If held at face value, the first annual Engro Excellence Awards — honouring outstanding civilians in the fields of Science, Humanitarian Efforts and Literature — do not belong on the entertainment pages. But having experienced almost five hours of a show that aimed to resuscitate optimism in a rapidly crumbling veneer of patriotism, one believes the initiative must be honoured here and elsewhere. The value addition of poignant song, dance and drama, peppered throughout the evening to keep the mood as high as sentiments, makes it all the more suitable.

Hosted by the Engro Corporation Limited at the Mohatta Palace, a venue you can never go wrong with, the EEAs were organised with an agenda to respect the highest order of achievers in Pakistan. Dr Atta-ur-Rahman received an award for his contributions to Science, Abdul Sattar Edhi for his unprecedented Humanitarian Services and Mushtaq Ahmed Yusufi for his services to Urdu literature.

Seeing the three veterans in lieu of their respective fields and achievements was humbling and in a lighter brush of Chinese whispers many people (associated with the fashion industry) wished a couple of designers had been around to learn a lesson or two in humility.

The tribute did not end at the prize winners.

One looked up at the majestically illuminated Mohatta Palace, once home to Fatima Jinnah, and enjoyed the homage given to some of Pakistan’s most respected women: Parveen Shakir, Benazir Bhutto, Nazia Hassan being just three of the many diverse forces. There was a message of strength in liberalism.

As the crisp winter breeze flirted with a well-dressed audience and the garden heaters lent their much needed warmth to the unexpected chill in Karachi, the event wove its way around one montage through another.

The programme had been devised with an obvious intention of raking up the past to recollect a brighter future for Pakistan. A swell of optimism at least. Script writer Imran Aslam and Feryal Gauhar hosted the event and their narrative was presented as letters between a man who held onto his spirit by staying in Pakistan (despite all odds, i.e. the ‘doom and gloom’) and a woman who had left for London, albeit leaving her heart and soul behind. Articulated as a reminiscing Pakistani version of Tumhari Amrita, the dialogue was both light-hearted and thought-provoking.

“Come back,” he gently convinced her, “not searching for the past but looking for a future.”

The evening’s entertainment serenaded the same tune. Classical music brought the EEAs alive as Arif Lohar paid tribute to his father Alam Lohar, Shazia pelted out the stirring notes of Reshma’s iconic Lambi Judaai and Farid Ayaz paid homage to Munshi Riazuddin by delivering the perfect qawwali. As far as the old school was concerned, not a doubt was left regarding its merit.

The portrayal of the future, however, was not so convincing. While Ayesha Omar delivered a decent cover of Faiz Ahmad Faiz’s Bol and Atif Aslam delivered popular versions of Nusrat Fateh Ali Khan, one felt not enough stage time was given to the younger generation. They were cut short before they could build up any steam, another example being the five-minute presence of Joshinder. One knows Josh is a brilliant dance artiste and is capable of delivering a much more impacting routine than the almost stationary mime she was assigned. Omar Rahim’s choreography was crisp and balanced the scale between classic and contemporary (he put modern dancers on roller skates) but the dance sequences were a bit lost on the much too spacious stage.

A very marked line was drawn between the ‘achievements’ of the older generation and the ‘merits’ of the young and that wasn’t a bad thing at all. It held up a mirror to a strong trail of successors, those who have potential but need to work as hard as their predecessors did to achieve as much.

If this show had been a competition between the past and the present, then the past would undoubtedly win but then, this is precisely why events such as the EEAs are integral for the development of a liberal future of any country. If the EEAs presented luminaries such as Anita Ghulam Ali and Imran Aslam as a rare (almost extinct) breed of individuals committed to a cause named Pakistan, then it also urged those standing in line to step up and prepare to take the next generation somewhere.

Encouraging talent (by way of honour or cash, which in this case was five million for each winner and it must be mentioned that Edhi and Atta-ur-Rahman instantly donated their prizes to charity) is a much better way for a corporation to contribute to society than the usual corporate affairs designed only to entertain important clients. Unilever, one must add, should up their investment in the Lux Style Awards as they too have been monumental in industry building. Coke has given us Coke Studio but music needs to be taken to the masses once again. Veet has the potential of making a contribution just as big to fashion.

Corporations and causes come in abundance in Pakistan; it’s just a matter of pairing them up intelligently. And with radicalisation of society looming as one of the biggest threats we face as a nation, then this corporate social responsibility may be as important as funding education and medical care for the underprivileged. It is all about redefining the role model.

Event management: Catwalk Productions
Choreography: Omar Rahim
Music direction: Shehzad Hasan