Abdus Salam in Pop Culture

by Salman Hameed

Abdus Salam is a big name in physics and Pakistan's only Nobel Laureate. But it is rare to hear his name in Pakistan. All of this because he belonged to the Ahmadi sect of Muslims - a sect whose discrimination is part of the Pakistani constitution since the 1970s.

There is a new music video out in Pakistan that is completely irreverent to the political and military establishment. And in it, it also manages to pay homage to Abdus Salam. Zakir Thaver, who has been working on a documentary of Abdus Salam, pointed me to this video and noted the usual lack of any reference of Abdus Salam in pop culture. So its great to see Salam's name showing up in here.

Here is the video, Aalo Anday. The references in the video are about different political and military leaders, along with a host of other perceptions common in Pakistan today. Unless, you are privy to the political happenings in Pakistan, it will be hard to get a handle on them (though, here is a helpful primer to these references). But for our purposes, the Salam mention is around 1:36.
[p.s. Two names mentioned and contrasted prior to Salam are those of Qadri and Kasab - responsible for the assassination of Governor of Punjab and the Mumbai attacks, respectively].

Now Pakistan has a long history of sharp political satire. But there is something about this video that makes its subversiveness more effective and biting.

Enjoy!