LAHORE-One of the biggest injustices done to our generation is a sheer lack of safe and inclusive spaces for political discourse. This has given birth to some truly infuriating statements such as “ Is mulk ka kuch nahe ho sakta” and “Democracy nay hamay deya kya hai” but when you are to actually ask a follow up question that made people come to this conclusion, they often can’t back it up with any actual argument.
There is a gaping hole in our political awareness and if we do not challenge it, those infuriating statements mentioned above might come true. One effort to create content met for political awareness was seen today by an info media organization called Interactive Resource Centre in the form of a Play.
This play titled ‘Political History of Pakistan’ is a satire or rather a commentary on the political past of Pakistan designed for the simple purpose of mapping out our political past so we can have a more decisive say in our political future. The play takes the audience on an informative and historically accurate journey of how the political scenario of the nation started from Quaid-e-Azam, a time of equal citizenship, and how it deviated from that to our current scenario.
The 40-minute performance does not fall shy of highlighting the key features of our politics, whether it was the rule of the three prominent dictators the misuse of Article 52B to end the governments of mainstream political parties such as PPP and PMLN, or the political murder of Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto.
The narrative goes all the way to the current political landscape of the country highlighting the arrest of Nawaz Shareef and Maryam Nawaz and all the various sentiments surrounding it. Towards the end the actors let the audience know that the play doesn’t have an end since the political history of Pakistan is folding right infront of us and so if we want the end we like, we have to be responsible for it by casting our vote and having a more active role in the politics of Pakistan.
The director of the play and of Interactive Resource Centre (IRC) is the founding member of both Ajoka and LokRehs and believes that this kind of plays are a step towards creating much needed spaces for political discourse.
His organization not only uses theatre but also utilises radio, documentary film and visual arts to create advocacy and awareness tools for youth and marginalized members of the community.
It was definitely an education watching the political history of Pakistan unfold on stage with a much-appreciated dose of humor, music and phenomenal performances. Though the purpose was to educate the audience but it also ended up entertaining for the theatergoers.