LifeStyle
ChI Drinks…..
Ermmmm…..prohibition rules – but private homes violate the rule all the time, and currently a number of restaurants serve and allow BYO – nominally for non-Muslims only. Spirits and beer are big, and usually available, and wine is becoming both more available, and the drinkers of it more discerning. In fact, trying to avoid alcohol can be more of a problem than the reverse. And paradoxically, the long-established (and still existing) Murree Brewery is about to launch its own 20 year old whisky! (Check out a recent article on it from the Chicago Tribune http://www.chicagotribune.com/news/nationworld/chi-whiskey_barkeroct01,1,4527015.story?track=rss&ctrack=1&cset=true
For semi-public late night drinking, try the upstairs bar at L’Atmosphere, on Gomal Road – (if it ever reopens and probably under a different name); Muddy’s in the Marriott Hotel on weekend nights (ditto). Basically, just indulge at (someone’s) home. (You have been warned!)
ChI Reads….
with a nod to Blue Chip’s “He reads….She reads”
• Blue Chip Magazine www.bluechipmag.com
• Newsline
• Herald
• The Friday Times
• The Daily Times (on Sundays)
• Ayaz Amir’s Islamabad Diary in the Daily Times on Fridays
• Kamran Shafi’s column in Dawn newspaper
• The Great Game, Peter Hopkirk
• A Beggar at the Gate, A Singular Hostage, Companions of Paradise, Thalassa Ali (trilogy)
• Frontline Pakistan, Zahid Hussain
• Military Inc, Ayesha Siddiqa
• The End of Innocence, Moni Mohsin
• Moth Smoke, Mohsin Hamid
• Trespassing, Uzma Aslam Khan
• In the Eye of the Storm, Owen Bennett Jones
• Glimpses into Islamabad’s Soul, by Fauzia Aziz Minallah, published by Sungi Development Foundation
ChI is Listening to…..
• Nusrat Fateh Ali (always)
• Callas (always)
• Nitin Sawhney & Talvin Singh, to remind one of the unity that is not the Subcontinent (and for the music)
• Roxen’s songs (“Toh Phir Ao” and “Lams”) from their latest album which have been picked up by the renowned Indian film producer Mahesh Bhatt for the movie Awaarapan (shot in Lahore – a pleasant example of cross-border collaboration).
• Fuzon
• Radio F89 for pretty cool music, and Zahir’s jazz selections at 9pm on Sundays
ChI Art….
Dip into the contemporary art scene with ChI – galleries, artists….& where to buy on line
Islamabad
• Nomad (383 Eighth Avenue, F8/3 onService Rd East in F8, parallel to Faisal Avenue). Open daily except Mondays. Nageen Hyat curates excellent regular shows of contemporary South Asian (mainly Pakistani) art, with flair, insight and a great eye for upcoming (as well as established) talent. Tel 051 226 2502 .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address)
• Khaas on St 2, F6/3, off main Margalla Rd, where Mouse Afzal Khan offers a personalised selection of carefully-chosen works by interesting artists. (As well as the restaurant, too!) One-stop culture n comfort. Tel 051 282 4391
• Tanzara - run by the talented Noshi Qadir, whose airy space and great presentation aims to present high-quality art exhibitions to residents of Islamabad tel 051 265 1088, 265 0840; 0300 855 4660; .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) www.tanzaragallery.com
• Rohtas – a small gallery in a private house 57-B, Street 26, Sector F 6/2, Islamabad Tel: (92 51) 227 1390, owned by a renowned architect, Naeem Pasha, who designed…..
• The National Gallery of Art which opened (finally) in August 2007 holds both curated exhibitions, and a permanent collection. The initial exhibitions are quite simply stunning, showing the great, the late, the recent, and for the most part very well displayed, though the standard of the curating is a bit erratic.
The experience however encapsulates both the best and the worst that Pakistan has to offer – superb installations (often very political in tone), brilliant sculptures, great works of art - and absolutely stultifying bureaucracy. Where else in the world do you need your national ID card or passport to get in as a paying customer, and where exhibition halls are only opened on the visitor’s insistence? Not to mention the closed gift shop (despite being there during posted opening hours) and ill-trained though well-meaning staff. The damp walls are an issue, too, both for the preservation of the paintings hung on them, and the smell.
Go figure – but GO! It’s a treasure trove and a must-visit!
Out-of-Isloo
Karachi
• Canvas Gallery, 3 Hassan Homes, Block 5 – Clifton, Karachi
Tel +92 21 583 8563; fax +92 21 583 8564; email .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address)
• Chawkandi
• There are also many small to medium-sized galleries in Defence and Clifton areas – for instance, Ziggurat is an old-established one, just off Abdullah Haroon Road.
Lahore
• Alhamra on the Mall holds large group and solo exhibitions
• Crow Eaters Gallery www.croweaters.com
• Ejaz Galleries, off MM Alam Road, holds excellent shows.
• The annual show at the National College of Art is the best (and cheapest, though increasingly less so) place to discover new talent.
Artists to look out for:
The late, the great…. Zahoor ul Aklaque, Zubeida Agha, Anna Molka, Shakir Ali
The internationally-recognised… Ejaz ul Hassan, Sadequain, Shazia Sikandar, Abdul Rehman Chughtai, Colin David, Shakir Ali, Marjorie Husain, Shahrezad, Alam, Iqbal Geoffrey, Faiza Shaikh, Bashir Mirza, Jamil Naqsh, Amin Gulgee, Laila Shahzada, Meher Afroze, Mashkoor Raza, Abdul Jabbar Gull, Moeen Farooqi, Raja Changez Sultan, Naeem Pasha, Attiqa Chinoy, Khalid Chishtee, Abrar Ahmad, Ruby Chishti, Rashid Rana, Masooma Sayed, Mughees Riaz, Tassadaq Sohail, Abshar Malik, Shahid Sajjad
The up and coming…..including Shirin Ikram, Murad Khan Mumtaz
And the new National Art Gallery, where the modern sculpture installations are a highlight.
The National Gallery of Art
For some background on modern contemporary idiom in Pakistani art, see Nillufer Farrukh’s article
Major Occasions
Tea Parties
The Marriott cater on site or in the hotel, for the most demanding of tastes. Little cakes (or large ones) from the Serena pastry shop – the mousse cakes are divine, and the pistachio Opera cakes are world class!
Dinners At Home
• Ask Khadija of Café Lazeez to quote for home catering – quality guaranteed and super Mediterranean food
• Or try Rajput, for a desi (local food) barbeque dinner
• True North West Frontier Insiders will call down “their man” to Isloo, to set up a mouthwatering barbecue in the garden for an al fresco dinner in early autumn or spring and early summer.…for the serious meat-eaters among you! (ChIs will just have to cultivate a pet Pathan!)
• Call Bolan Restaurant xxx and order a whole lamb stuffed with rice, to wow the foreigners (non-Insiders) and delight the locals!
• When the weather is good, dine al fresco and take in the fantastic views from Pir Sohawa in the Margalla Hills. Go for the tried and tested local BBQ joints, or go a notch up market to the Lazeez outlet there. (Or better still, do the BBQ first, and take coffee and dessert at Lazeez!)
“Receptions” (AKA cocktail parties) – booze is bootlegged or diplomatic; and snacks are hotel-catered (Marriott mostly, or Rajput). For non-drinkers, fresh juices are a must as is the dreaded Diet Coke.
Weddings & Parties ….The ChI shares some of her uber-cool locations for special events, and also directs you to the best party planners!
Themed events are big in Isloo. The chic charity balls are of a standard with anywhere in Europe (especially the LRBT - Layton Rehmatullah Benevolent Trust), and glitz and glam abound. Dare to Bare, Ladies – this is the one occasion you can truly go for it!
Top class event managers J & S (Jalil Salahuddin and Omar Satti) rule the roost for weddings, balls, promotional events. Based in Lahore, they will travel, and have an office in Karachi too. J&S3 offices - Lahore: 1st floor, 42, B2 Gulberg III, tel 042 587 2883 & 2884, email .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) . Karachi: 6A, 30C, lane 10, badar commercial, DHA Phase V Extension tel 021 835 2146, email .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) . Web www.jands3.com.
Promising newcomers Amber Sami and Shireen Waheed, who did the W Hotel in New York City, have done a “poster entry onto the scene with a brilliant pre-wedding all-singing all-dancing bash (dholki) in Lahore, and also have an interior design outfit called ‘The Design Firm’. tel 0300 842 2504, email .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address), url www.thedesignfirmintl.com. (They also have a New York contact no, + 1 718 596 0991.)
Rezz Event Management does a lot of commercial events such as fashion shows and sponsorship glitzy do’s, as well as private ones. .(JavaScript must be enabled to view this email address) tel 0333 522 9080
Asim Tiwana who is a top of the range event planner, known for doing international events (cultural, fashion) and usually called to organise shows by government for visiting heads of state. Tel +92300 552 2888