The Pakistani Spectator

I am Abdul Aleem and I did my BSc (Hons) in Computer Science from University of Punjab (PUCIT) Lahore. I worked for a year in Systems (Pvt) Limited as a Software Engineer and then moved to Dubai. Here I have been working for the last 3 years in different roles. Currently I am working as a Project Manager with Abu Dhabi Tourism Authority in their Application Development Section. I keep a blog Aleem’s Weblog.

Could you tell us what made you decide to blog, and what was the inspiration behind it?

I have been very expressive and an active talker from my university life and blog is a way for me to express myself. I think sharing and learning from experiences and opnions is the way we progress.

What do you think sets Your blog apart from other blogs?

I dont’t think there is anything particular as such. It is a simple technical and socio-political blog and a collection of my own experiences.

If you could choose one characteristic you have that brought you success in life, what would it be?

Since we are talking about expression, I think the good communication skills have always added value to whatever I have done till now. Thanks to my father who has always been a great inspiration and trained me from the very young age.

What was the happiest and gloomiest moment of your life?

There have been many happy moments by the grace of God and I have’nt had a gloomiest moment as yet. I pray I will never have to see one.

Urdu Blogs have got huge potential, when do you think they will really take on the online horizon in Pakistan?

A lot of people may not agree with me but I dont see a huge potential in Urdu Blogs or at least not something which you can compare with the English Blogs. It has more to do with the culture we have in Pakistan right now. We don’t honour our language more and until we do that I don’t think that will be reflected in the Blogosphere. Mostly the office language in Pakistan is English and even in educational institutes we prefer English over Urdu. The Urdu Blogging will remain on the backend unless we change this difference as a society.

If you could pick a travel destination, anywhere in the world, with no worries about how it’s paid for - what would your top 3 choices be?

Saudi Arabia, Egypt & NASA.

What is your favorite book and why?

I am not a great book reader apart from the technical (Computer Science) books. You can count me in the internet generation who go through a lot of content online but I am not very fond of actual book reading. I do read political commentry a lot and do have some interest in space sciences as well.

What is your favorite meal, dress, and sport?

Any good Pakistani dish made of chicken.

I like wearing dress pants and shirt.

I like tennis but haven’t got a chance to play. I enjoy bowling as well.

What’s the first thing you notice about a person (whether you know them or not)?

The face and facial expressions say a lot. My first impression comes from there, maybe a bit from body language as well.

Whose Future is more bright in Pakistan; English blogs or Urdu Blogs?

As I mentioned earlier I don’t see Urdu Blogging taking over unless we first make Urdu as a preferred language in our society. We need to give Urdu more respect and that will automatically be reflected in the online arena as well.

How Pakistani bloggers can benefit from blogs financially?

There are many ways including online advertisements, corporate writing etc but personally I am totally against that. You loose the uniqueness of blogging when you write for money. The blogging stands out from the other forms of journalism because it is independent of monetary and corporate influences. This is the reason the concept of blogging penetrated with such a force because it stands out from the traditional journalism. If you are writing for money, you should better join some newspaper or magazine and write for them.

Do you think Pakistani bloggers tend to remain somewhat self-centered and really don’t go out of their shells? Is it the oriental style of blogging, or they are still unsure about it?

I think they are still unsure about it  and once again its more of social issue which is reflected in the Blogs as well. We usually do not get out of our shells to discuss our problems and share our achievements.  We are groomed to be more self-centered and cautious about what we say and what we do which is something very hard to ged rid of. However, it is changing slowly and people are staring to realize the importance of connectivity and expression.

 

What do you think where the Pakistani blogosphere is right now?

The blogosphere in pakistan is slowly starting to make an impact. When governments start blocking the blog sites, it means you are making an impact. I think more maturity will follow.

Who are your top five favourite bloggers in Pakistan?

Pakistaniat - Adil Najam

Green & White

Pakistani Spectator

Teeth Maestro

Have you ever become stunned by the uniqueness of any blogger in Pakistani blogosphere?

I think Adil Najam is doing a wonderful Job. Pakistaniat.com has slowly became one of the best places to go for commentry related to issues about pakistan. I think they are very fair too and highlight issues which sometimes our print and televison media is afraid of bringing forward.

What is the future of blogging in Pakistan?

I think Blogging in pakistan can be great but we need to transform the society to become more open and expressive. In our society people by training (not by nature) are not expressive. We all need to open up a little for discussing our problems and issues. This change has already initiated and you can see the pakistani blogosphere has matured in last few years. I am hopeful that it will play an even bigger role in bringing information awareness in our country.

You have also got a blogging life, how has it directly affected both your personal and professional life?

It takes sometime from the personal life and you have to keep yourself in a certain state of mind (excited) for this. Most of the time you feel overwhelmed with the things you want to share and talk about but end up sharing nothing

What are your future plans?

I took a small initiative of setting up a software company (www.datainvent.com). It is still in very early stages and will take a few more years to mature. I have some plans for good software products and I want to pursue them. If I get a chance I would like to do an MBA as well from a good university.

Any Message you want to give to the readers of The Pakistani Spectator?
My message is to connect and communicate, discuss the issues and share your knowledge and acheivements so you can inspire. There are many negative forces in our country/society but positive people and activities even smaller can make a difference. I remember the following which I posted some time back from Martin Luther King.

When evil men plot, good men must plan; when evil men burn and bomb, good men must build and bind; when evil men shout ugly words of hatred, good men must commit themselves to the glories of love; where evil men will seek to perpetuate an unjust status quo, good men must seek to bring into being a real order of justice.

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