Imagine spending three years of sleepless nights studying design, and waiting for the chance to finally build something great - a new video game console, microchip, maybe a new TV, or in one man’s case, pakoras.
For the past three years, hundreds of people daily eat scrumptious pakoray from his stall, never giving a second thought to the man holding the skimmer spoon.
Waseem Ahmed, commonly known as “Waseem pakoray wala”, in Sarafa Bazaar, never wanted to make pakoras.
“I used to play with electronic appliances and tried to fix them,” said Ahmed, a slender boy standing behind a cart putting masala (ingredients for making pakoras) into a wok half filled with oil. Since his early college days Ahmed developed an aptitude for electronics, however, even after receiving a three-year diploma in engineering, he could not pursue his aspirations.
Ahmed is the youngest of his five brothers, and has two younger sisters who are still studying. None of his brothers could study beyond intermediate, but in Ahmed, his father, Khursheed Ahmed, had spotted talent and determination to study further.
“I remember the day I got admission in the [engineering] diploma programme. My father did not have a single penny to pay my tuition fee and had borrowed money from neighbours and relatives. He truly wanted to see me as an electrical engineer,” said Ahmed.
It was during his third semester when his dad got admitted in the hospital with angina. His father had put himself under debt to fulfil his son’s dream but he died before seeing it fulfilled. But with the help of his brothers, Ahmed managed to continue his diploma. “Considering his interest we never let him abandon his studies,” said his mother.
He completed his diploma in electronics in 2008 with flying colours but his hopes of excellence were soon met with disappointment. “I lost heart, but not before paying countless visits to hundreds of offices for jobs,” he said.
Pakistan Television, Airport Security Force and Kahuta Research Laboratories were among the many places where he applied for a job. He never heard back from any of them.
“They either wanted references or bribes. I had none.”
His disappointment was shared by his siblings, who had pinned their hopes on his success. But Ahmed was from a family where life must go on. He could not afford living in mere hopes of success for long. Even then, it took no less than twelve months for his ambitions to dampen.
It was on October 17, 2009 when Ahmed decided to take up his father’s profession, making pakoras. His father was famous for making pakoras and was commonly known as “Bahia Pokray wala”.
“Life is based on hope and I will continue my struggle to become a real engineer till my last breath,” he said. “I could not become an engineer but daily I make new video game consoles and microchips in the shape of pakoras.”
Ahmed hopes that a day will come when he would be an electrical engineer working with a multinational company and share memories with colleagues of his journey from “Waseem Ahmed Pakoray wala to electrical engineer.”
Published in The Express Tribune, June 13th, 2011.
COMMENTS
Comments are moderated and generally will be posted if they are on-topic and not abusive.
For more information, please see our Comments FAQ