An Uncomfortable Familiarity
Do Pakistani journalists venturing into the field of political fiction have an unfair advantage? After all, if they have spent enough time in newspaper offices, they are likely to have had a ringside view of some of the bizarre political developments this country has witnessed. Pakistan’s history repeatedly proves that truth is stranger than fiction. With imagination and a talent for knitting stories, writers are rarely in short supply of material when their subject is Pakistan and its political arena.
With her debut novel, Akbar in Wonderland, Umber Khairi has picked choice pieces from the politics of the early nineties and skilfully joined them into a narrative that evokes strong feelings of familiarity among readers, particularly in Karachi. And yet it isn’t a simple task of putting pieces of memory together. At a recent launch of Akbar in Wonderland in Karachi, the author revealed she had lived with the idea of the novel for 20 years or so. Therefore, the plot, the characters and the scenarios are well thought through.
Khairi is among the founding editors of the prestigious monthly news magazine, Newsline, which commenced publication in 1989 and sadly had to close in 2019. The magazine was widely respected for its independent positions and in-depth investigative reports that ranged from political corruption to police torture and the flourishing drug business. Its founding editor, the late Razia Bhatti, is still recognised as among the most courageous journalists in Pakistan. Khairi continued her career in journalism with the Urdu service of BBC in London, which she left when the corporation’s editorial policies began to rankle her.
Akbar in Wonderland is set in a world Khairi is intimately familiar with.
Journalists working for the English language press in the eighties and nineties would probably recall many of the events and recognise several key characters from the novel. There is the dismissal of a democratic government by an autocratic president, with the chattering classes unquestioningly accepting the tales of corruption surrounding the prime minister and her spouse. The caretakers described are the archetypes that serve every setup. The period is also significant as the press was adapting itself to newfound freedom after over 10 years of repression under the military regime of General Ziaul Haq.
However, as Akbar Hussain the naive magazine editor discovers, another set of puppeteers – perhaps even more dangerous – has replaced the somewhat staid Press and Information Department of the earlier years. Akbar, a newly appointed magazine editor in an established media house, is not exactly an idealistic young journalist. Yet, he meekly accepts all the constraints placed on his role as editor and is easily cowed down by Irfan, who unscrupulously does the management’s bidding. Akbar naively believes that there is good intention behind Irfan’s machinations, even as he is troubled by being continuously side-lined in editorial matters. He also sees nothing wrong in building contacts with SASSRI (a military-managed research institute) in the hope of being funded for a scholarship. His friend and senior journalist, Zaheer Khan (Zed to all) tries to dissuade him. At their lunch at an Italian restaurant, he tries to warn Akbar, “What I’m saying is not ridiculous, it’s not fantasy, nor is it paranoia. This is a reality. And unless you can see that you’ll be as clueless as Alice was in Wonderland, surprised at every turn…”
However, it is only when Zed goes missing after claiming to have proof of a conspiracy behind the dismissal of the popularly elected woman prime minister, that Akbar steps out of his wonderland. He is suddenly determined to get justice for Zed by publishing the findings of his investigations. He manages to do so surreptitiously, quite oblivious to the dangerous repercussions that come in quick and hard with his own life threatened.
With Akbar in Wonderland, Khairi has joined the ranks of the many political novelists who have cherry-picked incidents from Pakistan’s murky history and given them the veneer of fiction.
Omar Shahid Hamid is well known for barely fictionalising facts in several of his earlier successful novels. In Khairi’s case, while the plot development is plausible and journalists have been easy targets in Pakistan, she has chosen to somewhat fictionalise the characters. However, journalists from the eighties and nineties will easily discern several key characters in the novel.
Zed is clearly based on well-known journalist and poet, the late Kaleem Omar (popularly known as KO). Kaleem Omar was practically a permanent fixture in the offices of The Star and Dawn in the early eighties. Khairi’s characterisation of Zed is evocative of Omar’s – from the description of how he dressed to his idiosyncrasies and his love of newspapers and trivia. His choice of the Cosmopolitan Hotel as his permanent residence (much to the chagrin of the owners) is also reminiscent of Omar’s long stay at the Metropole Hotel in Karachi. The magazine offices of the nineties described would also strike a chord with those in the print media. The endless cups of tea served by either sullen or friendly peons, the determination of the management to
maintain a stranglehold on the editorial content, and their manipulation of editors are all familiar conditions.
The turning point in the novel – and Akbar’s life – is Zed’s mysterious disappearance.
Akbar’s professional and personal lives are turned topsy-turvy following his disclosure of Zed’s investigations. More alarming is the trauma he and his family undergo. The members of Akbar’s family are introduced to the reader at the beginning of the novel and it becomes clear that his is a middle-class family with deeply-rooted liberal values. However, the religiosity that has seeped into society does not leave Akbar’s family unaffected. Akbar’s cousin, Ayaz Bhai, is the epitome of the transformative effect that Ziaul Haq’s Islamisation had caused, insisting, for example, on saying “Allah Hafiz” rather than the traditional “Khuda Hafiz”.
The denouement revealed to the reader in the epilogue is disturbing, more so because it is close to the country’s reality. Akbar in Wonderland is fast-paced and certainly a page-turner. The only time I winced was when I came across proofreading errors.
Akbar in Wonderland
By Umber Khairi
Published by Moringa Books/Reverie Publishing
341 pp; Rs 2,000
ISBN: 978-627-7742-06-5
Zohra Yusuf is Chief Creative Officer, Spectrum Communications.
Zohra Yusuf journalism book review book launch book talk pakistani literature Pakistani English Literature Umber Khairi Akbar in Wonderland
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Journalists working for the English language press in the eighties and nineties would probably recall many of the events and recognise several key characters from the novel. There is the dismissal of a democratic government by an autocratic president, with the chattering classes unquestioningly accepting the tales of corruption surrounding the prime minister and her spouse. The caretakers described are the archetypes that serve every setup. The period is also significant as the press was adapting itself to newfound freedom after over 10 years of repression under the military regime of General Ziaul Haq.
However, as Akbar Hussain the naive magazine editor discovers, another set of puppeteers – perhaps even more dangerous – has replaced the somewhat staid Press and Information Department of the earlier years. Akbar, a newly appointed magazine editor in an established media house, is not exactly an idealistic young journalist. Yet, he meekly accepts all the constraints placed on his role as editor and is easily cowed down by Irfan, who unscrupulously does the management’s bidding. Akbar naively believes that there is good intention behind Irfan’s machinations, even as he is troubled by being continuously side-lined in editorial matters. He also sees nothing wrong in building contacts with SASSRI (a military-managed research institute) in the hope of being funded for a scholarship. His friend and senior journalist, Zaheer Khan (Zed to all) tries to dissuade him. At their lunch at an Italian restaurant, he tries to warn Akbar, “What I’m saying is not ridiculous, it’s not fantasy, nor is it paranoia. This is a reality. And unless you can see that you’ll be as clueless as Alice was in Wonderland, surprised at every turn…”
However, it is only when Zed goes missing after claiming to have proof of a conspiracy behind the dismissal of the popularly elected woman prime minister, that Akbar steps out of his wonderland. He is suddenly determined to get justice for Zed by publishing the findings of his investigations. He manages to do so surreptitiously, quite oblivious to the dangerous repercussions that come in quick and hard with his own life threatened.
With Akbar in Wonderland, Khairi has joined the ranks of the many political novelists who have cherry-picked incidents from Pakistan’s murky history and given them the veneer of fiction.
Omar Shahid Hamid is well known for barely fictionalising facts in several of his earlier successful novels. In Khairi’s case, while the plot development is plausible and journalists have been easy targets in Pakistan, she has chosen to somewhat fictionalise the characters. However, journalists from the eighties and nineties will easily discern several key characters in the novel.
Zed is clearly based on well-known journalist and poet, the late Kaleem Omar (popularly known as KO). Kaleem Omar was practically a permanent fixture in the offices of The Star and Dawn in the early eighties. Khairi’s characterisation of Zed is evocative of Omar’s – from the description of how he dressed to his idiosyncrasies and his love of newspapers and trivia. His choice of the Cosmopolitan Hotel as his permanent residence (much to the chagrin of the owners) is also reminiscent of Omar’s long stay at the Metropole Hotel in Karachi. The magazine offices of the nineties described would also strike a chord with those in the print media. The endless cups of tea served by either sullen or friendly peons, the determination of the management to
maintain a stranglehold on the editorial content, and their manipulation of editors are all familiar conditions.
The turning point in the novel – and Akbar’s life – is Zed’s mysterious disappearance.
Akbar’s professional and personal lives are turned topsy-turvy following his disclosure of Zed’s investigations. More alarming is the trauma he and his family undergo. The members of Akbar’s family are introduced to the reader at the beginning of the novel and it becomes clear that his is a middle-class family with deeply-rooted liberal values. However, the religiosity that has seeped into society does not leave Akbar’s family unaffected. Akbar’s cousin, Ayaz Bhai, is the epitome of the transformative effect that Ziaul Haq’s Islamisation had caused, insisting, for example, on saying “Allah Hafiz” rather than the traditional “Khuda Hafiz”.
The denouement revealed to the reader in the epilogue is disturbing, more so because it is close to the country’s reality. Akbar in Wonderland is fast-paced and certainly a page-turner. The only time I winced was when I came across proofreading errors.
Akbar in Wonderland
By Umber Khairi
Published by Moringa Books/Reverie Publishing
341 pp; Rs 2,000
ISBN: 978-627-7742-06-5
Zohra Yusuf is Chief Creative Officer, Spectrum Communications.
Zohra Yusuf journalism book review book launch book talk pakistani literature Pakistani English Literature Umber Khairi Akbar in Wonderland
Email
Omar Shahid Hamid is well known for barely fictionalising facts in several of his earlier successful novels. In Khairi’s case, while the plot development is plausible and journalists have been easy targets in Pakistan, she has chosen to somewhat fictionalise the characters. However, journalists from the eighties and nineties will easily discern several key characters in the novel.
Zed is clearly based on well-known journalist and poet, the late Kaleem Omar (popularly known as KO). Kaleem Omar was practically a permanent fixture in the offices of The Star and Dawn in the early eighties. Khairi’s characterisation of Zed is evocative of Omar’s – from the description of how he dressed to his idiosyncrasies and his love of newspapers and trivia. His choice of the Cosmopolitan Hotel as his permanent residence (much to the chagrin of the owners) is also reminiscent of Omar’s long stay at the Metropole Hotel in Karachi. The magazine offices of the nineties described would also strike a chord with those in the print media. The endless cups of tea served by either sullen or friendly peons, the determination of the management to maintain a stranglehold on the editorial content, and their manipulation of editors are all familiar conditions.
The turning point in the novel – and Akbar’s life – is Zed’s mysterious disappearance.
Akbar’s professional and personal lives are turned topsy-turvy following his disclosure of Zed’s investigations. More alarming is the trauma he and his family undergo. The members of Akbar’s family are introduced to the reader at the beginning of the novel and it becomes clear that his is a middle-class family with deeply-rooted liberal values. However, the religiosity that has seeped into society does not leave Akbar’s family unaffected. Akbar’s cousin, Ayaz Bhai, is the epitome of the transformative effect that Ziaul Haq’s Islamisation had caused, insisting, for example, on saying “Allah Hafiz” rather than the traditional “Khuda Hafiz”.
The denouement revealed to the reader in the epilogue is disturbing, more so because it is close to the country’s reality. Akbar in Wonderland is fast-paced and certainly a page-turner. The only time I winced was when I came across proofreading errors.
Akbar in Wonderland
By Umber Khairi
Published by Moringa Books/Reverie Publishing
341 pp; Rs 2,000
ISBN: 978-627-7742-06-5
Zohra Yusuf is Chief Creative Officer, Spectrum Communications.
Zohra Yusuf journalism book review book launch book talk pakistani literature Pakistani English Literature Umber Khairi Akbar in Wonderland
Email
Akbar’s professional and personal lives are turned topsy-turvy following his disclosure of Zed’s investigations. More alarming is the trauma he and his family undergo. The members of Akbar’s family are introduced to the reader at the beginning of the novel and it becomes clear that his is a middle-class family with deeply-rooted liberal values. However, the religiosity that has seeped into society does not leave Akbar’s family unaffected. Akbar’s cousin, Ayaz Bhai, is the epitome of the transformative effect that Ziaul Haq’s Islamisation had caused, insisting, for example, on saying “Allah Hafiz” rather than the traditional “Khuda Hafiz”.
The denouement revealed to the reader in the epilogue is disturbing, more so because it is close to the country’s reality. Akbar in Wonderland is fast-paced and certainly a page-turner. The only time I winced was when I came across proofreading errors.
Akbar in Wonderland
By Umber Khairi
Published by Moringa Books/Reverie Publishing
341 pp; Rs 2,000
ISBN: 978-627-7742-06-5
Zohra Yusuf is Chief Creative Officer, Spectrum Communications.
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