Hanif Kureishi

A play writer & a film maker, appreciated globally.

*picture copyrights with Adam Broomberg & Oliver Chanarin

Born: December 5, 1954

Honours: George Divine Drama Award, for Outskirts (play), Whitbread Award, for The Buddha of Suburbia (novel)and BAFTA award (TV serial), National Society of Film Critics Award for Best Screenplay & New York Film Critics Circle Awards Award for My Beautiful Laundrette, 1986.

Venus nominated for Oscar, BAFTA, Screen Actors Guild, Broadcast Film Critics Association and Golden Globe. My Beautiful Laundrette, Kureishi has been nominated for Oscar(Best Screenplay). The Mother, film based on Kureishi’s drama won Joint First Prize in the Directors Fortnight section at Cannes Film Festival. Intimacy by far one of the most critically acclaimed movies of Kureishi, won Golden Bear and a Silver Bear award at the Berlin Film Festival. My Son the Fanatic, nominated for best screenplay at British Independent Film Festival.

Writer in Residence at the Royal Court Theatre

Hanif Kureishi, an accomplished Play and Screen Play writer, is hailed for variety which he brings to his work. He makes short films (i.e. Weddings & Beheadings, 15 – 30 mins), Musicals (i.e. The Attendant), Dance (i.e. the God of Small Tales), Tragedy and Drama (i.e. My Son the Rebel) and many more experimental generes. Kureshi’s work has been nominated for Oscar’s, featured at Canne’s, Berlin and New York Film festivals. He is primarily a screen play writer but has produced(Souvenir), directed(London Kills Me) & acted(The Attendant) as well.

Armed with a degree in philosophy from the King’s College London, Hanif Kureishi’s journey began with Soaking the Heat, his first play performed at the Royal Court Theatre in London in 1976.Then in 1980 The Mother Country, won him Thames TV Playwright Award. Outskirts, brought him George Devine Award. In 1982, he accepted the position of Writer in Residence at the Royal Court Theatre.

He is son of a Pakistani father and a British mother. His father was an employee at Pakistani Embassy, and later on settled in Britain. His part South Asian demography has probably given direction to his work, as it is often reflected in his plays, films & writings.

Most of Kureishi’s work revolves around Pakistani, South Asian & Middle Eastern storylines, characters, immigrants, the issues they face, how the prevailing social trends effect them, and their ability or inability to cope up with them. Be it Pervez in My Son The Rebel or Ahmed in Weddings and Beheadings. For this very reason he has partnered with critically acclaimed actors from India i.e. Om puri & Shashi Kapoor and South Asian Origin i.e. Naveen Andrews(Lost and Heroes). A few other celeberated names who have starred in his films include Daniel Day Lewis(There will be blood and The Gangs of New York), Daniel Criag (current James Bond, Layer Cake), Ann Reid(Wallace & Gromit, Faint Hearted) , Steven Mackintosh (Underworld, Rang De Basanti)

Apart from his cinematic, stage and TV accomplishments. He is a critically acclaimed  writer. He has a series of award winning semi-biographies, fiction and non-fiction books to his credit. Some of his written work is described as ‘classical’ which includes his first novel The Buddha of Suburbia. It has been translated to over 20 languages. Something to tell you is his latest novel and has received a lot of critical and public praise .

Hanif Kureishi is currently Writer-in-Residence for Royal Court Theatre and lives in London.

More on Hanif Kureshi:

• Hanif Kureishi official website, http://www.hanifkureishi.com/
• Wikipedia article on Hanif Kureishi
• Hanif Kureishi’s Film pages on IMDB.com
  • Weddings and Beheadings (2007) (Writer)
  • Souvenir (2006) (Executive Producer, Writer)
  • Venus (2006) (Writer)
  • Notte senza fine (2004) (Writer)
  • The Mother (2003) (Writer)
  • The God of Small Tales (2003) (Writer)
  • Intimacy (2001) (Writer)
  • Mauvaise passe (1999) (Adopted in Italian , Writer)
  • My Son the Fanatic (1997) (Writer)
  • “The Buddha of Suburbia” (Writer)
  • The Attendant (1992) ( Actor, Writer )
  • London Kills Me (1991) (Director , Writer)
  • Sammy and Rosie Get Laid (1987) (writer)
  • My Beautiful Laundrette (1985) (Writer)
• Hanif Kureishi’s written work is published by Faber and Faber, London. Links to the publisher’s pages for his fiction and non-fiction writings:
• Novels
  • The Buddha of Suburbia (1990)
  • The Black Album. (1995)
  • Intimacy (1998)
  • Gabriel’s Gift (2001).
  • The Body (2003)
  • Something to Tell You (2008)
• Story Collection
  • Love in a Blue Time (1997)
  • Midnight All Day (1999)
• Non-Fiction
  • Dreaming and Scheming: Reflections on Writing and Politics (2002) (Amazon Page)
  • My Ear at His Heart. ( Autobiography ) (2004)
  • Word And The Bomb . (2005)
• Telegraph Article on Hanif Kureishi
• New York Times Article
• Sydney Morning Herald Article

*picture used of Hanif Kureishi, has copyrights with Adam Broomberg & Oliver Chanarin, taken from the an article in The Telegraph, published on 02/03/2008. For source page, please click here

Bapsi Sidhwa

the story teller, with a unique story of her own

Born: August 11, 1938. Karachi

Honours: Premio Mondello (Italy) – 2007 (for ‘Water’) , Lila Wallace-Reader’s Digest Award -1993 , Literaturepreis(Germany) -1991 (for ‘Cracking India’) , Sitara-e-Imtiaz Pakistan-1991, National Endowment of the Arts Grant(US) -1986 , Bunting Fellowship at Radcliffe/Harvard-1985 , Patras Bokhri Award -1985 ( ‘The Bride’ ) ,

Women Rights activist, Spokesperson for Pakistan in Asian Women’s Conference in 1975, founding member of the Women’s Action Forum, former president
of the International Women’s Club

Taught English Language at Columbia University, Brandeis University, St. Thomas University, Rice University, The University of Texas, and currently at Mt. Holyoke College.

picture (CC) Larry D. Moore*

Bapsi Sidhwa, The biggest name this country has ever produced in English Literature. She is said to have initiated the ‘Comic Realism’** style, which became a hallmark of subcontinent’s English writers later on. Her topics are real and tragic, but her story telling style is said to be the one with ‘comic relief’. A story teller of International acclaim, with a quite a story of her own.

She was born in Karachi, raised in Lahore, married & divorced in Mumbai, re-married in Lahore, Immigrated to US. A polio riddled childhood which forced her parents to home-school her till the age 15. She graduated from the well known Kinnaird College, Lahore in 1957. At 40, as a housewife and a mother she started her writing career with privately published novel ‘The Crow Eaters’ in 1978, a tale of a Parsi family in setting of Lahore city.

Her work is widely acclaimed, and is translated in German, French and Russian. Her novel ‘Ice Candy Man’ was the basis of the bollywood movie ‘ The Earth: 1947′ by Canadian-Indian director Deepa Mehta. Critically acclaimed film by the same director ‘Water’ (nominated as the best foreign movie for Oscars) was the basis of the later novel of the same title.

What makes her success unique is the fact that despite being a Zorastrian or a Parsi hailing from Pakistan,  which is an overwhelmingly monotonous Muslim society with a certain cultural bias towards non-muslims, she made it to the world stage. It is said that her ‘neutral’ and relatively ‘distant’ position on 1947 partition of Indian Subcontinent is what gave her a unique postiton as an observer to the events, which was the basis of many of her books.

Bapsi Sidhwa, nowadays, is English Language Professor and Writer-in-Residence for the Mt. Holyoke College of Liberal Arts for Women.

More on bapsi Sidhwa:

• Bapsi Sidhwa’s Website (http://www.bapsisidhwa.com/)
• A collection of critical text on Bapsi Sidhwa’s writing on her website.
• A List of studies on Bapsi Sidhwa’s work by Emmanuel Sampath Nelson
• A List of Bapsi Sidhwa Books (by Google Book Search)
• Her current and previous work is now published by the not-for-profit Milkweed Editions. The Publisher’s pages for her work:
  • Water
  • The Crow Eaters
  • Cracking India (also known as Ice Candy Man)
  • An American Brat
  • The Pakistani Bride
  • City of Sin and Splendour: Writings on Lahore
• The IMDB pages for movies assosciated with Bapti Sidhwa’s work.
  • Earth: 1947
  • Water
• Adding a totally personal observation,many of us must have seen Shoaib Mansoor’s much appreciated and accliamed ‘Khuda Kay Liya’, The character of Maryam played by Imaan Ali in that movie, seemed a mixture of two charcters from Sidhwa’s writings, the main character from Novel “The Pakistani Bride” and that of Feroza from her play “Sock’em with Honey”. (p.s. its not an allegation or anything, just pointing out the remarkable similarities among the three characters.)

*Picture of Bapsi Sidhwa use is by Larry D. Moore, used under a Creative Commons ShareAlike License. For source page, please click on the picture or here.

**quoting Aamer Hussein “Bapsi Sidhwa, Storyteller”, © 2000 Aamer Hussein.

Haider Ali

Prolific Boxer, who rose to occasion many a times

Born: 12 Nov 1979

Won Gold Medals in:
2002: Common Wealth Games, Manchester, England
2002: 21st Asian Boxing Championship, Seremban, Malaysia
1999: SAF Games, Khatmandu, Nepal
1999: Late Imam Khomeini Boxing Tournament, Tehran, Iran
1999:Gold Medal in Green Hill International Boxing Tournament
1998: National Champion

Youngest member of Sydney Olympics(2000) national squad at 20 years, 312 days.

Best Boxer, 21st Asian Games, against 159 boxers from 27 countries

* picture courtesy of www.britishboxing.net.
Click on the picture for the source page.

Haider Ali is a living legend in Pakistan, as far as boxing and sports are concerned. Haider Ali was considered one of the most elegant and stylish stance boxer in the Asian arenas. The young multiple times International Gold Medal winner hails from Quetta, and like many previous football and boxing national players from Balouchistan, is of Hazara descent.

At 5′-8”1/2 feet and 57 kg’s, his fast pace game, thorough execution and elegance in style made him a popular boxer and an envied competitor in the boxing circles. Till Age 22, he had won every major tournament in the continent and was crowned ‘Best Boxer’ in Asia.

He went on to win the first ever Gold Medal for Pakistan in 2002 Common Wealth Games. His performance in winning Common Wealth Gold Medal made an impact of Internationally acclaimed British boxing promoters. Soon after he was made offers to turn professional.

Haider Ali, turned professional in 2003 and signed up with the promoter Frank Warren and trainer John Eames.  Though a success at amatuer level he couldn’t manage himself well in professional circle. Haider Ali, at the age of 26, retired from boxing. He has over 150 amateur and 9 professional fights to his credit.

Haider Ali is known to be the most successful boxer Pakistan has ever produced. Coming from opportunity strapped Province of Balouchistan and from often neglected Hazara ethnicity, he has gone a long way to become a figure of interantional repute. He truly is a symbol of pride for his tribe, province and the country. A true sports legend, a Pakistani hero.

More on Haider Ali:

Haider Ali’s Wikipedia Page

“Golden Ali continues East End tradition” by Martin Herman

Pakistan Sports Board boxing awards citation of Haider Ali’s career

Haider Ali’s professional record by BritishBoxing.net

* Picture used is courtesy of www.britishboxing.net. Click on the picture for the source page.

SAHABZADA MOHAMMAD YAQUB KHAN

A rare breed General, who stood up when it mattered.

Born: December 3, 1923. Rampur, India

Government Services: Pakistan Army 1940-1971, Pakistani Ambassador(France,USA,USSR) 1972-1982. Foreign Minister of Pakistan 1982-1990. Governor East Pakistan – 1969

U.N. Secy., General’s Special Envoy to Western Sahara, 1992-1997.

Founding Chairman Board of Trustees, Agha Khan University 1984 – 2001

Commissioner of the Carnegie Commission on Preventing Deadly Conflict.

Lieutenant General (R) Sahabzada Yaqub Khan is remembered as a princely intellectual by inner circles. To others, (as for us, the 80’s & 90’s generation) he was the Foreign Minister under various governments, military and civilian.

Why is he a hero ? After all he was an Army General, who served a Military Regime ? And like many others in retired military bureaucracy, enjoyed various state offices ?

SAHABZADA MOHAMMAD YAQUB ALI KHAN, was the Chief of General Staff, Commander Eastern Command, Dhaka, of the then East Pakistan. Strictly a military position. He was however, for a brief period, care taker Governor of the then Eastern Pakistan.

Unlike any other General on record, he profoundly refused to carry out military operation against the people. He strongly opposed the idea of using military force, to settle the political uncertainty. His recommendations on how to handle the issue, how to win back the trust of the people were totally ignored by the regime in power. At last he stood up & refused to initiate the Military operation.

As an aftermath he was removed from his position, delegated from his rank, and forcefully retired. His courageous act is admired by Pakistani & Bengali historians alike, for what he had done was heroic by all means. Unlike some of the present day, media savvy retired Generals, who suddenly encounter a change of heart & come forward to defend the nation, Sahabzada Yaqub Khan, took the stand when it mattered the most.

We do need Generals like him. The ones who can stand up to the Army Chiefs, and say ‘No’ to their extra constitutional ambitions. I reckon he is one of his kind, a rare breed, A General who is actually a hero.

More on Sahabzada Yaqub Ali Khan:

• Biography: Strategy, Diplomacy, Humanity: Life and Work of Sahabzada Yaqub-Khan by Anwar Dil
• We can also read about him in ‘Memoirs of the Rebel Princess’ by Abida Sultan
• Also in the British High Commission Intelligence Documents of 1966, declassified later on.

Related Web Links:

• Wikipedia article
• Defence Journal article by M. Zafar
• Nation Master Encyclopedia Rampur (UP) Column
• Nation Master Encyclopedia Biographical Column
• 3 Quarks Daily Article by S. Abbas Raza

Technorati Tags:

• Sahabzada Mohammad Yaqub Khan
• Hero
• East Pakistan
• Prince of Pataudi
• General
• Foriegn Minister
• Ambassador

*The picture used here is taken from Wikipedia, provided in the public domain by the Federal Government of United States.