Yeh Roshniyoun Ka Shehr: What Do You Think When You See This?

Posted on May 21, 2010
Filed Under >Adil Najam, Art & Literature, Photo of the Day, Travel
21 Comments
Total Views: 40350

Adil Najam

One of my all-time favorite posts on ATP was a picture similar to this and with a very similar headline (also see here). We used it as an ATP Quiz and asked people what city in Pakistan it was. Most people got it wrong (frankly, I too would have). We repeated the quiz again later; similar results.

But getting it right or wrong was not the point.

The point was that the picture – in that case, as in this, of Quetta at night – contradicted our mental image of the city. The assumptions and presumptions we have made about it. And in that moment of surprise was also the opportunity of reflection. To think about what assumptions and presumptions we have about ourselves. Any why? And how they impact how we see ourselves as well as how others do?

Today, I saw this very similar picture of Quetta- in Dawn, and from an exhibition called ‘Pakistan through a Lens’ which features photographs from 25 contemporary Pakistani photographers, including Agha Waseem Ahmed who took this photograph of Quetta.I was attracted to it for the exact same reason I was attracted to the earlier very similar picture of Quetta. And, once again, the exact same questions rose in my mind.

Maybe our readers can help me think through the answers. Even if not, enjoy this spectacular photograph and think about what image would come to your mind if I said “Quetta.”

21 responses to “Yeh Roshniyoun Ka Shehr: What Do You Think When You See This?”

  1. Monkey says:

    Wow! I had never quite given a lot of thought to Quetta. But knowing what we know about Balochistan, I didn’t expect Quetta to look this similar to Lahore or Karachi.

    The only recent news from Quetta to have made national news was the killing of a female university teacher, and Quetta Shura. So good to see, lights are still on.

    Quetta is as much alive as Lahore or Islamabad or Karachi.

  2. Sara Halim says:

    Sounds very plesant. A kind of refreshness that I felt inside when I looked at it. Very nicely photographed !!!

  3. Vinnie says:

    That is simply Beautiful ! The lights seem to be giving hope amidst such frustrating circumstances.

  4. Sajida says:

    This has to be photoshopped. That moon at the top is too cute to be real.

  5. Garcia says:

    it’s amazing … it’s so sad i only transfer in Quetta

    but my friend said the tea in Quetta is the best in all Pakistan

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