After staying in the Unites States for 5.5 years, I had my first trip back to Pakistan. After living over here for so long I had a lot of assumptions about how things would be when I will get there. I had imagined that people would have become very conservative (and anti-American) over the past 5.5 years due to all the wars and other stuff that has happened. I thought I will find people at every street corner willing to do ‘jihad’ and ‘preaching’ Islam. I was expecting a Pakistan that will be even more sharply divided over the sectarian lines.
But what I found was quite different from what I had expected. I found a more consumer oriented society then what I had seen a long time ago. I saw people who were richer then before. I saw people who had become brand conscious. I saw people more tolerant then what I was expecting. People were now talking more openly about things which were considered taboo before. And yes, I found private TV channels that had stolen the audience from the state channels and were openly critical about the govt. I also saw debates on TV about things from politics to religion.
While my trip was basically to see my parents and brother and sisters and attend my sisters wedding, I truly enjoyed living over there for the whole month. Something I thought couldn’t happen after living so long in the U.S. Like one of my friends had said ‘You will find that Pakistan has changed’.
About Me
- Sultan
- This is the expression of a character that sees a lot of injustice in this world. A character that wishes that this world could change into a peaceful place where all humans could peacefully and happily co-exist with each, a place where everyone has rights and no one is left out.