LAHORE: As far as music is concerned, Pakistan’s Human Rights Minister Shireen Mazari and popular singer Momina Mustehsen may not be on the same page.
Criticizing Mustehsen for her version of “Ko, Ko, Korina” – an immensely popular 60s song from Pakistani pop culture – Mazari took to twitter on Tuesday to denounce Coke Studio’s latest release which also features actor Ahad Raza Mir.
“Horrendous! Destroyed a great classic — why oh why did Coke Studio allow such a massacre of this classic song?” the minister said in her tweet.
Not one to take it lying down, Mustehsen responded to the criticism with equal zest. “It is ur right to judge us & express ur outrage, just like it was our right to exercise our #FreedomOfExpression. As our Minister of #HumanRights, u should appreciate @cokestudio for allowing us to express ourselves, esp if it was horrendous :),” she tweeted.
Irked at being called out for her “personal” comments, Mazari retaliated by questioning why the singer would choose to drag the ministry into the matter. “I gave my personal opinion which I am entitled to. Esp on a non pol issue having to do with music. To each his/her own! And why bring the ministry into it?!’
What followed was a series of back and forth tweets with the singer concluding that by censuring the song, the minister “as someone holding office” had chosen to restrict her freedom of expression and that that amounted to cyberbullying.
“When you hold office, its not about politics or his/her own anymore — it’s about the country at large. You represent all of us now, not just yourself or #PTI. In a time when we’re trying to curb cyber-bullying and hate speech, please don’t fuel it further #SocialResponsibility,” she tweeted.
Her observation seemed to have fallen on deaf ears, with Mazari commenting that “liking or disliking a song has nothing to do with anyone or any politics”. “It’s a personal choice. I did not like the song. End of story,” the minister said.
Joining the bandwagon, actor Raza Mir posted a tweet in support of Mustehsen later in the day, urging the minister to “support youth and new ideas in Pakistan”. “Ms. Minister you represent a party that wants to bring change, supports youth and new ideas in Pakistan. The reach and duty of Human Rights promotes a caring approach to life. Don’t “massacre” its meaning. You represent human rights in our country. Think about what that means,” he said.
Mazari has yet to comment on Raza Mir’s tweet.
Others who responded to Mazari and Mustehsen’s war of words included political analyst Sehar Tariq and make-up artist Leena Ghani, who took journalist Wajahat S. Khan to task on Twitter for his comments terming the interaction between the two as “embarrassing” and a “cat fight”.
“God forbid two grown women disagree on twitter. Men will come out with their ‘pitchforks’ to tell them both to calm down because they are embarrassing themselves,” Ghani said, with Tariq adding that Khan’s comments were a “brilliant example of ‘women should smile more’”
“Hey bro — pretty sure two intelligent women who are more accomplished than you don’t need you to tell them what to do. Take a seat,” she said.
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