While on the subject of pop culture as a force for Good, I thought it would be interesting to point mutineers at a current chart topping song in Pakistan. “Yeh Hum Naheen” (“This is Not Us”) has been making waves and the title is apparently becoming a catch phrase of sorts.
Thanks to the magic of YouTube, we present it here with English subtitles –
Personally, the tune doesn’t move me too much but the message kicks ass….
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I’m Too Sexy For … Terrorism? |
It’s often been said that the difference between a terrorism / crime-ridden society and one that’s comparatively at peace isn’t really in the small number of folks who actually commit the ill deeds — after all, marginalized peeps are a statistical fact of life everywhere.
The real difference lies instead in the home society’s social narrative… their words drive the direction & magnitude of the (sometimes violent) action at the margin. It’s different “stories” and thus support structures that (partially) determine where on the continuum you land from merely disaffected youth to a high school-scale Trench Coat Mafia all the way up to a transnational one.
Thus, what pieces like Yeh Hum Naheen hopefully do is drain some of the “juice” from Islamo-militantism. It’s one thing for a potential suicide bomber to be told he’s a glorious martyr by his society (well, by the vocal members at least). It’s quite another thing, judging from the attractive folks in the video, if the cool kids create a new voice that tells everyone else you’re a chump….
Beautiful…I think I was always hoping for something like this…a statement and a condemnation of terrorism (and what’s going on in general) from the silent, decent, peaceful majority. I loved it (the message…musically, it needed some dhol (just kidding).
I’m just having issues with the translation (not your version, the original). “Yeh” is “this”, not “That”. “That” is “woh”. For some reason, I can’t stop thinking about this and wanting to slap someone for the error. 🙂
[I’ve quit smoking recently, bear with me, I beg of you]
I LOVED this! What a beautiful, well-done video – the of scenes of ordinary folks singing along at their everyday lives up against the scenes of ordinary people mourning the death of loved ones – so powerful. And I thought the music was incredibly like all other let’s-get-a-bunch-of-celebrities-to-sing-together-for-a-good-cause music – kind of bland and uplifting at the same time.
I did not love the zebra print get-up on the lone girl, tho’. And the dude in the leather jacket was a little too aware of the cameras on him, I thought (“I am EMOTING!”). But nitpicks. 🙂 Thanks for posting this. I hope lots of folks see it. I’m a little scared to check out the comments on YouTube, though – they can get so racist and nasty. Maybe someone can take one for the team and report back?
threadjack Congrats on quitting smoking, Sin!
sin, big ups to you for quitting. please don’t bum. else you’ll be back on the wagon brotha.
Lovely!
I tried to imagine myself as that 20year old, educated kid in a marginal town in Pakistan, Quetta perhaps, being exposed to this song on the one hand, and on the other, jihadist beheading videos set to martial tunes. Wonder what I would be more affected by. Atleast now, there is a well-produced moderating voice.
Cheese factor aside, this is really done well. It seems a lot of effort was put into this and it shows.
For me too the music isn’t my taste, but what a great factor! So happy that’s it’s so popular! But where are the women?
Fabulous! Thanks for posting this, Vinod. What better way to convey this message than through music?
Nice effort – but too little, too late. The society they live in is so communalised for the last three decades that a song here and a speech there for tolerance (all by the westernised elites) will do very little good. A few generations will have to undergo significant pain before matters return to normal. Unfortunately, Indians will also have to bear some of that pain by virtue of being their unlucky neighbour.
M. Nam
Actually, Sin, the song uses ‘yeh’ in plural, where it has more the sense of ‘these’, as in ‘these people’ (are not us). Yes, ‘Woh’ in plural would have been ok too, of course – ‘them’ – ‘them’s not us’ or ‘we’re not them’ – ‘woh hum nahin’ would have been nice also, because it introduces a further situational distancing, but if the people you are otherizing are physically proximate, then the song makes sense. BTW, I liked the music.
Also, I’m fairly sure I’ve slept with at least two of the men in that video. We only have one female pop singer, hence the lack of women 😉
Sorry M Nam, I couldn’t disagree more. If we intervene with the youth, we can start to change attitudes and in turn actions. Just thinking of myself as a twelve year old, who was I more likely to listen to, the old guy at my temple/church or a super cool pop star? I really believe that change starts at a micro level — start changing the opinion of one child at a time. I think this video is just the beginning.
Please don’t extrapolate your experiences as an Indian to a different culture. It’s the classic fallacy that Indian peaceniks like Kuldip Nayar make.
What, according to you, is the percentages of twelve year olds over there who
1] watch these types of videos 2] listen to the virulent Friday sermons 3] both of the above 4] neither of the above
I would give 5%, 99%, 4% and 0% in that order.
M. Nam
They have to be a little careful with that…if they go too far (in terms of what their culture deems acceptable), they’ll alienate a lot of the people they’re trying to reach out to.
M.Nam, and what makes YOU the expert on Pakistani youth? I disagree with you that pop culture has not pervaded and effected Pakistani society. (There is plenty of empirical evidence to suggest the contrary). If such tools are used to spread positive messages such as the one posted on this blog, the evolution of thoughts and values is inevitable.
Pop culture is ALL OVER Pakistan…their own home-grown stuff, as well as all the Indian stuff (despite ‘bans’ which are totally meaningless). Word is, even the Mahabharat and Ramayan serials were watched on VCR by many people in Pakistan, despite the highly Sanskritised Hindi and the lack of people’s familiarity with the plots. Mullahs were furious. A good story is a good story. People reportedly laughed at much of it, and were shocked that Hindus could believe in it literally, but they watched anyway because it was entertaining, and after all, they’re still desis, it’s going to strike a chord on some level.
If this is true, this is good news. If.
I don’t think upper-middle/rich class Karachi or Lahore are a good representation – they are what the media and peaceniks showcase. They form only 5% of the populace. What about the other 95%? How much of pop culture do they consume?
M. Nam
Wow, this is practically a modern Mile Sur Mera Tumhara of sort for Pakistan, punctuated with occasional Shah Rukh Khan-like hand spreads. The girl in the video is pretty cute though.
The video mentions the number of downloads, but somewhat like MoorNam, I question to what extent the people who it’s meant as an apologia for actually have Internet access.
Nice find. As with most people on this board seemingly, were it not for my Muslim acquaintances with roots on both sides of the border, and for the spectacular art of Ali Khurshid, I would not know how beautiful and normal contemporary Pakistan is, if all i had to graze on was MSM coverage.
I saw this a while back and it really made me happy. The power of popular culture/music etc to change people’s minds is enormous. Sure you can’t change everyone’s mind, but when popular artists present an idea, many people will at least listen and think about it. It has the potential to make positive ideas popular, which it seems to have done here. As for female pop singers, there are many more of them besides Hadiqa Kiyani. It bothers me that MoorNam would look at Pakistanis as though we were some kind of aliens who don’t have any similarity to other people. Perhaps you don’t mean it quite like that, but I find that to be a problem with people all over the world, including people in Pakistan. To forget that one group is as human as the next is quite a sick way to look at the world in my opinion. It makes it all too convenient to suggest some sort of different insanity that drives the thoughts and lives of one group of people (no matter how internally diverse) that one’s own group is somehow completely devoid of.
Also, this isn’t the only voice of reason in Pakistan. Most tv dramas in Pakistan are all about social issues. Most of them speaking out against cruelty and injustice of all kinds. In addition, you have Sufi saints, poets whose eloquent words of love and inclusiveness are still sung by the majority of musicians in Pakistan. Many people have spoken out throughout history and continue to do so today against bigotry, violence etc. This is not a western or eastern idea. Much like the horrible side of people, this positive side is also simply human, regardless of ethnicity.
Amen, MadGuru! Very very eloquently put. (I was trying to say something similar, but you said it so much better!)
I’m all verklempt after seeing that.
So powerful! I’m incredibly happy that it’s been released and is so popular.
Who are all those singers (single gals would like to know…) 😉
I too am very verklempt after reading the blurb on salon.com and seeing the video on youtube, so much so I’ve changed my status on facebook. Thanks sepiamutiny for alerting salon.com in the first place! The message needs to get out!
Very moving indeed (although I do agree with the earlier poster about that black-leather jacket-clad guy emoting waaay too much for the cameras … sheesh).
Terrific! I have grown tired of hearing negativity against all Muslims…there are good and decent people everywhere, just like there are people with evil intentions everywhere…it really makes me happy to see that these people have taken on the challenge of impacting the consciousness…media is a powerful thing, and if the only thing that the media conveys is violence brought on by certain members of the Muslim community, then the world cannot be made aware of the humanity that rests in the hearts of everyday people who are also Muslim…I do hope this message catches on, and results in a much needed movement towards peace.
I think this underscores the fact that, despite borders and differing geopolitical histories, and religions, people are basically people. We have a lot in common, and very little that is different between us.
Loved the post, the possible subtlety of its stance, and its provocative formulation at the end, and am equally amazed at the blithe tautological universalisms in response – people are people, we are all one, etc etc.
I am tempted towards a cynical formulation: the elite bourgeoisie of a society enlists random people to ventriloquize its complaints in a feel good video – these people are not us, this is not us, although as Vinod insinuates (or maybe not?), they could also be a bunch of beautiful people telling the rest that that they are chumps.
But I will hold that implied criticism of the video – which I am inclined to agree with – in abeyance to pose a series of questions: who are “these people” then? And what are “we” if we are not these people? The video communicates, I am sure, the genuine despair (certainly worthy of empathy) of those who are horrified at those within their own societies who blow themselves up in rage. But we are not all “basically people”. This is a fractious public sphere differentiated by economic, material and ideological variations. The video takes great comfort in emphatic pronouncements and hopes that its reach will encompass those outside of its urbane, cosmopolitan vision of humanism, those who cannot be urged to mouth these words.
where are the mullahs? No military personnel? How about women, aside for the singers? What a bunch of BS!
This was on the IMDb’s news page this week:
Condemned Film Attracts Throngs in Pakistan
Despite being condemned by radical clerics, who issued a fatwa against it, the film Khuda Ke Liye (In the Name of God) has become an unqualified hit in Pakistan, Newsweek is reporting on its website. Produced by the Pakistani media conglomerate GEO TV Network, the film not only unfavorably depicts Muslim radicals but also the U.S. military, and takes on such issues as marital rape, forced marriage and jihad, the magazine says. Concerned by the attacks on the film by local mullahs, theater owners are requiring ticket buyers to pass through metal-detection devices as they enter. “It’s heroic for the population to want to see this film,” GEO TV chief Mir Ibrahim Rehman told Newsweek. “We didn’t want to make a popcorn film. We wanted this film to prompt a dialogue and discussion.”
I just wanted to put it out there as further argument that pop culture, like movies and songs, can be political and create alternative dialogues and still be, well, popular and able to reach a broad segment of a country’s population.