Pakistani Readers discussion
Debates n Discussions
>
On death of Tariq Aziz.
date
newest »
newest »
That was well a very deep post.I don't have much else, if anything to add. I'm too young to have actually seen Tariq Aziz on TV more than once or twice but there was something special about his shows. A kind of dignity? That I haven't seen in others.
Tariq Aziz was an iconic man , and this comes from someone who barely knew him , and he shall be missed.
The ennui thing is pretty good food for thought. It's true what you say. Instant gratification doesn't have that same satisfaction.
Hey. Can anyone tell me who is Tariq Aziz. I don't know him as I am an Indian.
My siblings and I used to watch his shows with our nano. We loved his hand-raised-in-the-air walk. I agree with you, Jogi. The content we watched as a child was a million times better than what we're being fed now.
Mod
He was the first very first Pakistan Television Host in 1964 when it started. He was an actor, Tv host, poet and one of the best poetry narrator in the country.
He is famous for a TV show called Bazam e Tariq Aziz which ran for more than 3 decades on TV, so in Pakistan, a lot of people grew watching him on this popular show. A legend.
I think he was one of the honest journalist. Or else no one will be mourning a TV host's death
Amna wrote: "I think he was one of the honest journalist. Or else no one will be mourning a TV host's death"He wasn't a journalist. Just a TV host with a unique style. The only style that ever mattered.
Tariq Aziz was probably the last remnant of a civilized media. He was from the time when the attention span of an average viewer was more than a few seconds and people weren't generally low on consciousness while watching TV. It didn't take bright colours, bland music, and discordant noise to keep them glued to the screen. People back then knew ennui, and they knew how best to endure it: with art. And it showed in Tariq Aziz' shows, in every poetic interlude and recitation. All around, there was an appreciation for art; art alone was the focus, the fun was just the by-product. Or perhaps those were just good times for PTV in general...
I can't help but hypothesize that the vulgarity of today's TV game shows is not because we're influenced by Western or Indian media but because as humans living in modern civilization we naturally tend toward quick gratification. We have forgotten ennui, which is in my opinion an essential aspect of human existence. Ennui is the only state of mind which seeks escape solely through art -- be it poetry, good music, prose, or creation. Every other state of mind -- joy, grief, melancholy, satisfaction, etc -- comes with an 'object' and seeks that (or more of that) object. If a loved one dies, one's grief only looks for the loved one; and the only reason grief lasts a while is because the object of its desire is no longer there; it must rattle in its cage until it dies on its own. Ennui alone comes without any object. It is what you have when you don't know what else you should have. It used to be quite a common experience for people before 21st century, but now there are so many ways to abuse our dopamine receptors that such a fundamental aspect of human existence is lost to us, and with it, our appreciation for the sombre, slow, and sublime.
For me, the death of Tariq Aziz marks the death of ennui, at least in Pakistan. We are now, in terms of art at least, a truly modern society. The hallmark of a modern society is that art in it is very popular but also extremely unimportant. It's just another way to let go, to mitigate the stress of the quotidian life. It's never been more important for us to ensure that we don't miss out on that fundamental aspect of human existence, because now more than ever we are wont to do so. For those of you who have children: make sure you pass it onto them, the fragments of a more sombre and thoughtful existence. Without it, we'll just be puppets...and we are.