Karachi vs. Kansas: Across (popular) cultures

Faryal (F): Even though Natasha and I have lived in the United States for either our entire lives or the latter parts of our lives, we both actively try to remain connected to the culture of Pakistan. For me, culture, specifically fashion, was one of the most important ways I expressed my Pakistani heritage. We would dress up in our best attempts at the latest fashions for daawats (dinners hosted by family friends), Eid and weddings. Every few years, my mom and I would buy a semi-ridiculous number of shalwar kameez, trying to stay up to date with the fashion in a country that cycles dramatically through styles due to its thriving textile industry.

Natasha (N): Yes, it’s really cool how commodities such as fashion and music help us navigate and express our identities. I sadly don’t have as much of a Pakistani community here in the United States, so I’m always eager for my visits back when I get to catch up on everything. More recently, I’ve explored synthesizing elements of South Asian fashion into my everyday wardrobe, which is most easily done with jewelry. In fact, following South Asian American fashion bloggers and seeing their media presence become more prolific has been really helpful in centering myself between all the dichotomies we’ve discussed.

F: Exactly. Similarly, we are also both very into Bollywood and, more recently, the Pakistani music industry, as a way to keep us connected to the regional culture. In Kansas City, there is one theatre that occasionally shows the most recent Bollywood film. As you walk into the theatre, you are greeted by about 100 South Asians of all different backgrounds saving seats for their friends in anticipation of the film they’ve heard their family back home talk about. You even get the experience of hearing people yell at the screen in admiration when Salman Khan makes his entrance. Everyone already knows the songs because we’ve been listening to them on YouTube in the preceding weeks.

N: I’ve noticed from travelling between Pakistan and the United States is that there is a deep discrepancy between how “Americans” and South Asians consume popular culture and how they perceive each other consuming it. For example, in the United States, South Asians are often viewed as not being in touch with “American” culture, movies, songs, etc., while I’ll find that I’m often more up to date with Bollywood than so many of my cousins who live in Pakistan. This just complicates how we see culture as a means of connecting us to our roots because globalization has essentially warped our ability to distinguish cultural commodities. I am still blindsided by how many people I encounter genuinely seem to believe that people in Pakistan don’t have cell phones or that everyone rides around on camels. Then again, I am also guilty of Instagramming myself on a camel after a trip to Karachi.  

F: It’s so difficult to balance the nostalgia of wanting to stay connected to our ideas of what our culture is or should be through things like fashion and movies, but not overly idealizing them to the point where they are not in line with reality.