Pakistan has a comprehensive culture and includes many issues. The culture of Pakistan differs from people to its geography and lands.

This includes the racial mixtures and cultural diversity, the different faiths, and groups, including the rural and urban division. Our Pakistani culture shows diversity in fashion, culture, food, arts, literature, music, cordiality, etc. The culture of Pakistan is a mixture of local, provincial, and coherent traditions, and spirituality and religion influence it a lot. Women wear modest clothing which is under the culture and traditions of Pakistan. People wear dresses nowadays that are a blend of modern and traditional values.

The Pakistani culture is based on truth and consciousness of truth which gives meaning to the culture of Pakistan. There are old traditions followed in the tribal areas of Balochistan and Pakhtunwali. The people adhere to strict norms and traditions and enforce these values in the district. Pakhtunwali has the Jirga system, where the elders sit together to discuss important matters regarding house and land disputes. The main code of northwest Frontier province is Pakhtunwali which has three main codes including revenge, sanctuary, and hospitality.

While in Balochistan, we see fishermen along the Makran coastline, while the rural places consist of farming societies. The Sindhi people have feudal lords. The people in Sindh obey these lords who use power and wealth to suppress the poor ones. Men and women work as laborers in the countryside. People work hard in the rural areas to make both ends meet.

While the larger cities bear the hustle and bustle of modern life. The city life offers education and recreational facilities to the people. Many people migrate to the cities in search of work and more employment opportunities. People in the cities like to dine out in the evening. Karachi is a coastal city and people enjoy being near the seaside.

The people like to spend their weekends near the seaside with their friends and family. Lahore city has various parks and museums to entertain the public. The people like to visit the buildings of the Mughal era like the Badshahi Mosque and the Qilla of Shah Jehan. The Mughal architecture is rich and grandeur. The buildings of this era display paintings and other art forms. Emperor Jahangir was an artist himself and could even find the work of a particular artist amongst the others in a single painting.

Religions in Pakistan

Islam, Hinduism, Christianity, Zionism, Paganism, and Bahai are some of the religions in Pakistan. Most Pakistanis are followers of the religion Islam and follow the principles of Islam. Sunni and Shia are the two main sects of the religion. These are further divided into different sects.

The Christians live in the urban areas and flourish here. While the Hindus live mostly in Karachi and Hyderabad region. The Ahmadis are a religious minority who live in the urban areas of Pakistan, but most of them live in Rabwah. Followers of Sikhism reside in Nankana Sahib. The Sikhs have been devoted followers of Guru Nanak and his teachings. While Nankana Sahab is the birthplace of Guru Nanak Ji, many Sikhs from India and abroad visit the place once a year to pay tribute to their supreme leader.

People of the Bahá’I faith have been living in the subcontinent since 1844, however, this community is vanishing. While the Parsi community belongs to the urban city of Karachi and is a prominent member of the business community in Karachi. The Kalash people follow a pagan form of religion. Their culture is very interesting, particularly the celebrations and dances of the Kalash people are well-known in the world.

Politics in Pakistan

Politics plays a major role in the daily lives of the people of Pakistan. The founder of Pakistan, Muhammad Ali Jinnah did not live long after the creation of the homeland. He wanted to see Pakistan as a democratic state where people of all religions co-exist peacefully. After his early demise, Pakistan was left under the rule of various leaders. The military of Pakistan has played an important role in Pakistani politics.

Pakistan was under military rule till the fall of Dhaka. The most popular leader of Pakistan namely Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto (1928-1979) founded the Pakistan Peoples Party. The leader was extremely popular until the fall of his rule by imposing martial law under the rule of Zia-ul-Haq(1924-1988). Zia-ul-Haq was the Chief of Army Staff (COAS) who took power and Pakistan remained under military rule for 11 years. Zulfiqar Ali Bhutto was hanged to death under the charges of a murder in 1979, and Pakistan lost her most popular leader and wise decision-maker.

General Zia-ul-Haq left the world in a plane crash in 1988. After his death, Pakistan People’s Party and Pakistan Muslim League N have come into power at different times. General Pervaiz Musharraf came into power in 1999, due to a coup detail and he ruled the country till 2008.

The 2008 election was won by PPP, while the 2013 election was won by PML-N. In 2018, Pakistan Tehreek-e-Insaf came into power for the first time. The founder of PTI is a former cricketer who is liked and admired by the youth of Pakistan. Imran Khan used harsh words for his opponents and used bad words for them. However, he held the corrupt people to task and went to give the National Accountability Bureau full charge of corruption investigations.

Now, the military interrupted the politics of Pakistan once again, leading to the separation of coalition parties from the government and forming another government led by the PML-N. So, the army and judiciary have made biased decisions that are not good for the people of Pakistan.

Arts and culture

Pakistan's arts and culture have earned a name for them. Pakistani music is famous the world over. Traditional music includes qawwali, ghazal, and classical. Qawwali is a regular feature of sanctuaries and shrines, while the ghazal expresses love and emotions to the loved ones. Ghulam Ali and Madam Noor Jehan are famous singers of ghazal in Pakistan.

Folk music depicts the culture, feelings, and emotions of the people of Pakistan. Many folk tales of Laila Majnu, Sohni Mahiwal, and Heer Ranjha are expressed in thematic styles. Pop music became popular in Pakistan in the 80s. Nazia Hassan (1965-2000) and Zohaib Hassan were the main pop singers in the 80s period. Later, Vital Signs, Fuzon, Awaaz, and Junoon became popular in the later period. Composers use musical instruments like sarangi, guitar, tambura, dholak, and harmonium for creating music.

Drinking beer is forbidden in Pakistan, but the elite class drinks wine and beer during their functions. Non-Muslims can drink alcohol and must obtain a license to buy alcohol. Drugs are also used commonly in Pakistan. Heroin is used commonly and is smuggled through the borders of Afghanistan. The poverty and unemployment in Pakistan have driven people to drug use. Gambling is used commonly, and people use "Parchi Goa" for gambling in cities. People do gamble on cricket matches, and cricket bookies try to buy players by bribing them.

The problems of Pakistan like poverty, unemployment, honor killings, and the problems of women need attention. Also, Pakistan needs to give proper attention to minorities and gender issues. The society of Pakistan is moving forward with a conservative past and a liberal future. We wish for a progressive Pakistan where the people live independently and enjoy equal rights and opportunities like in the modern world.