Bus Why couldn`t the brother just run off as most do?
Why run off with a Muslim girl of all the girls?
Or do I miss something here?

One Night in Romania Uff! Baal baal bach gaye!

This piece reminds me of Ijaz Gul`s mountaineering travails.
Good account.........held the interest and was not boring.

Good luck to you Zain, on your future adventures!

V. S. Naipaul He may be a Nobel laureate, he may be an eminent historian; no, I haven`t read any of his work, and I am not a bit apolegetic about it either, and yet the man does not impress me one bit.
We have a way of putting people on the pedestal and thats exactly what we have done with him more so now that the title sits on his head.
He may rave and he may rant, it does not make any difference one way or the other, as Romair says. So lets just continue to ignore him, shall we?

PS: I don`t intend to read him either!

Moth’s Flame Doused by Wind Faiza,
As Farzana Versey wrote: Write more.

I cannot get over this one single line:
My muteness had left him speechless.

You leave me speechless too..............with your writing.

Here`s something on `the mist of smoke rising from the wick`:
Bujhi hui shama ka dhuan hoon
Aur apne markad ko jaaraha hoon
Shama ki hasti tau mit chuki hai
Ab apni hasti mita raha hoon......
Bujhi hui shama ka dhuan hoon.............

Regards.

Shehnai Wails t,
You going the NFP way?

Talk to Your Wife Here I am!
Raka though, I believe is busy in a surgery.
:)

Now, here`s my take:

Its 8:29 AM
I am wide awake
and I`ve just reached office
while he`s still at the orifice
This hardware dude
is now my only muse

I didn`t marry `him` for his intelligence
for it is true that brawn is dumb
his form is no longer comforting
let alone alluring
Hell! these concepts are true, pal!
Just talk to `him`, that`s all

More laters!

Unbinding India Welcome back, FV,
Well written as always, especially the beginning!:)
Only you could have written it so!
Regards.

Strange Tales of a Strange House - Al-Kausar I did not get the relevance of the foot note here.............

Excerpt I was engrossing though...

My Secret So?

Conversion Confusion Dear Faiza,
Thankyou for your appreciation. Its good to hear from you. I miss you on Chowk; though I was lucky enough to read your post to the Bina Shah article; do keep the ink flowing.
Wish I could watch the Bushra Ansari play...................Used to watch her plays in the eighties............will try for this one...............
Take care and regards,
Saman.

Hold Karain! Movie Bun Rahee Hai! Well written.
Enjoyed the description of the couples and their relationships.
Good observation.

How’s It Gonna Be Sobia,
Now you`ve got me thinking: How`s it gonna be when we cross our paths in the future!
I am worried!
And yes, your version is closer home. The edited version was quite abrupt, the ending I mean.
Regards.

Conversion Confusion Dear readers,
Thank you all for your appreciation as well as objective criticism and the suggestions.
Much as I would have liked to reply to all of you individually, I am hard pressed for time right now and hence rounding it off as a collective reply.

I am in a state of shock! The Chowk staff has completely taken me by surprise!
This article was submitted almost a year ago as an afterthought to Ms. Farzana Versey`s article on a similar topic. The inferences would have been better understood had it been published then....................I dwelt on some points raised in her article but am unable to draw the connection as my memory fails me now. I seem to have even forgotten the title of her article! I have seen a couple of couples face the same predicament as presented in the article - one chose to cut itself from families on both the sides and remain issueless, the husband in the other case reverted to his religion after the nuptials compelling the wife to leave hers and accept his faith.

Both as a person and a writer I am quite broad minded................through Uzma I`ve only tried to voice the inner conflicts that might trouble those in real contact with the protagonists like Naila and DK. I do not think I`ve been biased...............only voiced the possibilities..........and Uzma needn`t necessarily be me!
Religion is a personal matter and I have admitted here on Chowk several times that I am not the conventional five times a day namaaz offerer..................but I do remember Him when I need Him and when I want to........................Indeed, DK could be a better believer than me...............or any one of us.........................its all a matter of conjecture................only He above knows what really dwells within our minds and hearts.

As for lacking in form and not conforming to the norms of a story or essay................this is neither......................consider it as an open ended article, if you will.......................I can neither justify it nor defend it for I have neither the justification nor the defense!
It was a momentary response to an article, some issues of which seemed familiar to me.

I am nevertheless pleased to know that my effort set you thinking and elicited such response from you all and would like to thank you again for it.
Regards,
Sameena/Saman Khan.

My Urban Widowhood Samina,
A lesser woman would have buckled under emotional duress and financial constraints......as most mothers and wives do who are simply put on a pedestal and awarded a medal and remembered on the Republic or Independence day.
Glad to know your children have embarked on their lives` journey.
Salaam....
Saman.

The Hidden Pearls First things firtst - No, I do not wear a hijab.
Now what amazes me is how people follow the dictates of their government, organisations, bosses, respective spouses, mothers, fathers, sisters and who so ever it is that wields power without so much as raising an eyebrow but when it comes to religion, Islam in particular, it all boils down to century old outdated practices and regression.
Why?
When we do not have the guts to question authority down here on earth, what gives us the liberty to not only question the authority up there but criticise it as well?
Just as we submit ourselves to the authority here why cannot we submit ourselves to the authority up there regardless of the religion we follow?
Or simply do our own thing and let others do theirs?

Valentine’s Day Well, the night before V-day, my mother-in-law received a larger television set and I a micro-wave oven from our respective husbands and we accepted them graciously as gifts for the coming day!
When I informed my five-times-a-day (without fail) namaaz offering ammi of the same, she boasted: Even my husband took me out for a ghazal concert and stayed with me all through the programme....................I take that as a gift from him.
:)