Of The Independence Day

Let me start off by telling anyone who is hoping for a review of the awesome Will Smith movie: “Here there be no aliens”

Today marks the 64th year of independence for Pakistan. 64 years of freedom. And every year, the same scenario takes place.

Right off the bat, at midnight, everyone in Karachi goes bat-shit insane! We have fireworks, drunken teenagers screaming and speeding down dark and deserted roads, gun-toting maniacs emptying their munitions into the air (which later falls back down with the gentle pitter-patter of pointy, hailstones – and we don’t have hailstones in Karachi)

At Sehri, I turned on the telly to hopefully catch a good movie. All I saw was religious banter, and the occasional patriotic song. One song in particular caught my attention. Or rather, one verse of that song.

“Chaand Meri Zameen, Phool Mera Watan”

Literally it means “Moon, my Land. Flower my Country”

Then I slept.

A recurring nightmare later, I woke up, and the logic was never clearer.

Due to some trans-dimensional rift in the fabric of our universe, we poor Pakistanis are not on Earth.

We are in fact on the moon. See, here’s where the song’s verse’s first half actually makes sense.

1. The Moon, has no water. Neither do we.
2. The Moon, has no electricity. Neither do we.
3. The Moon, has no gas. Neither do we.

We are definitely on the moon.

So we really can’t blame KESC, WAPDA, SUI or ZARDARI for any of our problems. It’s all about location, location, location.

We do however have one thing to be proud of.

Exactly….