The Pakistan Experience

Hamna Zubair (writer/ex culture editor at Dawn), Manal Faheem (writer at Cutacut/Teacher at Szabist), Nayab Gohar Jan(activist and journalist), Tooba Syed(Member WDF and AWP/Activist/Aurat March Organizer) and Qurrat Mirza(Member WAF/Activist/Aurat March Organizer) come on the podcast this week to discuss R*pe culture.  The Motorway incident has shaken the nation to its core but till we do not address the underlying culture that has made such incidents commonplace in our society, we will continue trending hashtags.  This esteemed group of writers, activists and journalists, come together to break down what r*pe culture is, how patriarchy works to subjugate women, and how we need to change as a society to fight this toxic culture.   The Pakistan Experience is a podcast looking to tell stories about Pakistan, and Pakistanis, through the lost art of conversation.

Arif Hasan, is a city planner and architect with years of experience under his belt, he was the chairperson for the Orangi Pilot Project and Urban Resource Center. He has received a Hilal-e-Imtiaz for Public Service.  Arif sahab comes on the podcast to discuss his beloved city, and its many problems, from the recent flooding to forced evictions, from the lack of local governance to the demands of making Karachi a federal territory, Arif sahab discuses the past, present and future of Karachi.  This episode has been co-hosted by Ahmad Khan, a architecture graduate from NCA Lahore, currently working in New York.  The Pakistan Experience is a podcast looking to tell stories about Pakistan, and Pakistanis, through the lost art of conversation.

Dr. Ishtiaq Ahmed comes back The Pakistan Experience to discuss Quaid-e-Azam Muhammad Ali Jinnah, the creation of Pakistan, Liaquat Ali Khan, and the history of the country.   We discuss the perennial question, did Quaid-e-Azam Muhammad Ali Jinnah want Pakistan to be a secular or an Islamic ideological state?  The Pakistan Experience is a podcast looking to tell stories about Pakistan, and Pakistanis, through the lost art of conversation.

Arafat Mazhar is an academic, a musician and an animator. He is the founder and director of Engage, ShehriPakistan and Puffball Studio, the studio behind the brilliant dystopian short film, Shehr e Tabassum, directed by Arafat Mazhar himself.   From his early days of being in Jamaat-e-Islami to his seminal research on the Blasphemy law, Arafat Mazhar comes on the podcast to discuss the history of the Blasphemy Law in Pakistan and the legacy of extremism. Arafat talks about how the law came to be  and the history of Islamic jurisdiction on the topic.    We discuss the role of religion in Pakistan, the madrassas, if vilifying Mumtaz Qadri is enough, how do we protect the future of our children and provide a counter narrative that is able to communicate effectively to them.  Visit www.engagepakistan.com for all the report which has resources that people can read to verify Arafat Mazhar's claims.    The trailer at the end of the podcast is of Swipe, Arafat Mazhar's latest film, check out more on the Shehr-e-Tabassum Youtube channel: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=m_15dKzkIMY   The Pakistan Experience is a podcast looking to tell stories about Pakistan, and Pakistanis, through the lost art of conversation.

Ahmad Shabbar is the CEO of Garbage Can, a company focused on comprehensive waste management. Ahmad has been on the streets of Karachi pumping out water and protesting against DHA/CBC.  Ahmad comes on The Pakistan Experience to discuss the protests, we talk about what we think did not work and why there was a low turn out on Thursday. We also discuss what it will talk for actual change to happen in Karachi, and subsequently in Pakistan.  The Pakistan Experience is a podcast looking to tell stories about Pakistan, and Pakistanis, through the lost art of conversation.

In part 2 of the TPE Content Creators Roundtable, we discuss whether there is a content creators community in Pakistan.    1. What should one do when a content creator is accused of harassment?  2. Is there support for new content creators?  3. Is there jealousy?   4. Should we allow content creators to make mistakes and learn?  5. Cancel culture  6. Is it just about numbers?   7. Do brands care about their 'image'?  8. Kya log chootiye hotay hay?   On the panel we have Ali Aftab Saeed (Journalist/Musician/Vlogger), Raza Samo (Khujlee Family/Awesamo Speaks), Sajeer Shaikh(Mangobaaz), Shahjehan Saleem(Diva) and Tamkenat Mansoor (No Filters).   The Pakistan Experience is a podcast looking to tell stories about Pakistan, and Pakistanis, through the lost art of conversation.

Part 1 of the Content Creators Roundtable, we discuss why people create content, what responsibility do they feel as content creators and what do you they think of the current state of content creation of Pakistan.  We also discuss if content creators should speak on social issues or not, whether they need to lend their voices to causes, how it affects their careers and how audiences might react to them being vocal.   For Part 1 of the Content Creators Roundtable, we have been joined by Raza Samo (Khujlee Family), Ali Aftab Saeed (Musician/Journalist), Muhammad Moiz (Content Creator/Comedian), Sajeer Shaikh (Mangobaaz), Shahjehan Saleem (Diva) and Abdul Rehman Malik (Mosiqi).

In the first of a new subset of The Pakistan Experience, it is our honour to present the TPE Roundtable on Films with directors Sarmad Khoosat, Iram Parveen Bilal, Jami and Saim Sadiq.   We discuss the current state of our film industry, the idea of a film fraternity, censorship and what it takes to make a film in Pakistan.   Sarmad Khoosat is the legendary director behind hits like Humsafar, and he starred in and director the artistic masterpiece, 'Manto''.  Jami is one of the most foremost directors in Pakistan, with his movie, 'Moor', widely being regarded as one of the finest Pakistani films ever made.  Iram Parveen Bilal is an independent film maker, whose film Josh received critical acclaim in Pakistan. Iram runs a script writing mentor program in South Asia called Qalambaaz.  Saim Sadiq has a MFA in film from Columbia University. His first short film, Darling, won the coveted Best Short Film award at the Venice Film Festival.    TPE Roundtables looks to bring industry leaders to discuss the current state of any field.   The Pakistan Experience is a podcast looking to tell stories about Pakistan, and Pakistanis, through the lost art of conversation.

Asim Abbasi, the director of Cake, and the writer/director of the web-series Churails, comes on The Pakistan Experience to discuss how Churails came to be - from writing it, to directing it across locations in Pakistan, the future of content, and the media industry.   We also discuss the backlash Churails is getting for the apparent fahashi.   The Pakistan Experience is a podcast looking to tell stories about Pakistan, and Pakistanis, through the lost art of conversation.

Muhammad Moiz on the first episode of The Pakistan Experience a year ago, we are celebrating the anniversary by bringing Muhammad Moiz back on the podcast and getting all of you to come on as well.  In the anniversary special, we look back at The Pakistan Experience journey, sex education in Pakistan, racism against Afghans in Pakistan and how Hyderabadi boys are the hottest.