DECEMBER 28-JANUARY 3 2015
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2014
THE YEAR THAT WAS
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December 28-january 3 2015
Best of 2014 Reviews
Cover Story 2014: The year that was The major events that shaped the year for Pakistan
Feature The year that could have been For better or for worse, Pakistan averted a number of events in 2014
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39 Regulars
6 People & Parties:
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Out and about with beautiful people 46 Society: Twitter gaffes throughout 2014
Magazine Editor: Sarah Munir and Senior Subeditor: Dilaira Dubash Creative Team: Essa Malik, Jamal Khurshid, Mohsin Alam, Omer Asim, Aamir Khan, Sanober Ahmed & Talha Ahmed Khan Publisher: Bilal A Lakhani. Editor: Kamal Siddiqi For feedback and submissions: magazine@tribune.com.pk Twitter: @ETribuneMag & Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ETribuneMag Printed: uniprint@unigraph.com
PEOPLE & PARTIES Mohammad Rajpur and Yasmim
Master Celeste opens up its outlet in Karachi
Nadeem Malik and Farhat Malik
Maryum Ali Khan and Hamid Ali Khan Saba Obaid
Aju and Aisha
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Massoma Adamjee
Arif Islam and Kathy Islam
Noor Anwar, Sahar Malik, Bisma Ahmed, Imaan Siddiqui with a friend
Muniza Aftab and Irum
PEOPLE & PARTIES
Karachi hosts the 13th Lux Style Awards
Amna, Cybil, Fawad and Sanam
Frieha and Sadaf
Aamina Sheikh
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Summaya, Tania and Pareesa
Amna Mufti
PEOPLE & PARTIES
Abass Ali Jaffrey
Sania and Umair
Yamina Peerzada Asif Raza Mir
Sneha and Leena
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Meenu and Farjad
PEOPLE & PARTIES
Hira Tareen
The fashion brand Sapphire was launched through its first flagship store at Dolmen Mall, Karachi
Mira Ansari, Raana Khan, Muzi Sufi and Sana Ansari
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Kulsum and Nabeel Abdullah
Sanam Chaudhri
Fia
Safinaz
PHOTOS COURTESY LOTUS PR
Syra, Alishba and Palwashay
PEOPLE & PARTIES
Amna Babar
PHOTOS COURTESY LOTUS PR
a Abassi Zahraa Abbas, Khadijah Shah & Uzm
Maha and Maha Ali Kazmi
Samra Khan and Arsalan Khan
Momal Sheikh
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Mr & Mrs Shabbir Jan & Daughter
Adnan Pardesy, Nubain Ali and Tapu Javeri
Natasha Saleem and Wardha Saleem
COVER STORY
2014: The year that was We take a look at the major events that shaped the year for Pakistan
BY FAIZA RAHMAN
DESIGN BY OMER ASIM
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In 2014, Pakistan bore some of the heaviest blows from terrorism. The country reeled from shock after shock and suffered from the chronic politicisation of the judiciary and its lawmakers’ negligence. No time was spared on formulating a solid foreign policy. In the wake of compounding regional challenges, the county did not have any better luck with domestic issues either as health, education and security remained in continuous jeopardy. We did, however, make some historic achievements. In October this year, Malala Yousafzai became the youngest recipient of the Nobel Peace Prize. The women’s cricket team brought home the gold at the Asian games. And by the end of 2014, politicians, the military, judiciary and the civil society coalesced their energies and united against terrorism with fresh vigour and determination. We enter 2015 with a heavy heart, but renewed hope.
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COVER STORY
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Pak-India relations
Erratic gestures of warmth between India and Pakistan in 2014 did little to thaw the stiffness that persists between the two countries. India emerged if not the more aggressive, then certainly the more irritable of the two as Pakistan hastened to dispatch mangoes to Mr Modi and saris to his mother, ultimately without reward. Alas, replenishments to Mommy Modi’s closet and the Indian state pride did little to encourage India to shake hands willingly with Nawaz Sharif during the SAARC summit or to hold foreign-secretary level talks in a huff. Fishermen, truck drivers, hockey players and university students have all borne the brunt of the impasse in state-
Fishermen, truck drivers, hockey players and university students have all borne the brunt of the persistent low point in state-level relations during 2014 level relations during 2014 as both continued to point fingers over water and border violations, cross-border aggression and similar points of ‘whodunnit’. In 2014, a solution to the Kashmir conundrum remained elusive as ever. The markers of confidence building were so scattered, and the whole process tied with preliminary consensus on so
A view of the fenced border between India and Pakistan. PHOTO: REUTERS
many issues, that it was difficult to untangle it all through a flurry of delegation exchanges. No amount of Pakistani dramas on Indian television or phone calls of commiseration from India in the wake of the Peshawar school tragedy could break the ice. The final blow of 2014 came with the bail for Zakiur Rehman Lakhvi — the alleged mastermind behind the 2008 Mumbai attack — a move which undid any make-believe friendship that may have been conjured by the internationally-coaxed handshake between Nawaz and Modi at the SAARC summit.
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Earlier in October, Pakistan broke its own 14-year-old record
284 when it crossed 200 polio cases. PHOTO: REUTERS DECEMBER 28-JANUARY 3 2015
Polio
The world watched in alarm as Pakistan continued to offset the downward trend of global polio incidence, with cases surfacing from all four provinces in 2014. Despite international outrage, widespread condemnations and frenzied vaccination campaigns, polio cases stood at a 15-year high with a 260-plus tally. In late April, the World Health Organization thundered down with suggestions of travel restrictions for Pakistanis and went as far as to announce a health emergency in the country which stirred the federal health office into renewed action. On the ground, the health ministry instructed immigration offices to ensure that travellers were vaccinated, while travellers remained uncertain about the logistics of procur-
ing a ‘polio pass’ in the absence of any ministry notices. Eventually, key hospitals and airports all over the country began administering the polio vaccine to adults and issuing certificates. Despite it all, the epidemic spread as the unvaccinated population of displaced persons from the warravaged and largely-inaccessible North Waziristan poured into cities all over the country. Meanwhile health workers giving polio drops to children continued to be targeted by militants — over 65 are said to have come under attack since 2012 — making it one of the most dangerous jobs in the country. The total collapse of Pakistan’s polio prevention system remained one of the biggest health failures of the decade, specially considering that polio is overseen by special offices under each of the chief ministers, the Prime Minister’s Monitoring & Coordination Cell for Polio and the myriad international and non-governmental organisations.
In late April, the World Health Organization thundered down with suggestions of travel restrictions for Pakistanis, went as far as to announce a health emergency in the country and stirred the federal health office into renewed actio
A health worker gives a child the polio vaccine in Bannu. PHOTO: AFP
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Operation Zarb-e-Azb
As peace talks with the Tehreek-e-Taliban Pakistan (TTP) scuttled, the Pakistan armed forces stormed through the North Waziristan valley on the evening of June 15, kickstarting Operation Zarb-e-Azb. A combination of ground troops, artillery, tanks and aerial blitzes was used to indiscriminately target the Uzbek, Chinese, Pakistani, Arab and Afghan militant strongholds in the valley, putting an end to the strategic confusion that plagued the national conversation on terrorism for months. From January till the launch of the operation, the country was on tenterhooks, watching the civilian government nervously as it dispatched delegation after delegation for peace talks with militants who demanded nothing less than the state’s submission. Efforts by the government to abate the bloodshed through peace talks continued even after the TTP slaughtered 23 Frontier Corps personnel in Mohmand Agency, despite strong voices urging the government to declare total war. The conversation, however, reached a breaking point after the Karachi airport attack on June 8, a week after which the operation was set in motion. Responses to Operation Zarb-e-Azb have remained controversial with politicians and civil society members repeatedly urging caution against non-militants in the valley. Meanwhile, the displaced population of North Waziristan has poured into Khyber-Pakhtunkhwa (K-P) making for a challenge that the war strategy had overlooked. As the province cracks beneath the burden of rehabilitating, securing and providing health services to distressed, displaced tribal
The Karachi airport was attacked by the Taliban. PHOTO: REUTERS
people, they wait for the conclusion of a war that seemingly has no end.
Responses to Operation Zarb-e-Azb have remained controversial with politicians and civil society members repeatedly urging caution against nonmilitants in the valley DECEMBER 28-JANUARY 3 2015
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COVER STORY
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Children — a new target
While child casualties have been the norm in a number of attacks in Pakistan since 2004, the specific targeting and direct involvement of young ones in such incidents cropped up in the news at an alarming frequency throughout the year. Two girls’ schools in Bajaur Agency and Bara were attacked in September and October. No casualties, however, were reported. On January 9, 2014, a suicide attack on a Hangu school was prevented by the 15-year-old student Aitzaz Hasan, who lost his life while keeping the terrorist at bay from his school. The brave young man emerged as a national hero, with generous tributes paid to him from all corners of the country. Schoolchildren in some parts of Balochistan spent a jittery year too. Starting May, terrorist groups circulated inflammatory literature against Western models of education, threatening to target schools in Panjgur and Turbat. On May 7, students and teachers were terrorised at an English language centre in Panjgur while on May 13, militants torched a school van. In the wake of threat and fear of students’ lives, schools across the district were closed one by one. By the last week of May, all were closed, and schoolchildren, fearful about their lives and studies, went on an indefinite holiday. It was in the first week of August that school activities resumed amid an atmosphere of fear. The Army Public School attack in Peshawar was a horror of unprecedented proportions for the country. It must, however, be understood differently from other school attacks since it was not targeted for differences over school curriculum. It was, on the other hand, an onslaught on children by TTP militants, who targeted them in order to
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Students rescued from an attack on the Army Public School. PHOTO: REUTERS
avenge for the war that the military has been fighting in North Waziristan. Pakistan roared in rage and cried out in grief at the loss of 132 young lives. Mercy petitions of TTP terrorists on death row were rescinded and the country began carrying out the first civilian-led executions since the de facto moratorium in 2008. Six convicts tried under military court have already been hanged. As we enter 2015, the state, exhausted and bruised by this incident, seems to have surrendered that language of caution while talking terrorism.
The Army Public School attack in Peshawar was a horror of unprecedented proportions for the country
Gender-based violence
The grisliness of Farzana Parveen’s murder in Lahore on May 27 stirred the UN offices, foreign media outlets and the local judiciary alike. The pregnant 25-year-old was pelted with bricks outside the premises of the Lahore High Court and died on the spot. Civil society broke into an uproar and the chief justice took an immediate suo motu notice. The judiciary rolled its sleeves to push the case and bring the perpetrators to the books under the laws of ‘honour’ killing. The legal theatrics of the case finally ended when an anti-terrorism court slapped death sentences on 306 four culprits on November 19. DECEMBER 28-JANUARY 3 2015
Pakistani resident Mohammad Iqbal holds up an image of his wife Farzana Parveen. PHOTO: AFP
Strategies of gender-based violence took fresh, creative forms throughout the year. Acid was sprayed from syringes at women publicly in the marketplaces of Quetta, Mastung and Pishin in Balochistan during June and July. The attacks stand out in the history of acid attacks in Pakistan because the women were pedestrians, making their everyday rounds to the market when it happened, and did not recognise the perpetrators. Rape cases were also reported from Layyah, Lahore, Mansehra and Sahiwal. Pakistani human rights activists hold placards during a protest in Islamabad on May 29, 2014 against the killing of a pregnant woman Farzana Parveen. PHOTO: AFP
Pakistan’s blasphemy paranoia acquired its most hideous form on November 5. On this day, the villagers of Kot Radhakishan in Punjab beat a Christian couple, dragged them through the streets, and eventually tossed them in a blazing kiln to be baked to death Eleven-year-old Christian girl, Asia Bibi, becomes a victim of intolerance in Pakistan. PHOTO: REUTERS
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Blasphemy cases
Those accused and those defending the accused were targeted with similar rage. In May, Rashid Rehman, a lawyer defending a blasphemy-accused lecturer, was shot in his office in Multan after receiving threats against his judicial stance. Hundreds of Muslims and non-Muslims, including convicts in jails, remained terrorised by the threat of extra-judicial killings and mistreatment. In September, a 70-year-old British national, a blasphemy convict, was injured by a policeman in a Rawalpindi jail. The attack roused British offices in Pakistan, with British Prime Minister David Cameron telephoning the prime minister to protest the treatment of the prisoner, urging that he be returned to Britain. Almost a month later, a prison guard in Gujrat murdered a detained man with an axe for mak-
ing blasphemous remarks. The nature of blasphemy cases in 2014 set new records. In a first, a popular TV channel was accused of committing blasphemy. In another first, a popular Muslim televangelist, himself a proponent of the blasphemy law, was booked under it for making contentious remarks. Pakistan’s blasphemy paranoia acquired its most hideous form on November 5. On this day, the villagers of Kot Radhakishan in Punjab beat a Christian couple, dragged them through the streets, and eventually tossed them in a blazing kiln to be burnt to death. Helpless policemen looked on as the crowed unleashed its ire against the alleged desecration of the Holy Quran.
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COVER STORY
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Dharna activism
Entire neighborhoods from across the country swarmed out on the streets in support of Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf leader Imran Khan and Pakistan Awami Tehreek leader Tahirul Qadri. The widespread popularity of dharna politics in 2014 brought about a revival in middle-class activism, which had been dormant for decades. Protestors from either party camped outside key government installations, demanded a re-haul of state institutions and the resignation of the prime minister.
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Supporters at the azaadi march. PHOTO: REUTERS
Thar drought and floods
Flood victims on a boat, evacuated from their home. PHOTO: REUTERS
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The absolute collapse of the disaster management system in Pakistan made international headlines as the floods and Thar famine left hundreds of casualties across Sindh and Punjab. Starting September, the banks of Jhelum and Chenab brimmed menacingly as the northern runoff of water from Kashmir showers drained inside. Jhang, Chiniot, Multan, Jhehlum, Sialkot and Rahimyar Khan, cities and villages alive, were swamped. The flood peak whirled southwards, meandering through the low-lying areas of the Indus plains, and by the last week of September, Khairpur, Naushero Feroz, Kashmore, Muradabad, Thatta, Sial and parts of Muzaffargarh were inundated. In a geography already wearied under the lingering effects of similar floods from 2011, 2012 and 2013, hundreds of families were marooned yet again, their lives and properties washed away.
As parts of Punjab collapsed under too much water, the Tharparkar district of Sindh paid a heavy price for having too little. A months-long dry spell led to a famine-like situation throughout 2014 which resulted in the deaths of hundreds of children and babies from malnutrition while relief organisations and the administration looked on helplessly. Politicians from Sindh even appeared on television and denied the disaster in Thar, unveiling the abject negligence, corruption and mismanagement that imperils the allocation of resources.
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In a geography already wearied under the lingering effects of similar floods from 2011, 2012 and 2013, hundreds of families were marooned yet again, their lives and properties washed away
Malala Yousafzai’s Nobel
The conversation on Pakistan’s young education activist, Malala Yousufzai, broached afresh when the 17-year-old won the Nobel Peace Prize with Indian child rights activist Kailash Satyarthi on October 10. Global eulogies for Malala struck a face-off with the chatter at home, where the young schoolgirl’s achievements were often shaped into myriad accusations and defamatory statements. There were widespread reservations in Pakistan on the decision to sideline the country’s favourite philanthropist, Abdus Sattar Edhi, who was favoured over Malala by many for the prize. T
The conversation on Pakistan’s young education activist, Malala Yousufzai, broached afresh when the 17-year-old won the Nobel Peace Prize with Indian child rights activist Kailash Satyarthi on October 10
Faiza Rahman is a subeditor for the Opinion & Editorial section of The Express Tribune.
Malala Yousafzai (left) holds the Nobel Peace Prize and (right) gives a speech at the awards ceremony . PHOTO: AFP DECEMBER 28-JANUARY 3 2015
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FEATURE
The year that could have been
Pakistan cashed in on a lot of luck in 2014, but is that really a good thing?
One sacrifice for all The year 2014 for Pakistan seems to have begun and ended with the Taliban’s war on schools. As the country reels from the bloody attack on Peshawar’s Army Public School on December 16, it is perhaps a good time to reflect on how a similar tragedy was averted in January this year. Aitzaz Hasan, a 15-year-old schoolboy from Hangu, was late for school and was outside the Government High School Ibrahim Zai gate when he spotted a man wearing a suicide vest. Despite the advice from his friends, Hasan confronted the man and prevented him from entering the school, which at the time had close to 2,000 students. Hasan, along with the suicide bomber, lost his life, but saved many from the kind of death and destruction that the country would eventually experience 11 months later. "My son made his mother cry, but saved hundreds of mothers from crying for their children," Mujahid Ali, Hasan’s father, told The Express Tribune. It is indeed a tragic state of affairs when the last line of defense against militancy is our children, but in this case Hasan — and Malala Yousafzai before him — showed how potent that line is.
BY SAIM SAEED DESIGN BY MOHSIN ALAM
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It seems strange how one can reminisce over events that never happened. After all, how can one be affected by a non-event? But history is rarely linear enough to be defined by cause and effect. Various examples — the Y2K scare, aliens and flying cars — show that our collective imagination is captured by the impossible and the bizarre or the sublime and the horrific. The year 2014 was packed with such events. For better or worse, all the events in this article were averted but they nevertheless highlighted the best and worst of Pakistan — often in the same breath. DECEMBER 28-JANUARY 3 2015
Dear Ebola, you need not visit Pakistan With polio spreading unchecked, mostly aided by militants relentlessly targeting health workers, Ebola — which has killed thousands across western African states — was the second disease that threatened to engulf Pakistan this year. In a world with mass movement of goods and personnel, the disease threatened to become global. When the first few confirmed cases (and fatalities) emerged in the United States, panic became more widespread than the disease itself and Pakistan was not immune either. A handful of individuals coming back from West Africa were quarantined and suspected of carrying the disease. Although none of them were infected with Ebola, the scare exposed flaws in Pakistan’s public health infrastructure and preparedness to handle a possible outbreak. Vaccines and effective treatment are both difficult to find, and yet hardly any resources were put in education and prevention. According to the government’s logic, catching and detaining those affected would be equivalent to containing the disease. While the country believes it is fortunate to have evaded an Ebola outbreak, it is mostly fortune that it will have to rely on in the future as well.
Saints and storms It was just as well that Nilofar did not hit, because like Ebola, Pakistan was hardly prepared for it. An example is the drowning of scores of people on Eid in Karachi’s rough waters because lifeguards were either absent or ineffectual and the police failed to cordon off the more dangerous sections of the beach. But perhaps it wasn’t the lack of preparation but the death wish of the citizens that deserves more attention since many Karachiites made their way to the beach front because of the hurricane warning and not in spite of it. Discussing Karachi’s preparedness for the hurricane in court, Sindh Assembly Speaker Agha Siraj Durrani brushed away the precautionary measures, placing his faith in the mystical power of saints to counter an impending natural disaster. “(Saint) Abdullah Shah Ghazi has saved us many times before and he will save us this time as well,” he said, referring to the saint’s mausoleum which lies close to the coast. The hurricane that induced widespread panic and evacuations across Pakistan’s coast was barely a breeze and some drizzle by the time it arrived, but it had successfully exposed some of the downright insane responses some citizens had to an impending catastrophe.
High spirit despite a low note A well-known statistic that recently did rounds on social media was that Pakistanis have won an Oscar, an Emmy and even a Nobel Peace prize within
the last few years. But the Grammy has been an accolade that’s been tantalisingly close, but so far unattainable. Many hoped that 2014 would finally be Pakistan’s year since Indus Raag: Beyond Borders, a 12-CD compilation of South Asian classic and folk music, was shortlisted in the ‘Best World Music’ category. Unfortunately, the album never made it beyond that and was excluded from the final nominations. The snub, while disappointing, should be taken in stride. While Pakistan’s security situation and its politics continue to debilitate, its artists continue to promise, creating installations, music, films and literature that have found global audiences and recognition. And this trend looks sure to continue, with a Grammy or not.
“I have a dream” A popular slogan chanted this year was, ‘tabdeeli aa nahi rahi, tabdeeli aa gayi hai’ (change isn’t on its way, it has already arrived). Despite the pervasive claim that Pakistan Tehreeke-Insaf (PTI) chief Imran Khan and his supporters like to peddle, this year has emphatically failed to bring whatever promises ‘naya Pakistan’ had in store for the citizens. For the most part, all we got was more of the same (crime, terrorism, corruption, load shedding and poverty) with some added afflictions thrown in, such as famine, floods and sectarianism. To give an example, one of PTI’s campaign ads had a scene in which a wouldbe traveller shows up at a consulate to apply for a visa and the visa officer is so impressed by the traveller’s Pakistani passport that he stamps his approval. But, unfortunately, reality dictates otherwise. In the ranking of the world’s weakest passports this year, Pakistan is behind only Somalia and Afghanistan. Pakistan continues to languish in the bottom reaches of infant mortality, illiteracy and school enrollment rankings. Our economic growth is anemic and our outlook is bleak. And it’s not just PTI’s promises that are to blame, even the ones made by the ruling government, such as high-speed railways, airports in every village and individual prosperity, have failed to materialise. But perhaps, the citizens are themselves to blame for believing in politicians’ promises in the first place. ‘Naya Pakistan’ was the idea that never was, but it seems to have been the most powerful exercise in make-believe that citizens engaged in this year.t
Saim Saeed is a sub-editor for The Express Tribune. He tweets @saimsaeed847 DECEMBER 28-JANUARY 3 2015
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Best of 2014
BeST OF 2014
Movies By SaMeen aMer
The year 2014 may not have been a wonderful orbit around the Sun for the world in general, but as far as films were concerned, the year certainly had its fair share of impressive projects. The good ones took us on thrilling journeys to mysterious places, helping us discover more about ourselves and the world we live in. The best ones connected with us on an emotional level while exciting us with their ideas and visuals. So as the year draws to a close, we take a (subjective) look at some of its most distinctive and exhilarating cinematic offerings. Here are five of the finest films that 2014 had to offer:
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Boyhood There is a reason Boyhood is one of the most celebrated films of the year: it quite simply deserves to be. The most unique movie of 2014, Richard Linklater’s opus was shot intermittently over a 12-year period, following the same characters portrayed by the same actors for a dozen years in an ambitious foray into temporal continuity. In the beginning, we meet Mason Evans Jr (Ellar Coltrane) when he is a six-year-old, living in Texas with his elder sister Samantha (Lorelei Linklater, the director’s real-life daughter) and single mother Olivia (Patricia Arquette) who has separated from their father Mason Sr (Ethan Hawke). By the end, Mason Jr is 18 and off to college. Encompassed therein, in all its messy shades, is ‘boyhood’ — the evolution of a little boy into a young man. The film subtly showcases the often mundane complications of human life, while exploring issues like divorce, alcoholism and heartbreak. With its footage captured over a decade, then collapsed into a piece that runs for nearly three hours (around 165 minutes to be precise), Boyhood is quite an experience. Its concept could easily have turned out to be nothing more than a gimmick; instead, while it is the approach that initially lures you to the project, it’s the emotional resonance that makes an impact and leaves you with one of the most memorable experiences of 2014.
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Gone Girl After a woman (Rosamund Pike) goes missing, her husband (Ben Affleck) starts to emerge as a likely suspect in her disappearance. But nothing is as it seems in Gone Girl, and that’s what makes this dark, twisty tale one of the most riveting episodes of 2014. Gillian Flynn’s gripping screenplay (which she adapted from her own 2012 bestseller that bears the same title) meets David Fincher’s meticulous, stylish execution to take the viewers on a two-and-a-half hour rollercoaster filled with suspense. With casting choices that may seem peculiar at first glance (you don’t expect to see ‘Blurred Lines’ model Emily Ratajkowski in a David Fincher film), the movie brings out the best in each actor and puts them all to perfect use; the leads in particular deliver outstanding performances. You can see it as a thriller about a sociopath, an intelligent satire of media circuses or a deeper look at deception and entrapment, but no matter what lens you view it through, there is little doubt that you will be transfixed to the screen. This, ultimately, is what the perfect pairing of material and director can achieve.
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Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance) Almost no other film this year can compete with the amount of acclaim that has been showered on Alejandro González Iñárritu’s dark comedy Birdman or (The Unexpected Virtue of Ignorance). Made to look like most of it is one long, continuous take, the film follows the story of a washed up actor (Michael Keaton), once famous for playing a superhero called Birdman, who is trying to reinvigorate his career. The movie hits all the right chords in almost every department — direction, acting, screenplay, and cinematography — and has emerged as an early favourite this award season. The reason it might bag many accolades in the coming months is that it blends its smart satirical edge with a spectrum of human emotions. The supporting cast is exceptional, and (former Batman) Michael Keaton, who has played Batman before, is an inspired choice for the lead role, almost (but not quite) like art imitating life.
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The Grand Budapest Hotel Its premise — akin to a Wodehousian farce on steroids — might not have been everyone’s cup of tea, but anyone would find it hard to deny the film’s visual dexterity. The Grand Budapest Hotel is the whimsical story of a concierge (Ralph Fiennes) at an esteemed hotel, who teams up with the lobby boy (Tony Revolori) to prove his innocence after he is framed for murder. The composition of each scene, from the production design to the fluidity of the camera work is impeccable. The film has been shot beautifully from start to finish. There is no argument that Wes Anderson has created a visually stunning feast, but that isn’t the only thing about this project that makes it exciting. Quirky, wellcast and delightfully scored, The Grand Budapest Hotel is a stylish riot with more underneath its polished surface than initially meets the eye.
The Lego Movie It would have made all the sense in the world to be weary of The Lego Movie before it was actually released, but how were we to know that a 100-minute long advertisement could be this good? We find ourselves in the Lego universe, where a construction worker named Emmet (voiced by Chris Pratt) lands in the middle of the quest to stop evil Lord Business (Will Ferrell) from using a superweapon called Kragle. A prophecy suggests that Emmet is ‘the Special’, despite the fact that everything about him seems to prove otherwise. Zany hijinks inevitably ensue. The result is smart, inventive, funny, silly, charming, touching and thoroughly enjoyable. If there is a statement to be made about the value of fun, then The Lego Movies makes it very convincingly, and does so with much gusto (a characteristic it shares with the equally enjoyable Guardians of the Galaxy). The film is full of heart and clearly made with a lot of love. And it’s the utter passion it displays and the exhilarating ride it takes us through that makes it one of the standout movies of the year.
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Sameen Amer is a Lahore-based freelance writer and critic. She tweets @Sameen December 28-january 3 2015
BEST OF 2014
Books By NuzhaT Saadia Siddiqi
Perhaps the most challenging list to compile at the end of a year is one that lists the ‘best’ books published within that year. Since not every book published within a year can be read by one person alone, objectivity is naturally impossible. So, all of these compilations are uniquely biased, highlighting the reading preferences of the compiler. But even within the bias there is benefit for readers who may have missed some of the most interesting books in the claptrap that is book marketing these days.
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Stone Mattress: Nine Tales by Margaret atwood
“From this distance it does resemble fun. Fun is not knowing how it will end.” After putting the MaddAddam trilogy to rest, and promising to write a book that will be read in the future, Margaret Atwood came out with this collection of short stories this year, which is the literary equivalent of a lop-sided grin and a wink. The nine ‘tales’ evoke a sense of magical realism, veer ever so slightly into gothic noir, skim past science fiction and, all in all, are a disturbing delight to read. There are hints of her earlier works in the stories. We get whiffs of the same insightful study of ageing Atwood shown in The Blind Assassin and her take on alienation and solitude as explored in Alias Grace — all in the best way possible. Some of the passages within the tales also feel like homage to literary greats like Roald Dahl and Ray Bradbury. For those who want to read trademark Atwood without diving deep into the MaddAddam universe, this book is a treasure.
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Through the Woods by Emily Carroll
“It came from the woods. Most strange things do.” This delightfully eerie graphic novel features five beautifully illustrated stories that will shock, unsettle and stay with you for a very long time. You will want to put away the book if you are alone at home and it is nighttime, yet, you will find yourself reaching for it again and again. Emily Carroll is a rare new talent who blends seamless storytelling techniques of old (think Poe, Hawthorne and Lovecraft) with carefully drawn graphics that are starkly chilling and refreshingly different from what is on offer in the graphic novel market today. Through the Woods is not for the faint-hearted. It’s a perfect companion for long, winter nights when the reader will be able to feel their heart pacing while reading these ghostly, ghoulish tales.
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On Immunity: An Inoculation by Eula Biss
“Our bodies and the viruses (are) two competing intelligences locked in a mortal game of chess.” In 2010, Eula Biss realised that pretty much everything everywhere was out to kill her newborn son, and to save him, she needed the comforting support of medical science in the form of vaccinations. In this non-fiction collection of essays, the author has built upon fears many new parents have about diseases, germs, the degradation of environment and food quality and how vaccines can defeat them all. Rather than preaching generalities, Biss has written about the need for vaccination in a child’s life from a deeper socio-cultural and psychological perspective in prose that is often dry but also beautifully on point. She takes the anti-vaccination brigade head on with factual information and anecdotal evidence, making this a tremendously fascinating read for all in Pakistan as the debate over polio vaccination continues. The fact that we are not the only country facing a backlash against vaccination of some kind or the other is, in the very least, quite fascinating.
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The Seasons of Trouble by Rohini Mohan
“These children were being sent to face a real army when they could barely lift their guns.” Indian journalist Rohini Mohan has put down five years of intensive, gut-wrenching investigative journalism in Sri Lanka into this book, making it the most elegantly written non-fiction book on this list that is equal to any literary novel out there today. Revolving around the defeat of the separatist Tamil Tigers by the Sri Lankan army in 2009, The Seasons of Trouble is an emotionally charged narrative retelling of the lives of three women caught in the aftermath of three decades of civil war in the South Asian nation. As dust settles on the bloodshed, indiscriminate violence and targeted subjugation of minorities, more and more people find peace to be more troubling — and more unsettling — than outright conflict, as the state continues to target minorities and those who sympathise with them. The book recounts the heroic struggle of Indra as she searches for her son Sarva who has been snatched away by state forces. It also carries the story of Mugil, a former child soldier with the Tamil Tigers, who deserted his ranks to protect his family. It is hard to imagine that the twists and turns elegantly chronicled in this book are not fiction. Unlike many other authors who have written about the Sri Lankan civil war in fiction, Mohan’s visceral book stays with you longer because it heavily relies on the most tantalising storytelling tool: the truth.
5
The Opposite of Loneliness by Marina Keegan
“I want enough time to be in love with everything.” Youth was certainly not wasted on young Marina Keegan. A brilliant young writer and Yale student Keegan tragically died in a car accident a few days after her graduation from the Ivy League university but found allies and friends in millions after her beautifully poignant essay ‘The Opposite of Loneliness’ went viral on social media in 2012. At the time of her death, Keegan already had a much coveted staff job awaiting her at The New Yorker. The reason for that is beautifully presented in this posthumous collection of essays, poetry and vignettes which draws its name from the title essay and reads like a soulful and poignant ode to navigating the ups and downs of youth in an increasingly convoluted world. This is a must-read for those who believe in the need for living each moment of their lives fully as if it is their last, for it may just be so. And as a bookish teenager recently suggested, “A better read for those still fawning over the pungent melodrama of The Fault in Our Stars.”
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Nuzhat Saadia Siddiqi is a Lahore-based writer and book hoarder. She tweets @guldaar December 28-january 3 2015
beST OF 2014
Television by ViVian J XaVier
Stylistic scripts, big-budget production value and cinematography that pushes the envelope have placed TV in an enviable position this year, where it commands just as much respect as films. it has not only bitten out of the film distributors and cineplex’s market share but has even managed to reinvent the distribution model altogether. Here are five of my favourite TV shows that have been a great source of entertainment throughout 2014.
1
Manhattan Second World War (WWII) dramas have been a staple for cinema and, more recently, television. Imbuing this sub-genre with the-familiar-yet-new, however, has become increasingly difficult. But Manhattan has managed to do that with an intoxicating blend of historical accuracy and dramatic license. The episodic series is a semi-fictional tale about the city that housed the scientists who developed the atomic bomb, their families and their work. It begins exactly 766 days before the US drops an atomic bomb (Little Boy) on Hiroshima and traverses the lives of the inhabitants of Los Alamos, a town with no postal code and the all-powerful military police. The race is on to be the first ones to develop the A-bomb: will it be Dr Reed Aikley’s Thin Man project that delivers the bomb or will it be the underfunded, mad genius Dr Frank Winter and his band of scrappy theoretical physicists that make the possible annihilation of all mankind a reality. The writing is taut and exemplary, something that we’ve all come to expect from American episodic television. The characters are flawed but likably human and extremely relatable even if they are theoretical physicists that would make history and rewrite modern warfare. The immaculate production design transfixes the audience in 1940s war ravaged America and the art team assembled by Ruth Ammon delivers to the picometres. Manhattan is strictly narrative, but it is one of the best you will watch for a while. It is already renewed for a second season 44 that will premiere in 2015. December 28-january 3 2015
2
The Americans At the end of WWII, USA and USSR emerged as the only superpowers that had the military and scientific strength to command global hegemony. This resulted in a 44-year stance of political and military tension between the two countries. Ordinary salt-of-the-earth people were swept away in either the Marxist-Leninist ideology or the American system of capitalism; and this deep-rooted sense of personal righteousness resulted in people spying for the government on both sides and perpetuated the clandestine nature of the Cold War. The Americans deals with this subject head on as it explores the lives of Elizabeth (Keri Russell) and Philip Jennings (Matthew Rhys), two Soviet KGB officers posing as an American married couple living in the northern Virginia suburbs of Washington, DC. What heightens the stake is the new neighbour who happens to be FBI counterintelligence agent Stan Beeman (Noah Emmerich). The Russian Foreign Intelligence Agency has planted the Jennings’ in the US to gather sensitive government documents. Their double lives start to take a toll on their once cozy familial relationships and the second season explores this disintegration of Norman Rockwell’s all-American façade. This breakdown occurs through small things like their daughter’s insistence on attending church and reading the Bible. The historical contexts of the narrative arc is multilayered and a genius reduction of macro global politics on a micro level. The show was created by ex-CIA officer Joe Weisberg and this is evident in the minutiae of secret service protocols and dead-drops that lend the show an authenticity. This, in turn, makes it immediately appealing to viewers who want to know more about the particulars of spying and spies themselves. The Americans is not only engaging, insightful and thoroughly entertaining but also one of the best written and best produced shows of the year.
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The Knick
True Detective
The Affair
The Knick focuses on the Knickerbocker Hospital in Manhattan, which was at the forefront of medical innovation on the cusp of the 20th century. It stars Clive Owen as Dr John W Thackery, a cocaine-fuelled genius, equal parts Edison and equal parts Dr Frankenstein. He is a decorated doctor that injects cocaine to do what he does and visits prostitutes at night, and the show exhibits a similar duality between the sublime and the vulgar. The polar opposite of Dr Thackery is Dr Algernon Edwards (Andre Holland), an AfricanAmerican doctor trained in Europe fighting against systemic racism to earn his due respect at the Knick. The cast is rounded off by an eclectic array of individuals who will challenge the viewers’ refined sensibilities. The writing is crisp and clinical where it needs to be. The art direction is given special consideration with Dr Stanley Burns of the Burns Archive providing expert, on-set medical advice and sharing the archive’s many photographs as references for medical equipment, procedures and even a prosthetic worn by a recurring character. The detail that has been meticulously married to emotionally enrapturing writing and inspiring cinematography is what sets this show apart from others. Special mention needs to be given to the music composer Cliff Martinez whose electronic synthesised tracks for the show pulsate perfectly between the old world and the new. One ought to point to The Knick as one of the harbingers of the golden age of TV.
True Detective is the story of evil that lurks beneath and on both sides of the law and of old wounds that can haunt the present. Woody Harrelson (Martin Hart) and Matthew McConaughey (Rust Cohle), two former Louisiana State Police Detectives who solved a murder mystery in 1995, are brought in for questioning in 2012 as the case is reopened after 17 years. Timelines of the past and present are braided together in a way that one is unclear about the ‘true’ nature of things. As the series unfolds, the relationships of the two protagonists unravel and we are presented with the world that sparked the initial disintegration. The show has the distinction of being one of the recent few that have been shot on celluloid film and also has a remarkable four-minute, onetake shot in episode four. The writing by Nic Pizzolatto is revelatory and the cinematography by Arkapaaw supports it with old school flair. It is narrative filmmaking at its best.
Showtime, much like HBO, is gaining traction for pushing the envelope in original programming. Their latest offering, The Affair, explores the emotional effects of an extramarital relationship between Noah Solloway, a New York City school teacher, doting husband and father of four, and Alison Lockhart, a married woman who is trying to piece her life back together after the death of her young son. The two meet in the idyllic town of Montauk where Allison is a waitress and Noah is visiting his in-laws. The story of the affair is told separately with distinct memory biases from each of the lead character’s perspectives. But there is more to the show than just two people lying to their spouses: It explores whether the characters’ are on a path of self-discovery or if they are merely lying to themselves as well. The show harkens back to dramas like Kramer Vs Kramer, Ordinary People and, more recently, shows like Tell me you love me where the psychological impact of human frailty and the all-too-human bond of love is examined through a cinematic lens. The classic shots by Steven Fierberg along with theatrical writing and immersive acting make The Affair a must-watch.
Vivan J Xavier is a cinematographer. He tweets @vivianjxavier December 28-january 3 2015
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SOCIETY
#TweetError 2014
The year 2014 was as eventful in cyberspace as it was off it. While Twitter played a key role in shaping events and conversations in a majority of the cases, here are some of the tweetss that made their writers wish they had put a little more thought into the 140 characters BY NOMAN ANSARI DESIGN BY TALHA KHAN
1. In 2000, a young American
Adnan Masud Syed was convicted of strangling his teenage girlfriend Hae Min Lee. A component of the prosecution’s case stated that Syed made a phone call from a payphone at a Best Buy parking lot after the crime. However, there is only one problem with that: Best Buy does not have a payphone in its parking lot. After a popular podcast, Serial, brought the inconsistency to light, Best Buy made light of the situation over Twitter which quickly resulted in a backlash.
2.
Just like most of us, supermodel Naomi Campbell also fell victim to the autocorrect feature. In her congratulatory Instagram post to Malala Yousafzai, she unintentionally referred to her as ‘Malaria’ instead. To make matters worse, her post was automatically shared on her Twitter account where it spread like wildfire.
3. The New England Patriots are 4. Today, Kim Kardashian arguably the most popular football club in America. When they became the first National Football League team to reach one million followers on Twitter, they held a contest to give away their jersey to one lucky fan. Unfortunately the winner had a racist twitter handle and when he was congratulated in a tweet it was instantly retweeted far and wide.
is a successful entrepreneur, but she rose to fame initially after a leaked sex tape with African American rapper Ray-J. Unfortunately for Kim, she had to relive her embarrassment after her sister Khloe poked fun at her relationship with African American men and at the white supremacist group KKK in a tweet.
5. The Jewish lobby is apparently
Unlike Rihanna, some celebrities stuck to their proPalestinian guns and stood tall in the face of Twitter abuse. One such celeb was One Direction singer Zayn Malik, whose following tweet broke many pro-Israeli hearts.
quite powerful in the American music industry. How powerful one may ask? Well, it took exactly eight minutes for Rihanna to delete the following tweet after a massive internet backlash.
6.
7.
The only problem with the following tweet by UKIP, a British political party, is that the building they were referring to was a cathedral and not a mosque. What followed were countless amusing tweets to UKIP with images of cultural buildings that weren’t mosques. One of the funnier #ThingsThatAreNotMosques tweets was a pair of moccasins. Noman Ansari is a freelance writer and regular contributor to The Express Tribune magazine. He tweets @Pugnate