NAY KHUSH NUMAA SEY NAQAAB MAIN

Suna ha Tum ye Kehti ho Mohabbat Kuch Nai hoti

Pakistani Handicrafts beauty in the hands of our craftsmen

Have you ever visited those little shops full of shawls and ajrak and tiny wooden and marble replicas of our traditional elephants and camels and so on? Ever been fascinated by the detailed intricate designs carved on them? It’s amazing how such a large variety of ornaments can successfully represent one very crucial part of a country Culture. If you want to understand what Pakistani culture is all about then go visit Saddar or the Sunday Bazaar and look at those shops on which colorful and beautifully designed shawls and rallis and ajrak are hanging or where you find carved brass vases or marble and onyx sculptures and the fascinating handwork on them. All of these depict the beauty of our culture

 

Pakistani handicrafts are an integral asset for us Pakistani citizens. Just the very look of them immediately reminds you of our country and what it is all about. Handicrafts are not just little ornaments you can use to decorate your drawing rooms. They are a souvenir, a reminder of your country. Pakistani handicrafts do the same for us. It’s really amazing how people literally give these handicraft pieces as gifts to people as a memento of their motherland.

 

Places like Tharparkar and Mirpur khas and Chiniot are not very expensive to buy goods on wholesale if you have good knowledge of your business. And these vendors most definitely have that knowledge. It’s quite hard to imagine but a good majority of these illiterate vendors are actually better businessmen than a lot of our educated ones. They know what is in demand, they know how to make an ordinary item look extraordinary, they know how to attract and make customers and they very cleverly understand what price to quote to what kind of customer. A number of foreigners go to Zainab Market; it’s really incredible the way these vendors wouldn’t know the language but they would still be able to somehow communicate with those foreigners and persuade them to buy their products! It’s a business worth appreciating. Talking about the business of handicrafts, it can be rightly said that it is a small industry within itself. The way these shopkeepers do business is quite remarkable Majority of the more popular handicrafts are made in the interior parts of the country. Most of the shawls, bed sheets, mirror work, ajrak and rallis are made in Tharparkar, an interior region of Sindh. The woodwork and the sophisticated detailed carvings on the brass vases are done in Chiniot and Mirpurkhas. Big blocks of marble and onyx are brought in from Balochistan to Karachi where they are cut, shaped and carved in Orangi Town and Golimar in Karachi and then sold at Zainab Market or Sunday Bazaar. Some of the wooden and mirror work is also done in Lahore and Multan. The woven carpets and rugs are imported at very cheap prices from Kabul. As told by the vendors at Zainab Market, none of these products are sold to the direct consumers in the markets of Tharparkar or Chiniot or Mirpurkhas. They just have small scale karkhanas (factories) where an average of sixty to seventy workers, males as well as females, work per karkhana. They are paid daily or monthly wages and all the produce is sold on wholesale basis to vendors. These vendors simply add in a profit of up to 200% on each item and sell it in the ‘big city’ markets, like the famous Zainab Market. It’s a classic example of intelligent outsourcing!

Snakes turn up to celebrate culture in Sukkur with heaps of charm

SUKKUR: Cultural celebrations in Sukkur took an exciting turn when snake charmers turned up draped not just in Ajraks but their snakes as well.
Dancing to the tune of popular Sindhi music such as Ho Jamalo and Jeko Khati Ayo Kher San, dozens of snake charmers, under the umbrella of the Jogi Jago Ittehad, held a rally on Thursday to celebrate the upcoming Culture Day.
“We have come here to celebrate our culture day. If all people could live in harmony like snakes live, all our problems would end,” said one of the snake charmers.
They marched from Mohammad Bin Qasim park and finally gathered outside the Sukkur Press Club, where they soon caught the bystanders attention with their snaking, dancing cobras and music.
A large crowd gathered and joined in the celebrations, snakes and participants dancing alike to the beat of drums and melody of flutes.
Eight-year-old Zubair Ahmed, dressed in a bright Sindhi hat and Ajrak, enthused about the rally. “I’ve come here with my friends and it is a lot of fun!”
Meanwhile, the rest of the city too celebrated ahead of the Culture Day, which is to be held on December 4 as announced by the Sindh government.
Another such rally was organised by the Abro Ittehad Sukkur. Participants started out from Ayub Gate and marching through the main streets, they ended the rally at the press club. Participants were wearing Sindhi caps and Ajraks and were carrying placards and banners. “Topi Ajrak shan asan jo, Sindhi saqafat maan asan jo” was the popular chant.

Pictures of fashion jewellery online

 

Trend of National Dress

Shalwar Qameez

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The national dress of Pakistan is Shalwar Qameez  for both men and women. It consists of a long, loose fitting tunic with very baggy trousers. The dress is believed to be an amalgamation of the dresses worn by the ancient Persians, and Mughal Empire who have left their impression on the people and culture of Pakistan.

The men's version consists of solid, masculine colours, and is almost always accompanied by a collar and buttons (similar to a polo shirt). Men often wear an outer waistcoat over the shalwar kameez. The women's version almost never contains collar and buttons but is often embroidered and consists of feminine colors and may feature lace or flower patterns. Sari are also worn by women in Pakistan, especially in the region of Sindh.

In the summer, a light, cotton version is often worn, while during the winter, a heavier, wool version is worn. The sherwani or achkan with karakul hat is the recommended dress for male government employees and officials, as it is not specifically associated with any of the provinces. Most male government officials wear the formal black sherwani on state occasions. A large Pakistani diaspora exists in the West and the Middle East. Whereas Pakistanis in the United States, Canada and Australia tend to be professionals, the majority of them in the United Kingdom, Germany and Scandinavia originally came from a rural background belonging to the working class. These emigrants and their children influence Pakistan culturally and economically, keeping close ties with their roots by travelling to Pakistan and especially by returning or investing there.Diwan e Khas: The hall of special audience with the emperor

Bahauddin Zakariya Ancient sites in Pakistan include: Zorastrian Fire temples, Islamic centres,shia shrines/ Sufi Shrines, Buddhist temples, Sikh, Hindu and Pagan temples and shrines, gardens, tombs, palaces, monuments, and Mughal and Indo-Saracenic buildings. Sculpture is dominated by Greco Buddhist friezes, and crafts by ceramics, jewellery, silk goods and engraved woodwork and metalwork.

Trend of Culture Pakistan

"Pakistan's culture is again unique like the rest of the country. Pakistan's geography is the meeting point of South Asia, Central Asia and West Asia/Gulf. Its culture could be termed as a combination of subcontinental, Islamic, Regional, English and more recently global influences. Let us consider them piecemeal. The newly born Pakistan had to have a subcontinental leaning, having been a part of for last 5000 years of its civilization. However, the Indus Valley, present day Pakistan, culture was different from the rest of North India or South India". (Quoted Pakistan's Identity, History and Culture, from the famous book Gwadar.

 

The society and culture of Pakistan comprises numerous diverse cultures and ethnic groups: the Punjabis, Kashmiris, Sindhis, and Muhajirs in the east; the tribal cultures of the Baloch and Pashtun in the west; and the ancient Dardic, Wakhi and Burusho communities in the north. These Pakistani cultures have been greatly influenced by many of the surrounding countries' cultures, such as the Turkic peoples, Persian, Afghan, and Indians of South Asia, Central Asia and the Middle East.

 In ancient times, Pakistan was a major cultural hub. Many cultural practices and great monuments have been inherited from the time of the ancient rulers of the region. One of the greatest cultural influences was that of the Persian Empire, of which Pakistan was a part. In fact, the Pakistani satraps were at one time the richest and most productive of the massive Persian Empire. Other key influences include the Afghan Empire, Mughal Empire and later, the short lived but influential, the British Empire.

 

The past few decades have seen emergence of a middle class in cities such as Karachi, Lahore, Rawalpindi, Hyderabad, Quetta, Faisalabad, Sukkur, Peshawar, Sialkot, Abbottabad and Multan. Rural areas of Pakistan are regarded as more conservative, and are dominated by regional tribal customs dating back hundreds if not thousands of years.