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No one's been able to define what Pakistani culture really is, says Osman Khalid Butt

No one's been able to define what Pakistani culture really is, says Osman Khalid Butt

"In 1980, I would've understood that, 'Oh, we don't have the means to educate ourselves.' But now? What's your excuse now?"
07 Jan, 2021

The only actor to constantly advocate for women's rights, human rights and issues plaguing the Pakistani society in general, Osman Khalid Butt has never shied away from speaking his mind and this time too, his fiery opinions were no different.

In an interview with Mira Sethi on her show, Hello! Mira Sethi, the Diyar-e-Dil actor addressed the awaam, perplexed by their constant hate and criticism on one another, as well as a perpetual disgust for feminism and all things they categorise as 'liberal' according to their own convenience.

"No one has ever been able to define to me what Pakistani culture really is," said Osman. "I remember being young and doing folk dances — Sindhi, Balochi. I used to take part in all my annual school functions. No one ever said you're distorting our cultural and moral fabric."

A photo posted by Instagram (@instagram) on

The star also said that it was unfortunate that religion was being used as a tool to manipulate, instead of a tool of enlightenment, of love, of peace, progression and coexistence.

"There was a woman exercising on national television — and it is national embarrassment, that both your news reporters and politicians questioned 'To what extent will we bare this vulgarity in the name of liberalism and westernisation'?"

"The problem is that our audience doesn't even know what liberal is. It's used as a cuss word now. 'You are pseudo-liberal, you are a western puppet. If you know such cool terminologies, then look at what philosophy feminism is. You think it is that women want to be vulgar?!"

"It's so strange to me because now the entire world is in your palms. Any information you want is on your phone. So this means that you don't want to study. It's a conscious decision. Had this been happening in 1980, I would've understood that oh, we don't have the means to educate ourselves. But now? What's your excuse now?"

Speaking on the desire to speak up on women's behalf, Butt admitted it wasn't a calculated move.

"It's just my upbringing, and the injustices I've witnessed in my own childhood which made me very sensitive to the plight of women specifically," he said, admitting that it was a quote by an American feminist, recommended by a friend, that has stuck with him like a mantra.

"'The social is the political'. Your personal problems are related to the socio-political society you find yourself in. The solutions to it will also come through social change then," the Balu Mahi actor said.

"Artists are mostly responsible for this because art is very socially relevant. It teaches you empathy," he added, revealing that he is aware how many celebrities with huge fan followings often say something problematic without realising there are many who are influenced by them.

"And it's not just that I'm saying things online. Two years into my career, I decided I won't be speaking any problematic lines in a script, especially if my character is being presented on the screen like a moral compass."

All hail, OKB!

Comments

Thinking Jan 07, 2021 03:01pm
Someone who makes absolute sense, we need more such people in India, bd, pak
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Dr. Salaria, Aamir Ahmad Jan 07, 2021 03:11pm
It's very hard if not impossible to exactly define and elaborate upon the real culture of any country in the world. For example, looking at what happened yesterday in Washington, D.C., can someone explain about the exact culture, norms, values, precedents and practices of U.S., the so-called oldest and biggest democracy in the world?
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fareed Jan 07, 2021 03:32pm
There is no such thing as Pakistani culture. In fact there are 4 binding units have the unique culture, heritage and fabulous history. So if there is any Pakistani culture will driven from one of those units.
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Kumar Sharma Jan 07, 2021 04:29pm
This guy is a balanced , well read and person of strong ethics. More power to you.
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Afaq Sher Jan 07, 2021 04:52pm
It is Pakistan’s historical, geographical, and ethnic diversity, Pakistan’s culture is a melting pot of Indian, Persian, Afghan, Central Asian, South Asian, and Western Asian influences. There are over 10+ major ethnic groups in Pakistan, which differ in physical features, historical bloodlines, customs, dress, food, and music. Some of these include Punjabis, Sindhis, Baloch, Pashtuns, Kashmiris, Hazaras, Markakis and Balti’s, coming from regions as close to home as the Indus Valley or as far as Africa or Tibet. Other than these regnal elements, the religious influence of Islam has also strongly shaped Pakistani society. it is still evolving.
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Rao Jan 07, 2021 05:03pm
Your culture is from your soil - sindhi, baloochi, Pathani, punjabi. Unfortunately you wear arabic, persian, turkic and urdu coat to deny yourself what you are. You hide hindustani music and are left with kawwalis.
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naveen Jan 07, 2021 05:27pm
@fareed agreed there is no Pakistani culture its going to be combination of current binding units and of course the influence of past-the Indian influence- lot of pakistani culture will be driven from indian culture and also some Afghan influence due to sharing of language, culture etc
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Shah Jan 07, 2021 05:47pm
Sometimes one must see the mountain from a distance to get the full view of it. I as an oversea Pakistani have a clear understanding of what Pakistani culture is. And of course there will be many subcultures in the firth largest federating nation in the world where all provinces have distinct languages, food, dress and landscapes which stretches from the arctic Himalayas to the deserts of Balochistan.
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Alih Kazmi Jan 07, 2021 06:01pm
We are at the juncture of Persia, China, South Asia, Afghanistan and Central Asia. Our religion comes from a little further away. The entire world exhibits some measure of Western culture and affects of colonialism. We are an amalgam of all of them. Related to many but not a part of any.
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RationalBabu Jan 07, 2021 06:33pm
Pakistani culture is confused because it has been trying to detach itself from its rich real history and attach itself to an alien Middle East culture purely on the basis of religion. The messy result is there for all to see!
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Chrís Dăn Jan 07, 2021 06:47pm
@fareed agreed.
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Tamilselvan Jan 07, 2021 06:48pm
Today’s Pakistan and culture are oxymorons
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Ehsan Jan 07, 2021 07:38pm
He makes perfect sense
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Paddy Jan 07, 2021 07:52pm
You want to know pakistani culture? Visit one of the many terror camps around the country.
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Critic Jan 07, 2021 07:59pm
Thuggery, deception, violence, narrow mindedness, shamelessness.....
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AZAM AKBAR Jan 07, 2021 08:36pm
Pakistan has binding units and ethnic groups, so Pakistan has a mixed culture. Mixed culture isn't harm to Pakistanis. And mixed culture can be called Pakistani culture. Very simple very easy.
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Fast comment Jan 07, 2021 08:48pm
Pakistani culture is like “ Urdu” a mixture of various cultures. A beautiful bunch of flowers in one vase.
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AZAM AKBAR Jan 07, 2021 08:58pm
@fareed Mr. fareed, Four binding units are administrative provinces. And each province has different cultures which have nothing to do with the binding units. Pakistan is a bunch of different cultures.
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Sami Jan 07, 2021 09:59pm
No culture - but we have Agriculture
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Masood A. Khan Jan 07, 2021 11:30pm
Pakistan has "NO" culture of its own. It is like a branch plucked from the tree called "India" some 75 years ago. There is an absolute clash of 5 different mini-cultures, which Mr. Jinnah thought could flourish under the "Islamic Umbrella", but I guess the regionalism flourished more and these pseudo-leaders are taking full advantage. I think the time of Jinnah's experiment is over, let us split in the four provinces and live happily, BUT get rid of these leaders.
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aftab khan Jan 07, 2021 11:51pm
Your culture is islamic that is why u r called Islamic republic of Pakistan. Your food , dressing, heros ,weeding , funeral , holy books , worships dictate your daily life and hence culture. There are little variation like ascent due to geography but your custom underpinning is Islam . This guy is also judging things and trying to understand from that Islamic prism and trying to make sense of film /drama /Events. You live , breathe culture dictated by Islam.
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Syed Hafeez Imran Jan 07, 2021 11:56pm
@Dr. Salaria, Aamir Ahmad The us is NOT the oldest or biggest democracy in the world!!!!!!!!!
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John Cool Jan 08, 2021 12:04am
Pakistan culture came to existence after 1947. The difference , add heavy dose of Islam in it,which is good. Remove or dilute past pre Pakistan culture,history and other non Muslim influence and you get incomplete past culture and present Pakistan culture.
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John Cool Jan 08, 2021 12:08am
@naveen. It is not what is and not. Its what you ignore that defines it.
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John Cool Jan 08, 2021 12:14am
Any culture is culmination of its total past if looked truthfully,but some will define it selectively based on religion, ethnicity,race, politics etc which will be pretentious and inaccurate.
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John Cool Jan 08, 2021 12:17am
@Alih Kazmi In other word, artificial.
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Ibrahim S Jan 08, 2021 02:42am
@Afaq Sher “religious influence of Islam “ Let me ask you a question . Jewish people are chosen people . Who are the chosen people in Pakistani Islam . If there is an elephant in the room and you don’t notice it whose fault is that . Quick answer : like the article states , we are trying to be Arab which we are not We are trying to Turkish which we are not We are trying to be Persian which we are not We are trying to shed Indian ancestry which we can’t do it . The crux of the whole issue is the Urdu speaking people who speak the sabe language that Indians do but write it Arabic script to disguise it , the sane way Punjabi script met it fate and Islamized it to keep a separate identity based on religion . If in doubt please Google it
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Laila Jan 08, 2021 02:59am
@naveen can you elaborate on that Afghan culture you think we Pakistanis have? Do you know any Afghans and have you experienced Afghan culture? I do and both are really not linked to our socalled Pakistani culture which is mostly inherited from Indians and Hindus. Our uedue language is closely linked to their Hindi language which is why we can understand them. Pakistanis can't understand Afghan language like Dari or can communicate with them. The only Pakistanis who can claim such a link are pure pakhtuns. Not those who claim it but those who don't marry outside and have preserved their culture and language. Those are not the majority.
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Laila Jan 08, 2021 03:07am
OKB always makes sense. He made some real accurate observations. Our society loves throwing around word like "liberal/libralism" when we come across something we either don't like or is new to us, we immediately shun it as liberal or western, using both words as slurs and without understanding the words. Liberal does not mean what we think it does. Wikipedia has an extensive article on this issue. This is 2021. The digital age. It's ridiculous to think we can live in a bubble and not be influenced by other people and cultures. Also we need to desperately understand that culture changes with time. It does not stay the same. Just like we people change. We are not the same as we were decades ago. Pakistani is a young nation, still finding its ground. I hope we will stop trying to claim Arab, Turkish, Iranian, Afghan culture ad instead embrace the diversity and richness of our own culture and allow others to live how they like. All 225 million of us Pakistanis can't be the same.
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Sane Jan 08, 2021 04:54am
This guy seems worth following. Thought leader, rare breed in land of the pure.
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joe Jan 08, 2021 06:38am
@Afaq Sher Other than these regnal elements, the religious influence of Islam has also strongly shaped Pakistani society. "" If not enforced by state Religion per say can't have influence on society in general.
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K Jan 08, 2021 07:56am
It’s Indian culture with dark religious lines.
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Zahid Jan 08, 2021 08:09am
@fareed each unit has multiple sub units
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aijaz gul Jan 08, 2021 08:18am
Good reading
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Irfan ul Huq Jan 08, 2021 09:25am
Culture is what is cultivated over many years at a given region. The region is like a petri dish where things grow on their own provided the right material is available. It is influenced by the socio economic condition,the language of the region. An example I migrated from Bihar to East Pakistan to Karachi to America .I have visited my My relatives in India and Pakistan. After 60 years the same people are very different culturally in India and Pakistan. My children and grandchildren are very different culturally from what I have Left Behind. India has no particular culture of its own there is a Bengali culture a Gujrati culture and south Indian culture. in Karachi the culture on one side of the shariae Faisal is very different from the other side of Shariae faisal. Religion is another factor which can in influence by its intrusion in the region and change the culture in a short period of time as it happened in Iran Saudi Arabia and Pakistan and now happening in India.
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Arsha Jan 08, 2021 10:17am
@aftab khan what is meant by Islamic culture.... culture in Indonesia is very different from Saudi is very different from UAE is very different from Nigeria .... including language, food, clothing and customs. So what is definition of Islamic culture?
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Xy Jan 08, 2021 10:23am
@Irfan ul Huq Bengali. South Indian, punjabi ... these are all Indian cultures only ... can’t say that India doesn’t have a culture of its own.... diversity is big element of Indian culture..... Infact even in South India has multiple cultures within - what you will see in Kerala would be very different from Tamilnadu..
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indian Jan 08, 2021 10:55am
@fareed b c, what history are you talking about?
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SATT Jan 08, 2021 10:56am
Same as Indian.
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vin Jan 08, 2021 10:57am
@Irfan ul Huq They are all Hindutva. You are confusing diversity/Hinduism with culture. Apart from Indian Muslims, rest follow Hindutva more or less in India.
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Sammy Jan 08, 2021 11:02am
I see Pakistan as multicultural, multiracial society. Over the centuries of migrations and invasions- periods of prosperity, destruction and reconstruction, we have now have become a perfect blend of many races - the blend that gave birth to a unique language, understood and spoken by all, called Urdu. Yes the majority religion is the major influence on our society- but how much we study and reflect on it and interpret it and apply it to our 21st century problems and challenges is a separate debate.
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Chrís Dăn Jan 08, 2021 11:21am
@Rao Urdu speakings have their root culture. Do not ignore it. It is our ancesstors language and culture when one sub continent. Nations leaving actua legey behind do nt grow. You deny importance of classical music which comes from sub continent and from all muslims in past?
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Chrís Dăn Jan 08, 2021 11:21am
@Paddy or any village where honor killing is a part of daily culture.
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Chrís Dăn Jan 08, 2021 11:25am
@Irfan ul Huq I fully agree being myself through many cultures since childhood.
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Irfan ul Huq Jan 08, 2021 02:08pm
@Xy Yes they are Indian cultures because they are within the boundaries of India but they are not culture of India. The South has nothing to do with Bengal the South has its own language iys on movies they don't even understand Bengali or the bengalis don't understand South. Yes the may live in harmony but still it will not be one culture India has no culture of its own to be known as Indian culture.
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Afaq Sher Jan 09, 2021 07:19am
@Rao you must visit Pakistan to see Arabic, Persian, Turkic and Urdu coat and to listen to our only music of qawwali that we know to listen and sing.
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Laila Jan 10, 2021 01:19am
@Afaq Sher there is no Arabic, Persian, Turkic, as we in Pakistan have nothing do with them. All you need to do is open a few history books and study genealogy. Science doesn't lie. We are selective and largely ignorant about history. It's more than 5000 years old. Instead of claiming others culture and ethnicity why don't we study our own and embrace it?
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Aamir Akram Jan 10, 2021 04:30am
Its confused veering from one extreme to another .. OKB you are a microcosm of what 'it' is!
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