Writing POC 101

Pakistani Characters - @arishman

Firstly, hello!
My name is Arishman and I've been living in Pakistan all my life. I'm a very proud Pakistani citizen, thank you very much.
I have seen a very few Pakistan centered story or a story with a Pakistani protagonist/antagonist ( sarcasm inserted on 'antagonist')

You can never write a story about a specific culture or country if you do not know the first thing about it.

Let's face it, you've got no whatsoever clue about Pakistan except those stereotype statements out there.

Let's fix that, shall we?

1)"Pakistan is so dangerous! It's a terrorist lounge! Oh my! I'm never ever going there or I'll get shot by a frothy mouthed crazy bearded terrorist!"

Pfft. Puh-leez.
Firstly, yes, we have a huge homegrown terrorism problem in Pakistan, that's true, but terrorists communities DO NOT parade our streets, waving guns and throwing bombs like candy. It's perfectly safe here.
You won't get shot, and Pakistan is not dangerous.
Have you seem the show 'Homeland?', did you see it's poster? The Blondie in the red headscarf, surrounded by women wearing burkas?
Yeah that one.
I am very sad to say, that 'Homeland' is also affected with those stereotypical terrorist-hot-pad-of-a-county-Pakistan.
You have to see how they've shown Islamabad (Pakistan's capital) like.
Islamabad is a quiet, beautiful metropolitan city with lush green mountains, fresh crisp cool air, with modern infrastructure.
In Homeland, it's portrayed as a grimy hellhole and war zone where shootouts and bombs go off with dead bodies scattered around.

What?

Sad, really.
If you do write something about Pakistan, please, avoid such misconceptions.

2)"Do you live in a mud hut?"

Sorry to break your bubble, but no.
Most of the people in Pakistan live in actual cement and brick houses, and if you happen to know the upper-middle classes, their houses are absolutely palatial.
We have well paved roads and all. Even in very rural areas nobody lives in shanty huts.
Only people in the northern highland of Pakistan, where it is very cold, people have tents. They are nomadic people who constantly move around, moving to the warmer plains in the winters.

3)"Are you Indian?"

I have no problem with Indians. But no, for God's sake, we are PAKISTANIS, not Indians.
Our country was separated from India in 1947, due to some controversial reasons, which exist even now but I'd rather not discuss them. We do resemble them, but since we separated from northern India, our skin tones are mostly a shade lighter.
We have some of their culture and they have some of ours.
But we are different people of different nations.
Don't confuse us.

3)"Girls/women in Pakistan are beaten, starved, uneducated, and treated like animals."

This girl here, who has provided you with this very informative essay/chapter is 1) Pakistani, 2) educated, 3) a girl. Unbelievable right?
No. In fact our female literacy rate is increasing by a leap. Women rights are being brought into law and order very strictly.
Only in rural areas, it happens.
But our government is very conscious about this and our women are not shackled to their homes.
In the past, yes women were severely persecuted and in the very backward areas of Pakistan, still are.
But do not point fingers.
In England, a woman was nothing more than a good ole' housewife and baby bearer until they protested, and only after the Suffragette movement they were recognized.

4)"Pakistani's have those thick ugly stuttering accents."

In Pakistan, almost the entire school curriculum is taught in English, and this has created generations of Pakistanis who navigate English with complete ease.
Our young generation speak English very, very well.
But we are a really patriotic who is very proud of our national language Urdu.
Don't let our freakin' fluent English fool you.