“Where are you from?” “Pakistan.” “Ah… Pakistan… Kaardish!” “Kaardish?” “Yes… Kaardish… Brother. Brother Country. Long time ago, Pakistan helped Turkey.” “And now Turkey is helping Pakistan in floods.” “Pakistani. Thank you and God bless you.” Pakistani… God Bless You. If a Turk taxi driver thanks you and gives you his blessings, it’s not because you are too bloody big and have done him some favor. It’s because you are a Pakistani and you are Kaardish. Since my first day in Turkey, wherever I went and whoever I told that I was a Pakistani, the other person had one word… Kaardish. In a time of extreme universal refutation of the term Pakistani, in the time of ‘You Pakistani You No Good’, in the time of ‘You Look Like a Terrorist’… Kaardish was a big pleasant surprise. Beautiful
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