Hindus in Pakistan

Jai Kali Karachi Wali click here to read the full article

Many of the worshippers at Karachi's temples are somewhat better off, and the calm affluence of Karachi's wealthier Hindus is worlds apart. Thirty-year-old Deepak Perwani, his hair dyed red, and a Ganesha tattooed on his right arm, is one of Pakistan's top fashion designers. His quick Indo-Pak analysis: "There is one major difference. Indians can't cut a salwar to save their lives and Pakistanis can't cut a churidar!" As with many Hindus here, Inshallah slips out of his mouth easily as a prelude to anything and he eats beef, never pork. A travel agent once booked him into a Lahore hotel as an Indian. "I was pissed off. I struck out the word Indian and wrote Pakistani." Six years ago when he wanted to open a store on an upmarket Karachi street, his friends asked him not to flaunt his name outside. But he was soon forced by market pressure to put his brand up in massive type�Deepak Perwani. "There's been no trouble, not a single incident outside my shop."