Urs of Lal Shahbaz Qalandar

The performance kept going strong after midnight. In fact, many great musicians come on towards the end at these events, so things only got better as the night went on, but it is a test of endurance to stay up and enjoy so many hours of continuos music.

Even at my most tired, I could not help but appreciate a particular classical singer, or a folk set. I admit, I looked up at the sky now and then, hoping for those first rays of sunlight several times. After an unending night, the sun did start to come out, but the performances, which usually end with the morning prayer, continued. The massive security details and VVIP folks were long gone. Ustad Anb Jogi frinally packed his dholak, exhausted. I walked backstage and met up with him at last. He had just returned from shows in Dubai and gone straight into rehearsing singers for my project and then this was his second night at the Urs. performing the whole night. I was amazed he was still standing. We waited by the bus as a few more acts could be heard on stage. The last one was actually pretty off key and seemed to go on a bit too long, as each musician wanted to pay their respects by performing.

Finally, the show ended, and musicians began to trickle out to the bus. We hit the road with a bus full of sleeping musicians. I was lucky to get dropped off at the railway crossing in Jamshoro, instead of going all the way back in to town. From there, it was simple to get a shared rickshaw for RS. 10 and head back to the hostel.I spent the day in and out of naps and working on my blog, glad to have gone to the Urs.

Off to the Urs of Lal Shahbaz Qalandar

I took the bus to Hyderabad, grabbed some Chinese food, then visited my friend Abdul Majeed Soomro and Saqib Syd at their office in the area. The bus to Lal Shahbaz Qalander’s Urs would leave from the radio station at 4pm, so I just enjoyed time with friends. I went over to the station and met a contact my friend Ustad Anb Jogi had given me to get a seat on the bus.

While waiting, I sat around the radio station lawn. I didn’t know anybody, but there was a funny little kitten that played with me for a while, before it decided to start biting my shalwar and I had to gently shoo it away.Musicians kept arriving and sitting in circles, chatting, catching up. They would all be performing at the Urs tonight. I was very glad to be able to hop on this bus and join them. After another hour and a half, the bus arrived, we piled into it and were on our way. What luxury, an air conditioned bus ride all the way to Sewan. The drive is quite beautiful, with desert landscapes and some beautiful mud walled homes and huts along the way.

Once in Sewan, we stopped in the local government guest house where there was a nice dinner prepared for the musicians. I joined in of course, and then we went to the concert hall. Since the concert was at this hall, instead of the dargah, we avoided most of the madness, which was just as well. It was crazy when I went a few months ago, so I could only imagine how it might be now. Traveling with the musicians, I had a very easy time getting there, then going backstage with them. I walked over to the stage as they were setting up, then down into the audience area during the sound check, where I found a seat a few rows in so as not to step on any VVIP toes.

The crowd filled in, and the show began after a couple of hours. It was quite amazing. The musicians were great, and each performer came and did a song or two. There were so many acts. The accompanying musicians would also switch out after a while, as they were playing all night. Ustad Anb Jogi came out and played dholak with several groups, and left and returned several times.It was a pretty amazing lineup. I can’t really stay up all night, so I was nodding off at times throughout, but the performances were amazing. I would doze off for a few minutes here and there as the night went on.

Down by the river

I was going to leave for Sewan to attend the Urs of Lal Shahbaz Qalanadar, but the musicians’ bus from Radio Pakistan was full so I will try again tomorrow. Several people told me not to go as it is hot and being perhaps the largest Urs in Pakistan, it is crazy. The dargah is one of the most beautiful that I have seen, when I went a few months ago and even on a regular night, it was packed, so I can only imagine what it will be like. It’s actually not that fun to be packed in with people in a religious fervor, so I’m not really going for that so much as to attend the musical program with musicians performing all night. Thanks to my friend Ustad Anb Jogi, I should be able to get a spot on the bus tomorrow.

Instead, I spent the day at a nice spot in Jamshoro that I had wanted to visit for some time. Every time I take the bus in to Hyderabad, I pass by a spot next to the river with colorful boats. This river is the river Indus, from which the name India comes as well as the province of Sindh. My friend Saqib was kind enough to take some time out and bring me there today. Lots of people are there to get some respite from the heat. There are food vendors and lots of families all around. I just stood there, enjoying being somewhere. The boats are beautifully decorated, with painted exteriors and often feature some wood carving on the inside. There was nothing much to say, so I just enjoyed taking it all in.

Saqib Syd, designer


After a while, we walked a bit further from where most of the rush was. There were boats off in the distance as well and sand dunes. It was quite peaceful down the beach. We came across some kids herding their goats. The goats were drinking water and playing. I took some photos and the kids were excited to have their photos taken as well. It’s fun to show the kids their photos on the screen. Their faces light up and it is not much, but at least something small to share.

The patterns created by wind in the sand were quite beautiful, as were the dunes. Afterwards, we went across the highway to the riverbank restaurant and had some juice. Mostly we just sat and enjoyed being there. In the evening, I was going to teach Saqib some wordpress basics, to make websites, but as Soomro sahib came to our part of town, we met up with him and hung out along with my friend Hisam. It was nice to catch up, and just socialize a bit.

Animated Gifs and Ice Cream

I spent some more time playing around with the website. Weekends can be even more isolating. I hardly ever see anyone during the day, and on occasion on weekdays I see people at night. However, on weekends, there is rarely anyone around. People are busy with their families, and I am...well, just here.The need to keep the mind on useful things is important. Several people had suggested that a site about animation should be more animated. To that end, I created and put up a bunch of animated gifs on the front page and added one to the banner. People find their way to this site from various searches, links and social media sites. Many visitors may not know anything more about the site than the section they happen to land upon, so I try to come up with ways to give people a taste of some of the other sections they can visit. To that end, I added a little banner with rotating animated gifs to share a few animations and other projects on the site. I figure this is a good way to see if it encourages more people to visit a larger number of sections in the site. This whole site design and marketing thing is a job in and of itself, besides just trying to create some interesting art and storytelling.That part of the day was productive enough. I tend to get caught on some technical web issue or another when I make changes. It can be challenging to place items exactly as you want, so I post tech questions on forums, hoping to get answers.It was another evening of ice cream and walking around with a few friends, which is even more rare on a weekend. Sometimes it is good to just get out and walk around for a change.

Website stuff

Not much going on. I am thankful that the process of creating music for "Risalo" is moving forward. In the meantime, as musicians rehearse or I wait to hear back from musicians, I am trying to stay productive. There are certainly many things one can do with their time, but finding motivation and focus can be challenging when it is something other than this main project I have been working on.So I sat down and just worked on my website. I changed the theme to hopefully work better on mobile devices. While not particularly exciting, it is the kind of stuff that can be tough to make time for as most of my efforts are in creating content and I tend to keep the site simple. Many people have suggested that I should make the site more interesting to match the content, so I always keep this thought in the back of my mind and when ideas come, I try to do a little bit here and there to improve things.In the evening, I enjoyed some ice cream in the society area across the freeway. There is not much else to report.

Script hand off to Jamaluddin Faqir

With scripts and recordings in hand for the rest of “Risalo”, I wanted to get them out to singers so they can start rehearsing. I went to send a script to Jamaludin Faqir sahib, but the courier service said the address was insufficient. That is an issue I have come across a few times. Some areas have a real small town feel in terms of their address. It could be next to such and such place, which once it arrives there, it will get to the right spot, but with companies such as the courier service, that same address won’t fly and there really is not another one to give.I called the musician and was in luck. He was on his way to Karachi with his group for a performance. They would pass by Jamshoro. This would save me a lot of effort, as he lives several hours away.I went to the toll plaza to meet him as fast as I could on a cheap shared auto rickshaw. He was fifteen minutes away, so I sat down in a dingy little dhaba and had a soda. While the rain had made temperatures a lot easier to deal with, the sun is still the sun.We talked on a the phone back and forth for a while as he got closer. Then we realized that I had gone to the far away toll plaza and he was at the closer one. I don’t really know these things.I went further until I found a rickshaw and we head to the highway restaurant the musicians were waiting at. I met the group and apologized for making them wait. Then one of the members motioned to the car, as Jamuldin Faqir sahib himself stepped out. No introductions were needed, as I had been listening to his recordings for years. We sat down and had some sodas as I handed off the script and some reference recordings.We discussed “Risalo”, what was needed and what kind of references I had put on the disc. They asked if I would be able to get back and I said yes. We part ways and I sprinted across the freeway to the lone rickshaw standing by a little hut. It was the same one that brought me their. The driver had a drink of water and then I had him drop me off at the society, where I had come 4 hours earlier to grab a late lunch before all of this took place.It was great to meet the musicians and to be able to hand off materials face to face. Let’s see where things go from here.

Rain in Jamshoro

I went to visit Mehboob sahib first thing in the morning to record a missed verse of the script. We sat down and recorded those bits and as always, I enjoyed the conversations we had during the process. He is very busy, but like other friends here, when he sits down to help me, he does so with a lot of thought and care.He told me another interesting story after I had finished packing my things. The story went that there was a man who spent his life searching for a paaras (stone that turns anything to gold) that he might live well and enjoy life. Eventually he found it, but by then his beard was white, he had few teeth left, his physical beauty was long gone and his life was all but over. He thought, what good is it now, that I can not even take advantage of it.A thought occurred to him. Though his time was almost up, he could find a young man, fit and beautiful in youth. Through this youth, his dreams could live one and be fulfilled. So the old man sought out a young man to bestow the gift of his life’s work upon. He told the young man, that I wish to give you a gift with which all your days will be joyous and you will live in splendor.They stood at the edge of the sea, beautiful waves upon the shore. The young man took the tiny stone in his hand. He held it close to his face, then turned his hand every which way to examine it. The old man shifted nervously with each tilt of the young man’s hand.“What are you doing?” he exclaimed.“I want to see what is so special about this tiny stone to grant so much?” the young man replied.“It will turn all that it touches to gold,” explained the old man.The young man twisted and turned the stone in his hand a bit more, then lifted his arm up and tossed the paaras into the sea. The old man was beside himself.“What have you done?!”The young man explained that the stone could be stolen or lost at any moment, just as it had fallen in the sea just then. He would live all his life with the worry that it could be taken from him at any time. Thus it was better to be rid of it now. He then scooped up a handful of sand and placed his other hand over it. He wiped the top hand over the sand and in his palm there was gold.Why spend your life looking for a stone to turn things to gold, when you can put your efforts into turning all that you touch into gold instead? This story followed a question Mehboob sahib had asked regarding my plans after this work was complete. I explained that I would go back home to my family and look for a job. He asked if it was easy to find one and I mentioned very briefly some of the tax subsidy issues which have devalued my work and made it more difficult to get work in my profession of animation. However, I had decided that I would try to find other ways to earn, rather than to chase a sinking ship. Projects like “Risalo” are a risk in terms of finances, as it is more difficult to find employment right now. However, if I don’t bother to do things I care about, and simply live life chasing jobs, then what use is this gift of life?To this Mehboob sahib had started to share how his father had been asked if he earned from teaching Shah Latif’s poetry to people. Though he did not receive money for it, he certainly did earn. For did he not manage to provide for his family, to be fed, housed and educated? He impressed upon me the fact that though not all endeavors lead to earning financially, we certainly to gain from them, indeed even receiving sustenance.In the evening it rained. What an incredible blessing. I was sitting at my computer, working when I felt a cool draft of air as if I were in an air conditioned room, which it has been a while since i have been in one of those. I looked outside and it was raining. In this heat, it was much appreciated. I felt a sense of joy and relief.I hung out a bit with Naveed at the corner store and took a few photos of his shop as well. It is just by the hostel gate, and is a great convenience, as all the other shops are a bit of a trek across the highway.

Slow day

I spent the day biding my time. Mehboob sahib was busy, so the additional recordings would have to wait. I tried to keep productive, just working on anything I could think of. In the evening, I hung out with Javed and a few folks down the street. That’s about it.

Script corrections with Mehboob Ali Shah

I visited Mehboob Ali Shah sahib in the morning to have him read the second half of the Sindhi script for “Risalo” so that I could record it as a reference to the singers who will work on those chapters. As the language is complex, there are all kinds of pronunciation symbols (tashdeed) added in the text and to have a correct reading to accompany that should help the singers quite a bit.At each stage there are corrections to be made. That is the nature of how difficult this work is.

Once I got back, a good chunk of the day was spent editing the recording and making script corrections, all double checked against the existing script and Sindhi books where needed. It is a laborious task, but necessary. I found that one verse had been skipped in the recording process, so I would need to schedule time with Mehboob sahib again to take care of that.

Aakash Musical Band

While waiting in the heat for the next steps in making progress on “Risalo”, I have to keep myself busy with useful things where I can. I chose an exceedingly boring task to work on today, in the heat of the hostel room.I sat down to research some wordpress stuff to get this site more up to date with a theme that works well on mobile. Between that, and falling asleep a few times, the day went by rather slow. In the evening, I texted friends that I was walking over to the society. My friend Saqib met me there. I took care of an errand then we just walked all around the neighborhoods. It was actually very nice. It took me out of my own circular thoughts. Jamshoro is much nicer at night as the winds are cool.

Aakash Musical Band, Jamshoro, Sindh from Adnan Hussain on Vimeo.

We walked all around, then happened upon a really great brass band playing in a residential street. They kept marching up and down the street. We stood and watched for a quite a while, then I got their contact information and thanked them. Aakash Musical Band based in Hyderabad, Sindh. Contact Mohammad Aslam (Pakistan number: 03453587117).I ended up picking up a pizza from a place I had ordered over the phone from a couple of times. I even photographed their menu before coming back just so I could have a few more choices if I needed to order food. Anything that I can do to break the monotony and bring a bit more cheer into these challenging days. Don’t get me wrong, I am very fortunate for the relatively manageable challenges that I am facing and others like the hostel mess staff have it far worse.

Now what?

There was nothing much for me to do. I’ve been so focused on “Risalo”, that when I am waiting before I can begin new tasks my brain just can’t seem to push that project out and think about doing something else.I had picked up a book called “Tilism Hoshruba”, which is the first in a famous series of fantasy books about a character named Amir Hamza and his many adventures. It was put together in book form in the late 1800s. I learned about it years ago from a cousin. I started reading some of the introduction and first couple of pages. The language is fairly difficult for me, so it might take some working my way up to read it.For lunch, I trekked out in the heat to one of the dhabas (food places) over in the society across the main road. It is tough to do so in the heat, but when you can’t reach any friends by phone and there is no food in the area, there is no other choice. As there are no breakfast options here, I had not eaten breakfast either. Instead, I had just drank lots of water as usual.That food was good for dinner as well. Just another day in the heat. I do feel much better though, at least there is progress being made.

Sindhi script completed!

I finished the Sindhi script at last thanks to Shafqat sahib spending time with me late at night to recheck the last two surs (chapters). This is such a huge step forward for this project. I took the scripts after our session and added some pronunciation symbols from the Sindhi books and did a double check, fixing formatting. I finished around 4:30 am, which was not too bad as I had slept a bunch during the worst heat of the day before.This meant that I could now get these two scripts into the hands of singers to get those rehearsals going. In the morning, I took my time getting up, then as usual, took my scripts as pdf files on a little usb stick and left the hostel for the print shop in the society across the main road. I was walking down the sidewalk when I saw my friend Naimatullah sahib driving. He stopped, we said hello and he kindly drove me to the print shop. That saved me a lot of baking in the sun.It took a while to print all the pages, staple them and make extra photocopies, but in my hands at last was the completed Sindhi script! There was nothing else for me to do that day, so it was really nice to go to the Fine Arts Department with Naimatullah sahib. Exams are done as are classes, so the building was very empty. There were teachers working on grading, as I walked around and said hello.Sayed Mangi sahib dropped by as well. Naimat sahib dropped us off at Sindhology later on and we got to catch up a bit. I have not seen much of these two since I returned to Jamshoro a couple of months ago, but they have helped me a great deal with my projects here. It was a pretty relaxed day, just sitting in offices, that were much more comfortable than my hot room.I made a bunch of phone calls, and that was about all I needed to do.

Kitchen Staff

The day went by slowly, as I tried to make plans for the coming days and stay hydrated. At lunch, I finally went back to the mess hall, only to learn that all the staff had left for their village. The staff are very hard working, nice people. I was less concerned about the food than I was for them. I was told that Daulat’s older brother who worked as a driver in Karachi had been shot and killed. The staff, all relatives had gone back to their village while I was in Hyderabad.It is hard to know how to react to such horrible news. Shafqat sahib had cooked some nice food and shared that with me. It was very good, but my thoughts were on these young men who spend all their time working to make food. They struggle to barely get by and give up everything for their jobs. Daulat had hurt his hand pretty badly from a glass that broke while he was washing it, and his mother had just had surgery, and then this. It is too much.After a nap in the late afternoon, I woke up pretty out of it craving ice cream. I messaged a few friends who live in the society, that I was coming over to their neighborhood for ice cream. Before I knew it, my friend Javed drove up to the hostel and picked me up. We head to the outdoor ice cream place and I caught up with several friends, which was really nice, over some ice cream.Abdullah and I head over to Mehran to hang out on the lawn for a bit after. For me it was a nice change of pace, before we head to his place for dinner.

Kadam Ga

hotel

hotel

Alam at Kadam Ga

Alam base at Kadam Ga

In the morning, we woke up and head over to Kadam Ga, a shrine famous for a stone with foot prints of Hazrat Ali, the son in law of the Prophet Muhammed. It was a beautifully decorated building. Display cases contained items like a broom and pieces of tile that had come from the main shrine of Hazrat Ali.

Afterwards, we walked around the bazar for a bit to help Ustad Anb Jogi find a bag. He and the other singer and his father then went to Radio Pakistan Hyderabad and I head to Hyder Chowk, I had forgotten my usb at a print shop there, so I picked that up and got a micro sd card from a photography shop. Since the singers did not have a dvd player, I needed to transfer the reference materials I had prepared for them from the dvd to the micro sd card that they could use in their phones.

Every step has me jumping through so many hoops. I happened to have my multi card reader, so at least I did not need to get that. I went over to Soomro sahib’s office to use one of his computers to transfer files. The office was locked. I called and it turned out he was in Jamshoro. I got lucky though, when one of the students I had taught dropped by as he works there too. Shahzad opened the shop, got some ice for the water, and got the computers going. I have to say, these students are so kind and helpful. It really is a credit to them.

explaining an animatic can be challenging…”you’re gonna make this?”

mic at radio Pakistan

I got the files copied, then he insisted on dropping me off at the radio station on his motorcycle, which was a big help actually as it was pretty hot. At the station, I gave the micro sd to Ustad Anb Jogi, then hung around for a while before heading getting another ride from Shahzad. Soomro sahib had returned by then and we all caught up. We took a little lunch break, then I got sleepy and took a short nap.

greats of Sindhi music

greats of Sindhi music

Shahzad

nap in the office, just like old times.

By the time I woke up, Shahzad had left. I sat with Soomro sahib for a while, before deciding to walk to the bus stop where I could get the university bus back. It is a lot easier to take the university bus as it takes me directly to the hostel, rather than the train tracks and it has fewer stops. The challenge is just timing. If I can work out to go according to the university bus schedule, then I can get to and from the city for only Rs. 10 each way and it is just the one ride.Along the way, I grabbed a fresh fruit smoothy, then walked to the market where the buses stand. I saw them off on one side, but there was still almost an hour to go, so I got some Pakistani Chinese food, then hopped on the bus.I was tired by the time I got back, so I took a nap. The heat wears me out, but I do my best to avoid being in the direct sun during the day. I woke up and ate the Chinese food before eventually going back to sleep.

Lessons and Obstacles

I got up early to take two scripts to Mehboob Ali Shah sahib, the kind and wise Sufi who has given me deep insights into Shah Latif’s poetry. There were a few issues. I did not have enough small bills to get to his place, as rickshaws don’t carry much change.This whole situation is a pretty good illustration of the way I have to go about things here. There are always multiple obstacles and challenges to each little task. It was early, so no breakfast as the cafeteria or mess hall was not open yet and there were no rickshaws on my street. I walked down and found one parked. Once I reached it, I realized it was empty with no driver in sight. I walked further along and kept looking back when I heard a rickshaw like sound, only to see a few motorcycles pass.Finally, I saw a rickshaw and flagged it down. I knew I had enough cash to get to the railway crossing. I would have to figure out the rest of the way from there, with no banks open or shops that I could get change from at that hour. I asked how much, the driver said Rs. 50 and I hopped on. Good, I would still have Rs. 30 in small bills. I took the bumpy ride over, planning how I could manage the rest of the way.Once I got there, the driver stopped just before the tracks. I crossed over and walked to the street I needed to go down. There were qing qis there, so I managed to get a shared ride for Rs. 10. Great, I still had Rs. 20 left, so I could get to Mehboob sahib’s home and back from there to the railway crossing afterwards.It was great to see Mehboob sahib after about a month. We sat down, and he asked some questions about camera gear as he is interested in recording as well. I set up a little tripod with the camera and shotgun mic. I had come to record Mehboob sahib reading the Sindhi verses for the two pieces that I had double checked and verified by Muhib sahib the day before. With this correct pronunciation from Mehboob sahib, of this difficult language, I could give the singers a guide to practice from. I really appreciate all the people that are helping me. Things can be stressful, disappointing and frustrating, but something about Mehboob sahib, I always leave richer in mind and spirit after seeing him.He is very encouraging of my efforts and told me that he had mentioned me in conversation to someone at Mehran University. I really appreciate the support, and through all the ups and downs I try to hang on to every bit of positive energy and encouragement to help me through.I set things up and Mehboob sahib read through the printouts of the two scripts I had brought. He read slowly and with care to get things just right. It was a fairly smooth process. A few times some of the kids came by, and I felt sad for his little grandson who wanted to sit in his lap, but was turned away so grandpa could record poetry for my benefit. There were plenty of loud noises, from passing vehicles on the road and blaring music. I hoped that the mic would do a decent job of focusing on Mehboob sahib’s voice. Unfortunately, my setup does not allow me to monitor audio. I know, not good, but thankfully, I won’t be recording any of my final audio myself.After going through the pages of script, we finished sooner than our usual sessions. Mehboob sahib thanked me. I was taken aback as all I could think was that I am thankful to him and each of the friends who have poured time into this seemingly impossible task. He said he appreciated that I brought this work to him, as it would give him an opportunity to spend time with verses that he had not gone into deeply before. After all, Shah Latif’s Risalo is rich with hundreds of pages of verses, each with incredible depth. He is completely committed to connecting people to these deeper meanings. To that end, he asked if he could get a copy of the script, which I gave, so that he could spend some time either writing up or recording some explanations of the verses I had chosen.As usual, I felt goosebumps talking to him, and listening to him. He had just offered me something I had hoped for, a guide to the verses I chose, that I might bring that depth, not found in the Urdu translation to audiences. This would certainly help with the eventual English subtitles along with a few other books I have picked up.After a bit, he continued with a story. He told me about a man who had once come to him stating that he was unhappy. He described a staggering multitude of wealth in possessions, from a huge, extravagant home, to cars and all manner of luxuries. Yet despite all of it, he could not find happiness. It seemed obvious, that though he had external possessions, he lacked what he really needed within his heart.While the idea is basic, that merely physical possessions don’t lead to self satisfaction, it was the discussion that was interesting. He wove together several stories that served this point and a deeper overall one. There was the idea that monetary wealth was not self satisfying in itself.One needed internal equilibrium. Here the conversation shifted to the idea that one who is connected deeply and spiritually will take joy not just when things are easy and joyful, but even when things are difficult. That is a pretty tough lesson to apply. I thought about my own struggles and those of the people helping me, who themselves are facing numerous life and work challenges.There was discussion of the idea that only God, parents and respected elders could be counted on in times of need, for all friends could turn away and become enemies at any moment. I do trust my friends, but certainly there are a few relations you can feel a bit more comfortable asking for help from.He related a story of Hazrat Ali, during a battle with another leader. The other leader took the Quran out on the battlefield and Hazrat Ali’s troops stopped fighting, lest they desecrate it. Hazrat Ali explained that the opposing forces were just using the Quran, not as truth, but as a distraction. It was all about intentions. Not looking at ritual, but what lies in your heart. Duality, those that do not believe at all are more honest for they do not perform rituals, while their hearts lie elsewhere. They are honest in their ways inwardly and outwardly, which is more favorable than those who would suppose to believe through rituals but not in their hearts.An elderly person, with no heirs came to Mehboob sahib’s father one day and wished to give all of his money to him as he felt he would die soon and have no use for it. His father, though in financial need, supporting a family, took only two bills then returned the rest to the man, telling him to keep it for a day he would need it. Explaining his actions to his questioning children later, he said that he took a small taste as it would satisfy the elderly man that he was not rejecting him, while still allowing him to keep most of his money for his own future need.The struggles of thoughts versus actions is a big one. To be honest in your behavior and thoughts is important. This much I think I manage for the most part, even when things aren’t going so well.After we finished our session, I thanked Mehboob sahib, who asked what I was doing next. I appreciate his care. I shared my plans to take this to singers to get rehearsals started and then said goodbye. With my twenty rupees I got on another Qing Qi to the rail crossing (phaatak). Once there, I needed to get some change. I walked through the madness of vendors, motorcycles, donkeys, rickshaws, buses and trucks, over to a bank. Of course they had no small bills. So I took a Rs. 1,000 note and got two Rs. 500 notes. This was a bit better, but still not small enough for the rickshaw ride back. So, I crossed the mad street to the gas station. The store had a lock on the door. I walked down further, looking for a place that looked likely to be able and willing to break a Rs. 500 note. Finally, I found a shop, picked up a soda and a chocolate milk and got some change for one of the Rs. 500 notes. This is how I get through most days here as a series of obstacles to reach small goals.I took the drinks, hopped in a rickshaw and head back to the hostel, doing a mental check of the next few tasks I needed to do, and the logistics involved therein. I spent the rest of the day resting and editing the recordings for the musicians.

Birthday, so far from home

cake!

A little piece of California in Jamshoro

All I want for my birthday is to be done with the script. Muhib sahib took out some time from his busy schedule to drop by the hostel and work on rechecking two Surs for Risalo. It took a few hours, but we finished two of them. leaving the other two for a final check later.I was glad to have these two done. I made plans with Mehboob Ali Shah for the next morning to have him read these with the correct pronunciation for me to record for the singers. That meant, I needed to print these, so I went to the print shop in the society here, only to find the electricity was out. I needed to meet a friend who was in town in Hyderabad as well, so I just went there.I found a print shop and printed up the script, then visited Abdul Majeed Soomro sahib near there. Pirbhu sahib picked me up from there and we enjoyed a fish dinner. I met him in Los Angeles at a Sindhi dinner. He was in town for some work, so we had made plans to meet. Upon finding out it was my birthday, we head to an ice cream shop for dessert after dinner.

Movies and Writer's Cafe

Pakistan’s first animated film, “3 Bahadur”

reading at the writer’s cafe

In the morning, I went down, hung out for a few hours then went back to the hostel.Pakistan’s first animated movie “3 Bahadur” had come out the day before. I checked and there was a theater in Hyderabad where it was playing. I sent another mass text to see if anyone else wanted to join. We settled on the evening.Abdullah and I went into town, but it was sold out. We would have to wait until later to even be able to get tickets for Monday as I was busy Sunday. We stopped by a writer’s cafe by the Sindh museum which is an effort to create a space for thinking and writing. Afterwards, we had some fresh fruit smoothies (one of my favorite things here), then head back to Jamshoro. We had dinner at his place back on the roof in the dark and then I went to the hostel.

Rooftop respite

glimpse of the moon. darkness all around with no electricity and the cool Jamshoro breeze at night.

My friend Javed picked me up from the hostel and we went to Abdullah’s place. After a nice dinner and hanging out, I ended up sleeping on the roof, where it was nice and cool once again. This time, I just stayed the night.

Puppet clothes shopping

beautiful ornamental headlight encasing

endless shops in Resham Gali

kickin’ it at Soomroo sahib’s

I went back to Hyderabad to mail out the ajrak, hat and clothes to the puppet maker in Delhi via DHL. Once I got there, the weight was 0.7 kg which would be rounded up and charged as 1 kg. I decided to go to the cloth markets in the area and see if I could find cloth suitable for any other puppets I needed.I walked all over, looking at many different fabrics. I found some closer by, then walked all the way to Resham gali to search for some fancier cloth for the Raja Rai Diyach puppet. I grabbed an apple soda along the way, and wondered what I was doing in the midst of this heat.On the way back, I asked a rickshaw driver for directions. He was carrying cargo in the back. He told me which way to go, then told me to hop in the front with him and gave me a ride. He refused to take any payment once I got there. He was just trying to be helpful, on a hot day as he was taking cargo in that direction.I went back to DHL, weighed everything and it was exactly 1 kg, so I sent it off. Then I walked all the way to Hyder Chowk to see my friend Abdul Majeed Soomro. I ran into Azam Bugti, from the Hala Design College as well as Saqib, a talented designer. We chatted for a while, then left. I rode with Saqib as he was headed in the same direction. We stopped for a fresh fruit smoothy on the way. Papaya and pineapple was great on such a hot day.At night, my friend Abdullah came to get me just after dinner. We went back to his place and sat up on the roof. The wind is nice and cool at night in Jamshoro. The electricity was gone, so a few of us just sat or lay on a mat with some pillows. It was a nice change from my hot hostel room. Afterwards, I head back to the hostel.

Sindhi Hat

clothes shopping for puppets thus far

I need to keep this script moving forward, so I went through all the notes and corrections again, filling in whatever I could, even typing Sindhi verses letter by letter.I went into the city with Danish to look for a Sindhi hat. I need one for a puppet and wanted one for myself and my niece. We went to an old bazaar, riding a motorcycle through streets barely fit for walking through.We looked at a few shops there, then head to the Pakka Qilla (Fort) where there are some shops I had seen before. I looked at a few shops, then picked out the hats I wanted. Afterwards, I picked up some cloth for another puppet’s clothes. Then we grabbed some food at a place called Mirchi. I had a Chinese thali which had a variety of Pakistani Chinese food, certainly enough for two meals. The small joys.