Politically ‘correct’: ‘Seeing the state of TV, I am forced to support censorship’

Anwar Maqsood speaks on his experience with state-controlled media under Zia.

LAHORE:

The current government has done more for this country in terms of development than any other government in history, playwright Anwar Maqsood told a hushed audience at the Lahore University of Management Sciences (LUMS) on Wednesday evening. “But then again I only watch PTV.”

Laughter rang out from all corners of the auditorium as Maqsood delivered a witty monologue replete with the razor-sharp satire that has become his trademark. The talk was titled Being Politically Correct Is the New Name of Censorship: An Insight into the Role Importance of Media and Cultural Group.

“Najam Sethi was invited here to speak before me,” Maqsood said. “The only difference between us is that I don’t share Aapas ki Baat with anyone... and I don’t believe such conversations need to be shared with the public either.”



Recalling the years of strict media censorship during General Ziaul Haq’s era, Maqsood discussed the ways in which he had tried to circumvent the state’s control on dissemination of news.

In 1987, General Zia’s sons asked Maqsood to host a show marking Imran Khan’s retirement from cricket. “I started off saying that Pakistanis were sad in 1971 with the Fall of Dhaka but then Imran Khan emerged the same year and made everyone happy.” He said he went on to list Khan’s achievements and thousands of people in the audience gave Khan a standing ovation. “But then I came to General Zia.” He said the venerable president, who was sitting in the audience, had only one distinction to his credit, which is, superseding eight generals.

Maqsood said that he was supposed to end that event in an hour but he went on for three. The president sat through the entire session.

“I returned to my hotel after the event and was woken up at 3am and taken to the presidency where General Zia and the top military brass were waiting for me.” General Zia demanded an explanation for why he (Maqsood) had ranted for so long and made him late for a meeting with the French ambassador. “I said, sir, you have a habit of being late. You came for 90 days and are here seven years later.”

He said General Zia told him that no other television host would dare say this to his face and no other president would take such insolence sitting. “But you should go home.” A few days after that, General Zia asked Maqsood to host an All Pakistan Newspapers Society ceremony in Karachi.

“But Imran Khan became furious when I joked about Aqib Javed’s hat-trick on my television show. He got General Zia to shut down the show.”

Maqsood said he was asked to apologise but he did not, so the programme was never aired.

To a question during the question-answer session he said, “I used to oppose censorship, but seeing the current state of TV channels nowadays, I am forced to support it.”

Maqsood promised to speak on Allama Iqbal when he visited LUMS the next time. His talk ended with a standing ovation. Several students clambered over each other to take ‘selfies’ with him.

Published in The Express Tribune, November 27^th, 2014.