Fatima Suraiya Bajia
Looking at the World Through an "Unschooled" Perspective
Translated & Edited By
Aziz Kabani & Ambreena Aziz

"Fatima Suraiya Bajia is a famous playwright who has written many endearing television serials. Her plays are as popular as she is throughout the country and people from all generations love, admire and respect her equally. Besides being a household name she is an educator, a social worker and a person with a treasure of wisdom, indigenous knowledge and a wit to match. She has never attended a formal school, all her education took place at home. She graced the EDucate! team in person and narrated her lifestory, her long association with Pakistan Television as a playwright and her powerful views on education and culture, society and role of family in the upbringing of children."

Bajia on her Education & Childhood
I never attended a formal school. The elders of the family decided that all my education should take place at home. The teacher lived in our home where we were taught discipline along with our education. My family was settled in Hyderabad Deccan, which was then a paramount cultural center in undivided India. Although there were a few prominent schools e.g. Saint Josephs School, although my grandfather could afford the fee (which was Rs. 20), he still preferred to educate us at home. These schools were primarily attended by pampered girls from the elite families of nawabs and jagirdars. From the beginning we were taught self-sufficiency, although we employed 60 to 70 servants, we were not allowed to ask anyone of them for water. There was a huge difference between girls of the elite families and us. My grandfather felt that if we attended such schools, we would suffer from an inferiority complex, but since proper upbringing is not possible without coaching, he decided to carry out our education at home. Nevertheless, we were taught all the subjects that were taught in the formal Hyderabad schools with separate teachers for every subject e.g. calligraphy and maths. In those days there was no concept of girls having careers. The only future for them was to get married and take good care of their family and home.

A child's upbringing is greatly influenced by the family's attitude. If the family members nurture jealousy and grudge against each other, how can a child grow up to be a normal human being? We were ten brothers and sisters and we never fought with each other because we never saw any quarrels within the family. Our elders never used physical force to express their anger or dissatisfaction. I remember when I was eight, the mathematics teacher hit me with a pencil. I started crying as I had neither been beaten nor shouted at. My grandparents learnt about the incident. Later my grandfather called the teacher, thanked him profusely for teaching me, handed him his salary and told him that it was not customary in our family to beat or frighten children. Very discreetly the teacher was told to leave. The point is that since I have never experienced beatings and shouting during my childhood I would not beat my children. All this is part of one's upbringing including cleanliness and hygiene. Infact in Islam cleanliness is integral to faith. It is the duty of parents and adults of the family to take care of children's nutrition and hygiene as all these factors influence their personality. Parents should also make sure that their children are taught proper table manners. When eating with our parents and family, children were always told to put aside some food for other living beings. This is not a religious obligation but our moral duty. Similarly, there are certain ways of extending material support to the less privileged. We should give away only those things, which we want for ourselves. If I give away clothes that are torn and shabby that is not genuine generosity. I should give away clothes that I wear and like not some dirty, torn ones. This is Islamic morality and was the tradition in our household. Our family was not wealthy but we were never short of money.
Even though we lived in a huge mansion before Partition (pre 1947) I was very familiar with the way the poor lived. As children my grandfather made us live in small mud huts in the backyard so we could experience how the poor people lived in such conditions. We even had to help the labourers in building those huts. This experience came in handy when we moved to a small house after Partition; it did not make any difference to our lives. In my opinion upbringing is the most important part of one's life.

Bajia on her Career
The lack of a formal education has not been an impediment in my life or career because I always had self-confidence which came from my upbringing and it made all the difference. I don't claim to be an extraordinary person; there are so many bajiyas in our society. I know so many mothers who earned money by sewing in order to provide an education for their daughters some of whom became doctors, engineers etc. I know so many widowers who have taken very good care of their children after the death of their wives. The society does not lack good people but these good people are not given importance in the society any longer. I give great importance to the dignity of work. If you trust your own abilities you will never feel inferior or undervalue any skill or work. I have had many different jobs throughout my life; I embroidered clothes and sold them, I sold sarees and was associated with the textile sector of the country for a long time. Then I became a playwright. I believe work itself is a source of dignity and respect. I am strongly against the notion that just because I gained respect and popularity through television, everyone should salute me. I don't like people who expect that kind of acknowledgement. We should get rid of our egos and concentrate on work.

Bajia on her television serials and media
I have not written any TV play for the last 5 years. I feel my hands have been tied. Several people from TV call me with love and respect, in fact, the new MD has even appointed me advisor of PTV but since my advice is ignored I am disheartened. It is also disheartening to see so many senseless plays being televised nowadays. With the proliferation of private channels, money laundering and commercialization have become the name of the game in place of producing quality, meaningful programs that carry a social message. Perhaps this is one of the reasons why I am not presently doing any work for television. What difference would a sensible 50-minute drama make amongst the plethora of so many useless ones.

The print media has a similar problem. When you open the newspaper, you find vulgarity and violence. You will not find a news item that says for example that SEF has done good work by conducting a session to raise awareness about social issues. Our media needs to highlight our strengths. They are responsible for playing a constructive role in society. But why would they do so? Why would they mention that a poor boy studying in a government school in Malir has secured a top position? I believe there is a serious need to create alternative media that would help move us towards a cultural revival. Lack of education is one of the reasons for a lot of problems in our society.

Bajia on the role of education in society
Most people in our society believe that by getting an MBA degree one can secure a well-paid job in a multi-national etc. This system dominated by business administration or computer sciences, which are considered to be the signs of progress, should be based on morality and be people-centred rather than money-centred. We need to learn to be public-centred in our approach. It is the self-interest of the world's economic and political powers that underlies the technological and engineering progress. For example, today a new computer comes in the market costing thousands or millions of rupees; after few months, a modified version is launched and one is forced to purchase it, spending more money, because the previous one is obsolete. This vicious cycle of technology extracts more and more money from us and hinders our process of positive development and progress and is pure commercialization. To get rid of this dependency on the developed world to provide us with technologically advanced products at extremely high prices, we should learn to become self-sufficient. Education needs to eliminate this darkness by raising awareness about these issues. It is alright to acknowledge the importance of modern technology but we have to achieve the advancement on OUR OWN - how long will we be dependent on THEM?

When our education system is reviewed and the curriculum revised to make it more appropriate to our own cultural and social needs, then only can we move forward towards a social change. We should stop burdening our children with backbreaking school bags and look for ways to make the whole education process more meaningful in terms of quality rather than quantity.

Bajia on religion & morality
A child's religious education starts at home. At school, at best, it is only ethics that is taught if it's a good school. Religion and morality are closely linked and we cannot separate the two. Children should be taught ethics according to their age. They can be told inspirational stories of Ibrahim bin Adum or Rabia Basri only when they are able to comprehend their full meaning. In our society the alim (one who possesses knowledge) wants a child of grade 6 to know funeral prayers by heart. What possible significance does it hold for a child so young? These things need to change. A child born into a Muslim family is given basic religious orientation at home where he is taught about Khana-e-Kaba (Highest place of worship for Muslims), Mecca, Medina and prophet Muhammad (PBUH).

Bajia on parents & teachers
Parents should ensure that their children are not being sent to teachers who just take salary but lack morals. You can see for yourself what is happening in the highly reputable schools here. Teachers are more concerned with the way they dress and look rather than the actual purpose of coming to school. In government schools lack of cleanliness is deplorable. A teacher will either be found with his feet on the table or lying down. I remember seeing a college principal and her attire and makeup shocked everyone present because it was not appropriate. Simplicity should be mirrored in the personality of someone who is associated with the sacred job of teaching.

Parents have become negligent about the upbringing and education of their children. They do not pay regular visits to the school. We need to change this lax attitude and there are ways to do it. Those parents who care about their children's education and well-being should be brought together in a forum; I have met many such good people while I was teaching. There are parents who bother about their children's progress and make regular inquiries about their performance. Parents should participate in their children's education at all levels, they should be regularly called to schools, no matter to which socio-economic background they belong, to participate in discussing their children's education and collectively look for ways to improve the education process.

Bajia on cultural education
Children's mental growth can be greatly facilitated through stories, riddles and poetry, which are a powerful tool in helping them learn sounds and alphabets as well. There is a dire need to impart such knowledge through reviving the oral culture in order to make them more eloquent. As children, we were taught Iqbal's poem parinday ki fariyad (The Bird's Complaint),

O the one who confined me make me free
A silent prisoner I am, earn my blessings free
(The Bird's Complaint)

20 to 30 birds were brought to our house and kept in a cage; this developed very strong feelings about the birds particularly about their being imprisoned in a cage. We all pleaded to release those birds. That was the precise purpose of bringing those birds to our house while we were taught the poem.

During the training programs given to our teachers we should also guide them to teach these valuable things to children. Oral literature has not been transferred to our younger generation because there is a tendency to emphasize on materialistic achievements rather than the academic strength. It is a travesty that our schools have marginalized such a treasure of literature. I believe that local knowledge still exists at the grassroots community level. Take the example of Sindhi fil badi (extempore) poetry program on TV. Children should be taught that language so that they can also participate in such culture promoting activities. It is important for children to learn poetry as it not only brings rhythm in speech but also requires a knowledge of vocabulary and an inherent cultural ability to decipher and interpret literature. Parents and teachers can work together to revive and convey this cultural and literary heritage to people. We can use audiotapes if the storyteller cannot go to every school in person. In my personal experience whenever I tell stories both children and elders listen with equal fascination. Literature is important to learn. For example without poetry you cannot read prose (nasar) properly whether it is in Urdu or English.

Lack of focus towards this indigenous form of education has created a vacuum in our culture and it has allowed western literature to thrive instead. Western civilization considers itself so superior that it wants to dictate everything but that myth has now been shattered. Harry Potter has appeal for us because we don't have a clue that the actual concept of this popular tale comes from our very own myths and legends. Since we possess little or no knowledge about our cultural myths, Westerners take advantage of this fact and produce Harry Potters, which become roaring successes throughout the world. The whole philosophy of Walt Disney is based on our stories such as kalila wa damna or alf laila wa lail etc. Just take the example of ikhwan-us-safa. If such tales are narrated and passed on then believe me even the leadership will come back to its senses. Take the example of qisa chahar darvesh (the story of 4 saints). Whenever I read it I find it very relevant to what is going on in our society today. The Farsi stories of Amir Khusro are amazing. These stories were written 900 years ago and they still hold true for our current situation. Children should interact with these things.

Wisdom (danai) is needed along with knowledge. For acquiring wisdom you do not need to read a particular book but when books are complemented by the experience of life wisdom is created. Understanding life is real wisdom. People today have knowledge but they lack wisdom and to attain that we will have to make serious efforts. Take the example of the legendary love tales of Balochistan. They are so gripping that they floor any contemporary writer. These stories are produced by Balochis who are considered illiterate and backward. The original Arabic version of the poem Laila Majno is outstanding. It depicts that love uplifts the body, it urges you to come out of the prison of the body because that love takes you to God. Laila Majnoo is one of the first romantic tales of the world.

Bajia on the present and future
I think Pakistan stands on the verge of complete breakdown. If we do not take the necessary steps now we will run out of time to reverse the situation. I believe education can play a key role in bringing about that social awareness and consequently a social change.

Our society is becoming increasingly materialistic. What we are witnessing today is the height of vulgarity and lavishness; they do not affect me and my individuality because my upbringing has taught me resistance. I believe that every individual manifests the whole universe thus I am the universe. Why should I consider myself inferior just because I don't have a large house or I don't own an expensive watch? Why should I bother? It is important that every individual develops the pride that he/she possesses the universe within himself and understand that as individuals we have significance.

I think we all will have to work from the grassroots level. We have to start work on different fronts simultaneously. We not only have to revive the moral, spiritual and ethical basis of schooling but also the economic side of it. The colonial school has not yet died. It is alive and thriving in our system. Schools alone cannot address the issue of morality. This can only be done through a strong cultural partnership between the school and society. That partnership would mean a good upbringing and the practices in schools complementing rather than negating the upbringing at home. For example if children are taught cooperation at home and competition in schools, you can imagine the outcome.

Young people like you need to invest your energy and intellect in ridding the society of all these ailments. There is no dearth of opportunities to do good work. If one is committed to make a difference, it can start from anywhere.