit often?
Yes, we visit often, every 2-3 months or so and especially over Eid breaks. And every time, I have a list of places to see, friends and family to spend time with and my favourite traditional food items to taste. There are also relaxing times at the family farms, on the outskirts of the city
How has the city changed over the years?
Like any other city in Pakistan, Peshawar has seen a lot of development. There are now countless parks, shopping malls and restaurants and it’s refreshing to see families and youth spending time at these public places. At the same time, the population has increased considerably, as many people from the surrounding rural areas have moved to Peshawar for work. Of course so much development has its disadvantages as Peshawar has lost some of its greenery and charm, but with the government’s recent afforestation drive and other on-going projects, I am hopeful that the city will regain its lost splendour in an environmentally sustainable way 99
PESHAWAR – A REDISCOVERY The Pakhtunwali code of honour is well known and respected the world over. What are the core values from it that you find yourself practicing most often?
Pathans have always been noted as fierce fighters, and throughout history have offered strong resistance to invaders. One code that appeals the most to me, which I apply to my life, is honouring elders and friends, and of course being a gracious host. Pathans place a lot of emphasis on guests and taking care of them. Another core value is the fact that I am always there for my loved ones, and I know if I were ever in need, they would be there for me. I try to apply these values in my professional life as well, as I find it useful in my career to be honest, faithful to my duties and a source of support to co-workers. The code does pose some issues also, as it is maledominated. Cultures need to evolve and change with time and leave behind their impractical and restrictive practices. Yet, there are many things about the culture and the code of honour that I am proud of.
How does your Pashtun heritage influence your day-to-day life?
I have a great love for the language, the food, the traditional dress (partoog kameez with kaira), the handmade leather sandals (made even more famous now, thanks to Imran Khan), and some of the core values we have already discussed. They influence my life on a daily basis. I am constantly in touch with my heritage and history through interactions with family, friends and by visiting the city often.
Srikot, KPK
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What is the one place in Peshawar you would consider a hidden gem, or a must-visit?
It would be my grandparents’ house, right in the middle of the city. My late grandfather, former Senator Arbab Nur Muhammad, had bought it from a Sikh family before partition. The property is more than a 100 years old with large verandas and has a beautiful old colonial design to it. It is fully functional and well-maintained so anyone interested in visiting it is always welcome. Also, the Peshawar Golf Club and old Race Course. This is a 100-year-old facility and it is considered one of the best and greenest golf courses in Pakistan. The flora will take your breath away. I have played on it since the age of 8 and have won the Pakistan Junior Golf Champion here on more than one occasion. This place hold very fond memories as it was like my second home after school.
What is your favourite place to eat in the city?
Peshawar is famous for its chapli kebab, and the best are found at the family-owned Bakhshu Pul restaurant on the outskirts of the city. They still use the traditional method of cooking the kebabs (made with their famous secret recipe) on a wood fire. Nothing comes close to the joys of eating a well-cooked chapli kebab with fresh naan and salad on a cold winter night. Then there is Sardaryab, a local picnic spot on the banks of the Kabul River. The fish caught and freshly prepared here is worth a visit. The Karkhano Market, which sells everything from electronics to clothing, toys, watches, cigars, video games, carpets and dry fruit has some of the best green tea in the city, offered by the shopkeepers themselves if you care to strike up a friendly conversation.
Peshawar has a rich and distinct culture and is known for its art, music, food etc. How important do you feel it is to nurture talent, especially amongst the younger generation, in these areas? What steps can be taken in this regard? Culture, heritage, and modernization should go hand in hand. The world is becoming a smaller place thanks to globalization, and one should embrace the exposure while maintaining one’s own distinctiveness. Whether through our educational institutions, the government’s on-going projects as well as the private sector contributing towards community-led initiatives, we need to encourage the younger generation to be confident, to follow their dreams in whatever field they may wish to do so. We need to give them direction and offer them opportunities, outside of their comfort zones and surroundings, to be able to polish their skills and enable and empower them to compete with the rest of the world.
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Fort Holding
Tracing his ancestral roots back to the time when Peshawar was a thriving trade centre along the historic Silk Road, Afan Aziz, CEO of the Aziz Group of Industries, hails from one of the city’s oldest families. From the peaceful city of his childhood to a town riddled by turbulence in more recent times, he has witnessed the changing face of Peshawar through the decades. While many have moved away, Afan and his family continue to stay on, hopeful for a return of Peshawar’s glorious heydey. Here, he provides DESTINATIONS with an insider’s perspective on living in one of the world’s oldest cities in the present day.
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Edwardes College
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ell us briefly about your family.
The Aziz family can trace its roots back to the time when Peshawar served as a trading outpost on the historic Silk Road. My ancestors were merchants who specialized in the fruit trade. It was in the 60s that the family moved from trading into manufacturing, with the establishment of the Aziz Group of Companies by my grandfather, Haji Aziz-ur-Rehman. My father Mohsin Aziz has a long and illustrious history of serving KPK as a minister and he is presently a Senator as well as Chairman of the Senate Standing Committee on Petroleum. I was born in Peshawar and went to school here at Edwardes College, the province’s oldest educational institution. After graduating from the London School of Economics, I joined the family business as a director and was later promoted to CEO. I am also the Honorary Consul of the Republic of Korea for KPK.
What was it like growing up in Peshawar? Share a favourite memory from your childhood.
It’s a well-known fact that Peshawar is the oldest living city in South East Asia and is certainly one of the oldest inhabited cities of the world (according to some estimates based on the excavation of the ancient Gor Khatri site, approximately 2500 years old). To be the resident of such a beautiful and
historical place is a pleasure in itself. Growing up in such a fabulous city had its own charms. In my childhood, it was clean with gardens surrounding it. The city was peaceful and there was hardly any traffic. The prestigious Peshawar Club was a constant when I was growing up – we used to go swimming with our father and devoured the clubs sandwiches and fish and chips afterwards. I have extremely fond memories of the club.
Do you feel the city has changed over the years?
During the Soviet-Afghan War, which lasted for nine years between 1979 and 1988, over 2 million immigrants from Afghanistan settled in Peshawar. The place is now over-populated; most of the gardens have been ruined and turned into housing. Many old trees have been cut down. In the aftermath of the Soviet war, Peshawar suffered from the carnage created by infighting amongst Afghanistan’s warlords. From being a beautiful haven, Peshawar became a soft target for terror groups. We have had to endure many devastating and unfortunate events, such as the attack on the Army Public School. Incidents such as that made it difficult to live in Peshawar; the inhabitants were under continuous strain. Till 2005, I could never have imagined that one would need armed guards to go around the city but it has now become an unfortunate reality. In the last two years, however, I do feel that things have begun to improve. 105
PESHAWAR – A REDISCOVERY What is the one thing that most people don’t know about Peshawar and would be surprised to discover?
People might be surprised to know that Peshawar was once one of the most modern and cultured cities of the world. The Khyber Pass served as the gateway to the subcontinent for travellers coming in from Central Asia. Rulers from different countries and cultures would visit Peshawar and tell their stories in the market known to us as Qissa Khwani Bazaar, which dates back to 1000 years B.C. A British traveller in the late 19th century called the Khyber Bazaar the Piccadilly Circus of Asia, as it played host to a diverse set of nationals all gathering in this city to trade. The city has produced many artists and legends such as Yousaf Khan aka Dilip Kumar, Raj Kapoor, Sunil Dutt, ShahRukh Khan, Madhubala, Firdaus Jamal and Adnan Sami Khan.
Interestingly, Dilip Kumar, one of Peshawar’s most celebrated sons, is related to us. He is my grandfather’s first cousin, with his side of the family moving to a town called Nasik, near Mumbai, India, in the 1930s. The two branches of the family are close and stay in touch.
You still call Peshawar home… did you make a conscious decision to stay on in your city of birth?
The Khyber Pass with the fortress of Alimusjid, Pakistan. Chromolithograph by W.L. Walton after Lieutenant James Rattray, c. 1847
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As I said it before, there came a time when it became increasingly difficult to live in Peshawar but we have made a decision as a family to stay here. My father is too deeply attached to the city of his ancestors. Post the APS attack (which occurred less than a kilometre from where we live), I briefly shifted my wife and 3 kids to Islamabad, but they are back now. While much has changed, there is a part of this city which is still enchanted in many ways and I want my children to know that part.
The Pakhtunwali code of honour is well known and respected the world over. What are the core values from it that you find yourself practicing most often?
Peshawar is the land of hospitality. This core value is inculcated in every citizen of Peshawar, be it rich or poor. Everyone will entertain within their capacity, opening their hearts and homes to their guests. Visitors to the city always carry back the fondest memories of the place. It is important to note that at the time of partition, when the Hindu and Sikh population of the city migrated to India, there were no reported incidents of any violence; the place was known for its tolerance and amiable community culture. This is starkly different from the blood-riddled migrations in Punjab, reflecting the effect of the Pakhtunwali code of honour which respects life, property and promotes honourable living.
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PESHAWAR – A REDISCOVERY If you were to plan an itinerary for out of city guests, what would be your top spots to show them around the city? • • • •
Sethi House Gor Khatri, the Mughal caravansarai Peshawar Museum Qissa Khwani Bazaar
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Qila Bala Hisar. Even though it is clearly visible from the city, it is off-limits to the public. Also, the Peshawar Golf Club, which was built in the early 1900s by the British.
What is the best meal to be had in Peshawar?
Peshawar is renowned for its cuisine and it has influenced other parts of the world also. In India, for example, you will find many dishes named after Peshawari specialities, such as Peshawari naan and Peshawari jheenga amongst others. Our most well known dishes of course are the salt mutton tikka and mutton karahi. Peshawari beef kebabs are also a famous delicacy, and then there are the lesserknown treats, such as the inner city’s sweet haleem, the southern district’s painda, payee and ojari, baked bakar khani etc.
What in your opinion is the best thing about Peshawar?
It is a cosmopolitan urban city that adheres strongly to its cultural origins, its ethics of grand hospitality and values that have trickled down from its rich cultural heritage.
What must-have items should one take back from here? Peshawari chappal and Chitrali hat.
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runs Through A River
Born in Peshawar, Farid Jan, Chief Strategy Officer at Green Tech and Founder of Yellostone, the official partner for Telenor Infinity smartphones, returns regularly to his city of birth, seeking the eclectic combination of sights, sounds, smells and tastes that defined his years growing up here. From the calming waters of River Swat and River Kabul to the melodious strains of the rabab, the imposing sight of the Khyber Pass to the aroma of freshly brewed kehwa, the countless bounties of this land continue to inform and inspire its people. In a DESTINATIONS exclusive, Farid Jan presents a detailed guide of the best of what his hometown has to offer. 111
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ell us about your family and your childhood in Peshawar. My family hails from a village, Charsadda. I was born and raised in Peshawar and studied at the PAF (Pakistan Air Force) School and later did my civil engineering from UET Peshawar. Thereafter, I left Peshawar and landed in Dallas, Texas for my MBA. I am the eldest of 4 siblings, with a younger brother and two younger sisters. We’ve moved out of Peshawar now but we all flock back on special occasions to be with our parents. What are your fondest memories of growing up in the city? What I remember most fondly are the special occasions – birthdays, Eid, and gatherings with friends after the last exam! All would center around food. The most popular fast food hangout used to be (and still is) Chief Burger. If we wanted to go local, then it was Namak Mandi, where one would sit on traditional carpets and “matkay” cushions, and feast on uchay tikkay (a dry tikka, eaten as an appetizer) and lamb karahi. Otherwise, it was simply chapli kebab with yogurt and rotay (a sort of khamiri roti). What was your favourite home-cooked meal as a child? The menu at my parents’ house was always reminiscent of a royal feast. We would sneak into the kitchen before dinner was served to the elders and try and indulge to our heart’s content! Typically, it used to be seekh kebab, Kabuli pulao, tikkay and yakhni ghwakha (lamb slow cooked on coal with green chillies and nothing else). And of course, my mom’s delicious Russian salad, the likes of which I have never had anywhere else. What is your go-to restaurant when you return for your monthly visits to the city? Chief Burger for fast food
1 on the Ring Road for a traditional meal in a great 2Hujra environment 3Namak Mandi for old time’s sake 4Jalil Chapli Kebab for the juiciest chapli kebabs Yadgaar Falooda for when I’m craving 5Chowk something sweet 112
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You’re hosting out-of-towners for a weekend in Peshawar. Describe how you would spend 48 hours showing them the best that the city has to offer. Well, hosting friends in my hometown is a regular occurrence for me. In fact, I recently took a few of my Lahori friends, including designer Rana Noman, on a weekend trip. We spent one night at my farmhouse in Charsadda, which is right on the motorway and then moved to Peshawar. Traditionally, we entertain our guests at home rather than going out, and there is usually a live cook-out of lamb and kebabs etc. If it is a bigger gathering, then traditional musicians to play the rabab and tabla are called in. In Peshawar, the female guests love going to the markets. Koochi Bazaar is very popular and even though I have no knowledge of such things, the girls came back telling tales of Japanese silks and Indian cottons! While Peshawar has many tourist attractions, I like to take my guests to Khyber Pass. On the way, in Landi Kotal, is an old guesthouse run by the Frontier Corps, which is known to have hosted various international personalities, including Queen Elizabeth, Lady Diana and Jackie Kennedy. The place has lots of old photographs and a guest book with their comments and signatures. It’s a lovely and quaint stopover, a reminder of Peshawar’s rich past.
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For a crash course in Pashto, what are some of the most commonly used phrases? “Pakhair” – Hello, in a casual manner. “Taso senga yae?” – How are you? “Za kha yum” – I am fine. “Rotay okhray” – Have food. “Khara” – Donkey (we Pathans tend to use that a lot as an expression!).
What local specialties do you like to take back for your friends? Gur made out of sugarcane is a big hit amongst outof-towners and I always get a lot of requests for it. And people in Lahore are always asking me to bring them chapli kebabs, so much so that I am actually thinking of opening a small restaurant here that serves authentic Peshwari food.
What is your most quintessentially Pathan quality? Being hospitable, which is deeply ingrained in my psyche. Also, the fact that I value loyalty.
What do you miss most about living in Peshawar? The simplicity and the carefree world it was back then. But no matter what, Peshawar is and always will remain home.
How important is it for you that your children are aware of their Pakhtun heritage? It is of utmost importance! Even though we live in Lahore now, both my children are fluent in Pashto. They visit their grandparents regularly and spend holidays with them. They visit our villages and farmhouses to see how we meet and greet our elders; and are there to be part of local traditions and celebrations. Even my wife, who is a hardcore Punjabi, is now fluent in Pashto. The Peshawari chappal is arguably the city’s most famous export. What is the best place to buy a traditional pair? The rightful home of the Peshawari chappal is not Peshawar actually, it is Charsadda. Charsadda is the city where generations of traditional craftsmen have honed their skills in this trade. Our family has been going to this one person known only as ‘Mama’ for years and he has made shoes for my family and friends. In fact, he’s even known to have stitched a pair for Prince Charles.
Photo by Zee Clicks
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By Zahra Hidayatullah
At the cross roads of conflict and culture is Pakistan’s oldest living city, Peshawar. Make no mistake - the ancient town is ruled by tradition, in which patriarchy plays a key role. It is also home to Farhana Asad and her daughter, Mehrunnisa Asad Khan. It is that place about which this talented duo has managed to redefine stereotypes and set up shop, making ornate objects of art. It is here where they create home accessories and accents under their design collective, The Lél Collection and then showcase as far as Europe and North America, amongst some of the most creative and competitive markets around the world. It is that land that inspires them everyday. Read on to find out more about Lél, their work and how it all happened. 118
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his summer on his way to Lahore, my brother and his family stopped in Beirut for a short vacation. While exploring the incredible city which vogue.com refers to as “a sociocultural melting pot, teeming with makers, doers, and shakers”, they came across a unique and extraordinary creative design space of exceptional juxtapositions between Japanese and Arabesque patterns, eponymously titled Nada Debs. They met the founding designer, who shared her inspiring design philosophy with them. In the course 120
of their talk, they mentioned they were on their way to Lahore, Pakistan. That is when Debs announced her potential plan of visiting Pakistan too; Peshawar, more specifically, to meet up with Farhana and Mehrunnisa Asad in regard to their mother-daughter design collective of home accessories and accents, named The Lél Collection. Nada had met them at a design expo in Italy. My brother, an avid collector of art and other creative design- objects, mentioned them to me when he came to town. That’s how I heard of them. Naturally, I logged on and searched for them online. Who were they and what exactly were they doing that had propelled an international artist of renown want to come and meet them here. What I saw
was a culmination of art, intellect and skill received through generations and across cultures, time and space. I was looking at objects that would serve not only as beautifying home accessories but as family heirlooms for their exquisite craft and resplendent designs. Their work propelled me into an urgency for getting in touch with them and wanting to know more about them. Before we get to the tale of their genesis, here’s a little backstory for the sake of perspective and context. Up until the late 70s, Peshawar was a dusty town bordering Afghanistan in what was then simply called the North West Frontier Province; almost akin to what the Wild West was to East Coast America- a land untamed and far out. What remained less-talked-about back then, and what remains less-talked-about even now, is the fact it is possibly one of Pakistan’s oldest living cities with recorded history dating back 2500 years. A city of artisans and craftsmen, of music lovers and story tellers, of kehva-drinkers and genial hosts.
Mughals came to adopt this ornately beautiful art form. Who knows how fast this delicate technique would have been banished to complete obscurity if it wasn’t for Farhana Asad wandering around a local bazaar in Peshawar’s Walled City one day in the early 1980s, where a small marble box with a mosaic lapis eagle caught her fancy. What happened next is a tale for the Lél team to narrate in their own words: So you saw the small box in the antique market in Peshawar and what happened next? (For Farhana Asad) Well, that’s how my romance with stone began. I was so intrigued with the beauty of the piece and the intricacy of the art-form that I immediately sought out the creator. With help from the shopkeeper selling that lapis box, I tracked the artisan down. He was a master artisan from Afghanistan living as a refugee in Peshawar who had been trained in this technique of parchin-kari through generations. I then began training with him to learn the process myself. Since then, there has been no stopping.
Despite years of conflict and turbulence, Peshawar has not lost its intrinsic spirit for creating beautiful objects d’art.
Today, it is a place that is broadly defined by its geological proximity to the global war it has been pulled at the forefront of. However, there is more meaning to it for the discerning eye. Despite years of conflict and turbulence, Peshawar has not lost its intrinsic spirit for creating beautiful objets d’art. This ancient town is fighting one battle at a time to reclaim its space amongst the world’s most authentic centers for art and culture.
The art of parchin-kari (the South Asian term for referring to the method of in-laying semi precious stones in marble) may not have been indigenous to this region (having originated in ancient Rome and then revived and most celebrated during the Age of Renaissance in 16th century Florence) but these paintings in stone most certainly found keen adopters that took up this technique and combined it with their native aesthetics to make it their own. The Subcontinent boasts of many architectural wonders that pay homage to this now rapidlydeclining art form. Agra’s Taj Mahal and the tomb of Itimad ud Daulah; Lahore’s Sheesh Mahal and the tomb of Jahangir are shining examples of how the
Did you get trained in the technique for Pietra Dura yourself? Yes, I did. ‘Da Karin kar ta da Karin zre pakar de. ‘You need a heart of stone to work stone’ as an artisan once said to me. In other words, it requires a lot of patience and perseverance. The craftsman has to bring his gentle touch to hard stone as he cuts, carves and places the intricate designs. And there I was, soaking in the art, the history and the skill as I worked with the master artisan myself for almost 10 years before he returned permanently to his home country, Afghanistan. What does Lél mean? The word Lél means mountain or abode of El god in the Ba’al cycle. We make furniture pieces, home accents and have started a jewelry line too. What are some of the objects created by Lél? We make furniture pieces, home accents and have started a jewelry line too. 121
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What inspires you creatively? Our deepest inspiration comes from the versatility and intensity of natural stone itself. Pakistan is a country rich in marble and semiprecious stones. Some of the world’s best Onyx, Jasper, Jade, Jadeite, Nephrite, Serpentine, Amazonite, Agate and colored marbles of stunning hues are mined in Pakistan. We set these against stones like Lapis Lazuli from Afghanistan and Turquoise from Iran. People often ask me why I choose to continue this very challenging art form and I often tell them that I love the element of surprise of working with natural stone. It is something that nature has already worked on for thousands, even millions of years. If you think about it deeply, it’s mesmerising! So in a way, you don’t really start on a blank canvas; the piece is already there, waiting to be discovered. You have to have to give it form. So in essence, a Lél piece from its conception to execution is a labor of love; and literally made of the very soil we hail from. All we do is strive to make that practice perfect piece by piece.
them amongst other indigenous crafts, the art of stone inlay. We believe art can play a vital role in helping a community find self-expression and healing in coping with the trauma of war and displacement. My biggest satisfaction comes from the deeply personalized relationships with the artisans. I am very happy to have slowly increased our social impact through collaborations with other artisanal workshops in Peshawar that are under a serious threat of closing down because there is a serious lack of support for the handcrafting industry. By reinterpreting traditional deigns and preserving techniques, we are trying to introduce fresh concepts to these artisan communities. My vision for Lél is that it continues growing as a luxury brand that stands for sustainability and fair trade practices. We are working on some exciting collaborations with international design houses. What role does history and culture play in what you do? Lél was set-up to continue this centuries old tradition and revive interest in the art form in our part of the world. Our mission is to support existing artisans, both local craftsman and Afghan artisans who fled the war in Afghanistan. And provide training to new ones so that this beautiful and unique art is not entirely lost and can be passed on to future generations.
A Lel piece, from its conception to execution, is a labor of love; and literally made of the very soil we hail from
How and where is your material sourced from? What are some of the materials you work with and which amongst them is your favorite and why? Our palette includes a wide range of semiprecious stones (Onyx, Agate, Jasper, Jade, Serpentine, Sandstone), and colored marble sourced from the mountains of Pakistan. From further afield, Lapis Lazuli comes from Afghanistan, Malachite from South Africa and Turquoise from Iran.
How has your enterprise impacted/benefitted the local community? What are some of the challenges you face today in your line of work? Peshawar has a troubled history but over the past decade, it’s been completely torn to shreds by violence. It’s an extremely painful thing to watch a place that you’ve grown up in suffer like that. I am always amazed by the resilience of the city and the people. I guess it is in times of conflict that your cultural identity becomes really important right…and you question who you are? I feel there is an urgent need to reclaim an identity that has steadily been eroded by decades of trouble and conflict. And I feel Lél can play an important role here. Lél, to me is really about healing. It gives me some a sense of hope…..of a future. When millions of Afghan refugees flooded Peshawar escaping the war in the 1980’s, they brought with
Do you have a design studio in Peshawar? How can buyers gain access to Lél objects? Through our exhibitions or by contacting us directly through our website (www.thelelcollection. com) and social media pages (www.instagram. com/thelelcollection.com, www.facebook.com/ thelelcollection). Do you stock internationally? We currently stock in Dubai and London. Up until the last few years, the news ticker often read “Peshawar rocked with an explosion…” However, with recent political stability in the region, and in discovering the Lél collection, the phrase has taken on a completely new meaning. It seems these Peshawar rocks are giving new life to the artisans and their families involved in their design and cutting; and they are now giving new life to the art and aesthetics of the area. This ancient town, sitting at the cross roads of conflict and culture, is once again winning recognition for its true north- art and culture. In short, Peshawar rocks- every which way! 125
PESHAWAR – A REDISCOVERY
Straight outta
PESH
Homecoming a tale of
Peshawar recently served as the backdrop for stylist Amna Niazi’s latest project, a fashion film for designer Munib Nawaz starring city native, musician Aamer Shafiq. As lead guitarist for the critically-acclaimed band Khumariyaan, Aamer is part of a quartet that has been credited for reimagining traditional Pashto folk music by merging it with a distinctly modern sound. The band has toured extensively across USA and Europe, playing at the prestigious SXSW Music Festival in Texas as well as festivals in London and Dublin. As part of its Peshawar special, DESTINATIONS goes behind the scenes at the two-day shoot, discovering yet another fascinating aspect of the city through the lens of the stylist and the star, both native to the region.
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Amna Niazi, Stylist Was this your first time doing a shoot in Peshawar? I have been to Peshawar many times as a kid, since my ancestral city Mardan is close by, but yes this was my first shoot in Peshawar. What were the logistics involved, as far as wardrobe, photography, production team and travel were concerned? Since we were shooting in the city for the first time we didn’t know exactly what would be available, so we made sure other than the BTS team, who were hired from Peshawar prior to our visit, we took everything from Lahore. The wardrobe was done by Munib Nawaz, I made sure I learnt how to do Aamer’s hair and make up, Team SiddySays member Areesh Zubair was behind the lens and Dawer Khan was making the fashion film. We had a great road trip from Lahore to Peshawar, travelling on Daewoo, quite reminiscent of college days.
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Where did you stay? We stayed at the Peshawar Club, and what an amazing place it is. How did the day of the shoot unfold? What were the main locations that you filmed at? Since it was a fashion and personality feature, we wanted Aamer to be the hero of the shoot. The purpose of going to Peshawar was that we document his looks in his city. We shot at the Sethi House, Qissa Khwani Bazaar and his farmhouse in Charsadda. What was the most challenging aspect of the shoot? The heat. Shooting outdoors in July was a killer, especially for Aamer as he was the one who had to don the jackets, but he was an absolute sport. Also, being the team leader, calling the shots as a woman amidst dozens of men was empowering.
Did the music of the band serve as inspiration for the styling and direction? It did absolutely as did Aamer’s personality, which is quirky, edgy and spunky. We experimented with the cuts and the combos, trying to bring out the passionate, big-hearted and fun person he is. In one word, he is fearless and he carried everything off with much charisma. What did you like most about Peshawar? Ahhh… the food! The Chief ka Burger and the dumba karhai. Also, the hospitality, especially by Farhan Bogra (of Khumariyaan) and Aamer’s family. Any recommendations/tips for others who want to visit the city? Go without any preconceived notions, go to explore, eat, connect and understand that it is a city that has suffered, been misrepresented and misunderstood, but it still is a place that has so much good to offer. And again, do not pass on having the dumba karhai.
“Ahhh… the food! The Chief ka Burger and the dumba karhai. Also, the hospitality, especially by Farhan Bogra (of Khumariyaan) and Aamer’s family.” 129
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Aamer Shafiq, Guitarist, Khumariyaan What was it like growing up in Peshawar? Describe some of your fondest childhood memories? I was born and raised in Peshawar so all my most treasured memories are associated with this place. No matter far I delve back and take a trip down memory lane, from my school days to my family and friends, you’d see me either climbing trees, sliding in the mountains, hunting and fishing because I’m an outdoorsy sort of a guy, and Peshawar has played quite a part in my journey up until now. How did you venture into music? Tell us about the journey so far. Music has played a significant role in my life. I’ve constructively used music as the ultimate channel to express my feelings and emotions. However, never did I imagine in my wildest dreams that those casual and fun jam sessions with my friends in college and university would grow to a national and international scale. Our audience started out small within the community, but with time it grew exponentially, and I’m absolutely grateful for it. Peshawar has produced a number of brilliant young musicians in recent times, associated with a wide variety of musical genres, be it Sajid & Zeeshan or Zeb & Haniya, and now Khumariyaan. Is music intrinsically linked to Pashtun culture? Music is a binding force in any culture; no matter which era or part of history you dive into, there will always be a mention of music and arts. Moreover, Peshawar is 130
a small place where we’re all connected to each other. So, all the names that you’ve mentioned, we know each other and they are a true inspiration for us because of the quality of their sound. The kind of music they produced through sources that did not exist in Peshawar is commendable. And that is the greatest inspiration of all, to be able to make something out of nothing. Khumariyaan made its Coke Studio debut this season; tell us about the experience. Coke Studio has truly been a humbling experience because it is a platform for top artists and musicians from all around Pakistan to come together and produce iconic music. The entire experience has been nothing less than surreal. We not only got to live a moment of a lifetime, but we also got the chance to be able to learn and explore new dimensions of how things work by connecting with some amazing people. The team behind Coke Studio definitely brings out the best of you in every way possible. What is your favourite place in Peshawar? I love Peshawar in its entirety, so I can never pick a place that I would not want to hang out at. However, when I want to escape from life in general, I usually head out to the outskirts of the city. I love spending time in my village in Charsadda, and travel to the mountains and open fields with vibrant orchids. Any local food joint recommendations? Whether you visit Peshawar for the first time or visit it frequently, there are two places that you just can’t miss – Chief Burger and the ever-famous Charsi Tikka. As a citizen of Peshawar, I must tell you that your visit to Peshawar is incomplete without paying your respects to these iconic places.
CITY GUIDE
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HRS
An insider’s Guide to
Nathiagali By Sidrah Haque
By the foothills of the Himalayas, amongst many other charming valleys and villages, lies the scenic hamlet of Nathiagali. Boasting picturesque views, magnificent panoramas and deep forests of oak, cedar and pine, it’s rightfully one of the most popular mountain resorts in Pakistan. Many have been, many others want to go, and many many others want to keep going back. Travel enthusiast Sidrah Haque is a frequent visitor as she shares an insider’s guide on how to get there, where to stay, what to do and what you could eat there. So pack your bags for one last trip this year, before it gets too cold to visit! 132
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y love affair with Nathiagali began the moment I first heard the deafening rattle of the cicadas in the summer of 2014. The fat summer beetle can be found on nearly every tree in the area delivering a chorus that is now synonymous with a trip to the Galiyat – the strip of land in between Abbottabad and Murree where the country’s most popular resort towns lie. But if you ask me, there is no place in the Galiyat quite like Nathiagali: great for a day trip, a weekend getaway, or spending your entire summer vacations like the residents. Here’s your all-you-need-to-know guide on Nathiagali.
How To Get There You can either take the route through Abbottabad, cut shorter by the newly-constructed Hazara Motorway. But that’ll mean battling the bumperto-bumper Abbottabadi city traffic on its singular main road, and it would take a little over an hour’s car ride exiting the city limits to reach Nathiagali. The more scenic and less stressful route is via Murree Expressway, passing through Murree and driving a further hour and twenty minutes to reach Nathiagali. The roads are winding and there are sharp turns city drivers aren’t accustomed to, so it is advised to reach during daylight hours, whichever route you choose.
Where to stay Resting high above the residential homes, and the main Nathia bazaar, zigzag your way to Summer Retreat and/or Greens Retreat; the customary choice of visitors to Nathiagali. The Retreat Hotel chain has the advantage of constantly being maintained, and offering a more secluded taste of Nathiagali. Alpine Hotel is the younger brother on the Retreats block, and the more luxurious option. There’s more attention paid to details and better fittings and furnishings, and in turn, a heftier price tag. Hotel Elites is a popular option for its price, but is run down by general standards. The place feels like one big Hogwarts, with so many guests staying under one roof, and can get ghastly noisy during peak season, but remains friendly on the pocket. If you want to get away far from the maddening crowd, Gali’s End is an upmarket resort that lends a homely touch. It has hosted artist retreats, gives a private den-like feel, and is perfect for larger parties. Bonus: Sweet Tooth Mukshpuri is just a five-minute drive from the main Nathiagali Bazaar, and has three freshly furnished rooms for lodging atop the café. The rooms and furnishings are brand spanking new and rates are still introductory.
Hotel
Rates
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Summer Retreat
Vista Wing Rs 16,000 plus tax (March to September) Vista Wing Rs 10,000 plus tax (rest of the months)
Greens Retreat
Rs. 12,500 plus taxes (March to September) Rs. 7,000 plus taxes (rest of the months)
Alpine Hotel
Rates start at Rs. 18,000 plus tax in peak season
Hotel Elites
Rates start at Rs. 7,500 plus tax for a standard room
Galis End
Rates start at Rs. 15,000 for a one-bedroom apartment
St. Matthews Church
Miranjani Hiking Trail Governor’s House Na
thiagali
What to do Take the Mukshpuri hiking trail and visit the Lalazar Wildlife Park at the end of the nearly one-hour track. The park features a small handful of animals accessed by a rickety path. The Miranjani trail is for advanced hikers, but is worth it for the sights, sounds and bragging rights. Drive down to Dungagali and take the Pipeline Walk, a well-constructed 3.5 kilometre trail that ends at Ayubia. Don’t miss the breathtaking views and historical markers as you walk over the pipeline that supplies Murree its entire water.
The Nathiagali Bazaar is always bustling with activity till the wee hours of the night. Look hard and put your bargaining foot forward to buy premium quality shawls and hand-knotted carpets. Or just trinkets if you’re on a budget. Visit the St. Matthews Church, a remnant from the days of the British, and don’t forget to donate what you can. Walk the road from the church to the Governor House and enjoy the scenic mountains landscaping your view.
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CITY GUIDE
Karnak House
Head over to Abshaar for a piping hot desi chicken karahi over the roaring stream. Take the mini-trail behind Karnak House and walk amongst the sky-hugging pines. You can catch a peek of the lawns of the Governor House in between the trees. Visit the nearby Kalabagh base for a short hike through its monkey-lined trails, or for ziplining and archery atop the lush Green Spot. End your visit there with piping hot coffee and French fries.
However you go about it, it’s best to take in Nathiagali at a slow pace
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Take a leisurely stroll from Club Road onwards and have fun checking out the quirky homes and the architecture. There are two parks with slides and rides for the children, but choose an earlier hour to avoid the rush. However you go about it, it’s best to take in Nathiagali at a slow pace. The beauty of the small town lies in the familiarity of the homes and the easy-to-remember trails. So much so that you can look past what’s around you to actually soak in the cries of the ravens, the scurrying of the insects and the sounds of the songbirds.
What to Eat There are few things as classic as Taj Hotel’s Pathakha Chicken. Served with fried chilli flakes, maash daal, hot naans (baked dough) and raita (yogurt dip) on the side, your visit just isn’t complete without it. Say hello to the staff who have been running the joint for decades and never get a meal wrong. The main bazaar offers vendors who dole out piping hot pakoras (fritters), samosas (a savory snack with vegetarian or non-vegetarian fillings served fried), jalebis (coils of batter fried and steeped in sugar syrup) and coffee or ice-cream depending on the season. Nothing is worth writing home about, but all are a must-have. A visit to Greens Retreat and outdoor coffee on the patio is a visitor’s tradition. The main bazaar has a number of restaurants, but don’t expect anything near the standards back home: play it safe with pizza, soup or barbecued meats. Make a dessert run to Sweet Tooth just outside the Nathiagali Bazaar for the young crowd and warm skillet brownies.
Best time to visit The months between April and October are the best time to visit Nathiagali. The daytime weather is pleasant and you might require just a light shawl, while the nights are considerably cold, requiring heavy-duty blankets and heaters. However, contrary to popular opinion, long weekends and Eid holidays are the worst times to visit: travellers have been known to be stuck in Abbottabad’s traffic for hours in the Eid madness, there are throngs of day visitors heading to the Galiyat or further north, followed
The main bazaar offers vendors who dole out piping hot pakoras, samosas, jalebis and coffee or icecream depending on the season. Nothing is worth writing home about, but all are a must-have. by littering and loud music till the wee hours of the night. Choose an insignificant weekend to answer the call of the mountains, and get the most out of your trip! And when you do visit, be a caring guest. Whether it’s respecting the wares of Mother Nature, or tipping the locals well who have to find work out of town in the winters. Or whether it’s picking up litter or listening with some semblance of belief when told the local folklore of phantom cheetahs. Or whether it’s letting the monkeys move about at their pace or just giving someone else their way. This happy town deserves the very happiest of visitors!
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naran DESTINATION & the magic of lake
SAIF UL MULUK By Afia Salam
Explorer and environmental activist Afia Salam pens an exquisite tale of Naran and the fairytale surrounding the magical Lake Saiful Muluk. As she describes the wonders of this land visited by fairies and princesses, she makes it accessible for those who have a yearning to go with detailed accounts of how to go, where to stay and what to expect. It comes highly recommended by the woman who has visited the furthest corners of the country.
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y wanderlust has taken me to many parts of Pakistan, and I have loved them all! The deserts, the lush green plains, the coast from edge to edge, the mountains, from the tree-covered ones to the grand rocky ones to the mud mountains in Balochistan that look like the Lord of the Rings country. Each landscape has its own allure, and captivates the imagination because of the diversity of nature at play, intertwined with the unique cultures of the people who inhabit these areas. They all have their tales and folklore, but few have had as wide ranging and captivating an effect as the one told about a beautiful serene lake in Kaghan, surrounded by mountains, across which was a fairyland, known as Koh-e-Qaf. And as the tale goes, the fairy princess used to come across from the mountain to swim in the lake with her friends, and appeared in the dreams of a prince, Saiful Muluk of Egypt, who fell in love and decided to look for her. The tale is about his travels that culminate at this lake, which of late has come to be identified by his name. This mythical tale has captured the imagination of many who travel to this beautiful lake located at about 10,000 ft above sea level, nestled in the middle of mountains and fed by glaciers, near the city of Naran. The almost half-hour bumpy jeep ride does not deter tourists, though the more adventurous set off on foot to trek to this scenic spot. However, nothing, not even the majestic mountainside, really prepares one for the sight of the spectacular turquoise jewel that nestles in their midst. There was a time when a trip to Naran was an adventure and a half, because of the terrain and the resulting difficulty in access. Visitors on their return would regale those who had not been with stories of slithering across glaciers that straddled the path of their jeeps as the sturdy vehicles would make their slippery way across them. The journey from the capital city of Islamabad used to take around ten hours or more, depending on the condition of the road, the gumption of the driver and the adventurous spirit of the passengers.
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Local fare ranging from all kinds of dry fruit to salajeet, a black mineral /stone sought for its health and aphrodisiac qualit ies, and honey is abundantly available. Thankfully, that is no longer the case. The excellent road takes you from Islamabad to Naran, even with a pit-stop for lunch at one of the roadside dhabas (food joints) selling local fare or the more comfortable restaurants in cities like Balakot, Mansehra and Abbottabad, in just about 6 hours. This again depends on the season, as rains in the summer and snow in the winter can hinder the progress.
Naran town is a bustling tourist center with all kinds of eateries catering to the palate of the visitors from all parts, and of all ages. 141
WANDERER Credit must be given to the National Highway Authority which has made this part of the country accessible to people who prefer the comfortable ride in vehicles that can traverse ordinary urban roads. The entire area is prone to landslides, not just due to the massive deforestation that has taken place along the mountain slopes, but also due to its geology and gravity. The NHA teams scout the road for spots from where rocks have to be removed and where potholes resulting from massive rockfall have to be repaired. From an environmental point of view, what is alarming is that there are no longer any glaciers straddling the roads. One does come across stunning waterfalls gushing down the mountains, flowing off the road to join the Kunhar River that runs through the valley, but the glaciers are now on the side of the roads, and are being commercially exploited by cold-drink vendors who either hack off chunks of ice, or carve ‘shelves’ on its side to stack cold drinks. The sight may be colourful, and serve as a tourist attraction, but is ecologically damaging. One enters the Naran valley after crossing Balakot, the city that was almost completely destroyed in the aftermath of the devastating earthquake of 2005. The twists and turns along the road offer breath-taking vistas of mountains, terraced fields, the raging river tumbling over boulders and rocks, and running down a winding path, in places at level with the road, while in others, deep in its valley.
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There are many scenic spots where mini resorts or guesthouses and restaurants have sprung up for those wanting to break their journey. However, one is taken aback at the recent density of these places. As soon as one enters Naran, there are multi-storied hotels, small campsites, fiberglass ‘pods’ and other tourist service structures and parking lots teeming with transportation options to go further to the parts of Naran where four wheelers would be required. There is a wide array of choices of the type of residential and transportation facilities to suit every pocket, though the transport rates to some of the more popular spots have been fixed by the municipal administration. For accommodation too, there is a whole range of options – from sprawling resorts to other private as well as government run PTDC (Pakistan Tourism Development Corporation) rest-houses, offering varying degrees of comfort and luxury.
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This time for a time out, head to Naran. Go rafting on the Kunhar River, but do NOT attempt to swim as it has been known to be unkind. Enjoy the bustling bazaars, feast on the mouth-watering fare, haggle over prices, pick out exquisite handicrafts or strike a bargain for a ‘made in China’ gadget. Oh and if you do not have a selfie stick to record your memories of the trip, never fear, every second vendor will be selling them! If want to be at one with nature, there are so many spots where you can just sit and let your mind wander, marvelling at the idyllic scene unfolding before your eyes. But here’s the thing: Whatever you do, please be kind to this fragile valley. The romantic story of the human prince and his fairy princess that draws one to Lake Saiful Muluk does not prepare one for the rude shock when one climbs up the mountain to the spot where the descent to the lake starts. No longer is it idyllic. The rampant commercialism of innumerable jeeps clogging the access path, and the bazaar that has sprung up on the way down not only takes away from the romance, but also results in mounds of trash that has spoilt its pristine shores.
Naran town is a bustling tourist centre with all kinds of eateries catering to the palate of visitors from all parts, and of all ages. The shops are stocked with all kinds of goods, especially from China so there is plenty to do in the bustling bazaar. Those looking for adventures of a different kind, and wanting an experience far from the madding crowd, usually head out of the city of Naran to the smaller towns of Jhalkhad, Batakundi, taking a peek at the Piyala Lake which looks like a marvel of human engineering but is actually a natural, almost-perfect circle, to the stunning Lulusar lake and the rolling meadows of Gitti Das, past the unique indigenous houses atop the hills and mountains, sometimes completely merging with the terrain, past Pakistan’s second largest Juniper forest after Ziarat in Balochistan, right up to Babusar top, the highest point in Pakistan. The panoramic view of the road leading to Chilas on one side and to Kaghan on the other is absolutely breath-taking.
Relative ease of access has come at a heavy cost of its environment, and the waste collection efforts there are overwhelmed by the sheer number of visitors, and commercial activity. This is something the authorities need to take into account to preserve the beauty of the place. The same goes for Lulusar Lake and Babusar top. If you want to share this idyllic view with future generations, please be mindful; do not litter and show respect for nature while enjoying it. That is the only way to preserve the picturesque view of Naran and the fairytale surrounding it.
There are public conveniences available, on nominal payment, from the very basic to fairly reasonable ones. Local fare ranging from all kinds of dry fruit to salajeet, a black mineral/stone sought for its health and aphrodisiac qualities, and honey is abundantly available. It is quite another thing that one seller will wait till the other has given his sales pitch of his fare being the ‘purest’ and best for health, before coming up to tell you that that one was fake and he has the ‘real thing.’ Some even go to the extent of carrying the entire hive to try and convince you. 145
OFF THE BEATEN TRACK
: s c i s a B o T Back
, G N I L CYC s s e n i p p Ha
Karachi
&
s r o o d t u O t a e The Gr by Madeeha Syed
informed n a s n e p d e y S a h Explorer Madee d to know to e e n u o y g in th ry e v guide on e er favourite h f o w fe a ts lis d n start cycling a Karachi d n u ro a s e d ri th a off-the-beaten-p looking for a re a u o y if o S s. n o and its envir e urban th e p a sc e to le c y ic break, rent a b e open for a th in t u o d a e h d n jungle a breath of fresh air.
Hingol National Park 146
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T
here’s something about being on a bicycle with the wind between your hair that translates to feeling pure joy. Maybe it’s the endorphins from bit of exercise and fresh air… in fact, it is the endorphins. Over the past several years, the cycling scene in Karachi has exploded. From a small community of around 20 cyclists, it is now several hundred cyclists strong. On any given morning, just before the school rush, you’ll see a few on their fancy road bikes, all geared up taking a spin or two around the city. Most of the off-the-beaten-path ‘fun’ rides are scheduled in winter when there is some respite from the otherwise relentless heat that governs Karachi and its surrounding areas. According to the cyclists that I spoke to, their favourite bicycle rides included the Thado Dam ride, Gadani ride, Dureji ride and finally, the Hingol National Park ride. Ace cyclist and architect Arif Belgaumi has a variety of favourites. “I like the ride to Dumlotti, or Thado Dam, or just about anywhere in Gadap Town,” he says. “I love being among the agricultural fields, especially on winter mornings. The ride to Gadani also is a favourite. We don’t do these too often though. I also like riding in Hingol National Park.” Ghalia ‘Koko’ Naseer, chief among the women cyclists in the recreational community is also attracted to the greenery just outside the city. She likes doing the, “Thado Dam ride via Gadap Road — going through the leafy green arches and passing by Malir farms.” Like most of the cyclists I spoke to, she also included the Hingol National Park ride in her list.
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The Hingol National Park ride The Hingol National Park ride provides one of the most diverse landscapes. But before you can even begin, you have to go through a four-hour drive to get to the starting point – Nani Mandir, which is inside the mountains past a gravel path. “It’s a bit off-road, and then you ride up the Coastal Highway,” says experienced cyclist Khawaja Zeeshan. The Makran Coastal Highway snakes through the hills in the national park with the Arabian Sea glistening in the sunlight on one side. “You go uphill towards Bozi Pass, reach the Golden Beach and then further up all the way to the Princess of Hope.” This ride is more fun when on the way back, cyclists abandon their bicycles on the beach at Kund Malir and take a dip in the sea with lunch at one of the popular roadside dhabas.
Ace cyclist and architect Arif Belgaumi has a variety of favourites. “I like the ride to Dumlotti, or Thado Dam, or just about anywhere in Gadap Town.”
Don’t have a bike but want to borrow/rent one and try it out? Most regular cyclists have extra bicycles at home. You usually need to drop in a request at the cycling group whose event you want to attend and keep your fingers crossed for a response.
In addition to that, there are small businesses renting out bicycles for rides. The biggest is Wahab’s, which operates from a modest bicycle garage in Karachi’s Shahbaz Commercial Area. For around PKR 500 per day, you can rent a bicycle for a ride. If you don’t have a helmet they will provide you one as well. It would be wise to book bicycles in advance for major rides (like the Independence Day ride which was attended by around 500 people this year!) as they run out of bicycles very quickly.
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Bikestan
Ace cyclist Shoaib Nizami is one of the most active members of the recreational cycling scene in Karachi. He’s been cycling since 2012. Back then, if you wanted to get a decent bicycle, you had to wait for second-hand bicycles to arrive in Lyari and then hope they were in decent condition. Friends and family members who were travelling abroad would be tasked with bringing back different cycle parts and accessories.
To help the community grow bigger, they’ve taken several initiatives. This includes monthly races and the event that is credited with really encouraging cyclists to push their skills, the Bikestan Super League. Shoaib is especially proud of their most recent move, launching their own professional cycling team – the Bikestan Crank Addicts (BCA).
“They will participate in national and international races,” he says. “We’ve equipped our team the same as “There was a need of bicycles in Pakistan since any top-level pro team in the world. Apart from that, there was not a single bike shop that carried we have done many CSR rides including Pinktober for branded bikes,” says Shoaib. “So, Faisal Khalid [his breast cancer awareness, helping special Olympics in business partner] and I decided to take the initiative managing training and national games.” for our cycling community.” They opened up the first proper outlet selling high-end bicycles and parts He was once, in front of yours truly, asked what his in Pakistan – Bikestan. Three years old, Bikestan side job was to support having a fancy bike store in a also has a branch in Lahore which serves as a point country where this is still considered a very niche sport. from where local cyclists can network. According “This is my side job,” responded Shoaib with a twinkle to Shoaib, they have stocked around 500 branded in his eyes. All passion. bicycles so far. So this fall or winter, if you’re feeling bored, or stressed out, or just looking for an adventure, I would suggest, head out to Bikestan, get a bike and let your hair loose. Pedal your way to happiness and the great outdoors.
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OFF THE BEATEN TRACK
Tips & tricks: 1Always, always wear a helmet:
This goes without saying but we come from a culture where we see people riding motorcycles all the time without one. They may not look like much, but these helmets protect your head. You’re exposed and vulnerable on a bicycle and I’ve seen even the best cyclists crash and fall. I’ve also seen the helmets they’ve worn crack – but rather it be the helmet than a person’s head.
2Stay on the left:
Stay in the slow lane. Hero banney ki zaroorat nahin hai (don’t try and be a superhero). You’re very vulnerable on a bicycle and should be very careful when on traffic-heavy roads.
3Get a bicycle that is the right size:
Riding a bicycle that’s not correctly fitted for you is like wearing a badly-fitted shoe – it may work for a little while, but afterwards you’ll feel it impacting your knees, shoulder and back. And not in a good way. The last thing you want is to recover from a sporting injury.
4Pre-fuel and hydrate:
Your body is your engine. You want to fuel up but you don’t want a completely full stomach because that will cause gastric reflux which is very unpleasant in the middle of a ride. My go-to fuel is usually a peanut butter sandwich 1 to 1.5 hours before a ride. You can carry a mid-ride snack, like a banana or a granola bar you can bite off, some nuts and dates etc. Hydrate. I cannot stress how important this is. Again, don’t drink your fill, a few sips now and then should be enough. And it’s not enough to keep water, you need salts as well. For rides, I usually keep one bottle of plain water and one bottle of ORS (Oral Hydration Solution) mixed in water.
5Go at your own pace:
If you’re just starting out you need to figure out what pace is comfortable for you and stick to it. Cycling is fun, but it can also be an intense cardio activity. You want your body to adapt to it – gradually.
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MY SQUARE MILE
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an artist in VIENNA
Vienna is a city of art maestros, iconic geniuses, and music prodigies, a place that has not only homed but has also inspired and informed the works of Mozart, Beethoven, Sigmund Freud, Gustav Klimt and Egon Schiele amongst other creative giants. With the opulence of its carefully preserved palaces, the magnificence of the city’s Medieval as well as Baroque architectural legacy, elegant cafés and its rich cultural heritage, this capital of the AustroHungarian Empire is heart-achingly beautiful. The newest sensation from Pakistan in contemporary art, critically acclaimed and internationally renowned abstract artist, Waqas Khan recently showcased his latest exhibition titled “History, Memory or Geometry” at the prestigious Galerie Krinzinger in Vienna. This body of work examines the omnipresence of the non-image. Waqas Khan was recently in Austria to open the exhibition and as this classic European town serves as the backdrop to the display of his new works, he takes us on an exciting tour of his favourite places here. Experience the city through the eyes of this young artist. After all, we love travelling vicariously! Photography: Aun Raza
MY SQUARE MILE
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Belvedere
Waqas holding a print of the ‘The Kiss’ by Klimt, standing in front of the Belvedere. This famous painting by Austrian artist Gustav Klimt, is part of the upper belvedere’s museum collection.
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Belvedere The fountain and baroque garden of the Belvedere overlooking the city of Vienna.
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Secession building
The iconic Secession building is an unmissable landmark of Vienna’s historic and artistic landscape. The central dome made up of giant laced leaves, locally known as the ‘golden cabbage’, shines proudly above the entrance with text that reads ‘to every age its art, to every art its freedom’.
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MY SQUARE MILE
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Naschmarkt
Walking into the Naschmarkt, the most loved food market of Vienna with gypsy musicians, excellent food and even a shop dedicated to marijuana.
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Weinzeilen house
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The two facades of Weinzeilen house, designed by architect and designer Otto Wagner in the gorgeous Jugendstil style. This is an exquisite example of Viennese Art Nouveau architecture, woven seamlessly into the city’s ordinary apartments.
St. Stephen’s Cathedral Stephansdom is the very centre of historic city of Vienna. The central building is St. Stephen’s Cathedral which was first built in 1365. Its roof covered with patterned tiles is considered the most recognisable symbol of Vienna. The whole structure is surrounded by intricate stone work, various relief works, all on very fragile and porous limestone. It has been under regular repair and restoration to keep this icon alive.
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Photos Courtesy: Galerie Krinzinzer, Vienna. 161
MY SQUARE MILE
Eating Out
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There are many elegant cafes around the city that capture its relaxed vibe.
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Curiosity shops
Around the city, we find several shop windows decorated with collections of old books, tobacco boxes and posters, etc. in Jugendstil designs from the 19th & 20th century. At the same time, one sees other windows full of heavily proportioned Austria empire’s old mugs, signs and funny figures from various theatre plays.�
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ART SPEAKS
Flirting with
Abstraction By Aniqa Imran
Aniqa Imran, Assistant Curator at the National History Museum and General Manager of the Citizens Archive of Pakistan, reviews artist Rabeya Jalil’s solo exhibition titled ‘Something Else’ held recently at the Koel Gallery in Karachi, finding it to be multi-layered experience juxtaposing the spontaneous with the planned.
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“
Stories were primarily verbal to begin with.
Before there were cave paintings, stories were told over generations. We tell each other thousands of stories in the course of everyday life� David Massengil
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ART SPEAKS
A
rtist Rabeya Jalil’s recent body of work at Koel Gallery is a spontaneous combination of mark making, a multilayered colour palette and abstract representations all intertwined to create a narrative that leaves the viewer yearning for answers. Her work lingers on the precipice of humour and lightheartedness, tilting into darker undertones. Some may even sense a tone of savagery, an undercurrent of connotations; the artist is taking you on a visual journey into the subconscious of her eclectic mind. Her work stems from her years of studying art education. Working especially with young children, what Jalil found fascinating was their uninhibited mark making and disregard for control of proportions and perspectives – elements that are obvious in Jalil’s own work. Yet while a child may show complete and total obliviousness towards the academic fundamentals of art, Jalil incorporates the sensibilities of an artist who is aware of the fundamentals, has mastered them and then made a conscious decision to dismiss them. The mark is an extension of the artist’s mind, motivated by an impulsive, intuitive process between the artist herself and the medium of her choosing. In her piece titled ‘How to Draw a..’ Jalil embarks on a narrative that the viewer may attach several meanings to. Her morphed figures, aggressive swatches of paint, the chained animal all indicate that there is more to the imagery than meets the eye. Her work is laden with socio-political undertones. One can make an immediate connection to the animal cruelty that has been a rising concern especially on social media or perhaps the artist making a statement about confinement – a term that can depict both a tangible and intangible state of being. The work beckons you to explore, notice each mark, each dot, and observe it evolve along with your own perceptions of the piece. 166
‘Parhay Likhey II’ is a tryptech depicting a classroom, cattle placed on top of tables and chairs, an amalgamation of scribbled Urdu text and a figure standing in front a board. Jalil comments on the precarious state of education where children are herded into classrooms taught in a rote-learning fashion and sent out into the real world lacking integral skills that will allow them to think both critically and creatively. She emphasizes through her work the need for art students, especially those engaged in the higher levels of academia, to evaluate and question the rigid teachings of art schools and institutes in order to understand and develop their own practices.
Parhay Likhey II
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ART SPEAKS Jalil’s work titled ‘Self Portrait’ is a manifestation rich with expression as it explores colour energies, the material versus immaterial, as well as tensions between form and scraped textures. The piece shows different states of the human mind – happiness, uncertainty and anxieties all collude to highlight the many facets of existence.
Self Portrait
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‘Muslim Shower’, acrylic paint on board, creates multi-layered planes of shifting appearances. The imagery transforms into a study of the human form and its relationship with the objects around it. It is a commentary on human interactions, our biological need for control and structure; our dependency on the materials around us to help promote the idea of cultured and educated leanings.
Jalil’s screen prints offer a more structured and planned side to her work. Prints of notebook pages with taped edges give the impression of scanned recollections bound together. An assemblage of scribbled notes; undecipherable marks and multiple hues pay homage to Jalil’s academic persona, one that is at contrast with the artist who creates with pure abandon.
Muslim Shower
Jalil’s strokes are instinctual, self aware and yet complex. The artist allows each piece to mature as she adds and subtracts from it for many weeks on end, sometimes the entire process of finishing a certain artwork may even take her months. She focuses on using minimal lines to touch upon on three major areas that are cumulative of her body of work – the abstract, the representational and the literal. Each area collaborates and flirts with her choice of subject; the artist puts to use her imagination, her introspections, daily interactions and personal opinions to produce a visually stimulating and thought-provoking show.
The work beckons you to explore, notice each mark, each dot, and observe it evolve along with your own perceptions of the piece. 169
THE FASHION FIX
Sania
Maskatiya
takes on
Leading fashion design house Sania Maskatiya became the first Pakistani brand to showcase at this season’s New York Fashion Week (NYFW). Presenting its dedicated western wear line Sania Studio’s Spring/ Summer 2019 Collection at the prestigious international platform, the label won over critics both at home and abroad. DESTINATIONS brings you an insider’s look at the designer’s trip to NYC.
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Sania Studio SS 2019
THE FASHION FIX
S
ania Maskatiya recently made headlines for being the first Pakistani designer to showcase at the prestigious New York Fashion Week (NYFW). Handpicked by the Council of Aspiring American Fashion Designers’ (CAAFD) to be a part of the Industria Collective Showcase, the designer presented her western line ‘Sania Studio’ to great acclaim.
Sania is no stranger to such accolades. Since establishing her eponymous label in 2010, she has grown from strength to strength, with her edgy yet sophisticated aesthetic winning her followers at home and abroad. Who can forget the Sonam Kapoor cover for Cosmopolitan India with the actress wearing a cropped bustier from the brand’s ‘Sakura’ collection? Shortlisted by the coveted International Woolmark Prize, one of the first brands from Pakistan to have staged a solo showcase at the Lakme Fashion Week and with four prestigious Lux Style Awards under its belt, the Sania Maskatiya brand continues to flourish locally and internationally. With her latest foray into the international fashion scene, Sania took her distinct print-on-print philosophy and laid-back luxe charm to NYC and did her country proud. In a chat with DESTINATIONS, Sania opens up about the experience, her ‘Sania Studio’ collection and what she finds inspiring about NYC.
Congrats! Showing at New York Fashion Week is a big achievement. How do you feel? We are so humbled and grateful that we were a part of such a well-known international platform. It was a wonderful experience and we learnt a lot. The CAAFD is known for its rigorous selection process… can you take us through what it was like? We were actually approached by CAAFD for our brand, Sania Studio. They were interested in our previous collections that was stocked internationally. We exchanged ideas, and spoke about the new collection we could show and eventually everything just fell into place.
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What is the philosophy behind Sania Studio? Sania Studio is an extension of our existing brand, Sania Maskatiya. Sania Studio is a design house that uses only pure, luxe fabrics cut and draped in a range of directional but feminine silhouettes. Our designs often take imaginative inspiration from a unique interplay of colours, depicting imagery inspired by nature and the environment, often juxtaposed with a darker twist. Is the brand stocked internationally? Currently, we are not stocking internationally although we hope to pursue this in the near future.
Will this collection be available in Pakistan? Yes, this collection will be available at our Sania Maskatiya flagship outlets from October 2018 and onwards and online at: www.saniastudio.com Describe the experience of participating in NYFW – the vibe, the energy, the people etc. It was an exciting experience, where we were able to interact with people from different industries and with different mindsets. The vibe was a mixture of ecstatic energy combined with a creative ambience. How would you say it’s different from the way fashion weeks are organized in Pakistan? Have you come away with any lessons learnt? Everything was extremely organized and was done in a timely and professional manner. No other Pakistani designer has shown at this platform before; what was people’s reaction to you and your designs, particularly in relation to your heritage? We wanted to use the NYFW platform to speak of our country’s powerful sense of promise; a country that currently stands on the cusp of momentous change. The cuts in this collection were modern, but the designs and colours were clearly inspired by Pakistan influences. The collection was very well received by the audience. Do you visit New York City often? What is your favourite part about the city? I have been to New York a few times. I love walking around the city and exploring its wonderful cafés. My favourite part of the city would have to be Soho.
Name three travel essentials that you must always carry with you. Lipbalm, a good book and my phone. What’s the style trend that you’re loving this season? Layering and exaggerated silhouettes. Describe your ideal vacation spot. Tropical areas or any place with a beach. What inspires you? Creativity and originality. What’s next for the Sania Maskatiya brand? The Sania Maskatiya brand aims to carry on expanding and ¬growing. We continue to explore new things and the learning never stops. We surprise ourselves with spontaneous innovation.
The cuts in this collection were modern, but the designs and colours were clearly inspired by Pakistan influences.
While in New York for her #NYFW debut, Sania Maskatiya was invited to visit the United Nations Headquarters by Ambassador Maleeha Lodhi.
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THE FASHION FIX
THE SHOE
EDIT
Discover the season’s top shoe trends with our style guide to ensure you put your best foot forward this fall/winter. SAINT LAURENT
Niki leather ankle boots
£ 770
SAINT LAURENT
Blaze crystal-embellished lacetrimmed velvet ankle boots
£ 1,285
SAM EDELMAN
Leather ankle boots
£ 106
LAURENCE DACADE Sabrina leather-trimmed lace ankle boots
A cross between a block heel and a stiletto, the cone heel is the sexiest new trend on our shoe radar this season. If you’re looking for the perfect pair of boots this winter, make sure you stay on point and invest in a cone heel.
£ 607
SAINT LAURENT
Era suede Knee boots
£ 1,285
ISABEL MARANT
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SAINT LAURENT
Niki glossed-leather over-the-Knee boots
£ 1,200
PAUL ANDREW
Rhea zebra-print calf hair slingback pumps
£ 563
AQUAZZURA
Quant leopard-print calf hair ankle boots
MONSE
£ 677
MALONE SOULIERS
Maisie lace-trimmed polka-dot faille mules
£ 450
BALENCIAGA
GIANVITO ROSSI
Knife logo-embellished tartan wool ankle boots
Kitten Heel
£ 1,225
55 PVC and patent-leather slingback pumps
£ 601
GIANVITO ROSSI
55 Patent-leather mules
£ 488
Marc Jacobs
The biggest takeaway from this year’s international runways pack away your stilettos, ladies and bring out the kitten heel. As designers embrace this more comfortable footwear option, we round up the top looks from this season to show you how best to style it. BALENCIAGA
Knife logo-embellished checked wool mules
£ 835
GIORGIO ARMANI
AQUAZZURA
Powder Puff pompom-embellished velvet mules
£ 601
ROGER VIVIER
Choc crystal-embellished suede slingback pumps
Half boot in suede leather with patent tuxedo detail
£ 982
£ 908
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THE FASHION FIX CHLOE
Sonnie canvas, mesh, suede and leather high-top sneakers
MIU MIU
£ 535
Miu Miu Logo-Embroidered Glittered Neoprene and Rubber Sneakers
£ 447
With stars like Kendell Jenner and Kim Kardashian embracing this trend, it seems like the oversized, ‘ugly’ sneaker is here to stay. From luxury brands to high street labels, here’s our pick of the top ways to incorporate the look into your fall/winter wardrobe.
Dad Sneakers
ZARA
Chunky Sole Sneakers
£ 53
BALENCIAGA
Triple S logo-embroidered leather, nubuck and mesh sneakers
£ 615
GUCCI
Flashtrek logo-embossed leather, suede and mesh sneakers
£ 705
GUCCI
Flashtrek embellished logo-embossed leather, suede and mesh sneakers
£ 1,080
STELLA MCCARTINEY
Eclypse Rainbow Sneakers
£ 474
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TALK OF THE TOWN LONDON
Pakistan Pavilion @ London Design Biennale Pakistan made its presence felt at the 2nd edition of the London Design Biennale which took place in September at the prestigious Somerset House. Wagging Tongues Productions, a UK-based company dedicated to realising projects in arts, design and performing arts, presented the Pakistan Pavilion titled “Aangan”. For “Aangan”, 60 women artisans from Kaarvan Crafts Foundation worked diligently for 2 months contributing to an installation created out of hand embroidered and hand stitched cotton garments that portrayed a positive and progressive image of the country on the global stage. This year’s theme at the Biennale was ‘Emotional States’ which was chosen to provoke a broad interpretation across design disciplines, with immersive and engaging installations that interrogated how design affects every aspect of people’s lives – the way we live and how we live – but also influences our very being, emotions and experiences.
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TALK OF THE TOWN LONDON
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