I appear worried when I’m not: Faizan Haque

Television anchor Faizan Haque on honesty, love, and a certain special someone.

What is your idea of perfect happiness?

There are so many things... from trekking in the Karakoram to sipping juice with a certain someone!

What is your greatest fear?

Regret.

What is the trait you most deplore in yourself?

Forgetfulness.

What is the trait you most deplore in others?

Lying.

What is your greatest extravagance?

A Conrad-Johnson tube amplifier.

What is your current state of mind?

Smitten.

What do you consider the most overrated virtue?

Honour.

On what occasion do you lie?

I can’t think of a situation in which I would, anymore.

What do you most dislike about your appearance?

That I appear worried when I’m not.

What is the quality you most like in a man?

Honesty.

What is the quality you most like in a woman?

Honesty.

Which words or phrases do you most overuse?

“Dude” and “you know.”

When and where were you happiest?

Yesterday, when I was on the phone.

If you could change one thing about yourself, what would it be?

My inability to switch my brain off at times.

What do you consider your greatest achievement?

My travelogue “Urgentina - An Argentine Adventure” for which I travelled alone for three months across the country as cameraman, presenter and editor, shooting and managing it all by myself.

If you were to die and come back as a person or thing, what would it be?

I’d come back as me, but I’d want to live in 1984.

Where would you most like to live?

Buenos Aires, without a doubt.

What is your most treasured possession?

None, if people aren’t possessions.

What do you regard as the lowest depth of misery?

Self-loathing of any nature. Sensing that your loved ones are slipping away for the wrong reasons. AIDS and death.

If you didn’t do your current job, what would you choose to do?

I’d be an F1 pilot.

Who are your heroes in real life?

Paul Newman. Ayrton Senna. Antonioni. Tarkovsky. Bergman. Mark Knopfler. David Bowie. Brian Eno. David Lean. Horacio Pagani. Lalak Jan. Juan Manuel Fangio.

What is your greatest regret?

Not taking the steps that would have led me to Formula 1.

What’s your favourite quote?

Life’s like the surf. So give yourself away like the sea.

What kind of super powers would you like to have?

I’d like to be super-compassionate.

What’s the one thing you wish someone would invent?

A little time machine that lets me go back and make little corrections to actions and statements.

If you were stranded on a desert island, what would you take with you?

A GPS enabled communication device that could locate water, fruits, minerals, people and animals.

Published in The Express Tribune, Sunday Magazine, February 6^th, 2011.