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Umar Marvi and the Representation of Sindh: Cinema and Modernity in the Margins
Abstract
Umar Marvi, the first Sindhi feature film made in Pakistan, was released in 1956, in the context of the One Unit, when the merger of West Pakistan’s provinces pushed Sindhi intellectuals, students, and politicians to assert themselves in defense of their language and culture. By depicting the story of a famous folk heroine heralded as a patriotic figure by Sindh’s most prominent nationalist leader, we contend that Umar Marvi contributed to the construction of a modern national imaginary for Sindhis in post-Partition Pakistan. This imaginary rests on a narrative that conceives Sindhis as a peaceful and syncretic folk culture continuously occupying the mythicized land of the Indus. We show that Umar Marvi takes part in this narrative by portraying a certain image of an idealized community and by representing a fixed, folklorized heritage while attempting to master cinema as the medium of modernity.
... This re-framing of the folk narratives serves as the hegemonic instrument to reduce seduction, rape, consensual sex, or marriage-based conversion to a single libelous denominator of 'forced conversion', the religious connotation that is in line not only with Sufi nationalist ideology but also acceptable problem identifier for the protagonists of Political Islam and Hindutva ideology. Hence, in this manner, these narratives of force, coercion, seduction and rape derived from the folktales and re-framed by the Progressives The reinvigorated literary assertion of Sindhi nationalists during the 1950s that reframed the narrative of Marvi was also noticed by Levesque and Bui (2014) in their cinematographic study of first Sindhi movie 'Umar-Marvi' made in 1956. They argued that the movie 'contributed to the construction of a modern national imaginary for Sindhis in post-Partition Pakistan' (see Levesque and Bui 2014, pp. ...
This paper is an attempt to understand the appropriation of spaces of Dalits by Sindhi progressive activists and short story writers in Pakistan as they construct, or rather undermine, caste at the anvil of religion and gender to reframe their own theo-political agenda premised on political Sufism or Sufi nationalism. I specifically discuss the narratives emergent of the three popular short stories that are reframed as having exceptional emancipatory potential for the Dalits. Assessing the emancipatory limits of the Sindhi progressive narrative, I argue that while the short stories purport to give fuller expression to religious, gender-based, and class dimensions of the problem, it elides the problem of casteism and the subsequent existential demand of Dalit emancipation. Given the hegemonic influence of local Ashrafia class, the internal caste frictions are glossed over through political Sufism or Sindhi nationalism. This gloss of politicized Sufism hampers Dalit agency and rather facilitates the appropriation of Dalit spaces by the Ashrafia class. This leads to the conclusion that the seemingly progressive literary-political narratives framed in theo-political idiom may offer to the oppressed no more than token sympathy, compassion, self-pity, and false pride in legends. Instead, they allow the appropriation of spaces and events of the oppressed, and the objectification of oppressed bodies by the oppressor.
... The nationalist aspirations of vernacular filmmaking in Sindh are equally interesting, even if their number and commercial success has been modest. Levesque and Bui's close analysis of Umar Marvi (1956) (Levesque and Bui, 2014) suggests this film can be viewed within the same framework that Benedict Anderson places print-capitalism for its historic role in forging nationalism across Europe, Latin America, and beyond from the eighteenth century. The authors identify a curious dualism in the apparent self-consciousness of its particularism, which suggests an acute awareness that the rest of the country might also be watching. ...
This introductory article identifies some of the conceptual issues and themes worth considering in the pursuit of a broader and deeper knowledge about the cinema in Pakistan than currently exists. It does so with reference to several of the papers in this special issue and a number of recently published scholarly works on culture and politics in the Pakistani context. The article probes existing discourses on Pakistani film in a bid to clear the way for more nuanced conversations, asking: What is meant in precise terms when cinema’s “death” is spoken of and what are the implicit assumptions about the nature of cinematic “life” that flow from it? What, more fundamentally, is meant by “Pakistani cinema,” and what sorts of elisions and conflations result from its vague and polemical usage as a generic epithet encompassing film output from so vast and historically unstable an entity as Pakistan? A final set of questions centers around the term “industry.” Here again, defining and disentangling the terms of reference is a useful starting point for exploration of other units of analysis that may be appropriate for describing social realities and aesthetic forms than the clunky lexicon of life and death currently allows.
The article attempts to examine the construction and representation of minority identities in the visual cultures of Pakistan, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka, thereby endeavouring to establish a cinematic historiography of South Asia. Since the cinematic medium can accomplish what written history cannot, this article makes an effort to understand the underlying causes of linearity and simultaneity which are fortes of the moving image, with regard to visual construction and representation of religious, ethno-linguistic and sexual identities. The major objectives of this article are to establish a comparative framework for the study of South Asian cinema with focus on films from Pakistan, Bangladesh and Sri Lanka, outline a possible theoretical structure for the future study of South Asian cinema, contextualize the intervening spaces between cinema and politics—particularly the realms of cinematic representation of religious or communal identities in South Asian cinema, categorise existing trends and observe transformations in the methodology of cinematic representation of identities.
This paper is an attempt to understand the appropriation of spaces of Dalits by Sindhi Progressive activists and short story writers in Pakistan as they construct or rather undermine caste at the anvil of religion and gender to project their own religio-political agenda premised on political Sufism or Sufi nationalism. I specifically discuss the narratives emergent of the three popular short stories that are projected as having exceptional emancipatory potential for the Dalits and (Dalit) women. Assessing the emancipatory limits of Sindhi Progressive narrative, I argue while that the short stories purport to give fuller expression to religious, gender-based and class dimension of the problematic, it elides the problem of casteism and the subsequent existential demand of Dalit emancipation. Given the hegemonic influence of local Ashrafia class, the internal caste frictions are glossed over through political Sufism or Sindhi nationalism.
This paper is an attempt to understand the appropriation of spaces of Dalits by Sindhi Progressive activists and short story writers in Pakistan as they construct or rather undermine caste at the anvil of religion and gender to reframe their own religio-political agenda premised on political Sufism or Sufi nationalism. I specifically discuss the narratives emergent of the three popular short stories that are reframed as having exceptional emancipatory potential for the Dalits and (Dalit) women. Assessing the emancipatory limits of Sindhi Progressive narrative, I argue while that the short stories purport to give fuller expression to religious, gender-based and class dimension of the problematic, it elides the problem of casteism and the subsequent existential demand of Dalit emancipation. Given the hegemonic influence of local Ashrafiyya class, the internal caste frictions are glossed over through political Sufism or Sindhi nationalism. This gloss of politicised Sufism hampers Dalit agency and rather facilitates the appropriation of Dalit spaces by Ashrafiyya class. This leads to conclude that the seemingly progressive literary-political narratives framed in religio-political idiom may offer to the oppressed not more than a token sympathy, compassion, self-pity and false pride in vague history. Instead, they allow the appropriation of spaces and events of the oppressed, and the objectification of oppressed bodies by the oppressor.
“Here is a book that brings logic to the most unruly of disciplines, literary interpretation. Viewing this subject within the tradition of hermeneutics, Mr. Hirsch is able to trace its origins and development with brilliant insight. The result is a lucidly systemic and authoritative account of the premises and procedures applicable to the interpretation of a literary text. Mr. Hirsch has performed a monumental service thereby that of reinstating the credentials of objectivism and defining the limits of the aesthetics of truth. This study is a necessary took for anyone who wants to talk sense about literature.”—Virginia Quarterly Review
By demonstrating the uniformity and universality of the principles of valid interpretation of verbal texts of any sort, this closely reasoned examination provides a theoretical foundation for a discipline that is fundamental to virtually all humanistic studies. It defines the grounds on which textual interpretation can claim to establish objective knowledge, defends that claim against such skeptical attitudes as historicism and psychologism, and shows that many confusions can be avoided if the distinctions between meaning and significance, interpretation and criticism are correctly understood.
Alyssa Ayres' fascinating study examines Pakistan's troubled history by exploring the importance of culture to political legitimacy. Early leaders selected Urdu as the natural symbol of the nation's great cultural past, but due to its limited base great efforts would be required to make it truly national. This paradox underscores the importance of cultural policies for national identity formation. By comparing Pakistan's experience with those of India and Indonesia, the author analyzes how their national language policies led to very different outcomes. The lessons of these large multiethnic states offer insights for the understanding of culture, identity, and nationalism throughout the world. The book is aimed at scholars in the fields of history, political theory, and South Asian studies, as well as those interested in the history of culture and nationalism in one of the world's most complex, and challenging, countries. © Alyssa Ayres 2009 and Cambridge University Press, 2009. All rights reserved.
Preface to this edition, by Steven Lukes Introduction to the 1984 edition, by Lewis Coser Introduction to this edition, by Steven Lukes Durkheim's Life and Work: Timeline 1858-1917 Suggestions for Further Reading Original Translator's Note The Division of Labour in Society by Emile Durkheim Preface to the First Edition (1893) Preface to the Second Edition (1902) Introduction PART I: THE FUNCTION OF THE DIVISION OF LABOUR 1. The Method of Determining This Function 2. Mechanical Solidarity, or Solidarity by Similarities 3. Solidarity Arising from the Division of Labour, or Organic Solidarity 4. Another Proof of the Preceding Theory 5. The Increasing Preponderance of Organic: Solidarity and its Consequences 6. The Increasing Preponderance of Organic: Solidarity and its Consequences (cont.) 7. Organic Solidarity and Contractual Solidarity PART II: THE CAUSES AND CONDITIONS 8. The Progress of the Division of Labour and of Happiness 9. The Causes 10. Secondary Factors 11. Secondary Factors (cont.) 12. Consequences of the Foregoing PART III: THE ABNORMAL FORMS 13. The Anomic Division of Labour 14. The Forced Division of Labour 15. Another Abnormal Form Conclusion Original Annotated Table of Contents
Life after partition: Migration, community and strife in Sindh
- S Ansari
Ansari, S. (2005). Life after partition: Migration, community and strife in Sindh, 1947-1962. Karachi: Oxford
University Press.
Jiye sindh jiye sindh (collected poems)
- H B Jatoi
Jatoi, H. B. (1988). Jiye sindh jiye sindh (collected poems). Hyderabad: Hyder Buksh Jatoi Academy.
Kabir, A. (1969). The cinema in Pakistan. Dacca: Sandhani Publications.
Nationhood and the nationalities in Pakistan
- H Alavi
Alavi, H. (1989). Nationhood and the nationalities in Pakistan. Economic and Political Weekly, 24(27), 1527-1534.
L'analyse (morpho) logique du récit
- P Larivaille
Larivaille, P. (1974). L'analyse (morpho) logique du récit. Poétique, 19, 368-388.
Sindhudesh: A study of its separate identity through the ages
- G M Syed
Syed, G. M. (1991). Sindhudesh: A study of its separate identity through the ages. Karachi: G. M. Syed Academy.
---. (1996). Shah Latif and his message. Sehwan: Saeen Publishers.
Political dynamics of Sindh 1947-1977
- T A Tahir
Tahir, T. A. (2010). Political dynamics of Sindh 1947-1977. Karachi: Pakistan Studies Centre, University of Karachi.
Tönnies, F. (2001). Community and civil society. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Community and civil society
- F Tönnies
The nation and its fragments
- P Chatterjee
Shah Latif and his message
- G M Syed
The cinema in Pakistan
- A Kabir
came out in 1940, followed in 1952 by two films on major Sindhi figures: Rafiq Chaman's Pir Sibghatullah Shah in Pakistan, a fictionalized documentary on Pir Pagara and the Hur Movement, and Bhagat Kanwar Ram in India
- Ekta
Ekta, a short feature directed by Kareem Bux Nizamani, came out in 1940, followed in 1952 by two films
on major Sindhi figures: Rafiq Chaman's Pir Sibghatullah Shah in Pakistan, a fictionalized documentary
on Pir Pagara and the Hur Movement, and Bhagat Kanwar Ram in India, on the famous preacher and singer
assassinated in Sukkur in 1939.
Sindhi folklore: An introductory survey
- P Chatterjee
Chatterjee, P. (1992). The nation and its fragments. New Delhi: Oxford University Press.
Doctor, R. (1985). Sindhi folklore: An introductory survey. Folklore, 96(2), 223-233.