In this one of a kind collaboration, H! Pakistan, the country’s leading lifestyle and celebrity magazine, asked acclaimed contemporary artist Rashid Rana to lead a conversation about the current times and the impact of the coronavirus on life which has changed for everyone on this globe, including Pakistan. This activity would also provide Rashid Rana the content to design our first digital cover for the APRIL 2020 magazine. It was for the first time in eight years that H! Pakistan was not going to print, but instead took the opportunity to go digital in a three-week turnaround time.
Checking into the ZOOM, the trending video chatting app, Rashid Rana and HELLO! hosted an online interactive session titled ‘Decode the Change’. A curated list of Pakistan’s top personalities participated in the ZOOM get-together and became part of an artistic endeavor by the artist himself. The session held on Saturday,18 April from4pmto4.40pm,consistedofmeaningful,yet playful activities, with a Q&A segment that required no major preparations from the participants. You can also see the recorded session or our website, including the digital cover of the online April 2020 issue.
Divided into segments, this is what constituted the content and to-do activities for the session
ACTIVITY NO: 1 — YES AND NO
EACH PARTICIPANT DISPLAYED THEIR ANSWER ON THEIR PHONES
‘Do you think nature is getting a well- deserved break from humans?
Do you think there has been a collective global response that a global challenge of this scale requires?
Do you think unfiltered Information from various media channels are aiding in spreading extreme psychological paranoia?
Do you think, that modern technology has been efficient or effective towards the process of betterment?
Is it important to touch, to feel reality? Can a virtual condolence or a virtual birthday greeting replace the real thing? Do you think would you have been able to deal with the lockdown if there was no internet? Is virtual the new real?
As we DECODE THE CHANGE; as we gear ourselves to fight a battle unknown, do you think, after the end of this pandemic, the expression of life will change and not remain the same?
Do you find some truth in the conspiracy bio-terrorism (regardless if it has been used intentionally or got out accidentally)?
This may shift the power landscape and the definition of privilege, do you consider yourself to be privileged and powerful?
Are you feeling more productive without the shackles of social obligations?
Do you think the Pakistani government has taken the right steps so far in controlling the epidemic?
ACTIVITY NO: 2 — OPINION
HEAD TILT — LEFT OR RIGHT
Please tilt your head/torso to your left if you think ‘It is a NOW or NEVER (emergency) situation’ OR tilt to your RIGHT if you believe that ‘The world/we must have an emergent response based on how the situation develops in the next few weeks.’
Should you dispel the fear (LEFT tilt) or should you feel fear and propagate it from the positions of knowledge? (RIGHT tilt)
In the hierarchy of senses, will the tactile sense or the sense of touch
(Tilt LEFT) be a privilege (Tilt RIGHT) or a curse?
Do you see the pandemic ending in the near future (Left tilt) or we are in it for a long haul.(Right tilt).
ACTIVITY NO: 3 — NUMBERS
WITH A SHOW OF YOUR FINGERS, EXPRESS YOUR ANSWER IN NUMBERS
How many times did this pandemic break you down?
In how many years do you think we will go back to handshakes?
How many times did you disconnect from the media intentionally, for the anxiety it was giving you?
How many times do you step out of your house in a week?
On scale of 1-10, how badly do feel the need for a break from your quarantine partner/s?
On scale of 1-10, how anxious are you about going back to your routine?
ACTIVITY NO: 4 —SHOW A BOOK, OBJECT AND AN IMAGE
Share a book on your screen that you have read during the quarantine period.
Identify one object (which can be shared on your screen) which you have become fond of, or developed an affinity for, or has kept you sane in this period of quarantine.
Share an image on your screen or phone screen that you came across in recent times and has left a left a mark on you.
ACTIVITY NO: 5 — FINAL ROUND | EXPRESS YOUR VIEWS
EXPRESS YOUR VIEWS IN TWO TO THREE SENTENCES (25-30 SECONDS) ON ANY ONE OF THE FOLLOWING:
What message solutions/suggestions do you have for people in general, people in power? What can be done? OR
What is the first thing on your to do list after the end of this pandemic? OR
Is there any positive aspect you see or take out of this situation everyone is forced in? OR
Over the last few weeks in lockdown, for you has there been one defining moment? OR
Has the situation in the wake of this pandemic taught you something new?
CELEBRITY PARTICIPANTS
Rashid Rana — Visual Artist (HOST) Aroosa Rana — Visual Artist (CO-HOST) Sherry Rehman — Senator/Politician Maheen Khan — Designer
Salman Sufi —Founder, Salman Sufi Foundation
Kasim Kasuri — CEO, Beaconhouse School System
Fahd Husain — Resident Editor, DAWN, Islamabad
Jibran Nasir — Activist/Lawyer
Asim Raza —Director/Filmmaker
Ali Zafar — Singer/Songwriter/Actor Sarmad Khoosat — Filmmaker Mikaal Zufiqar —Actor
Risham Syed — Visual Artist
Shaniera Akram —Co-founder, Akram Foundation
Ayesha Omar — Actor
Ali Rehman — Actor
Sadaffe Abid — Social Entrepreneur/ CEO, Circle
Amna R. Ali — Journalist/Editor, H! Pakistan
TEXT: RASHID RANA & AMNA R. ALI