The Largest City

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Binoo:

Almost everything I`ve written has been inspired by it. But I`m still looking for the right allegory to describe how I feel about it. Whore is such a cliched one. and frankly whores don`t appeal to me. Suggestions are welcome.

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from your I-log

whores?!…nah…

Karachi is a dream…a dream at a given time can be sweet, haunting, nigthmarish, enigmatic, nostalgic, hallucinogenic…

lve,

t

ps: as for the poem...would agree with j;)

Nice Effort Bina, Keep it up.

My Question is that if this is the city we love and cherish so much, why do we let it rot and play a part in that rot. From physical abuse of land to absolute lack of apathy for anything that happens around us that is harmful for this city. Have we passively decided to let this city rot, to become one of the blind. To build large walls around us and hire Chowkidars with guns. The oil , the rain, the drain , the pain.....all flows in vain. Everytime something bad happens, we become a little more blind. This oil split was painful this time, how about next time...will we even notice it?

Karachites are like the Indus River dolphins , they love the river, they thrive in it, and continue living in it, yet the river has blinded them. Every new calamity is just one more thing to get proned to.

But if I were to stop polluting today, and fight the hell out of anyone around me who did, I will be making a change. If I were to ask all the people I know how they could afford a Million Dollar life style when their official pay is 15000 Rupees, I will be making a change.

Or Will I just let it happen and get proned to it as long as I am blissfully blind? Remains to be seen.....

Bina,

Some decent moments here. One question-why rhyme? Another question-why this rhyme scheme as opposed to a sonnet, sestina, villanelle, pantoum?

Very good poem, Bina, lovely imagery. I think it could be descriptive of any big city anywhere. I especially love
`The tumbling buildings, the broken roads
are children we refuse to own`
and
`At night you can hear the city breathe
like a wounded body, in and out`

A few suggestions, if I may:

1. The tumbling buildings, broken roads (dropped the second `the`)

2. Their wounds and scars beseech in code,
deafening us with quiet moans

3. On the streets, we search with eager eyes (dropped `for it`)
She is a hoor that will not be found.

4. Quiet shrouds the din and shouts (bit of a tongue twister as it is)

5. The city rests at night while waves
caress the beach with blackened arms

6. The night brings peace not seen by day
White sky days of heat and frustration
on all their faces. Such are the ways
of a tortured and tormented nation.

Just some suggestions for improving the flow/rhythm - feel free to ignore! :)

Ms.Shah I liked the poem as I live in Karachi and read between lines. I normally do not read english deshi poertry as there is no RHYTHUM( We can not sing). But yours is written for content and properly expresses the state of city.

I also read a article on same subject. Its long bellow but you caught same stuff inSHORT POEM. Very good work. Thanks.

Now prose so long

oes of Karachi

Burhanuddin Hasan

The writer is a former Director of PTV

burhanhasan@hotmail.com

To live in Karachi, the financial capital of Pakistan is a nightmare these days. The city once called ``the bride of cities`` and ``the city of lights`` is engulfed in darkness and gloom. Armed para-military forces in their mobile units parked at every nook and corner of the city, their automatic weapons ready to shoot is a scary sight. The Sindh Assembly, when it is in session, is cordoned if by Rangers and armed police looking like a war zone, while inside the elected representatives are fighting tooth and nail over the issues of Thal Canal and Kalabagh dam. Some roads leading to the Assembly building have been permanently closed for traffic. The provincial government seems to be blissfully unaware of the law and order and crime situation in Karachi. They are just content with expressing regrets, through badly drafted statements and make false promises to find and punish their culprits. Apart from bomb blasts and big terrorist attacks on places of worship and indiscriminate murder of innocent doctors which are noticed throughout the country, hardly a day passes when incidents of murder, kidnapping for ransom, robberies, car thefts, car snatchings at gun point, gang rapes and other such heinous crimes that mostly go unnoticed occur. I have prepared a composite picture of such stories appearing in the media during the month of August and the first week of September 2003 to give a fairly good idea of the crime and terror situation in Karachi.

Guest’s killer arrested with his two brothers from Buldia Town. Stepfather snatched fifty thousand rupees (Rs50,000) from his daughter’s dowry. Two factories robbed at Gulzar Hijri on super high way. One dead and 3 wounded in robbery attempt. Dead body found from a house in Korangi. Operation against Muhajir Quami Movement, 50 arrested. Violence reported in Model Colony due to long break down of electricity. MQM’s unit in-charge slaughtered in Railway Colony. Oil tanker crushes 6 people at Super highway. Nadra’s office robbed at Awami Markaz. Boy shoots friend in Mominabad. Vegetable vendor killed in firing at Safura Chowrangi. Contractor’s houses robbed in F.B. area and Gulzar Hijri. Man shot dead by robbers in Orangi Town. Medicine dealer killed in Nazimabad. Robbers snatch jewellery from women in National Saving Centre. Shopkeeper murdered at Hazari Chowk in Nusrat Bhutto Colony. Rent A Car’s owner shot dead by robbers in Clifton, Engineer and mill manager’s houses robbed in Gulistan-e-Johar and Site Area. Police officer’s house robbed, wife and son wounded in Khokhrapar. Dacoits rob National saving Centre. 20 cars snatched. Lover’s relative killed a boy with a bullet in Liaquatabad. Watchman murdered at Super Highway. Young man’s dead body found from Zohri Street Halls. Chief Minister house servant’s home robbed in Liaquatabad. Sector In-charge of Sunni Tehreek kidnapped in Orangi Town. Two party workers of Muttahida injured in Orangi Town. Youngster killed after torture by anonymous persons. Son-in-law killed along with 2 brothers by father-in-law. A young flower seller girl kidnapped in Nazimabad. Ornaments of bride looted in Gulshan-e-Iqbal. Landlord of Balochistan looted in Karachi after being kidnapped. Dacoity in house of Nazim in North Nazimabad.

Police officer is looted on Tariq Road. Firing in Karachi: 2 party workers killed along with 8 who attended funeral. Robber loots currency from woman and killed her brother on resistance. Gold worth 12 lakh looted from Nazimabad. In various cases of robbery reported from Korangi. Tipu Sultan Road, Mehmoodabad, Shara-e-Noorjahan and Liaquatabad different robbers looted thousand of rupees escaped. In Gulshan-e-Iqbal one man killed in firing. In Shireen Jinnah Colony 39 year old man kidnapped and killed by some unknown persons. 3 dacoits arrested by police from jewellery shop in Saddar. In different cases of violence 18 cars have been robbed. This is just a sample.

Other than murders and major crimes, Karachi also suffers from horrendous traffic jams quite frequently when VVIPS or even VIPs grace the city with their presence. Most main roads are blocked for hours to provide safe passage to VIPS, while common people suffer in their vehicles, children cry and women become hysterical. The blockade is so strict that even ambulances are not allowed to pass. Only God knows what happens to the patients suffering in these ill equipped vehicles. Nobody bothers about these human beings so long as VIPs pass through safe and sound. Here I am tempted to quote a verse by a famous poet:``Jinhain shoq-e-kamandari bohat hai Unhi per khauf bhi tari bohat hai`` (those who love to rule are also scared for their precious lives). The overall traffic situation in the city is not much better. The rickety old buses and rickshaws emit clouds of poisonous smoke day and night polluting the atmosphere, and causing deadly diseases. But nobody cares. The much-awaited rains last month have destroyed greater part of city roads with overflowing gutters, puddles of stagnant water and heaps of garbage and foul smell all around. But nobody cares. There is a saying in America ``If you want to see the progress of a country, see its roads.`` Those who visit Karachi roads may have a pretty good idea of our ``progress``. We are strange people who can build a Motorway to ``nowhere``, but cannot repair the roads of a metropolis on which hundreds of thousands of vehicles ply everyday.

Woes of Karachi are many. Among them, extreme shortage of water, extensive load shedding, excessive billing for utility charges, breakdown of telephone system after August rains, rising prices every fortnight following the increase in the cost of petroleum products. Without giving any reasons. But nobody cares.

Karachi is home to tens of thousands of people from all provinces of Pakistan who have migrated to this magnificent city to earn their livelihood. Karachi is the city which fills the coffers of the government, more than any other province but nobody cares for the woes of Karachi.

nice bina. everything about karachi can be so heartbreaking at times....the sight of the oil covered sea is awful, our city is so violent that when someone you know goes missing for half an hour, the city is combed looking for him/her.

something about karachi in the night...you put it aptly. yet theres so much more..

``At night you can hear the city breathe
like a wounded body, in and out ``
but
``The night brings a peace not seen in the day ``
indeed.
dont know much about poems, but this is poignant. it brings images of the night sky, of seaview, and how horrible it must be to see the sea black instead of the sky..

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