Adil Najam
A whole new generation has rediscovered Bulleh Shah. That is good.

Much of the credit for this rediscovery goes to the ‘sufi rock’ band Junoon and, more recently to the New Delhi singer Rabbi Shergill, and most importantly to the magnetic simplicity of ‘Bulla, ki jaanan mein koun.’ (I guess, Abida Parveen did for our generation what these guys are doing in interpreting Bulleh Shah for a new generation).

I must confess that I am a traditionalist and prefer more classical renditions of this timeless piece. My own sense, much like Deevan’s (of the blog ‘Rambling On’), is that Rabbi Shergill does a far superior job than Ali Azmat did. At least for me, Rabbi seems to ‘gets it’ more than Junoon did. But, in honesty, I am grateful to both; I also think that both should be grateful to Bulleh Shah.

So, why not judge for yourself. Here is the rendition by Rabbi Shergill. If you are new to Bulleh Shah, listen to it a couple of times before giving up on it. You can view it here by clicking on the play (arrow) button on the image below, or go to video.google.

For those who may want it, here is a version of the original and a translation by Kartar Singh Duggal:

I know not who I am

I am neither a believer going to the mosque
Nor given to non-believing ways
Neither clean, nor unclean
Neither Moses not Pharoah
I know not who I am

Adil Najam

For us Pakistanis, mangoes are much more than just fruit. The love affair we have with mangoes is obviously a central part of our Pakistaniat!

After all, when Pakistan had to send a state gift for the wedding of Prince Charles and Princess Diana, what do you think we chose? Sindhri mangoes from then Prime Minister Junejo’s own farms! And you know what, reportedly Princess Diana liked them so much that she asked for more each year and we kept sending them to her each year, until she die… at least that is what I have heard, and its too good a story not to repeat.

My snooping tells me that this picture was taken in Vienna, Austria in June this year, where Pakistani mangoes were selling for 6.90 Euro per kilo (approximately Pakistan Rs. 530 per kilo). Readers in Pakistan, can you tell us what they are selling for in Pakistan right now?

My thanks to Bilal Zuberi for alerting me to this wonderful picture. Bilal used it

By Babar Bhatti

Recently the telecom sector in Pakistan has attracted a lot of attention from international investors – and for the right reasons: it is one of the fastest growing sector with a huge potential market.

Looking at the billboards and media advertisements of mobile phones in Pakistan it is hard to believe that until a few years ago there was no one else except for a PTCL monopoly. The government seems determined to make use of this opportunity to attract foreign investment. For example, The International Herald Tribune recently reported:

Overseas investment in Pakistan’s telecommunications industry is expected to hold at $1 billion a year until at least 2009, said Shahzada Alam Malik, head of market regulator Pakistan Telecommunications Authority. As many as 50 percent of Pakistan’s 160 million people are expected to use telephones by that time, up from 23 percent in March this year and 4.3 percent in 2003, he said… Pakistan, South Asia’s fastest growing telecommunications market, added as many as 2.6 million cellular users in April, according to a report by the regulator released that month.

The increasing competition should theoretically be good for the Pakistani consumers as well, but only if the regulatory framework does what it is supposed to do. There remains some concern from the consumers about service and rates. The question is: Is Pakistan Telecommunication Authority doing a good job of looking out for the consumers in Pakistan?

Babar Bhatti is a Telecom professional based in Dallas, Texas. See more at Babar’s blog: State of Telecom Industry in Pakistan.