Observer Research Foundation Mumbai

Ideas and Actions for the Better India

Tasveer-e-Mumbai & Tasveer-e-Karachi

ORF Mumbais unique initiative to promote mutual trust and

people-to-people exchanges between India and Pakistan

Press Statement by Sudheendra Kulkarni, Chairman, ORF Mumbai

28 June 2016

Observer Research Foundation (ORF) Mumbai, a leading public policy think tank, has been
engaged in varied activities aimed at contributing to peaceful, friendly and good-neighbourly
relations between India and Pakistan. Our latest initiative is the establishment of the Mumbai
Karachi Friendship Forum, which seeks to revive the rich shared history between the two
Gateway Cities of India and Pakistan. There exists much scope, also a pressing need, to
strengthen the common cultural lineage, social bonds and potential business cooperation
between the two cities.
We believe that peace, prosperity and stability in the entire South Asia region depends on early
normalisation of relations between India and Pakistan. We fully support the ongoing efforts of
the two governments in this regard, and urge immediate resumption of the bilateral dialogue on
all issues including elimination of terrorism and religious extremism, and peaceful resolution of
the dispute over Jammu & Kashmir. However, we also believe that normalisation of IndiaPakistan relations cannot be left to governments and diplomats alone; people-to-people contacts
and dialogue also must be expanded in a big way. The Mumbai Karachi Friendship Forum is a
small step in this direction.

The forums first-of-its-kind peacemaking project is called Tasveer-e-Mumbai (Images of

Mumbai) and Tasveer-e-Karachi (Images of Karachi). Under this project, ORF has sponsored
five eminent photographers from Karachi to come to Mumbai and five eminent photographers
from Mumbai to visit Karachi. The Pakistani contingent arrived in Mumbai on June 20 and will
return on June 30. The Indian contingent is expected to travel to Karachi in the first half of July.
Their photographs will be curated by a panel for exhibitions to be held simultaneously in both
cities during the fortnight of the Indian and Pakistani Independence days 15 and 14 August
2016.
The participating photographers are:
Indian contingent:

Pakistani contingent:

Chirodeep Chauduri, Photo Editor, Nat Geo (India)

Indranil Mukherjee, Senior Photojournalist, AFP
Prashant Nakwe, Photo Editor, The Hindu
SL Shanth Kumar, Photojournalist, Times of India
Harkiran Singh Bhasin, Documentary photographer

Malika Abbas, Photojournalist, Dawn

Farah Mahbub, Fine art photographer and Educator
Amean J., Eminent fashion photographer
Mobeen Ansari, Photojournalist and Storyteller
Malcolm Hutcheson, Documentary photographer

We are pleased to have the Dawn Media Group, Pakistan, as our partner organisation for this
event. In addition, Better Photography (Network 18) Asias premier photography magazine
is our media partner.
The Pakistani photographers spent a week exploring the city of Mumbai through their creative
lens. Collectively, theyve captured the ethos of the city through cultural landmarks such as the
Gateway of India, Crawford Market and Haji Ali Dargah, studies of the citys vibrant Parsi and
Sindhi communities, the practice of sport among the youth, studies of the communities living
along the Mithi River, and portraits of Mumbaikars from different walks of life. Through their
pictures, they have attempted to highlight the startling similarities between Mumbai and Karachi,
as well as underscore crucial differences.
Furthermore, the photographers have had the opportunity to learn about the city through their
interactions with locals. They were able to witness first hand Mumbais thriving Urdu culture at
an Inter-Faith Iftar organised at Bhendi Bazaar by Urdu Markaz and ORF Mumbai. They got a
glimpse of Bollywood through an interaction with director Kabir Khan, maker of the superhit film
Bajrangi Bhaijaan, and by attending a film shoot at Mehboob Studio. They witnessed the
increasing consciousness for heritage conservation that is gripping the city. Their stay in
Mumbai afforded them the opportunity to simultaneously view the challenges the city faces, as
well as its resilience in overcoming them.
***

Some of our planned activities are:

1) Organising Marathi/Gujarati/Urdu/Parsi Festivals in Karachi in cooperation with the
respective communities living there.
2) Release of a reprint of the first-ever biography of Dr Babasaheb Ambedkar in Marathi by
Tanaji Balaji Kharawtekar. It was published in Karachi in 1946.
3) A campaign to demand the opening of the Indian consulate in Karachi and the Pakistani
consulate in Mumbai.
4) A campaign to convert Jinnah House in Mumbai into an India-Pakistan Friendship
Centre.
5) Supporting visits of eminent Indian and Pakistani socio-political leaders, scholars, artists,
and journalists.
6) Removal of unnecessary visa restrictions for Indians to travel to Pakistan and vice versa.
For further information, contact:
Sayli Udas Mankikar: +91 9820201107
Nilesh Bane: +91 9892745685