Karachi honours Sabeen the way she would’ve wanted

Karachi 

April 24, 2015 would have seemed like just another day for all those who knew or were close to Sabeen Mahmud, founder of The Second Floor (T2F), but once night fell, it had all changed with the deafening silencing of a voice that exuded hope for a better tomorrow.

A year since those shots were fired at her car at the Defence Phase II traffic signal, Sabeen's mother, Mehnaz Mahmud, and the T2F team gathered at the safe haven that she had gifted this city to honour her memory. 

This, they did in a most fitting manner as, just a few kilometres away from T2F, on the greenbelt right next to the spot where she was targeted, her mother planted an Amaltas tree - a symbol of hope and continuity - as a dedication to Sabeen's indefatigable spirit, with her name on a plaque to serve as a reminder for all. 

As the group moved back to the T2F, where all shared their memories of Sabeen,Asad Alvi, a friend of the T2F founder’s who is also working there, shared that, for him, Sabeen wasn’t a body; rather she was an idea which was synonymous with art and freedom.

“Given that Sabeen and I had a close association, I remember how she didn’t say much when I read out a poem of mine which she had encouraged me to write. Rather, once I was done, she just kissed me on cheek and said ‘bless you’. It was something to see that a person as talkative as her had said so little. Today, I have won a prize for the same poem, but Sabeen isn’t here to listen to it.”

The show must go on 

Soon, after a visit to Sabeen's grave, the group moved to the CKF and, with them, their sentiments.  But despite all, Mehnaz Mahmud, was there greeting everyone warmly who came to talk to her.

“We are here to celebrate Sabeen and it is heartwarming to see so many people and families enjoying here. It’s a great opportunity for the creative community to share and showcase their talents, and it is very pleasant to see parents and children come out in a city where there is this sense of fear among people,” said Mehnaz, who was swarmed by admirers all day long.

While the Creative Karachi Festival 2016’s second day saw as impressive a turnout as ever – with city dwellers showing up in droves to celebrate art, music and dance –all those who knew Sabeen could also be seen wiping a tear or two every time a session or time was dedicated to her.

Unlike the previous day, day two pulled a lot of crowd for sessions as well and the upper gallery was filled with people for a session on photographers namely Danial Shah, Madiha Aijaz, Naila Mahmood and Farooq Soomro as they narrated the tales behind their pictures. 

The attendees were also quick enough to help out the volunteers to change the outlook of the room to see an outstanding contemporary dance performance on the cityscape by Joshinder Chaggar and Sunil Shankar, right after the talk. 

‘We dub the slain ‘brave’  

However, it was the session that came after these two which saw chairs get taken even before the speakers took the stage, as author Muhammad Hanif sat down to read out his piece written for Sabeen and Perween Rehman, along with Mushba Said and Zoha Jabbar, who read their own writings penned for Karachi and Sabeen.

Quoting Sabeen’s popular Facebook status in which she referred to activists as ‘fools’ to mock those who criticise protesters, Zoha Jabbar spoke about Sabeen’s spirit and how everyone who turned up was also a ‘fool’. Yet, it was Hanif who was perhaps the only person who talked about the much-hushed struggle of Sabeen as he put both Sabeen and Perween Rahman together.

“While one wanted to open gutters, the other wanted to open gutters of the pseudo-educated individuals. One wanted the city dwellers to know who was involved in stealing their water, and the other just wanted the people to learn the art of classical music.

They weren’t anti-state or anti-religion, rather one just tried to initiate a cordial dialogue between a few Baloch and the people of the city. Mama Qadeer or Farzana Baloch weren’t a threat to national security nor did speaking against the land mafia pose any similar consequences.

Both didn’t want to put the hemlock to their lips; instead, they wanted to live and wanted to make the most of their lives,” said Hanif.

 “We are fond of dubbing such slain individuals as ‘brave’ to hide behind the mantle of our cowardice. Deep down, we question their motives for such ‘foolishness’ and discuss that there are other ways of going about these issues, be it writing for a newspaper, organising literary festivals, or signing online petitions.

Most of us are just honouring these individuals to appear aligned with the intellectuals,” he mocked.

“Many said that one Sabeen and Perween will lead to a thousand more, but I disagree. Rather all I ask for is that Sabeen was the sky and Perween was the earth, so can we have both back?” he said.  

The final day of CKF 2016 ended with more live music performances but the highlight was indeed the performance by Suhaee Abro and her troupe which she signed off with a tribute to Sabeen by dancing to Faiz Ahmad Faiz's 'Aaj Bazaar Main' that was rendered by the talented vocalist, Sara Haider.