"Second Skin" Exhibit featuring Ahsan Masood and Mohsin Shafi

Project A members at the opening reception for 'Second Skin'



Ahsan Masood and Mohsin Shafi put up their very first exhibit together; a collection of acrylic paintings and digital art/photography that they called ‘Second Skin’. The exhibition was held at the Khaas Art Gallery in F-6/3 in Islamabad.

Here’s a list of the work on display:

Ahsan Masood:

“Androgyny” Acrylic on Wood
“Pink Invite I” Acrylic on Paper
“Pink Invite II” Acrylic on Paper
“Pink Invite III” Acrylic on Paper
“Pink Invite IV” Acrylic on Paper
“Circumcision” Acrylic on Wood
“Solha Singhar” Acrylic on Paper
“Little Boy Blue” Acrylic on Metal Sheet

Ahsan’s work embodied the embracing of sexuality and the expression of self-vanity on life-sized paper and larger than life wood paintings and “Circumcision” was his most popular painting in the exhibit. It had already been sold off before the exhibition even started. Ahsan’s first exhibit was a roaring success and he walked away with almost his entire collection sold off within the first few days.

Mohsin Shafi brought quite a few amazing pieces with him, the titles of his works on display were:

“Silwat” Digital Print
“Travel Log” Digital Print
“In My Own Shoes” Digital Print
“Homeland Hostage” Digital Print
“Once in the Mood” Digital Print
“22.4 T” Digital Print
“Construction Deconstruction” Digital Print
“Hidden Agenda” Digital Print
“Once in a Blue Moon” Digital Print
“Convergence Divergence” Digital Print
“The Platform” Digital Print

His work seemed to be all about identity and visual self expression of a lost man with a vision. His prints perfectly blended with and complimented Ahsan’s paintings. The exhibit went on for 9 days and the response from the art lovers of Rawalpindi and Islamabad was enthusiastic and encouraging to say the least. We here at Project A are impatiently waiting for both of these brilliant men to return to the local art scene with a new collection.


"Circumcision" Ahsan Masood's strongest piece in the exhibit

An Interview with Aamyre Tarique

Aamyre Taryque is a Karachi based Fashion-Designer who graduated from the Asian Institute of Fashion Design on four scholarships and a GPA of 3.54. His thesis was themed Music and had segments about Cocktail Dresses, South Asian Wear, Negative & Positive and Ball gown.

He’s been a part of the visiting faculty at the Textile Institute of Pakistan and the Fashion Apparel Design and Training Institute, Karachi University and has also worked with Rajby Industries and Dawood Lawrencepur Limited.

He’s currently working for EGO which won the Best Fashion Brand Award at the LUX Style Awards 2008. He’s also working for DAWNNEWS TV where he is the head of wardrobe for the entire channel.


Q. Have you always known you wanted to be a designer...?
A. Nope, I had no idea I would end up becoming a designer

Q. So what did you want to be growing up?
A. As a child, postman.. I have no idea why *laughs* but when I was a bit older I wanted to become a software developer & a hacker.

Q. Cute... So how did the transition to fashion occur...? And what have you done your bachelors/masters in...?
A. Fashion Design, it just happened. I have a bachelor in fashion design

Q. Where from?
A. I decided to do something different and fashion seemed like something I could do. After my first semester in AIFD I got a scholarship and from there on I continued. I wanted to do law or something else after my bachelors and work for social welfare but Fashion is what I ended up doing.

Q. So tell us about your entry into the fashion industry in Pakistan...?
Once you had graduated of course…
A. I started freelance work for export six months before my graduation (Jan 2004)
And by the time I graduated I had plenty of freelance work.. I started working in October 2004 for Lawrencepur.

Q. Have you shown any of your collections yet?
A. No and I don’t intend to, not yet at least

Q. Why ever not?
A. I see how everyone is so eager to showcase their collection.. I am not, there is still much more to learn and experience. When I am ready I will bring you an invitation to my show personally

Q. What do you find yourself more interested in? Pret or Haute Couture?
A. At this point, a bit of both although couture is too big of a term to be used as often as it is here now a days. I love designing knit wear, denim and sports wear (performance based wear) too.

Q. I heard a designer use the term 'demi-couture' for what we make here in Pakistan, they said it was all about bridal wear and that was just about it. What do you have to say about this?
A. No comment.

Q. But please, come on! Do tell us what you have to say about this... (We have a no censorship policy) *winks*
A. Fashion Industry goes beyond bridal wear. That's actually where the international capital is... That’s all I am going to say

Q. I get what you're saying perfectly well! What would your prospective collection be composed of? In terms of design genre i.e.
A. I am a Science fiction fan and a closet nerd... It’ll have something to do with Star Wars most probably. And it will mostly be knit wear

Q. Are you inspired by or fond of any designers in particular and why...?

A. I tend to get inspired by non conventional things... fashion itself doesn’t necessarily inspire me.. Its people and things around me that do.. I am not fond of any designer in particular either. The most inspired I have ever been by someone were my students.

Q. That's an awfully sweet thing to say... Or are you just aware this interview will end up on four different places online...? Haaahahahaaa...
A. *Laughs* I’m just speaking out.

Q. Good for you! So besides fashion, what else do you love doing?
A. I enjoy video games, spending time with my friends and when I get a chance, I like to give back to the society in whatever way I can.. My ultimate goal is to retire from fashion industry in another ten yrs and work full time for the social welfare of senior citizens and orphans

Q. So you get to live both your dreams in one life time, very nice. What are you currently working on? Or for?
A. I am working on a plan for a foundation which in future will be able to provide free/cheap accommodation to the senior citizens. There is still plenty to do. We are at a very initial stage at this point

Q. But don't you think that your project might be highly controversial given the family values this part of the world is known for...?
A. It's a challenge, but I think we are ready to accept that there is a need for such homes. It’s only the matter of time.

Q. Hmm... Fashion design is still something of an unaccepted profession among our older generations, how has your family reacted over the years?
A. To be honest, there was no reaction. I think it wouldn’t have made a difference if I was a banker or a designer to them

Q. To any aspiring designers reading this, is there anything you'd like to say...?
A. Two things, be inspired by everything since beauty is merely a perception. And take your social responsibilities seriously.

An Interview with Maryam Piracha Part 2

Maryam Piracha - Co-Founder of DWL


We pick up from where we left in part 1, here's the second and final part. Enjoy. :)


Q. You must give DWL a whole lot of your time, how has your family dealt with this over the years?

A. My family has been largely supportive of my endeavors with DWL over the years, although questions have been raised concerning its long term viability, which I think is only fair. There are always risks concerned when you start something new in general, and concerning the literary arts in particular. But yes, they've been mostly behind me for which I am incredibly thankful. Family support is important.

Q. Do you have anything on the drawing board in particular for the future of DWL offline?

A. There are lots of things planned for DWL's offline ventures; a possible playwriting competition, and compiling an anthology of the works of our writers and having that published. But many of these things are on the backburner for now, as the founding team turns our collective attention to fixing up some of the issues that have arisen on the online front, which is the true heart of who we are and what we do.

Q. Do you think that the three major cities you've tried to bring DWL offline into are quite different in character? And if so, then how? And does that affect DWL's growth offline?

A. Well, we’ve only brought DWL successfully to Islamabad. We will be launching something soon in Lahore and Karachi's up next, once we get a coordinator for the city. But generally, in terms of the meet ups I've attended in Lahore and Islamabad, each city has its own character and its own people. I am assuming, each chapter will bring something new to the proceedings. As to how it will effect growth, that remains to be seen.

Q. Coming to writer's block now...How often has the nasty bugger paid you an extended visit?

A. Hmm, there are some writers out there who rage against the phrase; that it doesn't exist, and maybe it doesn't. After all, why should writers stick out from the pack of other professions; doctors, plumbers, engineers don't have blocks, etc. Maybe it's the stemming of creativity; what really defines a 'writer's block'? When you can't write, or when you have no ideas? I've never had a problem with ideas or the words, thankfully. But I have been stunted for time, so while it may not have been writer's block; it was a time block. This is something I am overcoming now, thankfully. The block can be beat with persistence; that's all it is really, to keep writing over and over until you start to get somewhere.

Q. And what advice would you give to other writers reading this who are suffering from writer’s block?

A. To persist and to keep going. The only way to beat writer's block is through consistent determination and writing. Always, always write. No matter how bad it is. You'll pull through.

Q. Coming around to your own personal life now...What is there besides writing...? Are you fond of anything else?

A. Besides writing? It's interesting that you'd ask that, considering baking was my first love. I started baking when I was 10 and it started with simple microwavable recipes, before progressing forwards. In retrospect, it's been close to 15 years! Aside from that, reading, though I haven't been able to do enough of it as I would like recently. Swimming, horseback riding and ping pong and oh yes, TV. I love watching TV episodes online! Guilty pleasure.

Q. Haahahaaa... And you DO realize you just gave your age away? :P

A. Yes, I do. (Smiles) I’m okay with that.

Q. And speaking of age, where would you like to see yourself and DWL 5 years from now...? Let's say by the time you're 30?

A. Hmm...that's a good question, one that creeps up in your mind often: 'where will you be x many years from now'? I'd like to see myself as a published writer, first and foremost. I would like to be more involved and active concerning literary awareness, maybe with writers' workshops or something of the sort. For DWL, maybe see its online lit journal, PaperCuts find a print counterpart, and it being the stepping stone for writers to gain worthy publication. And then...and this is a far off dream, I'd like to see its own cafe. We (the founding members and I) have talked about it, as being a distant dream. Only time will tell whether it'll come to fruition!

Q. You've recently been involved in Project A as well? We are thrilled to have you onboard this venture and now we get to fish for compliments! *Evil grin* Why join...?

A. Moeed brought up the idea when we were discussing plans for Desi Writers Lounge, and though the two aren't linked, it's something I'm interested in seeing build up further. Because I believe Pakistan's literary and artistic scene is floundering, compared to other countries, and because there are such few outlets like these out there, I wanted to do whatever I could to make this endeavor a successful one.

Q. What do you bake best, in your own opinion as well as the opinion of your guinea pigs?

A. Hmm, it used to be brownies. I had the chewiest ones in this part of the world, but I think a close second would be chocolate chip oatmeal cookies.

Q. A word to prospective DWL members and then a word to those of Project A as well....?

A. A word to prospective DWL members? Come with an open mind and be prepared to leave your ego at the door. If you come with the mind to actively improve your craft and help hone the craft of others, you will do tremendously well. If not, it will be a bumpy ride. Honestly, though, it will be a bumpy ride regardless, but it'll be a less bumpy one in the case of the former! (Smiles)

As for prospective members of Project A: I think the same advice holds true. For some of the arts, like performance arts, be open to criticism and take the high road. Always take the high road. Nothing comes from belittling others or being defensive; in the end, the only one who gets hurt, is you.

For Faraz Mirza

This is just to say thank you to Faraz, without whom, my digital klutziness would've known no bounds. Thankyou for saving me from looking like an utter fool.

An Interview with Maryam Piracha Part 1

To start off with our interviews of local men and women involved in the arts one way or the other, we found our very own Maryam Piracha, literary visionary and co-founder of Desi Writers Lounge. In her own words she defines the endeavor as:

“Desi Writers Lounge is an online writing community and non-stop (24/7, 365 days/year) workshop. Our members (who double as writers, readers and critics) put up their work for critique which they receive in ample doses, in a general workshop-y environment. The best material of a 6 month period is then published in PAPERCUTS, our bi-annual online literary journal.”

You’ve been writing since the age of…?

11. I started in the summer of the seventh grade, after my then English teacher, Sara Zubair (of the younger generation) encouraged me for the first time in a while by giving us actually interesting stuff to write about; I’d had an overactive imagination since forever and this finally gave me the opportunity I’d been waiting for

Tell us a bit about the genre you started off with…? I’m assuming it was fictional prose…?

Yes, it was fictional prose. It’s always been fiction and it’s always been prose. Even when I write poetry, it’s like prose broken down into different lines. Fiction came naturally for me, it allowed me to take on different disguises and if you looked hard enough, you’d realize there were pieces of their author in every character and story I created. It allowed me…freedom, I suppose. True freedom.

Did your passion for writing at any point threaten to consume the person you actually were…?

Yes, but that I think that holds true for everyone who initially sets out to be a writer; for the initial few years, it’s all about the words. Everything around you is something that you can weave a story around. And that’s what it was like for me, particularly since I was a bit of the black sheep of the family. When I found writing, I was home in so many ways.

And of course your writing has changed over the years… Would you say it’s changed for better or otherwise…? Do you miss the child’s perspective? Or are you reveling in the new ways you’ve discovered of looking at the world?

Hmm, that’s a good question. Yes, my writing has changed over the years and I would definitely say it’s changed for the better, because as you mature, your writing gets better but yes, a part of me misses the child’s perspective but more than the perspective, the audaciousness in experimenting with genre. When I was younger, I started with sci-fi realism with a little bit of reality suspension thrown in, which is something I sorely miss. More because I allowed my imagination to wander wherever it wanted to, and wrote the results down. My writing style has matured without a doubt, but my perimeter has shortened. But maybe this will push me to experiment again…who knows?

Do you think that a desire to veil the creator herself in your work and yet let the words have an imprint of the writer has caused trouble for you on the writing front…?

Not at all, it’s had the opposite effect in fact. By putting myself in the position of each character I create, a part of me becomes him/her, living their lives…I’m a…hmm…method writer, of a sort I guess. So, while I force myself to sink in, it’s inevitable that the writer shows through just because it’s what happens.

To quote one of my favorite authors: “The only way you can truly get to know an author is through the trail of ink he leaves behind him; the person you think you see is only an empty character: truth is always hidden in fiction.” Carlos Ruiz Zafon

There must be at least one literary work you have in mind that you’ve always wished to finish and get into print and see sitting in a bookstore’s shelf one day… What is that story about? Is it an autobiography? Or a fictional work that’s quite autobiographical? Or maybe something completely different altogether?

Ah, yes there is. There are two, actually but one’s an absolute lock for being my first jab at publication: it addresses the Shi’a / Sunni divide, and while yes, it was based on a short story that in itself was based on a firsthand/secondhand perspective, this will require more in-depth research. It tells the story of what happens when conservative Sunni decides to marry into a Shi’a family, what problems may arise, the biases and prejudices on both sides. I think this is an important subject to bring up, more because it’s such a taboo thing in Pakistan. Writing about socio-religious things, which interestingly, is my niche, is generally not done. There’s a void, and I believe that should something work, it would inspire others to come forward as well.

Now let’s come to DWL… A brainchild you’ve nurtured as truly as a mother would rear a child, resentful at times yet always loving. Tell us about how it all started, where did the idea come in from, who were the pioneers?

Hmm…the beginnings of Desi Writers Lounge finds its start in the Desi Writers community started by Sana Sabir on Orkut. I made my way there after seeing her ad for it on another writing community I was a part of, and after that, there was no looking back. Shortly after I joined, within a few months, we’d gathered a set of twelve writers who posted more ambitiously. There was talk of us starting our own e-zine, which was a topic first broached by Sana but then nothing came of it. I restarted the topic shortly after, other members jumped on board, and soon we’d bought a domain and were on our way to something. It did take some time for us to transfer to the new place; DWL came into being April, 2005 and we went live September, 2006.

We were initially twelve people, when the site was initially created but slowly, almost imperceptibly it came down to five people: Afia, Obi, Shehla, Jalal and myself. We were all united under the goal of creating a writing community and publishing our own literary journal, with us learning the how’s along the way.

DWL (the online community) is almost 5 years old now, with a Facebook group and page and a twitter account as well. Newbies in your world are an almost everyday occurrence. How do you feel about suddenly discovering there are so many others around who’ve found a safe haven in DWL for their work?

It makes me feel that we’re doing something right! That we’ve created a place where writers feel at home, because there aren’t many places like this out there, especially for the desi crowd. Where people come here, from places like neighboring India to Bangladesh and Romania, is amazing. Politics is forgotten here, and while we do encourage freedom of thought and expression, this really is a place for writers, poets and thinkers first and foremost. The “newbies” bring so much with them, that we stand to learn from so I am incredibly thankful.

Recently you decided to take DWL from the internet into the real world, I’m talking of course about the Book Club, and the Readings and Game Nights. Was it a really important decision for you to do this? And why introduce DWL into the actual world?

Hmm, one of the reasons to introduce DWL to the “real” world was to get our message across in a broader medium. It would also help our members to put faces to the people they encountered online, which helps to ground things a little more, I feel.

Game Nights were a branch off from our regular Readings, which in themselves were bringing our critiquing session’s offline and building a more workshop element into the proceedings. Game Nights were a fun way to get people’s attention along with making a little money, because this was the first event that we charged for. DWL is not a profit making thing, but all financials have been handled by the five of us, and it can get taxing sometimes.

Book Clubs were introduced to again, get us out there in the right way, by encouraging reading. Which brings me to one of our goals, which is promoting literary awareness and both the Book Clubs and Readings help to do that. Even the Game Nights, because they promote word games keep the brain active, and away from video games, etc.


The Paper Microphone, an interesting choice for DWL as an offline base camp, why the Paper Microphone and not another place?

Hmm, that’s a good question. It all started when Nadine and I got back in touch over Facebook; she was my senior in high school at Headstart, I told her about DWL and she told me about at the Open Mic nights at the cafe. So I checked the place out. The moment I stepped in, I knew I’d found a place.

I just fell in love with the crate wood for a door! I thought it was resourceful brilliance!

We had a few back and forth discussions on how to go about things, what sort of activities we could do, and I was lucky that Nadine had the same kind of ideas I did for literary awareness and promotion.

I doubt that any other place would have given us the freedom that TPM has; they’ve given us our own writer’s corner, and promote our events through our fliers and bookmarks. All in all, it’s been a near perfect fit

(That’s it…and yeah, the door was a great idea!)

Project A grows and gets it’s first event!

Today is the 14th of January and the past 11 days have been a whirlwind of progress. Project A’s Facebook group now has over 140 members and just as many fans on it’s official Fanpage. Members come up and tell me just how thrilled they are to have a platform to bring their work to without being discriminated against as painters or just admirers of those who paint.

We’ve had budding artists upload their photographs, paintings and sketches and get feedback in small but for the time being quite enough amounts. To see this really happen is quite surreal for me. Humble as our beginning may be I have plans for Project A and what’s more we have our very first event lined up.

“You are cordially invited to a viewing of ‘Second Skin’. New works by Ahsan Masood and Mohsin Shafi. Previews on the 15th of January at 5:30pm at the Khaas Art Gallery Islamabad.”

Fantastic eh…? I couldn’t be more thrilled. Of course I’m quite nervous too, Project A’s finally going offline and stepping into the real world to be spoken of and referred to by word of mouth. Networking must be done, contacts be made and our introduction to the city at large is going to take place. It’s a huge deal for me and the project and I’ll have my fellow colleagues and members there to help. I plan on having lots of pictures taken and a write up following the even online posted as soon as I get back home. Of course since one of the artists is a dear friend of mine, Ahsan, I’m thrilled to have him have his first exhibition ever.

I just feel a little apprehensive, no not a little, very. A part of me fears not being able to do ‘Project A’ justice in the long run and another part fears losing myself in the proceedings. But for now, the growth is phenomenal, the feedback great and the going just a little bit tough. So here’s to ‘The Guild’.

Project A takes off…

The idea for a community dedicated to all the arts first came to me while brainstorming for a colleague at Desi Writers Lounge. I just said to myself, ‘We have a forum for writers to bring their work to for critique and feedback, then why not create a forum for all the other artists as well?’ I certainly know plenty of people involved in the arts already, all I would need is a place to get started. I floated the idea to Maryam Piracha the next evening in our meeting and she loved it. And we decided to go ahead with Project A.

Yes, the name was a dilemma at first but near the end of the meeting I declared we’d just call it Project A for now, little did we know that the name would soon grow on us. The same night, I set up the Facebook group and sent out a bulk invite to everyone on my list asking all my artsy friends to join and tell their interested friends to do the same. This was the 3^rd of January and from that night there has been no looking back. In a few days a friend suggested that a Facebook page would be a better idea since it allows us to send out announcements to fans and have categorized albums for our members’ work. And that’s how the Fan page came into being as well.