Sand artist for peace
Sand artist Sudershan Pattnaik had created a sculpture of Malala Yousufzai on the beach of Puri in Odisha with a “Get well soon” message after she was attacked. He has now created another sculpture honouring her and her co-awardee Kailash Satyarthi. He has also created sand sculptures against the firing at the LoC, and urging the Prime Ministers of India and Pakistan to bring about peace between the two countries.
Asma Jahangir at BlrLitFest
The Literature Festivals held in different cities of India and Pakistan provide a good opportunity for audiences to engage with writers and prominent citizens of the other country. Prominent lawyer Asma Jahangir, recipient of the ‘alternate Nobel’ in Stockholm recently, was at a couple of panels at the Bangalore Literature Festival. The panel on women’s narratives moderated by journalist Nupur Basu was a particularly powerful one at the BlrLitFest, that underlined the commonalities not just between India and Pakistan but also China, as the panelists shared their experiences and insights about how women have to be “equal plus” as former Delhi High Court Chief Justice Leila Seth put it, in order to get ahead.
Besides Leila Seth and Asma Jahangir, other panelists were Lijia Zhang, writer, journalist, public speaker and author from China and columnist Shobhaa De. The discussion on gender discrimination at home and the work place, stereotyping and objectification of women, and the fight against patriarchal attitudes underlined, as Shobhaa De remarked, how just about everything a woman does or says becomes a political statement.
Virtual dinner, anyone?
Two groups of students, one in Bangalore and one in Islamabad, talk fashion, film and politics over a virtual dinner via Skype calls, in an attempt to knock down cultural and political barriers. That’s the dream of Eric Maddox, founder of the Virtual Dinner Guest initiative.
“It is harder to ignore, vilify or harm those with whom we have broken bread,” says the 36-year-old American, who has spent the last three months in the tech hub of Bangalore.
He came up with the idea of Virtual Dinner Guest during field research in the West Bank as part of his degree in international conflict resolution. Typically, the groups share a 60- to 90-minute dinner and ask questions, inspired by newspaper articles selected as source material.
While border tension dominates drawing room conversations, the Indian and Pakistani virtual dinner participants spent more time talking about Bollywood movies. Then, they hit the streets with a handheld camera to interview residents about a topic of their dining partners’ choice, the results of which were screened at a second dinner.
“We went out exploring places, interacting with all sorts of people from our own communities on a level we normally don’t,” said Hina Nadir, an engineering student from Islamabad. Funded by private donations and a grant from Skype, the project has connected groups in 16 countries so far, using local volunteers to find participants.
Aman Chaupal with Meena Menon
Meena Menon, an Indian journalist earlier stationed in Pakistan, interacts with students in a Delhi school at the Tenth Aman Chaupal
The Tenth Aman Chaupal held recently in New Delhi featured Meena Menon, former correspondent of The Hindu stationed in Pakistan and currently deputy editor of the newspaper.
The Aman Chaupals are a series of interactions featuring a talk by a Pakistani visiting India, or someone who has visited Pakistan. The series is organised by Aaghaz-e-Dosti, an Indo-Pak friendship initiative jointly run by Mission Bhartiyam, India, and The Catalyst, Pakistan.
The aim is to counter stereotypes and misconceptions and to show a side of Pakistan largely ignored by the media. Given the high tensions at the Kashmir border, such interactions are even more important, says Aaghaz-e-Dosti.
At the Aman Chaupal, held at Andhra Education Society on Oct 10, 2014, Meena Menon shared her experiences of living and working in Pakistan. She stressed the warmth and friendliness of the common people towards her and their curiosity about India.
In the ensuing discussion, in answer to a question about cultural similarities between India and Pakistan, Meena Menon talked about their shared culture in which music is an important connection. Many communities also close ethnic and historic ties. About the status of the status of women in Pakistan, she explained that like in India, the situation is complex and varies depending on the region. In Taliban-controlled areas, the situation is difficult, but it is very different in other areas. There were questions on terrorism, ceasefire violations and on what some saw as a “one-sided peace”.
“Why doesn’t Pakistan co-operate with India for peace?” asked a student.
Interestingly, Pakistanis asked her the same question and complained that India doesn’t cooperate, replied Menon. Both accuse the other of initiating clashes.Rather than get provoked, she suggested that the students try to think critically on issues, to examine and analyse facts and to think neutrally. The discussion ended with the students writing peace messages for Pakistanis.
