Swat Swag

During my high school summer break, I dabbled into a friend's project of documenting indigenuous Pakistani musical instruments. At a studio, we stumbled upon a journalist as he held a rubab for his 6-year-old son to play. The kid couldn't hold the gigantic rubab, but boy, could he play it! From a brief conversation, we learned that the gentleman had taken his son to a plethora of music ustads - from far-flung nooks of Balochistan to the desolate villages of GB. I was utterly fascinated. I asked him for the rationale, and his words have stuck with me ever since. He said, "Mein apne betay ka arts se rabt is liye qaim kr rha hoon keh agar arts iski jabilat mein bas gayi to mujhe itminan rhe ga keh yeh kabhi inteha-pasand, dehshat-gard, ya jahil mullah nahi bane ga. I will be leaving the world a more humane place through this human." We would all benefit from his words.