Another perspective: Urdu medium social entrepreneurship

Entrepreneurship, including social entrepreneurship, are terms that are no longer bizarre to the ears of today’s Generation Z and Y. As someone who belongs to Generation X, the generation that sought out learning centres to understand computers and experienced the frustration of working with WordPerfect, I find it both a pleasant and alarming shift. In my capacity as one of the foremost Ashoka Fellows in Pakistan — a fellowship for leading social entrepreneurs initiated by Billy Drayton of the US in 1980 — I have written and spoken extensively about the erroneous interchangeable use, overlapping, convergence of concepts such as charity work, social business, entrepreneurship and social entrepreneurship.

Now, I am relatively less agitated by the intrusion of the capitalist approach into social entrepreneurship where the monetary profit precedes purpose. Call it cowardice or realism, but I find myself striving, albeit perhaps reluctantly, to work within the system. I aim to communicate some of my notions, stances and learnings from over three decades of experience in the domain of social entrepreneurship.

Living in an era where the sole parameter of success is the number of followers on one’s social media platform, and the most persuasive technique to gain approval is not merely hardwork but shameless networking (I have seen the line “your real net worth is your network” hanging on the walls of many expensive “entrepreneurship hubs” promoting “exclusion and elitism”) is not only a test of nerves but also one’s entrepreneurial skills. Hence, it is indeed a miracle for people like myself who do not even have access to the editors of mainstream newspapers and the mysterious pied pipers of the social development industry to receive invitations to speak to young people regarding social entrepreneurship, feminism or workplace equality.

In the first two quarters of this year, I got half a dozen opportunities to speak to mostly young people in some expensive universities, big IT companies and conferences to share my ideas, innovations and impacts in the wider realm of social entrepreneurship that encompasses women empowerment, community work, safe workplaces and many interrelated themes.

Old habits die hard, and I have to admit that despite my best efforts to articulate corporate-style sensible speeches and presentations, I could not avoid following my heart. “Heart and Head Together” is my model of social entrepreneurship as well. Just in case any of you are assuming that I poured my heart out and shared stories of sorrow from my complicated life as a Pakistani woman, lamented patriarchy and highlighted misogyny, then you are absolutely wrong. I spoke about those subjects that have always remained close to my heart and were filtered through my head. I chose to voice those “radical thoughts (different from Radical Feminism)” as a young person while sitting with donors and industry big shots and reaped my share of losses. One faces undesirable consequences when speaking ahead of their time and without support. It becomes messy in an environment where people are valued based on their surnames, family connections, ability to wine and dine and capability to flatter.

Moving forward, even in my younger days, I used to emphasise the importance of connecting with people in their dialect and language. Urdu is the national language, and there are many other Pakistani languages. At least the national language and the seven key Pakistani languages must be considered when technical and aid agencies allocate resources for projects addressing various issues falling under the eight MDGs and now 17 SDGs.

The case of social entrepreneurship is quite interesting. The aura and ambiance created around this very concept somehow by default builds the image of an entrepreneur who is wearing jeans (torn off now fashionable but the original idea was to imitate Steve Jobs), with the latest model laptop and mobile in an expensive coffee house. This privileged person is the custodian of disadvantaged communities and solving their issues through innovation and ultimately going places. To maintain climate change awareness and gender responsiveness some women too are garnished on this palatable social entrepreneurship model, and they are introduced as co-founders (usually) and occasionally as founders (while hiding all resources provided by well-placed male contacts). There are exceptions too and there are genuine self-reliant and bootstrapping social entrepreneurs even within women, but they are rare, and they never reach the “heights” that are seen as the “epitome”. How many such entrepreneurs have ever been to Davos? Just a thought. As if this insult were not enough all those human beings (men, women and others) who could not get jobs despite being qualified or due to lack of social protection and safety nets are “selling” (nobody knows how profitable this business is) are working as vendors are projected as ENTREPRENEURS and rented out case studies by a well-funded “boot camp”. Wonder how long this drama will prevail? Although I have surpassed the age of being surprised at such gimmicks I still get saddened by this Deception.

Over the past three years, I have noticed some amazing works in digital spaces in the form of Urdu, Sindhi and Punjabi vlogs and podcasts by young and experienced people. Such voices must be facilitated, and there should be more like them. I used to do live TV transmissions in Urdu and produced scripts for my award-winning TV series, documentaries and theatres too. I have reverted to and immersed myself in Urdu, mastering its typing and regularly expressing myself in the language. This endeavour is just one of the many avenues I pursue to connect with those who have not been born with entitlements, aiming to empower them with fresh knowledge, information, and insights derived from hard-earned expertise.

I have chosen English for this piece, recognising its status as the language of bureaucracy and industry leaders. I hope that it finds its way to publication, sparking meaningful conversations in the places where they truly matter, particularly regarding the formal initiation of Urdu Medium Social Entrepreneurship.

Published in The Express Tribune, May 14^th, 2024.

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