[Text and picture by Mayank Austen Soofi]
A few days after Pakistan’s 60th Independence Day, I chanced upon a wonderful book on the country. Do not judge it by the staid title: Pakistan – Travellers Companion. Its claims are more ambitious.
"All that you want to know. All that you expect to see. All that you want to enjoy. This book covers all – The only book which provides A to Z information on all aspects of your travels in Pakistan. The only book which you required and desired so much. The book is fully illustrated with scores of colour pictures and maps etc."
Printed in Rawalpindi and published by Islamabad-based publishers, optimistically named ‘Best Books’, the book strikes the reader with its amateurishness. Written and photographed by a certain Mister M. Hanif Raza, there are delicious flaws in the travel guide: the language is pompous; and the descriptions politically insensitive. Sample this:
"The people of Gilgit are proverbially peaceful, law-abiding and hospitable. They are neither sharp like the people of Kashmir Valley nor aggressive like the Pathans."
Ouch. However, Mister Raza really blossoms when it comes to flowery phrases. This gem is from the book’s introduction:
"The country offers alarming mountains, charming vistas, sprawling glaciers, marching sand dunes, farming plains, barking bucks, fasting buddhas, dancing horses, talking parrots, dazzling deserts, shimmering lakes, singing streams, and sparkling snowy heights."
Perhaps our good author forgot to hire an editor. Beware, he can be mean. Here is one of the numerous boxed snippets that crowd the book.
"Shah Jahan was the biggest spender of all the Mughals. He lavished millions on Jewel encrusted palaces & mosques blowing at least one million pounds sterling on emeralds, rubies & sapphires which were embedded in the Naulakha Pavillion (900, 000 pieces). How sad-everything was plundered by the Sikhs."
Don’t worry. Our good author is not biased against any particular religious community. The book has glorious descriptions of various holy places – not holy to Islam alone. Other than being an historian, Mister Raza is also a sharp-eyed social commentator.
"Illicit love is the backbone of the Punjab romance – and the lovers are always doomed."
Ah, such unromantic conclusions. But the wise man is being realistic. Sample this advice for those planning to track in the remote Northern Areas.
You could be stuck up at any point because clouds and rains cannot be controlled. So be prepared for such an occasion and enjoy the trip.
Sensible indeed.
The foremost appeal of this guide book is its professional innocence. Though merely a Pakistani version of Lonely Planet, it gives us a peek into the unfiltered (and unedited) mind of its author – his prejudices and partialities. In a world where too much emphasis is laid on being politically correct that books (or films, plays, news etc.) run the risk of becoming sterile, the honesty of Pakistan – Travellers Companion feels as fresh as spring flowers.
Rather than reading it alone, Pakistan Paindabad plans to share this book, in small doses, with its readers in a series titled “Mister Raza Says”. (The author has been appointed as Pakistan's Mister Borat.) Meanwhile let’s conclude with this warning our cautious guide gives to would-be travellers to the country.
"But, may be, by the time you come here things and situations may be slightly different in some ways that I have portrayed. It is a developing country and here the prices change – temperatures drop or rise, shops move –hotels expand, restaurants get better or worse – even disappear – telephone number change, addresses change even the governments change and all that happens too suddenly and too frequently. Things and situation also change though not that much. Better keep all these points in mind while travelling and enjoy your trip and I am sure that you will not be disappointed."
Yes, Mister Raza. We will not be disappointed.
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