NEW YEAR PARTIES ( OF YESTER-YEARS ) 50’s, 60’s & 70’s:
A very young Pakistan was under a heavy dose of ‘Rock-n-Roll’ and ‘Jive’, ‘Ramba Samba’ and ‘Foxtrot’ during early 50’s and remained so till 60’s and late 70’s. New Year parties at the select hotels were as necessary as water intake. Rawalpindi’s ‘Flashman’, Lahore’s ‘Flettis’ and Karachi’s ‘Metropole’, ‘Palace’ (exactly where Sheraton stands now!), ‘Beach Luxury’, ‘Excelsior’, ‘Taj’, ‘Palm Grove’, Airport’s ‘Cabana’ and ‘Midway House’, ‘Sind Club’, Karachi Gymkhana’ and ‘Karachi Club’ and finally from mid-sixties…‘Hotel Intercontinental’; were the main venues of the couples ( veterans of today ) for new year dinner-n-dance parties organized on high scale with live (overseas and local) bands / groups / shows in attendance. At ‘Excelsior’ Princess Amina enthralled through her classic dances. Tickets per person inclusive of dinner and fun caps, whistles, blowers and party graffiti started at Rs.100 in 50’s and rose to Rs.200 in 60’s and Rs.500 in 70’s till late. Slow dancing was the ‘in’ thing yet some healthy ones preferred ‘jiving’ and ‘rock-n-roll’ on Elves, Paul Anka and Buddy Holly numbers ( my favorite..then..being ‘Lipstick on your collar’ by Connie Francis and “Lets Go To The Hop” by the Buddy Hollies ). The slow dance number which ruled the floors then was ‘Je’teime’. There was no concept of BHANGRA then. It was all highly sophisticated and met the eyes of press as new year party photos were published on front pages of key newspapers next morning. I have had the wonderful experiences and opportunities of attending new year parties at ALL the above-mentioned venues from 1966. The shortest I ever attended was at Flashman-Pindi which ended at 12:20 AM due to extreme cold weather. The one at Flettis-Lahore superceded the former by 55 minutes…next year. The general trend after 12 midnight was that people use to visit each venue just for fun by virtue of which the chances of bumping into friends were always 100%.
NOW…Disc-jockeys or 2000 watts system blowing your head off…is considered a MUST with the numbers of Jawwad, Stereo Nation, Sukhbeer, SOMEsingh ( I can’t remember his name at the moment? ) alongside the local version of my favorite song ( “OH CAROL” by Neil Sedaka ) which has been totally mangled by all counts. Crazy dancing with no appeal seem to loom large. Slow dancing ( not necessarily arms-in-arms ) is a far cry ( I remember that new year bash of 1968 when a couple at Intercontinental…now PC…enacted that CLASSY slow dance scene from the movie PICNIC where Kim Novak and William Holden performed that memorable slow body movement dance at the picnic night…alongside MADGE’s (Kim Novak) sister ). New Year celebration in Pakistan, has now become a highly restricted affair…limited to a select number of guests…! at (mostly) private parties BUT those were the days…I should say!
Bachhay.....mere Sundays ziyada tarr internet ki nazar hotay hein....aur mein haftay ki kasarr nikalta houn.
Rahee shooting ki baat...tow abhi haal hee mein four serials; GATTHJORRE, KOI TOW BAARISH, WILCO aur SARKAR SAHAB complete kee hein...abb zrra araam bhi aur waise bhi mein saal mein four - five se ziyada serial nahin karna chahta. Audience bore ho jatee hai...jaise tumm bore ho gaye aaj meri teen charr lagataar mails se :)
I am off to Scotland for shoot of a serial titled "NASEEB" for GEO. I will be on leave from my bank for 25 days from 15 Sep and lord! is Glasgow going to be cold!!!
[QUOTE]
"All the world's a stage,
And all the men and women merely players.
They have their exits and their entrances,
And one man in his time plays many parts,
His acts being seven ages."
NOWSHERA... has almost been a second home to me in yesteryears!! when my Khalu was posted there at ARMOURED CORP--and fought the 1965 war of Tanks at CHAWINDA. I had my best winter holidays at NOWSHERA where we use to go for picnic -- daily -- at Nowshera Club and the AC Mess adjacent to the famous River Kabul. I use to go on a Lamberreta Scooter to meet my Mamoon posted at PAF Risalpur...through the bridge which is on the river. Then there was always a visit to Mardan and the barra market near Risalpur. Who can forget the famous CHAPLEE KEBABS of BAKHSHUPUR and the ever busy Nowshera Railway Station where we use to arrive by Khyber Mail and take a TANGA to ride us to Tariq Road at Nowshera Cantt.. where my Khalu had an army house.
I have been or passed NOWSHERA on way to Peshawar several times during last six years. My elder sister headed the Beaconhouse Schools of Peshawar, Nowshera, Mardan & Swat.. till she came to Karachi and now heads BHS here.
The last I visited Nowshera was with Humayun Saeed, his wife and Adnan Siddiqui when we took time out from our recording of "WILCO" at PMA-Kakul and drove to NOWSHERA as Samina wanted to visit the Nowshera Barra Market right next to my bank (UBL) branch and we were ever hungry for the CHAPLEE KEBABS and what a trip that was during that dark cloudy and drizzling weather of Oct-2006.
^^ u know why i asked u cuz yesterday i told my mom abt u and she was like she kinda knows ur family....if by chance Iam right (since am quite younger to u i dun really know the relations but this is how my mom told me) u know the adamjees?Hameed Adamjee?? my nana used to be MD of Adamjee PAper mill in nowshera......
oh UBL is urs???nowshera bara bazar has gone boring though many ppl go there...oh yeah tht tariq road my khalas live there in the cantt :)
^^ u know why i asked u cuz yesterday i told my mom abt u and she was like she kinda knows ur family....if by chance Iam right (since am quite younger to u i dun really know the relations but this is how my mom told me) u know the adamjees?Hameed Adamjee?? my nana used to be MD of Adamjee PAper mill in nowshera......
oh UBL is urs???nowshera bara bazar has gone boring though many ppl go there...oh yeah tht tariq road my khalas live there in the cantt :)
Of course I know the ADAMJEE PAPERBOARD MILLS of AMANGARH, NOWSHERA quite well!!! In fact just very recently I met AMEEN MUKATY who once lived in Amangarh...which is very close to Nowshera. His brother Taufique--having initially lost his leg----lost the battle to gangarin and left this world some decades back. He was a wonderful wonderful person I know of...and he and Ameen including their sis Nisho were a part of our group (my cousins at Nowshera and my elder sister) during our vacations at Nowshera.
UBL I thought...after renovation of the branch..was doing good there?
**
had to read it twice to understand lol oh n yeah uncle rj have u been to nowshera ever???
