There are lots of points that I would like to make so I'm not going to label this as one homogenous post.
1. In the PTV video of the national anthem what surprises me is that though "Allah" is thrust upon us and the Quran appears at the word "Nizaam" towards the end the deliberate showing of the Badshahi Mosque right before the zooming in of the Minar-e-Pakistan seems to imply that nationhood is more important/ imperative for being a devout Muslim. In this video, religion is an augmentation of success not a prerequisite as one would like to believe.
2. The Strings song "Mein tou dekhoonga" and Shehzad Roy's "Laga Re" both promote the idea of comically foolish "qaum" while the singers themselves are beacons of hope and intellect. While this may not be inherently problematic, artists shown as the harbingers of change would work if the general public is not made fun of which I find slightly insulting.
3. We discussed Indian patriotic songs and how it would be interesting to contrast them to Pakistani songs. I'm posting a link to the depiction of Vande Matram in Kabhi Khushi Kabhi Gham. I think it makes for a very interesting comparison to Dil Dil Pakistan where the foreign is so instilled that it seems natural to wear suits, hold guitars and play Casio pianos while in Vande Matram, Hrithik Roshan is shown as 'conquering' the west and owning the streets with beautiful white chicks (idea of women as national markers?) decked out in Indian clothes and colors of the national flag. Very clearly shows the mentalities of the two ridiculously similar nations.
http://www.dailymotion.com/video/xho1e_vande-mataram_music
1. In the PTV video of the national anthem what surprises me is that though "Allah" is thrust upon us and the Quran appears at the word "Nizaam" towards the end the deliberate showing of the Badshahi Mosque right before the zooming in of the Minar-e-Pakistan seems to imply that nationhood is more important/ imperative for being a devout Muslim. In this video, religion is an augmentation of success not a prerequisite as one would like to believe.
2. The Strings song "Mein tou dekhoonga" and Shehzad Roy's "Laga Re" both promote the idea of comically foolish "qaum" while the singers themselves are beacons of hope and intellect. While this may not be inherently problematic, artists shown as the harbingers of change would work if the general public is not made fun of which I find slightly insulting.
3. We discussed Indian patriotic songs and how it would be interesting to contrast them to Pakistani songs. I'm posting a link to the depiction of Vande Matram in Kabhi Khushi Kabhi Gham. I think it makes for a very interesting comparison to Dil Dil Pakistan where the foreign is so instilled that it seems natural to wear suits, hold guitars and play Casio pianos while in Vande Matram, Hrithik Roshan is shown as 'conquering' the west and owning the streets with beautiful white chicks (idea of women as national markers?) decked out in Indian clothes and colors of the national flag. Very clearly shows the mentalities of the two ridiculously similar nations.
http://www.dailymotion.com/video/xho1e_vande-mataram_music
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