• About Us
  • The TFT Story
  • Team
  • Write for TFT
  • Online advertisement tariff
  • Donate To Us
Monday, May 23, 2022
  • Home
  • Editorials
  • News
  • Analysis
  • Features
  • Spotlight
  • Videos
  • Citizens’ Voice
  • Lifestyle
  • Editor’s Picks
  • Good Times
  • More
    • About Us
    • Team
    • Write for TFT
    • The TFT Story
    • Donate To Us
No Result
View All Result
  • Home
  • Editorials
  • News
  • Analysis
  • Features
  • Spotlight
  • Videos
  • Citizens’ Voice
  • Lifestyle
  • Editor’s Picks
  • Good Times
  • More
    • About Us
    • Team
    • Write for TFT
    • The TFT Story
    • Donate To Us
No Result
View All Result
No Result
View All Result
Home TFT E-Paper Archives

The hills are alive

Sumbal Iftikhar by Sumbal Iftikhar
July 18, 2014 - Updated on September 21, 2021
in TFT E-Paper Archives, Features, Main Slider

Artists under the green foliage

13
SHARES
Share on FacebookShare on Twitter

I reached the hills around 4:30 pm and quickly changed my footgear to meet artist Saba Khan at her summer residence. I had been invited there for tea before visiting the Murree Museum Artist’s Residency on its final exhibition day.

Nestled among aging trees, Khan’s cottage was only a few minutes away from my rest house. Walking towards it, I began to reminisce about the previous year, when I was greeted by her father, the late Dr. Farakh A. Khan. I had wanted to learn about he history of Murree, and he was writing a book on it (Murree During the Raj: A British Town in the Hills).

[quote]Dr. Farrakh Khan wanted to preserve the beauty of Murree for the coming generations[/quote]

Like most historians – although Dr. Khan was a urologist by profession – he wanted to preserve the beauty of Murree for the coming generations. “I am trying to pursue the government to open a museum and an archives gallery here in the heart of Kashmir Point,” he had said with a glint in his eyes.

tft-23-p-16-d

tft-23-p-16-b
Murree – 1887

I smiled when I got to the gate of Saba’s cottage: the grey stone path had been turned into a work of art by her toddler. Colorful patterns, dolls and designs led me to the main door.  Inside, artists, writers, and thinkers sat around the dining table discussing the space for art as the lady of the house, Mrs. Farrakh, served them warm food and tea. Everyone at the table was in love, with Murree and its restoration.

[quote]Kashmir Point is the only place in Murree that is safe from the encroaching mass of grotesque hotels[/quote]

Murree Museum Artist’s Residency is right opposite the chapel of St. Denys High School at Kashmir Point. It is cooped up under one of the twin red triangular roofs resting on a impressive structure resurrected from ruins that haunted this peaceful place for more than a decade. Only recently, the Punjab government proposed to initiate a resource center for PhD study in Murree. They also wanted to set up a restaurant here, but due to Dr. Farakh’s timely intervention, a museum and archives gallery was sanctioned instead. Kashmir Point is the only place in Murree that is serenely safe from the encroaching mass of grotesque hotels and boisterous eating places. It offers a perfect view of the Himalayan ridges, peaceful lodges, and a tranquil traffic-free walking circuit for a quiet walk.

Perhaps, that is why most mountain birds live at Kashmir point.

I was fortunate to meet Usman Saeed and Madhya Leghari, the first resident artists of this pilot project, who were all packed to drive back home after a month of dedicated immersion in art in Murree. Sophia Mairaj and Ashfar Malik were part of the larger team of artists exploring the dynamics of interactive art in the hills. The main floor of the museum has artifacts, objects (donated by people of the hills), archives and photographs relating the history of Murree. The upper deck of the museum is a studio space for these artists who not only curate their aesthetic expressions but also generously open their doors to little street children, most of whom are found scavenging in the litter around Murree, and to school children. (St. Denys High is right opposite the museum.) The studio walls showcase the priceless expressions of these children who have finally found a space to color their thoughts.

[quote]Usman Saeed’s work was inspired by the first birdsong he heard in the hills[/quote]

Usman Saeed’s work was inspired by the first birdsong he heard in the hills:

“The Himalayan Thrush’s magical birdsong woke me up before dawn and subsequently became the inspiration for my work in the 3-week long residency,” he said. “My practice has always been concerned with the notion of musicality, and here I was, listening to the bird’s magical outpourings at length for the first time. The melodious tones seemed to carry an emotional baggage with overlapping layers of loyalty, love, trouble, anger and defiance.”

tft-23-p-16-e
Usman Saeed with street children outside the studio
tft-23-p-16-f
Usman Saeed’s rendition of birdlife at Murree
Courtesy Usman Saeed
Usman Saeed's Blackdrongo welcomes visitors at the Museum
Usman Saeed’s Blackdrongo welcomes visitors at the Museum
 Old lamps once used by the hill people are among many different objects at the museum
Old lamps once used by the hill people are among many different objects at the museum

Sophiya Mairaj found her imagination captivated by tiny buttercups, ferns and other flowers found in the lush meadows of Murree, and her work is also inspired by the poetry of Oscar Wilde. Afshar Malik played with soft wires, creatively bending them into artful flowy forms. Whereas Madhya Leghari’s work is an assortment of paintings and photomontages inspired by the makeup of the hills.

The Murree Museum Artist’s Residency is a futuristic project aspiring to conserve the legacy of the hills – a beautiful blend of nature, art and the wheel of time. To me, it is a posthumous tribute to Dr. Farakh A. Khan for his 12-year long research on Murree. It has been carried out by his daughter Saba Khan and her talented team of artists. It is open to the public free of cost and has had over 80 visitors per day on weekdays and over 200 on weekends during the peak summer season. With the right resources and support, it can become an indispensible asset for the most frequented hill station of Pakistan.

Also Read:

How The Demagogues Of Our Era Are Perfecting Their Sales Pitch

Rebalance – How Women Thrive

Tags: Scene
Previous Post

Bring down the wall

Next Post

Great longing

Sumbal Iftikhar

Sumbal Iftikhar

Next Post

“Black is my happy color!”

Comments 2

  1. Rizwana says:
    8 years ago

    Wonderful Article. I’m motivated to go an see the museum. Thanks to these visionary people like Dr. Farrukh and his family we are able to reclaim our heritage.

  2. Usman Eshai says:
    8 years ago

    I have been at this museum twice. The place and collection of historic photographs is awesome. You don’t find such places in Murree anymore. Once a beautiful hill station has now sadly turned into a concrete jungle by irregular constructions.

Search

No Result
View All Result

Recent News

How The Demagogues Of Our Era Are Perfecting Their Sales Pitch

How The Demagogues Of Our Era Are Perfecting Their Sales Pitch

May 22, 2022 - Updated on May 23, 2022
Uncertainty Looms As The Apex Court Rules On Defecting Lawmakers

Uncertainty Looms As The Apex Court Rules On Defecting Lawmakers

May 22, 2022
Rebalance – How Women Thrive

Rebalance – How Women Thrive

May 22, 2022

Twitter

Donate Us

Subscribe
The Friday Times – Naya Daur

News and views which are not fit to print.


The Friday Times is Pakistan’s first independent weekly, founded in 1989. In 2021, the publication went into collaboration with digital news platform Naya Daur Media to publish under a daily cycle.


Social Media

Latest News

  • All
  • News
  • Editorials
  • Features
  • Analysis
  • Lifestyle
How The Demagogues Of Our Era Are Perfecting Their Sales Pitch

How The Demagogues Of Our Era Are Perfecting Their Sales Pitch

by Hamza Khaqan
May 22, 2022 - Updated on May 23, 2022
0

A wave of populism and majoritarianism seems to...

Uncertainty Looms As The Apex Court Rules On Defecting Lawmakers

Uncertainty Looms As The Apex Court Rules On Defecting Lawmakers

by Sabih Ul Hussnain
May 22, 2022
0

The judgment on the Presidential Reference seeking the...

Follow Us on Instagram

Follow

    The Instagram Access Token is expired, Go to the Customizer > JNews : Social, Like & View > Instagram Feed Setting, to refresh it.
  • About Us
  • The TFT Story
  • Team
  • Write for TFT
  • Online advertisement tariff
  • Donate To Us

© 2022 All Rights Reserved.

No Result
View All Result
  • Home
  • Editorials
  • News
  • Analysis
  • Features
  • Spotlight
  • Videos
  • Citizens’ Voice
  • Lifestyle
  • Editor’s Picks
  • Good Times
  • More
    • About Us
    • Team
    • Write for TFT
    • The TFT Story
    • Donate To Us

© 2022 All Rights Reserved.

Welcome Back!

Login to your account below

Forgotten Password?

Retrieve your password

Please enter your username or email address to reset your password.

Log In

Add New Playlist