The Cry of “Your Honour” is Now Silent

Touching... and well written... though not enough to redeem you.

Also those of us who knew Muhammad Ali ... or even passed by his house in Gulberg`s most expensive lane... knew that the man was a born aristocrat and spoke Urdu better than the Ahl-e-Zubaan... he would not mispronounce Z.

Main Aa Gaya...

Judge sahib
Aaapne bulayaa
Itne sabere
Bus ek minute
Jara ek pyalee
Chai pi loon

Hum to desi thahre
Aur bina chai piye
Ek kadam bhi naheen uthate
Aur wo bhee
Itna bara kadam

Aur in aankhon se kahiye
Ki apne aansoo
Poachh dalein
In se kahiye
Ki awaaj bharee na karein

Thoree si roshni
Ghut gayee
To kya hua
Chiraagh
Kabhee bujhta naheen

Humaree jindagiyan
Aag ke dariyon
Se bhari hain
Kitnee Sharaarat
Karte hain ye
Kiraye ke kateel

Rona nahin, Zeba
Bahadur rote naheen
Ro-ne se to achchha hai ki
Khamosh Raho
Ye Dooriyan
Utnee jyada nahin hain
Jitnee nazar aatee hain

Bus itnee si arzoo hai
Kaash ye salakhein
Toot sakteen
Aur dil ke daagh
Mit sakte

Apnee jindagiyan to
Imtihaanon se bharee hain

Aur Judge sahib
Shayad main ne
Aaapke diye hu-e
Imtihaan bhi
Pass kur liye honge

Judge sahib
Main aa gaya
Judge sahib

PS:

And BJ gets as good he gives...

Only a few weeks ago... he revealed his true face... when he abused Farzana Versey for giving her point of view ... and abused her and called her a whore.

I suppose this is acceptable behavior for great ``Democrats`` who appreciate ``art forms``

Ras sahab,

I am very happy with comments from all people about great men and women that our country has produced.

However BJKumar`s attempt was malafide... have you read his first comment. He is always out to spin everything as to ``You stupid Pakis - why did you separate``.

My favorite movie is an Indian movie called ``Basant Bahar``. My favorite South Asian actor is Bharat Bhushan. Does that make me less of a Pakistani or my identity as a Pakistani less so? Please be fair ... what was BJKumar`s attempt here? Why am I not objecting to any other Indian except him?


Art has no boundaries.... nor ideology nor identity. Good art is good art. Period. This is what Mr BJKumar doesn`t get. He thinks artists etc are indulging an ideological fight. If Pakistani art forms are involved in an ideological fight against state sponsored bigotry and propaganda it is for Pakistan itself and not some greater wet dream by the Indians.

It is not an OLD HABIT- that I have called a ``spade`` a ``spade`` and BJ Kumar the disgusting Hindu fanatic that he.

bjkumar Sahib,

Thank you very much for your appreciation of the good soul which was

Mohammad Ali.

Unlike some enthusiastic young Pakistanis here, as an old guy

I am always happy with comments from Hindus, Sikhs, Christians,

Jews and others here on CHOWK.

I am glad that Indians know how to appreciate their Movie people

and all forms of Art. Pakistanis appreciate Indian art forms as well

but once in a while old habits crop up and the name-calling starts.

Ras

Muhammad Ali and Zeba were quintessential patriots of Pakistan. They always favored a progressive Pakistani national identity and therefore starred in that movie ``Khaak-o-Khoon`` which came out much better than the book... Like many artists, writers etc they did not see their national identity as a necessary bar from being friends with Indians... at a level of mutual respect and equality...

There is a very diseased mentality in operation on the other side of the border... it wants to blanket Pakistanis into this camp or that. Either a Pakistani hates his own self and is therefore acceptable to freaks like BJ Kumar... or he is on the other side and can`t appreciate India and Indian actors...

It is with this small minded intent that this bigot BJkumar came on this board. He had no real reason to come and start talking of partition ... but he did... because being a Hindu fanatic he is unable to reconcile himself to the fact that Pakistan exists...

Please read these words carefuly and grow up:

``The culture of both our nations dictates that we do not malign and do not abuse each other.``

But BJ Kumar will never learn a lesson.

Dear Hindutvist cheetay,

Now that was a much better post from you boy.

-YLH

Ras saheb:

Thank you once again for this article. It made me curious regarding the gentleman in question (I did not know much about him). I did some searching and was quite impressed by what I learnt. He was a true gem - and like all true artists - was above parochial considerations - I hope he inspires many more true artists - be they actors, writers, artists, whatever!

I am passing along some of the interesting nuggets of information which are not included in your ``short-notice`` write-up.

Excerpts from an Indian newspaper account:

…Muhammad Ali was known as the ``king of emotions``.

Ali, who dominated the film world for several decades, passed away at his Firdous Market residence here Sunday morning. He had been suffering from a kidney problem and had been on dialysis for the last month, media reports said Monday.

On Sunday, he woke up and had a cup of tea after which he suddenly collapsed and died.

…Ali was born in Rohtak district of Haryana state in India in 1931 and his family later migrated to Multan and finally to Hyderabad (Sindh). He began his professional career from Radio Pakistan Hyderabad and his debut film was ``Charagh Jalta Raha`` (1962). He acted in over 300 films….

He had also acted in an Indian film, ``Clerk``. Actors Manoj Kumar and Rajinder Kumar were his close friends from the Indian film industry. He also had high regard for his Indian contemporaries like Dilip Kumar, Raj Kapoor and Dev Anand.

Former Indian prime minister Indira Gandhi had visited Ali’s home in the 1970s.

He was a popular delegate at the International Film Festival of India (IFFI) in 1979, after Zia-ul Haq used cinema as a means to improve relations with India.

Asked by an Indian journalist at a press conference at the IFFI if the Punjabi films in Pakistan, known for their vigorous dance and music, carried on an anti-India campaign, he replied: ``The culture of both our nations dictates that we do not malign and do not abuse each other.``

Like many other post-partition Pakistani film personalities, Ali defended the ban on import of Indian films into Pakistan, arguing that the larger Indian cinema would edge out the nascent domestic film industry.

From the Des-Pardes site, a couple of nostalgic comments:

``According to a newspaper report, he owed Rs. 17.00 to Radio Pakistan Karachi’s cafeteria in his initial days. Recently he has urged the cafeteria’s cashier to retain his name in their records with the same amount, and that he is willing to pay as much money as is demanded to keep up the old records, since it reminds him of those bad times.

One of his famous dialogues in movies was, ``Maa main nay B.A. pass kar liyaa hai maa`` (Mom, I passed my BA exams, mom).``

I had the pleasure and the privilege of working with Ali Saheb in his first (and last?) television serial in 1994, along with Sabiha Khanum Apa and Talish Saheb. What a warm, wonderful, HUMBLE human being! And generous to a fault, not only with money but with his time and praise as well. May he rest in peace!

Dear BJKumar

I don`t know why you think your views or your unoriginal writing matters? If you say something in a verbose colorful way doesn`t make it any more factual. Meanwhile you may want to read my poem ``Ik Tarapti hui Aatma`` about the Hindu fascist you call your Mahatma.

Meanwhile I fail to see why you decided to pollute this board with Hindu fundamentalist bigotry in the first place.

Manto my sweetheart,

Anybody who takes the trouble to look at what I wrote (and what you wrote) can see for themselves who did what - especially who went off the handle!

My true feelings on your idol have been summarized in my March 26, 2006 i-log.

Respectfully submitted.

PS: I don`t expect bigoted ``Hindutvists`` whose Mahatma said ``I am a Hindu first and therefore a TRUE Indian`` to understand what I am trying to say... or why a man who said ``I am an Indian first second and last`` turned to Muslim separatism.

BJKumar...

Your lack of knowledge is woeful to say the least.

The ``idol`` you referred to is famous for making two statements :

``I am an Indian first second and last``

and

``I am a nationalist first second and last``



Nobody is drawing lines between art but you are an idiot for politicising a mere obituary to a great actor... who is respected both sides of the border.

#11 Ras
I saw Ali`s movies when I was a kid. Then I saw one recently which was ,`` jaisy jantay nain``. It was wonderful Zeba played a role of an arrogant spoiled brat of being the daughter of a rich man and Ali, as usual trying to win her love at any cost . Zeba was the most beautiful in Indo Pak film industry. She reminded me of Liz Taylor. Never seen a pretty face like her in India and In Pakistan. She was extremely pretty.

Mohammad Ali had lived very simple life. I just watched his interview few days pack wid ``naeem buhkari``. He was not only a great actor but also a great human being. it is so sad we always realize the importance of people when they are gone.

#16 Manto

It is absolutely foolish to compare and try to draw artificial divides between the Pakistani entertainment industry and the Indian one. These are about - you got it (or perhaps did not) - about ``entertainment`` - therefore the people who create such art try to apply it to the masses - they draw from the whole gamut of emotions that make us all click in the subcontinent - we all sing to the same tune, after all.

I recognize it may be a highly difficult concept for you to grasp!

You, whose whole identity is irrevocably linked to a sense of being ``exclusive`` - just like it was for your idol - the original architect of that ``elegant`` phrase - ``I am not an Indian - I am a Muslim!``

A very difficult concept - how can one imagine the pajama-wallas, the chador-walis, the saree-shrimatees, the dhoti-dharees and the turbaned-urbane all nodding their heads together to the same beat - the eternal music of the heart-strings?!

I was not trying to compare the two countries’ entertainment industries. Why should I? If the Pakistani entertainment industry thrives - all the more power to it! It will be a great improvement over the other source of such unmitigated entertainment value - that of bearded variety.

The truth is it is difficult to tell the difference between the looks of the great Mohammad Ali (whose rock-like picture graces this article) and our very own Dharmendra of yore.

These folks work with their God-given talents to make a living - and deserve our unmitigated love. And boy they work for a living! (I will refrain from naming certain other professions which live off human misery!)

It would be great if Hindu fascists and supremacists like BJKumar refrained from polluting every board from with their pathetic and ill-informed propaganda nonsense that Hindutva inspired governments have been shoving down their throats for 58 years...

bjkumar...

As usual you have no clue about what you are saying...

There is a very good book called ``50 years of Pakistani Cinema`` ... Pakistan`s Film Industry was doing very well till 1978... You consider the quality of movies ... and you would find that Pakistani movies were as good as Indian movies if not better...

General Zia destroyed it...

Thank you Ras saheb for this wonderful article. I did not know too much about the artist in question, but am a bit more enlightened now.

I believe that the division of the subcontinent did a truly hatchet job on the Urdu film industry. It still thrived in India - partly because we were fortunate enough to end up with some really talented folks - and partly because the commericial market size was larger - and perhaps also partly because there was less state-mandated (or perhaps state-expected) restrictions on what was considered kosher from the point of view of Pakistani ``nationalism``. (I hope the Pakistani film industry revives - but in all likelihood, in order to do that it needs to tap into the other side of the border. (The piracy of Indian films happens for a reason, after all!))

Artists of any trade have a tough time marketing their wares in hostile and intolerant environment anywhere. I especially admire the writers, artists, and entertainers of Pakistan who have negotiated that very difficult path over the decades - through the ONLY effective way that can indeed bring about positive changes - through their good work and by becoming good role models individually - all of it done while trying not to offend anybody.

A loss of great talent like this one is to be mourned by everyone who values his or her ties to those lands!

Re: # 11
Thanks Ras. Its been four days now, but the pain has not subsided. I suffer for Zeba. Ridicolous and sentimental as it may sound, I wonder how did she sleep that first night he was laid to rest forever. How is she doing? I surf the web frantically in between my own classes (I teach) and find hardly anything new. No pictures (except from the BBC website), no editorials, no essays worth reading except the one in ``Jang,`` no condolance messages from people who had his unconditional support

---

the Bhuttos, the Sharifs and the Haqs? What`s the matter with them? But well, MA does not need them. He still rules.
My first memory of a favorite Ali movie was ``Lorie`` and then ``Insaniyat.`` I don`t remember if I ever saw ``Aag`` and ``Jaise Jante Nahi`` but I remember the beautiful stills (of AliZeb) and the wonderful music and Ahmad Rushdi`s immortal tunes ``Kar ke dil ka shisha choor/Aise bethein hai huzoor/jaise jante nahi, pehchante nahi`` and the sparkling, smiling, mischevious eyes of the man we all loved.
God bless him for bringing so much love, and joy, and happiness to so many people`s lives.





Ah those wonderful days!

Yes... a close friend of ZAB... also Zia .. ironic.


His best movie - if you ask me- was Khaak-o-Khoon... but then that is my take ;)

Ras - I am sorry mujhae koi mohd ali kee film yaad naheen. But like Urstruly I have seen bits and pieces of a few re-runs on PTV. I had a certain impression as a child about some of the local actors and actresses. Mohd Ali, Zeba, and Nadeem starred in decent and serious movies if I am not mistaken. I cannot forget Zeba`s bun-hairstyle with a rose-bud tucked on one side. I do remember certain styles from my childhood days but nothing more. The profile that Mohd Ali portrayed mostly symbolized a decent and sober profile. That`s the only aspect I can recollect. Despite that, death(being the end of one`s worldly presence) has to be accepted and the departed one`s soul needs to be given a farewell in a nice way.

#7 - Do you that there are options available for the truly handsome ones? You just need to knock at the right door to consult a competent cosmetologist :)

Sorry about the hurried nature of this writing but I wanted to

send it out, mistakes and all because I thought that Pakistanis

of my generation might want to participate in this loss.

#1 Mantolives/YLH thanks for appreciating a great Pakistani who was
also a good friend of ZAB.

#2 Zobariz, such writing talent (yours) should not be hidden in a cocoon.
Please participate in CHOWK and take the pressure off other Pakistanis
(like me) who want to remember a pre-Mullah Pakistan.

#3 Love2love: Pakistani movies were quite good. If they can make such
awesome TV dramas, they can also make good movies if they have a
market!

#4 Zeena: Which was your favorite film of M. Ali?

#5, #7 Urstruly, please write Truthfully...

#6 ZahraJ: Can you share your favorite M. Ali movie with us?

$8 Ziahmed: Me Lord, Judge Sahib, Your Honor, take your pick. M. Ali
made them all famous.

#9 hasansiddiqui: How is DIL doing? I am 50 and back in school myself.
But as #2 pointed out `` Maan, mein BA mein pass ho gia`` was great for its
entertainment value in our younger days.

#10: M. Ali was quite an icon for us old folks. Your Dad had a lot of company.


The point of writing this article was to invite participation from other readers to
include their thoughts here. I do not have much time these days to interact more
often on CHOWK. But I will keep the readers here as bored as possible with my
articles without interacting.

I do not think that I can add much more to what #2 has already written. I`m just
glad that there are others out there who appreciate M. Ali and his memory.

Ras

Although I havent seen any of his movies,all I have seen is Omer shareef making fun of him on TV shows. But I know my dad must have been very upset at Muhammad Ali passing away.

Innah Lillah wa Innah ilaihay rajioon.

I love M.A. He played a college student till he was 50 years old. That`s quite a feat:) And comedians particularly Umar Sharif parody him to date which is evidence of his lasting impact on the Pakistani film industry.

The man who cried out for justice and made the appeal “Your Honour” (Judge Sahib) a household word in 1970 is no more.

I thought it was Melord.

Re: # 6

No, I wasn`t. I turned out to be more handsome than MA and Gregory except that my eyebrows look like Mr. Spock

May God rest his soul in peace.


Re: # 5
Were you successful in your antics?

I watched most of MA`s movies as re-runs on the PTV except some of early 80s. But even then my childhood ambition was either to become Mohammad Ali or Gregory Peck when I grew up. Mohammad Ali was one of the most masculine and handsome among the then Urdu movie heroes like Nadeem, Kamal and Wahid Murad etc. As a matter of fact I used to practice in front of mirror to imitate MA`s eyebrows which used to make perfect urdu number 8 (inverted letter ``V``) in the fit of passion.

Mohd Ali and Zeba were the ultimate in Pakistani film industry. I feel sad for Zeba`s big loss. May God give her strength to cope with Ali`s death, ameen

Timely article. Just been watching some old Pakistani films on a TV channel. Was surprized how most of them were pretty good. Far better in content than what we hail as great coming from Bollywood. We need more articles like these.

Mohammad Ali`s death marks the end of our own youthful hearts

---

those of us who really came of age in the 70`s. Despite his histrionics, his emotional wails of ``your Honour`` ``Judge Sahib`` and the ridiculous `` Maan, mein BA mein pass ho gia`` while in his 40`s, we absolutely loved him. For us, Ali was in the class of Paul Newman and Robert Redford, in the class that Dilip Kumar belongs to, and yet he was a class unto himself.
Mohammad Ali the jewel of the golden Pakistani cinema. His marriage to beautiful Zeba, the longevity and beauty of that marriage, his public persona, his social work are testimonies that he lived a good life. He was one of the gods in the Pantheon of sub-continent`s filmdom and he will live in our pained hearts till we, the last fans, pass on.
Hang in there, Zeba Bhabhi, Samina, Irshad Bahi, and the rest of the family. Rest in peace, sweet Prince!

He was a great man and a great actor.

Pakistan has suffered a big loss.