The Pakistan Experience

Baloch journalist Waqas Alam discusses Gwadar flooding, Pakistani state structure, and mainstream media ignorance towards Balochistan. Topics include rains in Gwadar, bureaucracy, fishing culture, climate change, Sardari system, and more.

Arsalan Khan is Associate Professor in the Department of Anthropology at the University of Tennessee, Knoxville. Arsalan Khan comes on The Pakistan Experience to discuss his book on the Tablighi Jamaat of PAkistan, "The Promise of Piety". On this week's episode we discuss Colonialism, Religion, The Tablighi Jamaat, Maulana Tariq Jameel, TLP, Taliban, Revivalist Movements and the importance of rituals. In The Promise of Piety, Arsalan Khan examines the zealous commitment to a distinct form of face-to-face preaching (dawat) among Pakistani Tablighis, practitioners of the transnational Islamic piety movement the Tablighi Jamaat. This group says that Muslims have abandoned their religious duties for worldly pursuits, creating a state of moral chaos apparent in the breakdown of relationships in the family, nation, and global Islamic community. Tablighis insist that this dire situation can only be remedied by drawing Muslims back to Islam through dawat, which they regard as the sacred means for spreading Islamic virtue. In a country founded in the name of Muslim identity and where Islam is ubiquitous in public life, the Tablighi claim that Pakistani Muslims have abandoned Islam is particularly striking. The Promise of Piety shows how Tablighis constitute a distinct form of pious relationality in the ritual processes and everyday practices of dawat and how pious relationality serves as a basis for transforming domestic and public life. Khan explores both the promise and limits of the Tablighi project of creating an Islamic moral order that can transcend the political fragmentation and violence of life in postcolonial Pakistan. The Pakistan Experience is an independently produced podcast looking to tell stories about Pakistan through conversations. Please consider supporting us on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/thepakistanexperience To support the channel: Jazzcash/Easypaisa - 0325 -2982912 Patreon.com/thepakistanexperience And Please stay in touch: https://twitter.com/ThePakistanExp1 https://www.facebook.com/thepakistanexperience https://instagram.com/thepakistanexpeperience The podcast is hosted by comedian and writer, Shehzad Ghias Shaikh. Shehzad is a Fulbright scholar with a Masters in Theatre from Brooklyn College. He is also one of the foremost Stand-up comedians in Pakistan and frequently writes for numerous publications. Instagram.com/shehzadghiasshaikh Facebook.com/Shehzadghias/ Twitter.com/shehzad89 Chapters: 0:00 Introduction 1:20 Use of Blasphemy Law in Pakistan 4:51 Colonialism, Religion and 'Evolution of Thought' 13:00 Tablighi Jamaat; Sense of Order, Ethics and Masculinity 21:30 Maulana Tariq Jameel and Hierarchies 26:00 Bidat, Islamic Reform Movement and Revivalist Movements 42:00 Is Hindutva a Revuvakust movement 43:55 Otherization and Inviting people 48:00 Ritual. Dawat and Personal Relationships 54:00 Raiwand, Building Connections and Ego 1:02:00 Deobandi School of Thought, TTP and TLP 1:14:30 Religious Populism, PTI and Imran Khan 1:25:45 Audience Questions

Ismat Raza Shahjehan is the the Deputy General-Secretary of the Awami Workers Party, President of the Women’s Democratic Front and a leading member of the Pashtun Tahafuz Movement. Ismat comes on The Pakistan Experience to discuss Mahrang Baloch's protest in Islamabad, PTM, the Politics of Resistance, The Left, Revolution and the State's Monopoly over violence. The Pakistan Experience is an independently produced podcast looking to tell stories about Pakistan through conversations. Please consider supporting us on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/thepakistanexperience To support the channel: Jazzcash/Easypaisa - 0325 -2982912 Patreon.com/thepakistanexperience And Please stay in touch: https://twitter.com/ThePakistanExp1 https://www.facebook.com/thepakistanexperience https://instagram.com/thepakistanexpeperience The podcast is hosted by comedian and writer, Shehzad Ghias Shaikh. Shehzad is a Fulbright scholar with a Masters in Theatre from Brooklyn College. He is also one of the foremost Stand-up comedians in Pakistan and frequently writes for numerous publications. Instagram.com/shehzadghiasshaikh Facebook.com/Shehzadghias/ Twitter.com/shehzad89 Chapters: 0:00 Introduction 1:30 State atrocities on the Baloch March 9:30 Why peripheries are not allowed to protest in Islamabad 17:30 Parliamentary Politics vs Resistance Politics 21:30 Revolution, System Change and Violence 32:30 Philosophy of Non-violence and the State's Monopoly over Violence 40:25 Militarization of Pushtoon Culture and Zia-ul-Haq 53:30 Why Urban Pakistan does not care about the Peripheries 1:00:00 KhyberPukhtoonkhwa. PTI and Pakistan's Political System 1:08:00 Left Politics, Progressive Causes and Identity Politics 1:18:30 Audience Questions

Muhammad Hassan Ilyas, Director of Research at Ghamidi Center, USA, comes on The Pakistan Experience, to discuss the wrong notions of Islam made popular by Youtubers in Pakistan. On this episode, we discuss, how to understand Islam, Multiplicity of Opinions in the Islamic tradition, TLP, The role of the Establishment, Shariah, Women in Islam, Slavery and more. Muhammad Hassan Ilyas is a young passionate theologian, researcher and expert in ancient Arabic language and literature, greatly inspired by the famous Islamic scholar Javed Ahmed Ghamidi. He is a close associate and son in law of Javed Ahmed Ghamidi and is part of his ground breaking research project on the historical record of the sayings of the Prophet of Islam, Muhammad (P.B.U.H), with an aim to rid the prevailing Islamic ideology of common misconceptions in order to counter religious extremism. He is a young, passionate researcher and educationist. Director of Research at Ghamidi Center USA. He has been actively engaged in initiatives for educational reform since his formative years with Organisation for Research and Education (2009-2012). Later, in his early adulthood he went on to deliver special lectures on ancient Arabic language and literature to PhD and Master students of International Islamic University, Islamabad (2011-2012). He was the research head of the research department of Al-Mawrid, an Institute for Islamic Research and Education. More than a dozen PhD and Masters students working on theology have worked under his guidance during their dissertation. He was also a pioneer teacher and curriculum developer for Al-Mawrid’s education program for children and adolescents in the United States. He completed his bachelors at Medina International Islamic University, Malaysia, and is currently enrolled in University Technology Mara, Shah Alam in Masters of Research working on his groundbreaking project on Oaths as a literary device in the Qur’an. Alongside, he is working as a personal research and literary assistant of Javed Ahmed Ghamidi representing his works in academic circles and engaging in public meets to propagate and educate the public on his views. He is invited all over the world for lectures on theology, jurisprudence and his expertise on Ghamidi school of thought. He has been making television appearances in programs on social and legal implications of the prevailing Islamic thought in Islam. His works are frequently cited in academic papers and has been interviewed by many PhD scholars for his expertise in theology and particularly in Ghamidi school of thought. At this young age he has achieved many accolades including a gold medal at an international academic conference for his model research work on Oaths as a literary device in the Qur’an, and several awards for his academic articles and public speaking achievements from Medina International University, Malaysia. In future, he plans to further his research work on theology, and ancient Arabic language and literature, he plans to set up an institute for reform in religious education and advanced learning in Ghamidi school of thought. He further wants to design ventures for massive outreach of Ghamidi school of thought to masses with an aim for reconstruction of religious thought of the common Muslims. Chapters: 0:00 Introduction 1:30 How to understand Islam 6:19 Multiplicity of opinions in Islam and Translation differences 19:00 Understanding Islam in context and use of Islam in Pakistan in politics 23:00 TLP and the Establishment using religion for violence 29:40 Javed Ghamdi on Pervez Musharaf and Zia-ul-Haq 36:00 Are laws in Pakistan Islamic? 47:00 Can Shariah Law be applied in Pakistan? 49:44 Women in Islam 52:34 Do men have 'Fazeelat' over women? 59:14 Concubines and Slavery 1:04:00 Domestic Violence 1:07:20 on Hazrat Aisha (RA)'s age 1:11:25 Conclusion

Ishrat Husain comes on for a fiery episode of The Pakistan Experience on the Economy of Pakistan. On this week's episode, we discuss what India got right in the 90s, Modi's Economy, The Early Years of Pakistan's Bureaucracy, Economic Disparities between East and West Pakistan, Military Governments, Ishrat Husain's tenure as State Bank Governor, Real Estate, Pervez Musharaf's Policies, 18th Amendment and Balochistan. Ishrat Husain is a Pakistani banker and economist who served as the dean of the Institute of Business Administration (2008-2016) and the Governor of the State Bank of Pakistan (1999-2006). He also served as Advisor to Prime Minister Imran Khan for Institutional Reforms & Austerity. The Pakistan Experience is an independently produced podcast looking to tell stories about Pakistan through conversations. Please consider supporting us on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/thepakistanexperience To support the channel: Jazzcash/Easypaisa - 0325 -2982912 Patreon.com/thepakistanexperience And Please stay in touch: https://twitter.com/ThePakistanExp1 https://www.facebook.com/thepakistanexperience https://instagram.com/thepakistanexpeperience The podcast is hosted by comedian and writer, Shehzad Ghias Shaikh. Shehzad is a Fulbright scholar with a Masters in Theatre from Brooklyn College. He is also one of the foremost Stand-up comedians in Pakistan and frequently writes for numerous publications. Instagram.com/shehzadghiasshaikh Facebook.com/Shehzadghias/ Twitter.com/shehzad89 Chapters: 0:00 Introduction 1:30 Why did India get right with their Economy 7:30 Modi's Economy 14:00 Early years of Pakistan's Development, Nationalization and GDP Growth 23:00 Economic disparities between East and West Pakistan 28:58 The initial Civil-Bureucratic-Military Leadership of Pakistan 39:30 Instability destroys Economic Growth and PTI's Government 45:52 State Bank, Inflation and Aid to Military Governments 1:01:00 Instability, State Bank Policies of Ishrat Hussain and TERF 1:15:00 Mushraf's Policies, Balochistan and 18th Ammendment 1:32:00 Should bureaucrats work under Military Governments? 1:36:00 Real Estate and DHAs 1:46:30 SIFC 1:51:00 IMF and Audience Questions

Pakistan Lost is a series of audio essays on history exploring the choices that were made that impacted millions of people for decades to come. The Fourth episode looks at the Imposition of Urdu as a National Language on Pakistan: Watch all the episodes of Pakistan Lost in Urdu: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cEh4HSt8V-E&list=PLlQZ9NZnjq5ppq4gpdZhlq28_OlgoBxYy The Pakistan Experience is an independently produced podcast looking to tell stories about Pakistan through conversations. Please consider supporting us on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/thepakistanexperience To support the channel: Jazzcash/Easypaisa - 0325 -2982912 Patreon.com/thepakistanexperience And Please stay in touch: https://twitter.com/ThePakistanExp1 https://www.facebook.com/thepakistanexperience https://instagram.com/thepakistanexpeperience The podcast is hosted by comedian and writer, Shehzad Ghias Shaikh. Shehzad is a Fulbright scholar with a Masters in Theatre from Brooklyn College. He is also one of the foremost Stand-up comedians in Pakistan and frequently writes for numerous publications. Instagram.com/shehzadghiasshaikh Facebook.com/Shehzadghias/ Twitter.com/shehzad89 🔊 License: You’re free to use this song in your videos, but you must include the following credits in your video's description (Copy & Paste): 🔻 "Savfk - The Travelling Symphony" is under a Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International License (CC BY 4.0) https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TqhNwEtZVcw / savfkmusic Music promoted by BreakingCopyright: https://bit.ly/the-travelling-symphon... 🔺 ⭐ Easily copy and paste credit text from our website (perfect for mobile). Learn how to give credits correctly on other platforms: https://breakingcopyright.com/credits...

Journalist and Editor of Aman ki Asha, Beena Sarwar, comes on The Pakistan Experience to discuss India-Pakistan relations. On this episode we discuss, Aman ki Asha, Hindutva Politics, Appetite for Peace in India and Pakistan, Selling Hate Online, Modi visiting Pakistan, Visa Policy, Kartarpur, Cultural Connections, Visiting India and whether sentiments in India changed after 26/11. Beena Sarwar is a Pakistani journalist, artist and filmmaker focusing on human rights, media and peace. She resides in Boston and is currently the editor of the Aman ki Asha (Hope for Peace) initiative, that aims to develop peace between the countries of India and Pakistan. The initiative is jointly sponsored by the Jang group in Pakistan and the Times of India across the border. In March 2021, she founded the Southasia Peace Action Network or SAPAN along with other peace activists from across South Asia. In August 2022, Sapan informally launched Sapan News Network, a news and features syndicated service in the making. She is its founding editor. The Pakistan Experience is an independently produced podcast looking to tell stories about Pakistan through conversations. Please consider supporting us on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/thepakistanexperience To support the channel: Jazzcash/Easypaisa - 0325 -2982912 Patreon.com/thepakistanexperience And Please stay in touch: https://twitter.com/ThePakistanExp1 https://www.facebook.com/thepakistanexperience https://instagram.com/thepakistanexpeperience The podcast is hosted by comedian and writer, Shehzad Ghias Shaikh. Shehzad is a Fulbright scholar with a Masters in Theatre from Brooklyn College. He is also one of the foremost Stand-up comedians in Pakistan and frequently writes for numerous publications. Instagram.com/shehzadghiasshaikh Facebook.com/Shehzadghias/ Twitter.com/shehzad89 Chapters 0:00 Introduction 1:30 Aman ki Asha, People to People and Sapan 6:30 Borders, Trade and Visa Policy 12:46 Did India change after 26/11 15:00 Cultural Connections and Memory of Partition 24:30 Kartarpur, Tourism and Learning from Each other 28:45 Audience Questions and Love over Hate 42:00 First Part of the Podcast

Dr. Izzeldin Abuelaish comes on for a remarkable episode of The Pakistan Experience on Israel, Palestine and hatred. Dr. Izzeldin talks about Israel killing his daughters, his niece, and 22 of his family members but still vowing not to let hatred consume him. We discuss Gaza, Resilience, Belief, Faith, the Nakbah, the Cruelty of the World, Hatred, Loss and the Current Situation in Gaza. Dr. Izzeldin Abuelaish, an esteemed Palestinian-Canadian physician and humanitarian, was born in the Jabalia refugee camp in Gaza on August 15, 1958. He is renowned for his unwavering commitment to peace, education, and women’s empowerment, particularly following the tragic loss of three daughters during Israel’s Operation Cast Lead in January 2009. Abuelaish studied medicine at Cairo University before moving to Canada in 1987 to pursue further training as a gynecologist. In addition to being a respected medical professional, he has dedicated himself to promoting cross-border understanding between Palestinians and Israelis through various initiatives such as the Daughters for Life Foundation (DFLF), which provides scholarships to young female students from conflict zones around the world. His work with DFLF led him to be named one of Time Magazine’s “100 Most Influential People” in 2010. The foundation also inspired his bestselling memoir, “I Shall Not Hate,” published in 2010, which chronicles his personal journey towards forgiveness after losing his family members. In recognition of his efforts, Abuelaish received numerous awards, including the Order of Ontario, the United Nations Prize in Field Support, and the Right Livelihood Award, often referred to as the Alternative Nobel Prize. His advocacy for peace and justice continues to inspire people worldwide, making him a prominent figure in global discussions about conflict resolution and reconciliation. The Pakistan Experience is an independently produced podcast looking to tell stories about Pakistan through conversations. Please consider supporting us on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/thepakistanexperience To support the channel: Jazzcash/Easypaisa - 0325 -2982912 Patreon.com/thepakistanexperience And Please stay in touch: https://twitter.com/ThePakistanExp1 https://www.facebook.com/thepakistanexperience https://instagram.com/thepakistanexpeperience The podcast is hosted by comedian and writer, Shehzad Ghias Shaikh. Shehzad is a Fulbright scholar with a Masters in Theatre from Brooklyn College. He is also one of the foremost Stand-up comedians in Pakistan and frequently writes for numerous publications. Instagram.com/shehzadghiasshaikh Facebook.com/Shehzadghias/ Twitter.com/shehzad89 Chapters: 0:00 Introduction 1:30 Gratitude, Strength and Belief in God 8:50 The experience and memory of Nakbah 14:00 Losing my daughters and losing faith in humanity 26:00 Gaza Strip, Never Again and the Cruelty of the World 38:30 Hatred and choosing not to hate 47:30 Current Situation in Gaza and Accountability of the World

Amn Karim Ahmad, author of "We Are Going to be Okay" comes on The Pakistan Experience to discuss Motherhood, Pregnancy, Biology, Postpartum Depression, anxieties and struggles of a first time mother, therapy and her book. Amn Karim Ahmad was born and raised in Karachi, Pakistan. She studied in Canada and Australia for her undergraduate and postgraduate degree respectively. After getting married she moved to Virginia, USA where she worked as an elementary school ESL teacher. Amn became a first time mother to a baby boy in September 2021. She has been vocal about her struggles with postpartum on her personal social media blogs, which motivated her to write this book in an attempt to create a connection with others like herself. Amn wrote this book on the notes app of her phone at 3am one night as she was burping her newborn. She had always wanted to write a book for her son but once she had finished typing, she realized she had written something for herself instead. This is the link to her insta https://www.instagram.com/weregoingtobeokaybook The Pakistan Experience is an independently produced podcast looking to tell stories about Pakistan through conversations. Please consider supporting us on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/thepakistanexperience To support the channel: Jazzcash/Easypaisa - 0325 -2982912 Patreon.com/thepakistanexperience And Please stay in touch: https://twitter.com/ThePakistanExp1 https://www.facebook.com/thepakistanexperience https://instagram.com/thepakistanexpeperience The podcast is hosted by comedian and writer, Shehzad Ghias Shaikh. Shehzad is a Fulbright scholar with a Masters in Theatre from Brooklyn College. He is also one of the foremost Stand-up comedians in Pakistan and frequently writes for numerous publications. Instagram.com/shehzadghiasshaikh Facebook.com/Shehzadghias/ Twitter.com/shehzad89 Chapters: 0:00 Introduction 2:00 What is Postpartum Depression and Baby Anxiety 10:10 Biology, Struggles and Depression 22:41 Pregnancy and Social Support 28:30 Communication and the role of the Husband 35:40 Realizing I wasn't okay 42:00 Motherhood and relationship with your Mother 49:00 We are going to be okay

Ali Usman Qasmi comes back on The Pakistan Experience to discuss his new book, “Qaum, Mulk, Sultanat” - on this episode we do a deep dive in the 1950s in Pakistan; how was Pakistan turned into an Islamic State? We discuss Ayub Khan, The National Anthem, the Indian Citizenship Act, the notion of the Nation State, Establishment's narratives and Imran Khan taking over the Establishment's narrative. After the trauma of mass violence and massive population movements around the partition of India and Pakistan in 1947, both new nation states faced the enormous challenge of creating new national narratives, symbols, and histories, as well as a new framework for their political life. While leadership in India claimed the anti-colonial movement, Gandhi, and a civilizational legacy in the subcontinent, the new political elite in Pakistan were faced with a more complex task: to carve out a separate and distinct Muslim history and political tradition from a millennium long history of cultural and religious interaction, mixing, and coexistence. Drawing on a rich archive of diverse sources, Ali Qasmi traces the complex development of ideas of citizenship and national belonging in the postcolonial Muslim state, offering a nuanced and sweeping history of the country’s formative period. Qasmi paints a rich picture of the long, arduous, and often conflict-ridden process of writing a democratic constitution of Pakistan, while simultaneously narrating the invention of a range of new rituals of state—such as the exact color of the flag, the precise date of birth of the national poet of Pakistan, and the observation of Eid as a “national festival”—providing an illuminating analysis of the practices of being Pakistani, and a new portrait of Muslim history in the subcontinent. Ali Usman Qasmi is Associate Professor of History at Lahore University of Management Sciences. The Pakistan Experience is an independently produced podcast looking to tell stories about Pakistan through conversations. Please consider supporting us on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/thepakistanexperience To support the channel: Jazzcash/Easypaisa - 0325 -2982912 Patreon.com/thepakistanexperience And Please stay in touch: https://twitter.com/ThePakistanExp1 https://www.facebook.com/thepakistanexperience https://instagram.com/thepakistanexpeperience The podcast is hosted by comedian and writer, Shehzad Ghias Shaikh. Shehzad is a Fulbright scholar with a Masters in Theatre from Brooklyn College. He is also one of the foremost Stand-up comedians in Pakistan and frequently writes for numerous publications. Instagram.com/shehzadghiasshaikh Facebook.com/Shehzadghias/ Twitter.com/shehzad89 Chapters: 0:00 Introduction 2:00 India, Citizenship Act and What does it mean to be a Citizen? 21:00 Building a nation-state after Partition in Pakistan 39:13 Insecurities of the Pakistani State and Fear of Democracy 54:00 Pakistan's state use of Islam 1:11:42 Creation of Pakistan, Symbolism and Myth Making 1:21:00 Establishment's Narratives about Pakistan 2:08:00 National Anthem 2:12:30 Audience Questions