May 6, 2004

A young woman who was crippled by polio during her childhood used her optimistic attitude to go on and become a successful newscaster on PTV World, writes Shabnam Nasir

It’s not everyday that you come across a certain individual who has managed to achieve success in the most challenging of circumstances, and who has effectively lived out the words, ‘when the going gets tough, the tough get going’. Nazima Shafique is one such person. Despite being struck by polio during childhood she has accomplished ambitions that many people would relate to a highly ambitious individual.

After graduating from college and winning countless prizes in debates and speeches at the national level, Nazima joined Radio Pakistan where she presented programmes and also worked as an announcer. She then obtained a master’s degree in Urdu literature and got a diploma in journalism.

From there, Nazima joined the newspaper Ausaf where she worked for two-and-a-half years, gaining knowledge in how the basics of news and journalism really work. Then, after lecturing for two years at a college in Rawalpindi, Nazima is currently working as a news anchorperson and editor for PTV World.

Just talking to Nazima is inspiring. She is full of life and has many goals, making sure that no one ever gets a chance to feel sorry for her disability or treat her differently from any other individual.

“I am eternally grateful to God,” she smiles. “If He took away the use of my legs, so what? I have been gifted by Him in many other ways and am extremely satisfied with my achievements. I have been blessed in the way that I have high levels of confidence, and that I believe in myself. Because of these personality traits I have managed to overcome many barriers in life.”

In a highly competitive world where self-confidence remains at the risk of being shattered even in the most simple of situations, I asked Nazima how she managed to maintain such high morale. “I found courage within myself,” she replies, “The courage to accept reality, and ask myself if I want to waste my life regretting what I do not have, or whether I want to make something of my life. The answer was simple: I knew I had the talent to do what my heart desired, so that’s exactly what I did.”

Although Nazima deserves most of the credit for being where she is today, she insists that it was her parent’s attitude that supported and helped her through her crucial years growing up. “I think I inherited my bold and strong willed personality from my father,” she states, “He used to make sure that I was treated exactly the same way as the rest of my siblings, and made certain that I expected no allowances for my condition. In fact the word bechari was taboo in our household, and if we were in trouble for anything at home, I got my fair share of the scolding as well.

“Balanced with love and affection from my family, I was actually very lucky to have the perfect environment to nurture my spirit and get me through my illness,” stresses Nazima. She also emphasizes that it is this attitude that instilled in her the belief that she was on an equal footing with the rest of the world, and able to do just about anything other people could.

Nazima spent her early childhood in Sialkot, and she recollects how she became afflicted with polio. “My mother was living in a traditional joint family system, and frankly speaking the importance of getting children vaccinated was not really considered essential when I was born. Subsequently, I developed a fever at the age of one-and-a-half years which lasted for three months, and even then after various investigations, the doctors failed to recognize the symptoms of polio.

“When my mother discovered one morning that I was unable to stand up, I was immediately admitted to the hospital where I fought for my life as a severe attack of polio had taken hold of my body, leaving me unable to move. My mother tells me that she used to pray day and night for God to save me and to give me the strength to be an independent and strong person.”

Nazima’s recovery took place after numerous treatments that lasted from her childhood up until graduation. The healing process was slow and extremely painful, but from the care she received from her parents she is now able to walk with the help of crutches. “I started walking at about the age of 10, and after that I never really looked back. I just kept facing difficulties with the most positive attitude I could muster for myself,” she says.

As soon as Nazima started school, she found her main passion was participating in debates and speeches. She was so good in both categories that she can count over 150 cups and trophies that have been awarded to her at different levels of her school and college life.

“It was as if my speeches were my therapy, the emotional uplift and energy I used to feel was amazing. I think that these debates and speeches really helped me enforce my courage and self esteem, most importantly, they helped me through the most turbulent time of a person’s life which is their teenage years,” she says.

In 1995, Nazima won the gold medal for the All Pakistan Urdu Speech Competition. The South Asian Publication of Karachi also chose her from amongst 100 talented females of Pakistan and awarded her the ‘Star Girl’ award. She also won inter-college prizes from the Punjab region while she was studying in Sialkot.

When Nazima took up lecturing in Rawalpindi, she found that she would have to climb up three flights of stairs in order to reach her lecture halls. “I suppose that this situation should have discouraged me, but because I loved teaching I spent two whole years climbing up and down those stairs. In the end I received the best teacher’s award from the college and the most valuable thing for me was the love and affection I received from my students.

“It was as if they were really inspired by everything I taught them, and let me tell you there is nothing more satisfying for a teacher than earning the love and respect of your students. It was this that made me feel really special, and I think it has helped me to keep going.”

While working for Ausaf, Nazima used to travel alone between Islamabad and Rawalpindi by public transport, which was a challenge in itself. “People were generally very helpful, but deep inside I did not want to be treated any differently. All I really wanted was that people should not stare at me and just let me fit into the rest of the crowd.”

Working for radio was something that gave Nazima tremendous confidence and encouragement, but it was after presenting a few programmes on television that she realized her main passion was to be a newsreader. “I got my first break in 1999 when I started presenting the news in Urdu on PTV. I love the work I am doing, and now I am also working as a news editor as well as an anchorperson.

“The challenge of presenting live news is unique, and I feel that I am directly communicating with my audience when I am on air. The best part of course is when you have a breaking news story and you are accordingly energized. The newsroom and studio are both tense and buzzing with excitement when such a story is being prepared to be aired,” she says.

Although Nazima keeps her morale high to maintain her confidence, she, like any other human being, does have her bad days too. “A few personal experiences I had threatened to dishearten me completely,” she states. “I used to think then why me? Why do I have to endure and fight so hard for what other people take for granted?” However, she says because of her optimistic nature and the love and support she has from family and friends, she is always ready to bounce back after a short brooding session.

“A person has to go through a lot before they can have a sense of achievement, and that’s the only way you can enjoy success,” she smiles. “You know, it’s not the physical part of a person that matters but their inner self that makes them what they are. All great people are remembered for the services they did or the great minds they had, they are not remembered for what they looked like.”

So what should a person do to have such a positive and hopeful mindset, I asked Nazima. “Oh that’s easy,” comes the quick reply: “Stay away from negative emotions such as hatred and jealousy. Instead replace them with love, because hatred only works to closing the path to happiness. Also, you have to realize that to get something you can’t remain a spectator; you have to get into the arena and fight for it.”

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