Tuesday, August 17, 2010

12.

Nostalgia chooses to peek out of the strangest corners; it envelopes me when I look at deserted, half-constructed buildings, when the smoke from piles of burning rubbish gets caught in my throat. when the stench of fish accompanies me through half of Clifton, the beach with its sour, dirty smell against the too-bright glare of whitewashed light. The streets with roads eroded and filled with water because of rain, swarming with mosquitoes. The urchins and the hijras and the thousands of beggars in Ramadan. Streets suddenly plunging into complete darkness because of power cuts.
And of course, Abdullah Shah Ghazi ki mazaar. It twinkles and shines, like a gaudily decked out monarch showing off his jewels. You can blow up as many shrines as you want, and these people will still flock to them.
In the evenings when the air is still and balmy, and there is not a single hint of a breeze.
At 3 am, when the roads are empty and quiet, yet never quite asleep.
At random times when there is nowhere to go, nothing to do except sit around and hang out in someone's room.

It is always the same Karachi. It is in my blood and my heart and my flesh. Karachi, in all its third-world glory, unabashedly proud. It is home, like no place will be.

5 comments:

Ubaid said...

Loved the way you made me view Karachi... I had never seen it this way :)

Anonymous said...

Agreed. It's the most beautiful city in the world regardless of whatever crap goes around in it :)

Unknown said...

You love it because somehow it has given you space to breathe in, opportunities to avail, beauties to capture, relations to count on and learning to live with delight. We all LOVE the land we own. Aside from each happening , which is dispersing its glow , it still and will serve as our identity.

Regards

Komal Ali said...

:)
Karachi is KARACHI!

A said...

I just saw this blog for the first time. I love it. I absolutely love it. And I haven't even gone beyond two posts yet.