THE BEAUTIFULLY MUNDANE

It is irrefutable that, inevitably, the extraordinarily extravagant is commemorated, overshadowing the ordinary.

The banal, intangible legacies of communities are what uphold their heritage. In the case of the Walled City of Lahore, it is not just the palaces of the royals or even the stacked houses of the ‘commoners’ that reflect heritage. This statement does not dismiss the tangible but merely de-privileges it, to comprehend that fabric is not its sole manifestation. Heritage also lies in the everyday activities and the mundane normalcy where the sense of community builds in quintessence.

It is the empty buckets that women sling down like Rapunzel hair from their jharokas (semi-enclosed balconies) to purchase groceries from street vendors. It is the trust they have in the hawker to provide them with fresh produce while lowering down their hard-earned money. It’s about bargaining compulsively regarding their everyday purchases just for the sake of conversing. Banter that evolves into sharing with the neighbors, what is intended to be prepared with these groceries. Here lies the heritage that creates the Walled City of Lahore; concealed within the mundane act of buying tomatoes and onions.