Laraib Nisar
The history of art is as old as the history of mankind itself, because human brain is designed to be creative, and the best manifestation of this creativity is evident in the evolution of the arts domain across the world. Pakistan being a country full of individuals with matchless potential and creativity, has witnessed thousands of prominent names in the arts sector since its inception. From using calligraphic posters claiming independence and doing short skits to inculcate a desire for independence, now the artists in the country are using their work to advocate social issues. But unfortunately, like most of other sectors in Pakistan, the arts domain also shows a deeply entrenched gender inequality. Issues like demoralizing women at the beginning of their art careers, underrepresentation of female artists’ work.
In its efforts to highlight the struggle that women face while thriving in the Arts sector in Pakistan, the Center of Research and Security Studies (CRSS) Islamabad held a talk with Ms. Nigar Nazar, CEO Gogi Studios, and the first female cartoonist in the Muslim world. While shedding light on her journey as a female artist, she stated that the key to success in this field is consistency. If one persistent in her work, a lot of opportunities come her way. But, it must be kept in mind that one has to find opportunities for herself, no one serves them as a piece of cake. Becoming our own support system and always trying to improve our work can help in succeeding. Failures and rejections are inevitable in every carrier, but one should know how to handle them constructively and improve their work after it.
While encouraging young females to pursue their dreams, she stated that it is imperative to follow our dreams, without caring about others’ thoughts and opinions regarding them. Because if one is ambitious to make a difference, and contribute in nation building, they should pursue their dreams and aspirations. If they’re not hurting someone’s sentiments, and not being unkind and unrighteous towards any one while following their aspirations, they’re good to go. She also mentioned that thinking out of the box and being creative is essential to flourish in arts, and women should try to channel their art and creativity into new media to keep their content unique and interesting. For example, since everyone enjoys stories and finds them interesting, art should be channeled to stories for creating a difference. Engaging and interesting stories which contain a moral lesson and address the issues of the readers’ lives can transform the society.
Ms. Nazar largely emphasized on promoting meaningful art. She believed that art should always carry a message and should advocate social issues and give ways for their resolution. It should also sensitize the target audience about important subjects. The messages disseminated from art can become life changing for many. Moreover, art is the best way to bring a change, nothing influences minds (especially young minds) like a message depicted in art.
While highlighting the significance of the habit of reading books, she stated that the technological evolution has diminished the reading culture in kids in Pakistan. Books should be the best friends of the younger generations in order for their proper cognitive and educational development. Every book has an innovative lesson and massage for children to learn, so a habit of reading must be established in children. She suggested this can be done by allotting a library hour to kids where they aren’t allowed to use any gadget or device, or by allotting an hour to art at television in the prime hours, because art has a great visual impact, and informative artistic documentaries and animations can be used to educate children.
While stating a way forward for the development of the art sector in Pakistan, she recommended that Pakistan is a country full of talented human capital, we should try to promote our artists and their work to uphold Pakistan’s image as a country that cherishes creativity, uniqueness and cultural distinctiveness. Offering modern art courses at universities and colleges along with revamping the art curriculum at school level can help in bringing new and more artists and making Pakistan able to compete at international art contests and achieve national praise. It must be kept in mind that while a normal human brain stops proper creative functioning at old age, a creative mind keeps working and stays productive, so promoting art is essential to have an intellectually creative and vibrant human capital.
The author Laraib Nisar is a Defense and Strategic Studies’ graduate, working as a Research Associate at Center for Research and Security Studies (CRSS) Islamabad.
