OBAMA'S AF-PAK IS AS WHACK AS BUSH'S IRAQ

“THE U.S. IMPERIAL ENTERPRISE IN AFGHANISTAN & PAKISTAN IS DOOMED, AS WELL AS EVIL.”

by Glen Ford

President Obama has reached a watershed in his presidency: he has devolved to the intellectual level of George Bush, while retaining his world class powers of speech.

History may remember Obama as just another vapid but predatory imperialist president who happens to be…superficially eloquent. Unfortunately, the clarity of Obama’s diction is not matched by coherence of policy. Af-Pak is at least as whack as Bush’s Iraq.

“MORE OCCUPATION MEANS LESS OCCUPATION.”

Barack Obama’s oratorical skills have turned on him, revealing, as George Bush’s low-grade delivery never could, the perfect incoherence of the current American imperial project in South Asia. Bush’s verbal eccentricities served to muddy his entire message, leaving the observer wondering what was more ridiculous, the speechmaker or the speech. There is no such confusion when Obama is on the mic. His flawless delivery of superbly structured sentences provides no distractions, requiring the brain to examine the content – the policy in question – on its actual merits. The conclusion comes quickly: the U.S. imperial enterprise in Afghanistan and Pakistan is doomed, as well as evil.

The president’s speech to West Point cadets was a stream of non sequiturs so devoid of logic as to cast doubt on the sanity of the authors. “[T]hese additional American and international troops,” said the president, “will allow us to accelerate handing over responsibility to Afghan forces, and allow us to begin the transfer of our forces out of Afghanistan in July of 2011.”

Obama claims that, the faster an additional 30,000 Americans pour into Afghanistan, the quicker will come the time when they will leave. More occupation means less occupation, you see? This breakneck intensification of the U.S. occupation is necessary, Obama explains, because “We have no interest in occupying your country.”

“The U.S. imperial enterprise in Afghanistan and Pakistan is doomed, as well as evil.”

If the Americans were truly interested in occupying Afghanistan, the logic goes, they would slow down and stretch out the process over many years, rather than mount an 18-month surge of Taliban-hunting. The Afghans are advised to hold still – the pulsating surge will be over before they know it.

At present, of course, the Americans have assumed all “responsibility” for Afghanistan – so much so that President Hamid Karzai only learned about Obama’s plans earlier on Tuesday during a one-hour tele-briefing. This is consistent with Obama’s detailed plans for Afghan liberation, under U.S. tutelage. The president is as wedded to high stakes testing of occupied peoples as he is for American public school children. “This effort must be based on performance. The days of providing a blank check are over,” said the Occupier-in-Chief. He continued:

“And going forward, we will be clear about what we expect from those who receive our assistance. We will support Afghan Ministries, Governors, and local leaders that combat corruption and deliver for the people. We expect those who are ineffective or corrupt to be held accountable.”

Such rigorous oversight of their country’s affairs should keep Afghan minds off the fact that they have been fighting to remain independent of foreign rule for centuries, if not millennia. If Obama is right, Afghans might also be distracted from dwelling on the question of who their “Ministries, Governors, and local leaders” are answerable to – the Afghan people or the Americans?

“Obama advises Afghans to be patient and trusting regarding their sovereignty.”

Although President Obama is anxious to bring U.S. troop levels above 100,000 as quickly as possible, he advises Afghans to be patient and trusting regarding their sovereignty. “It will be clear to the Afghan government, and, more importantly, to the Afghan people, that they will ultimately be responsible for their own country." That is, it will become clear in the fullness of time, but hopefully no later than 18 months after the planned surge begins. If all goes well, the Taliban will be dead or nearly so, and the non-Taliban Afghans will be prepared to begin assuming “responsibility for their own country.” If not, then the Americans will be forced to continue as occupiers – reluctantly, of course, since, as the whole world and the more intelligent class of Afghans know, the Americans “have no interest in occupying your country” – unless they have to.

Should the Afghans become confused about American intentions, they might consult with their Pakistani neighbors, for whom President Obama also has plans.

“[We] have made it clear that we cannot tolerate a safe-haven for terrorists whose location is known, and whose intentions are clear,” the president declared. “America is also providing substantial resources to support Pakistan's democracy and development. We are the largest international supporter for those Pakistanis displaced by the fighting.”

Obama did not mention that it was the Americans that coerced and bribed the Pakistani military into launching the attacks that displaced over a million people in the Swat region and hundreds of thousands more in border areas. How nice of them to join in humanitarian assistance to the homeless.

The Pakistanis, like the Afghans, were assured the Americans will not abandon them to their own, independent devices. Said Obama: “And going forward, the Pakistani people must know: America will remain a strong supporter of Pakistan's security and prosperity long after the guns have fallen silent, so that the great potential of its people can be unleashed.”

Some Pakistanis might consider that a threat. According to polling by the Pew Global Attitudes Project, only 16 percent of Pakistanis held a favorable view of the United States in 2009. Actually, that’s a point or two higher than U.S. popularity in Occupied Palestine (15 percent) and Turkey (14 percent), the only other Muslim countries on the Pew list.

Not to worry. Obama knows things that escape the rest of us. For example, the fact that “we have forged a new beginning between America and the Muslim World - one that recognizes our mutual interest in breaking a cycle of conflict, and that promises a future in which those who kill innocents are isolated by those who stand up for peace and prosperity and human dignity.”

Which means, we can expect those polling numbers to start going up, soon.

“Only 16 percent of Pakistanis held a favorable view of the United States in 2009.”

When Obama isn’t launching bold initiatives and “new beginnings,” he’s busy taking care of U.S. imperial business as usual.

Obama is most proud that the U.S. spends more on its military than all the rest of the nations of the planet, combined.

“[T]he United States of America has underwritten global security for over six decades,” he told the cadets, “a time that, for all its problems, has seen walls come down, markets open, billions lifted from poverty, unparalleled scientific progress, and advancing frontiers of human liberty.”

Others might not view the rise of U.S. hegemony in such a positive light. But they are wrong, said the president. “For unlike the great powers of old, we have not sought world domination. Our union was founded in resistance to oppression. We do not seek to occupy other nations. We will not claim another nation's resources or target other peoples because their faith or ethnicity is different from ours.”

In Obama’s worldview, it’s the thought that counts. Americans don’t seek world domination; it just comes to them. “We do not seek to occupy other nations,” they leave us no choice. If it were not for American concern for the welfare of all the world’s people, the U.S. would not maintain 780 military bases in other people's countries.

Obama has certainly matured as an American-style statesman in his nine and a half months in office. As a TV Native American might say, “Black man in white house speaks like forked tongued white man.” Only better.

_______

BAR executive editor Glen Ford can be contacted at Glen.Ford@BlackAgendaReport.com.

Courtesy: http://www.blackagendareport.com/?q=content/obamas-af-pak-whack-bushs-iraq

Disclaimer: The views expressed in this article are the sole responsibility of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of the ‘Wonders of Pakistan’. The contents of this article too are the sole responsibility of the author(s). WoP will not be responsible or liable for any inaccurate or incorrect statements contained in this post.

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RALLI – Blending one’s soul and self into a piece of textile

                                  

RALLI – BLENDING ONE'S SOUL AND SELF INTO A PIECE OF TEXTILE

by Nayyar Hashmey

What’s the true sense of beauty? Does it lie in the eyes of the beholder; or is it manifest in the crafted object itself or is it a coming together of kindred spirits – that of the maker and the beholder, the magical moment when a common chord is struck across the barriers of time and space. Just such chemistry ripples through the articulated patchwork of traditional homemade products crafted by the rural feminina of Sindh in Pakistan.

This fascinating product called Ralli or Rilli is a remarkable textile artwork converted into quilts, table runners and cushion covers. Thousands of women are involved mostly in Sindh, partly in some parts of Cholistan in Bahawalpur distt. of Punjab and in some areas of Balochistan.

A normal ralli whether a quilt, a cushion cover or a table runner, is a textile jewel finished with physical and spiritual labor done with hand and mind putting in almost 180 hours of an artisan woman doing this job. Women start making ralli in early ages as part of their dowry. In other cases, the poor artisans offer these products as gifts to elite families of Sindh on occasion of marriages or births and in return get an animal like cow, buffalo or a goat (locally called as khir piyarina i.e. to provide a regular source of milk for the artisan’s family).

Ralli, the beautiful handicraft from Sindh in Pakistan exhibits the wide array of cultural beauty. Its intricate patterns show the creativity, the skill and dexterity of the Sindhi artisans which places the area among the culturally rich lands of the world.

Sindhi rallis are very beautiful and colorful. They are cluster of patchwork and or embroidery. Used also as bed linen Sindhi ralli is made with multicolored pieces of cloth stitched together in attractive designs. The color combinations and unique patterns speak for the aesthetic sense of its creator. The designs vary from floral motifs, waves and images of animals or trees. Many handicrafts of great beauty like cushion covers, embroidered shirts; wall hangers and mirror worked handbags are also made in ralli style mainly in Umarkot and Tharparkar area of Sindh.

Patricia Stoddard, an American author, teacher and expert writes in her book “The Ralli Quilts” Ralli textiles are very traditional made by women in the areas of Sindh, Pakistan, Western India and Gujarat. Ralli textiles are just gaining international recognition, even though women have been making these quilts for hundreds, may be thousands of years. The levels of the people, who make these textiles, are woven into each piece. The symbols of flowers and animals used in the decoration and colors are imaginative and exotic. Every ralli quilt tells a story. It tells of the natural creativity and love of color and design of the woman who creates them. Every ralli tells the story of the strength of tradition and motifs of rallis which have been passed from mother to daughter and woman-to-woman may be for thousands of years.

Cecilia Eddy, a British author and too a teacher of quilts has a deep study on ralli quilts. She in her book “Quilted Planet” says “The pattern and colors of ralli quilts embody all the romance and exoticism of the East. Did you know that in the Indus region of Pakistan where many rallis are made to this day for dowries, the word ralli means to mix or connect”. One of the ralli quilts pictured in her book looks like a bar quilt of flying geese, surrounded by a saw tooth border and a wider border of square-in-a-square on point.

Ironically, this fascinating cultural product, gaining recognition abroad, is loosing its importance back home. Textile market trends are changing as do the changes in ultra fashioned home textiles which influence the purchasing priorities of the buyers. A major reason involved in decline of usage of the cultured goods is also the poverty of the inhabitants of Sindh.

A lot of skilled artisans are leaving their profession because of a lack of patronage. This work of art is exclusively handmade and cannot be duplicated. The skill travels from generation to generation but due to dearth of proper avenues for young artisans, new generation has not much interest in learning the trade of their forefathers. Their priorities too have changed.  Which’s why this centuries old art is on decline. For a revival and preservation of the handicrafts support is needed from the concerned quarters of the society. New markets need to be explored within the country as well as internationally.

AHAN steps in…

 ___________

To solve the problems and to tackle on-ground issues, credits do go to AHAN (Aik Hunar Aik Nagar) project of the Ministry of Industries, Govt. of Pakistan, who With a three pronged strategy initiated a pilot project for the craftswomen of Sukkur  (Sindh).

During first phase of this pilot, a large number of designs were reviewed by the designers. They observed that different geographic locations have different ralli designs having their own history and tradition, hence different geographic clusters and craftswomen were identified by AHAN. They were then trained as master trainers. About five clusters of 12 master craftswomen were given one month on-job training at designers’ training centres in Karachi.

The training course provided skills in product development with different themes and tones. The object of this pilot project is that by training the ‘masters’ they will then work further at their villages to train more women.

Renowned Pakistani designer Deepak Perwani was involved to provide his expertise in product development and training. He has now trained a group of female artisans at his factory in Karachi.

The idea behind such trainings is to add value to this village craft by turning out different ralli products like fashion apparel, handbags, embellishments on shawls  and bedroom accessories that include table lamps shades, cushions and toys. The women participants were also trained on modern designs and guided on different marketing channels. Their products were also displayed at a women expo to get the market feedback.

In embroidery and patchwork ralli, Ms. Shehnaz Ismail, Head of the Textile Deptt., of the Indus Valley School was engaged to design and develop a tailor made course for the artisans engaged in embroidery and patchwork.

The first training of the groups was conducted by the craftswomen who were already familiarized with design, measurements and pattern making, improvement of aesthetic- ability / sense and quality aspects of the product. During trainings they were also introduced with different markets for purchase of good quality raw material and sale of their products.

Once the training programs scheduled by the AHAN are completed, we can see some chances for the womenfolk indulged in this rural craft; that their economic lot will be improved and their products will be sold not only in their traditional markets but also in modern, trendy fashion boutiques of the world as well.

Note: This post as well as the pictures included, are based on different internet sources.

Image Source: Image of a ralli quilt [middle] Fiber Focus

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RALLI QUILTS OF PAKISTAN

The Magnificent Art of Making Handmade Textiles


by Hira N. Hashmey

Throughout history, Asia has been known as a place producing the best in textiles. The art of making fabric from cotton was first perfected here, in the ancient southern part of this subcontinent. The Romans even sent traders to this area to get fine fabrics for their togas.

Womenfolk in the Indus Region of the subcontinent, presently the domain of an independent sovereign state of Pakistan have traditionally been the harbingers of this historical tradition. A particular type of such beautiful textiles produced in the area is the “Ralli” quilts.

Adorned with bright colors and bold patterns, the quilts are also called rilli, rilly, rallee or rehli derived from the local word ralanna meaning to “mix or connect”. For sake of simplicity and to avoid confusion in terms, used in different places of ralli production, the term “Ralli” has been used in this post; which by no means be taken as a standard term.

In Pakistan, rallis are made in the southern province of Pakistan including Sindh, in Balochistan province and Cholistan desert in Bahawalpur district of Punjab. Just across our borders, in India the art is found in the adjoining states of Gujarat and Rajasthan.

 Muslim and Hindu women from a variety of tribes and castes in towns, villages and also of nomadic settings usually make rallis. It’s an old tradition which probably dates back to the fourth millennium BCE, (as evidenced by similar patterns found even today on the ancient pottery in the subcontinent).

Rallis are commonly used as a covering for wooden beds, floor covering, storage bags, rugs and padding for workers or animals. In the villages, ralli is an important part of a girl's dowry. 

Ralli is termed “patchwork” in the west, a nomenclature used because of combining fine craftsmanship with thrifty recycling; more so, because it is the joining of shaped pieces of patterns or colored fabrics to form a rich mosaic. The technique offers a limitless scope to experiment with patterns, color and textures.

Patchwork is either a pieced work or appliqué:

The Pieced work is usually small regularly shaped scraps of material sewn together to form a strong fabric. Since patches are stitched to each other rather than to a background fabric, therefore, pieced work must be lined to hide raw edges at the back.
In Appliqué or the applied patchwork motifs are cut from plain or decorative fabrics. The edges are turned under the pieces and are hemmed or slipstitched to a background fabric. Sometimes the edges are left raw and a buttonhole stitch is used to join the fabric to the base in a more elaborate way.

The pattern making possibilities offered by patchwork are almost infinite, but the traditional patterns are still the most popular. The simplest patchworks are one-patch design based on a single geometric shape such as a triangle, a square or a hexagon. Beautiful effects can be achieved by using different fabrics to create patterns. For instance, in the tumbling block design, light, dark and middle tones are used to create a three-dimensional illusion.

In the last half of the nineteenth century, crazy patchwork became fashionable. Scraps of unrelated fabrics, silks, ribbons, satins or velvet, were sewn on to a backing. Each piece was outlined with feather stitching in thick silk, often in a golden thread. Crazy patchwork was used for quilts, table coverings, cushions, handkerchiefs and nightdress cases.

Some of the loveliest patchwork comes from the United States, where it is a popular folk craft. The earliest American quilts were made for protection against the harsh winter. As time passed, the colonists developed their own style. Indeed, the names given to many of the patterns – log cabin, barn raising, bear’s paw and cactus basket – reflect their origins.

They evolved in particular, the block method of working, in which case a series of rectangular or square units were made up separately and the stitched together to create a large quilt. The advantage was that the individual blocks were more manageable to work than one large quilt. Sometimes quilts were worked by several different people and became known as friendship quilts. Each individual would work a separate block, often in a different design. The skill came in assembling these independent blocks into an amazing pattern.

On many old quilts one may find a spider’s web embroidered in a corner, as recognition of a creator’s skill. In some areas a spider’s web would be laid on the back of a baby girls’ hand so that she would acquire some of that dexterity. Often, one finds a deliberate error in a patchwork, such as repeating motif worked in the wrong color. This reflected a belief that only God could create perfection and it was therefore inappropriate for a mere mortal to aspire new heights.

The rallis are made from numerous panels, some of which are square and some rectangular. Each panel is individually worked before being joined to its neighbors by means of a network of fine border strips. Some panels are made from colorful patchwork shapes, while others are prettily quilted and appliquéd with a range of motifs.

A patchwork quilt is centuries old craft with intricate patterns and a breathtaking admiration for the talented womenfolk who stitch these quilts. The designs look so intricate and the stitches so tiny and neat; yet in reality anyone who has made a patchwork knows how simple they are for these ladies to make. Patience is indeed the essence of such work because ralli quilts are usually very large and therefore take time to stitch, but most designs, are based on a square pattern made up of about a dozen patches. Once the craftswoman has mastered the design of one square, she can simply repeat it many times over and at the end sew them all together to make the beautiful cover. Some also include interesting border designs which make them extra special.

Once finished, the patchwork is backed with cozy wadding, quilted and lined. The quilting is not essential, but looks decorative and has the practical function of holding the wadding in place. 

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COLIN DAVID - AVANT GARDE OF NON-CONFORMIST PAINTERS

Father of the Nation, Portrait by Colin David

     
by Sehrish Chaudhary

Colin David's mortal body left this world on 25 Feb., 2008 but his soul breathes in his art and people.

Colin was one of those good adroit painters who fashioned human anatomy with skill and imagination. Like Ustad Allah Baksh, Sadiqain, Shakir Ali, Saeed Akhtar, Colin portrayed women figure as a special element in his paintings, a superb draftsman with a technical perfection that is all too rare. According to Marjorie Husain, an art critic, Colin used to paint non traditional style in the highly censored environment created by Gen. Ziaul Haq which consolidated his position as the most popular artist in that period.
Colin was born in Karachi in 1937; he began his art education at the University of Punjab when the fine arts department opened its door to male students in 1956. According to Niilofer Farrukh, he once ran away from home because his father, a journalist, did not allow him to take up art as a profession. Colin David was among the first group of three young men who were taught by Khalid Iqbal, and by Anna Molka Ahmed who highly appreciated the talented trio. Prof. Anna Molka involved them in many of her Department’s projects and in later years, spoke of their success with pride.

After his masters, Colin got an opportunity to study in UCL where he was guided by Sir William Cold Stream, an artist who painted in "Euston Road" group style. There Colin got opportunity to paint from life and found his artistic meter. It was the time when Naz Ikramullah was taking a course of Lithography at the Slade, and Colin mentioned meeting her in letters home.

Returning to Pakistan in 1962 Colin rejoined the Faculty of Fine arts of the University of Punjab, and remained there till 1964. Later differences with Anna Molka Ahmed caused him to leave the Fine Arts Department of the university and he joined the National College of Arts, where Shakir Ali was the Principal. Colin remained there, being an integral part of the college for quarter of a century.

Absorbed in the world of words, Painting by Colin     

In those times of experimentation Colin developed a unique, distinctive style which showed his own inclination. His first solo exhibition, a collection of figure studies in oils painted with great luminosity was held in Karachi in 1970 at "The Gallery" where Colin gathered high praise and great appreciation. His work in the genre of the nude inspired new art collectors. The element of design in a form of "figure" always creates balance and harmony in his compositions. Sense of space was an important subject in his paintings. Colin explored the female figure as a symbol of beauty and presented "women as women".

Colin's was a skillful hand to paint "Women as Women"

Colin successfully portrayed the sensitive studies of children at play. In one of his paintings he portrayed a child eating toffee without unwrapping the sweet thing, chubby fingers persevering, and an expression of total single mindedness on child's face, the depiction of this innocence through masterly acts of his brush, attracted UNICEF’s interest in his work. Many of his art pieces went to foreign art collectors.

It was ironical that in his life many a times he was obliged to hold exhibition at his home and unnamed spots for selected audience since he was unable to show his work publicly. Once he said "In the earlier stages of my career when figure painting was artistically acceptable, my exhibitions were always highly successful. The public understood and appreciated my work. They still do of course, but it means my exhibitions become elitist."
In his last days, despite of bad health, Colin continued to work and exhibited his art work in Karachi and remained popular.

Time goes, you say? Ah, no! Alas, time stays, we go.

                          (Henry Austin Dobson)

*The writer is an artist and an art teacher. She has held three consecutive exhibitions of her work in Lahore.  
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HUGE BRIDES ON THE MOVE

A "Bride" in a brand new attire - Ready to move

by Umair Ghani

Truck art, as anyone knows, is one of the great folk arts of Pakistan. These heavy machines, affectionately called “brides” by truckers, are covered mostly in vivid bright, multilayered colors and fairy lights, which have a talismanic function of warding off evil spirits, and promote good luck - something one needs in plenty when navigating our roads. But apart from this magical effect, truckers have another romance with these brightly colored vehicles. Salamat, a typical truck wala admits that he spends more on decorating his truck than he paid for his second marriage a couple of years ago. "I spend most of my time in my truck. It's like a second home to me," says Salamat.

WOP contributing editor and an award winning photographer Umair Ghani went many an extra mile at each stop; which he did at the most favorite stopovers (the dining cum resting places on road sides) to have a face to face and heart to heart chat sessions with this trucking community of Pakistan.

----

“

G. T. Road te duhaiyañ paway, ni yaraañ da truck baliye!”

[Oh’ my love! Look how magnificently does your lover roam on the G.T. Road in his new truck].

 Standing along a tea stall on the Grand Truck Road near Jehlum, I listen to the upbeat Punjabi Bhangra as trucks in many colors, decos and carvings whirl pass me. In a flash, I conjecture on the assignment I have and just muse on the art of painting especially the art of painting trucks in Pakistan, an art unique to our country. None of our geographical neighbors, neither the Indians in the east nor the Afghanis in neighboring north indulge in this special art.

My fascination with painted trucks of Pakistan starts from Jamal J. Elias of the University of Pennsylvania. I read his article and have an email from him that inspires me to get on road and capture the exquisite beauty of design and color of Bedford trucks moving on the roads of Pakistan.

“You see them everywhere” Elias wrote in his article, “But a lot of people don’t see them. One day I started staring at them, very carefully. And I started to see there was some order to the madness”.

Elias took six years to compile the monumental work for his forthcoming book “On wings of Diesel” and it is still in continuation. I travelled some 5000 kilometers in three months, from Karachi to Khunjrab Pass traversing through deserts, plains, passes and awe inspiring mountains along the KKH. I met many interesting people, roadside artists (Street Picassos, I call them) unforgettable experiences in my quest for the unique vehicle art in Pakistan. During all those wonderful episodes of exploration, I had but one consistent inspiration from that genie of Pakistani truck art Jamal J. Elias.

Sipping morning tea from a tiny china clay cup in a roadside truck drivers’ tavern on the banks of river Indus, I looked at the long stretch of Karakoram Highway winding high into the far distance. It was only a night before when I reached Bisham from Lahore. I had been on the road for many days without rest pursuing truck caravans bound for Sost (last Pakistani outpost on Pak China border). Morning sun shone brightly over the mud roof of drivers’ hotel a few kilometers ahead of Bisham. We sat on huge charpoys, sipped more tea as Sada Khan talked about his magnificent red Bedford parked outside.

“This truck is my bride. That’s why it is painted red. I have spent most part of my life with it than at home with parents and the family. Like a newly wed bride, it should look beautiful, enticing and alluring,” relates Sada Khan with the magic touch of an apt story teller of the ancient world.

Soon the tantalizing channa daal and parathas arrive and the breakfast begins in a formal manner. Sada Khan relaxes himself on the multi colored blankets piled on the charpoys and continues his tale.

“I fell in love with truck decorations in Peshawar, where I was a helper boy at truck stations decades ago. I know that an aesthetically decorated truck can turn you jealous, envious at best and you cherish the dream to outclass others by more eloquent designs and patterns.”

A normal sized Bedford truck takes three to four hundred thousand rupees to be painted and decorated in style, a sum that amounts to two year’s salary of an average truck driver. Yet many of them spend whatever fortunes they have on truck paintings. It may take one to two months for the truck to get ready for the road. Truck workshops in Karachi, Ghotki, D. G. Khan, Peshawar, Taxila, Rawalpindi and Lahore are centers of decorative painting (the beauty salons) of these moving “brides”. To some extent truck painting is done in Afghanistan, India, Indonesia, Malaysia and Philippines as well but not so explicitly as they do this here in Pakistan. Here it is an elegant blend of styles in color and design which is easily distinguishable from their contemporaries elsewhere.

 The themes of Pakistani truck art are mostly religious, patriotic and cultural. The fascinating diversity of images from secular to religious and sometimes of many individuals, thoughts and views idealized by the artist also come on the moving frames. It includes also famous actresses and cricketers who frequently appear on wooden planks. Winds of cultural change though have replaced leaders, martyrs and other celebrities of the yesteryears with missiles and new age heroes like country’s nuclear scientist Dr. A.Q. Khan, after the country stepped into the prestigious nuclear club in 1998.

  “Patriotic Billboards” as many Westerners label these vehicles, the trucks carry a huge number of religious signs and slogans as well. Images of holy Ka’aba and Madina appear mostly on the upper front (the taj or crown of a truck) with names of Allah and the Holy Prophet. Verses from Holy Quran are either painted or hung in the form of plastic or metal pieces. Images of birds and animals most notably peacocks, pigeons, lions and tigers are drawn on the side panels.

  The ever present figure of Ayub Khan behind many trucks in NWFP and Balochistan are something to do with a mix of patriotism and nostalgia of the bygone days in a country which had then poor road infrastructure and almost non existent railroad system for mobilization on a mass scale. In that scenario, came forward Ayub Khan’s son as the country’s sole Bedford dealer (from 1962 to 1969) and made sure that Bedfords were the only trucks imported into Pakistan.

Locally manufactured trucks were nowhere in the competition and when local artists created breathtaking masterpieces out of Bedfords they swept the market like a storm. J. M. Kenoyer, a renowned scholar of Pakistani culture comments. “The paint jobs identify competing ethnic groups. You look at a truck and can tell exactly what region it comes from and what ethnic group the driver belongs to”.

Through my multiple interactions with truck drivers, I came to know that truck painting for them was a labor of love. “And love makes your suffer”, whispered Badshah in a dingy tea stall in the outskirts of Multan. Truck drivers don’t spend much money on their families and houses. They view trucks as a deity which brings them income, joy and freedom of the road. It’s kind of Bhagwan for us” said Badshah displaying his tea and naswaar smeared teeth and twirled his thick moustache with the thumb and first finger of the free hand.

While listening to Badshah I recalled an article where Durriya Kazi, head of the department of visual studies at the University of Karachi and an encyclopedia on Pakistani truck decorations, quoted such instances: I remember one driver who told me that he put his life and livelihood into the truck. If he didn’t honor it with the proper paint job, he would feel he was being ungrateful to his machine. This sense of devotion and a bond of love keep the trucker and the truck chained together.

For a truck driver, his vehicle is the life’s whole sphere, around which circles his life, his love, likes and dislikes. He scarcely looks beyond that. “We don’t have to “laughed Badshah, “and why should we when we feel protected and enormously proud in our beautiful paradise”. Charas (local brand of hashish, naswaar (snuff) and tobacco are among some of the pleasures these truckers have in their rugged routines. The glorious art work provides an escape from the monotony of life. Music is another pre-requisite of this nomadic life on wheels. Truckers don’t dance, not even sing but are fond of folk tunes and songs that include regional flare. Ataullah Eesakhailvi, Allah Ditta Loonay wala and Zarsanga are among the most cherished singers. Multicolored laces hang from stereos, their speakers covered in beads and plastic decorations which render the trucks interior pompously ornamental.

Booming truck painting industry despite all its magnitude and impact may not be a lucrative and lovable vocation for all. The people who work in it, the Street Picassos (truck painters) are mostly underpaid. Many ‘ustads’ and their apprentices commonly called ‘chhotas’ create magnus opus out of a common Bedford for small amounts and scanty privileges. “Big chunks of money go to workshop owners”, said Hajji in a typical Lahori workshop famous for plastic and metal work.”This art is a complete exhibition on wheels which involves arduous labor and a careful placement of each piece of colored plastic, every stroke of paint brush and carving and engraving on the panels and sides” he explains amid chugging of heavy engines and noisy rattle of metal plates. Though well known and respected for their artistic skills, many of them are dissatisfied with marginal wages they earn from their creative art. They wish their kids to join school and get educated for better jobs.

Trucks began to draw attention in the transport industry in Pakistan when construction of major highways started in the country. This boosted transport of construction material business. To attract their customers, truckers started to get their vehicles painted and decorated for more business. More visibly decorated machines fetched better bargains. Stylized murals and bright red color did the job for many truckers. Some shrewd artists painted pictorial allusions that were alien to local culture and visual sensibilities to draw immediate attention. Some drivers (or designers) with a literary flavor, love to paint verses about dejection and betrayal of love. Some verses become slogan of drivers’ ideology and some of their very personal aspirations. Goods and commercial companies jumped into the art competition and entire fleets of trucks came to workshops to be painted in design exclusively created for each corporate competitor. A nation of 160 million people needed loads of supplies to be hauled from one part of Pakistan to another, so Bedford, Hino, Volvo, Isuzu and Mercedes’ heavy machines travelled in form of chained caravans. Now truck painting is recognized as a form of cultural diversity. Decorated brides of truck drivers move in splendor all across the country with unprecedented pomp and show.

Photo Credits: The "Bride" on the move (on forehead of this post), Trucker Salamat with "Bride" (#2 on right) : by Umair Ghani, Truck Decorator on work, (#3 on left): By Tim Smith, A painted Panel (#4 on right) by Abro, Plates (#5 on left and #7 on right) by Shaihdul Islam, Painter working on a wheel cup by Irna Qureshi
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