Although I've lived in Karachi from the day I was born and have never lived in any other city of this world, I am still incapable of fully understanding this masterpiece. This is a city which people refer to as home but yet at the same time just can't stop being hopeless. People keep on loving it even though it sucks from them the joy of living but still they can't just hate it. It is orthodox. Sometimes, full of religious injunctions. At the same time, the city houses those who live life to the most secular end. This is a city where people you'll see the rich enjoying life like nothing ever happened. And a poor population being crushed between the sheer madness, ignorance, inflation, strikes and hatred. The cafes are still filled with people buying cappuccinos and cold coffee. A city with people still queuing for Ginsoy and still enjoying the Bundoo Khan tikkas. Bakeries still get to make couture cakes. Fashion is still at its peak with numerous Fashion weeks being conducted. Cinemas are still visited by movie lovers. Literature and Art are still being celebrated through festivals and stage shows. You still see people using Iphones, Ipads and almost every expensive gadget. There is still life in the city. But then come the contradictions; People are increasingly getting mugged. Unemployment is gobbling the future of the young graduates. Intellectuals are moving away. People are being killed in the name of religion. They are being taken away their right to freedom of speech. They are growing immune to the everyday killings, snatching and the increasing death toll while the city grows to become more and more prone towards terrorism. The future of this beautiful and awe inspiring city is hazy and the sunlight is being blocked by a mass of heavy, dark clouds. But somehow Karachiites find the sliver lining and live by it until another heartbreaking incident occurs and then the cycle hope and sorrow goes on and on.
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