I fell in love with the first Pakistani girl I ever met.
Let me explain before all of you start jumping up and down (some with joy, others with anger). Pakistan has the concept of PR figured out beautifully. The immigration officers are all women! Each more beautiful than the other. There are separate lines for Pakistani citizens, for people with families and for foreigners. I fell in the last category and I suspect the Pakistani Government had placed the most beautiful woman in Pakistan (nay, the world) to welcome me.
As I handed her my passport and tickets, this young woman (with the most delicate, beautiful and tender features) gave me a little smile and fluttered her dainty eyebrows. She shifted the chunni on her head and for me, as Mr. Ruskin Bond would put it, time stood still. Then she looked at me and smiled again (by now, I was close to a heart attack).
"Aaapka naam Anurag hai? Bahut hee sundar naam hai" (That was it! I was now officially in love with her) "Maine yeh naam suna hua hai. Eik serial mein bhi Anurag hai" (as I later figured out she was referring
to a character in one of the stupid Indian soaps - Kahani Ghar Ghar Ki, i am told). And she continued smiling and I continued to struggle for breath!
"Aap Pakistan mein cricket ke liye aayen hain?" she queried.
Since I had lost my senses by then, I could only manage a stupid nod.
Another heart-breaking smile happened and I gathered courage and told her that I had come to see Lahore, not the cricket. I somehow could not get myself to telling her that just seeing her had made my trip worthwhile. I could turn back from there and still declare that I had enjoyed my 'trip to Pakistan'
And then she looked at my passport (remember, I still had my mouth open) and asked "aap jaipur mein paida huen hain - Jaipur is the Pink City? Right?" and then she gave me another smile. I passed out.
This time 3-4 people were required to revive me. And then she added "I hope you have a great stay in Pakistan. I hope you enjoy our country". (This is what I am told she said, since I have no recollection of
anything but her and her beautiful smile!).
So, ladies and gentlemen, that was my introduction to Pakistan. If you are one of those hardliner-types then please don't read on. just delete the mail. You will be sorely disappointed. I am not at all surprised that a senior leader of one of the political parties of India had a change of heart while he was visiting Pakistan. The
warmth and hospitality of the Pakistani's will melt even the most hardened types!
Anyways, now back to my grand entry into Pakistan. Just going back a little in time - 5 minutes before from where my mail starts - I was waiting in the Immigration queue and was not sure if I had to fill in an immigration form. I accosted a policeman and asked him for advice. He looked at my passport and said "Aaap toe VIP hain, hamare mehmaan hain, koi form nahin bharna". This kind of disarming niceness is what Lahore and Pakistan is all about.
The moment anyone (be it a shopkeeper, a restaurant waiter, an autodriver or a taxi driver) finds out I am from India, there is a sudden commotion around me and everyone comes to chat with me. They all tell me how they want to visit Delhi. They want to know what I think of Pakistan, and what I think of Lahore. I am made to feel
special at every step, in every shop, every moment. The number of people who have told me what a beautiful name I have exceeds the number of people I know who could spell Pakistan. They really make one feel special. That is what niceness is all about.
I am staying in a hotel in an area called Gulberg which seems to be slightly upmarket (the hotel definitely isn't!). Overall the impression one gets of Lahore is that it is amazingly clean (it puts the so-called 'clean' parts of Delhi to shame), and colourful (the red/yellow/green painted autorickshaws and buses) and seems quite organised (traffic is very well organised unlike the Bhalla's and Arora's jumping redlights in Delhi). But visit Old Lahore and one is
reminded of India - the chaos, the traffic etc. etc.
Old Lahore comprises of Lahore Fort and Badshah Shahi Mosque (the complex there has some clothes and also a hair belonging to Prophet Mohammed). The mosque is very large, very serene and calm. Lahore Fort
itself is reminiscent of Delhi's Red Fort (built by the same Mughal Kings after all). Apart from the obligatory 'Deewan-e-Aam' and 'Deewan-e-Khaas' is the 'Sheesh Mahal' where Madhubala ooooops Anarkali did her dance! Just outside the Fort is 'Heera Mandi' which is famous for its er....ahem....nautch girls. I will not elaborate on my visit there. Those interested will be told offline ;) There is Gurudwara just outside the Lahore Fort (which I did not visit!) but the sight from a distance was really pretty - a gurdwara amidst the minarets of the Badshah Shahi Mosque!!!!
Another famous area of Old Lahore is Anarkali (yes yes named after Jahangir's love) which is probably one of the most famous markets of this part of the world. It is a long street with shops selling all sorts of stuff on both sides. An occassional window on the first floor of some of the buildings reminds the visitor of bygone times. For the women folk, there are lots of shops selling 'Bareeze' (counterpart of 'chikan'). I ofcourse went into one shop just to check out what the fuss was all about (after clicking a couple of photographs and asking some inane questions I came out).
Btw, apparently there is an India-Pak test match happening in Lahore;) so i decided to have a dekko at Qaddafi Stadium. I was carrying my camera which is not allowed in the stadium. There were three security checks before one could enter the stadium and at each check I was told that I couldn't enter since I was carrying a Camera. I argued with them but it did not work. But then I would say the magic words "I have come from India" and lo and behold they would say "aapne pehle kyon nahin bataya. aap toe hamare mehmaan hain. jaiye. aap camera le jaa
sakte hain". Will that ever happen in India? Never ! The stadium is very large and spacious but the cricket (from India's perspective) was not at all inspiring. The Pakistani batsmen were thrashing us. So I left quite early to explore (or as one of my learned friends says, "excavate") Lahore.
Now coming to Food !!!! Lahore is the culinary capital of Pakistan and nothing epitomises this more than 'Food Street' - a half a kilometre road which has nothing but restaurants on both sides. In the evenings, the road is closed to vehicular traffic and all the restaurants set their tables on the street. Vegetarians don't even dream of going there, for ye will only be served chicken, mutton, fish and other finger lickin' stuff (get lost Col. Sanders!). I tried one restaurant tonight. The Chicken Kadhai I had would certainly rate as amongst the best I have had. I have five more nights here in Lahore so there remain five more restaurants to try in food street! The Kulfi (even
though I am not a die-hard Kulfi fan) was simply mind-blowing.
At food street, I got chatting with a shopkeeper there and, seeing the mass of humanity and lights, I commented "It looks as if there is a fair happening here."
He laughed and said, "this is nothing. wait till 20:30. then you won't even get space to stand." True enough the place was swarming with people in a while. Mother of all Melas.
(Jan, 2006)
