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Faiz Ahmed Faiz is amongst the most famous poets
of last century. Faiz, who was hounoured by Lenin
Peace Prize in 1963, was seldom subjected to
arrests by the right-wing pro-imperialist military
regimes of Pakistan. Once, during the dictatorship
of General Zia-ul-Haq, he was arrested and taken
to the police station in front of the public. In
this context, he wrote 'Aaj Bazar mein'.
The video starts with a 'mushairah' (public
recitation), where Faiz presents the poem, and
describes its context. Then the video, with the
melodious voice of Nayyara Noor in the background
singing the verses of Faiz, shows the sufi culture
of Pakistan, which was suppressed by the religious
fundamentalist government of Zia-ul-Haq. Then,
there are some clips of public floggings and
public hangings of political dissidents, which
were employed to ingrain terror in the people of
Pakistan. Public floggings were a norm during
Zia's time. The video, then, takes us on a trip to
a well-known red-light area of the Islamic
Republic of Pakistan. This red-light area is in
the neighbourhood of a very famous mosque, a
contradiction unresolved.
Tags : Faiz Urdu Socialist Poetry Nayyara Noor |
