TORONTO: Multiculturalism is one of this century’s biggest buzzwords in Canada, particularly in the city which is now my home away from home. Once primarily a British and Protestant city, Toronto is known as the city where more than 100 languages are spoken. There are more than 90 different ethnic groups in the Greater Toronto Area (GTA), and South Asians rank after Chinese as one of its largest visible minorities.
South Asians is a complicated term which defies geographical boundaries. It is the term given by Statistics Canada to refer to people whose background is linked with their first languages such as Punjabi, Gujarati or Tamil, as well as the four “mother countries” Bangladesh, India, Pakistan and Sri Lanka. We are also referred to as brown or people of colour, but most of us just call ourselves desi. It’s a term, an affectionate one I might add, that encompasses anyone who isn’t Caucasian, Mongolian or Ethiopian. Canada’s cricket captain, batsman Jo Harris, perfectly represents this. He was born in Madras, played first-class cricket for Barbados, and now lives in Canada.
This brings me to what all desis are talking about in every kebab shop, video store and sari emporium in town — the Cricket World Cup 2003. Not surprisingly, “home team” for most of us is still not the Canadian team. In a country which invented ice hockey the only reason we have a team playing in the World Cup in the first place is because the Canadian squad is made up mostly of expat South Asians and West Indians. And then there is the “everyone-loves-a-winner” point to it as well. The Canadians managed to lower their old World Cup record of 45 all out made against England in the 1979 tournament by getting creamed by Sri Lanka for just 36 runs this time around. I still say, give the guys some credit. These 15 men have to fly a collective 160,000 kilometres to make it for team practice in a season that barely lasts three months because for the rest of the year the cricket fields are covered with snow.
The main excitement is of course the showdown on March 1 between Sachin Tendulkar, the world’s best batsman, and Shoaib Akhtar, the game’s quickest bowler. People who have a satellite dish instead of the regular cable TV are hosting all-nighters for diehard fans as well as “just want to be seen at the coolest parties in town” crowd. The fact that Pakistan will have to raise the level of their game if they want to keep their Super Six hope alive is just adding to the excitement of flag-wavers and bookmakers alike.
The last time there was such hoo-ha over any event amongst the Pakistanis was strangely enough exactly a month ago on February 1, when Zehra Sheerazi was crowned the first-ever Miss Canada Pakistan in a packed hall at the University of Ottawa. The event was organized by Canadian Humanitarian Aid for Pakistan (CHAP), an effort started by young Canadian Pakistani students in January 2002. Their aim is to help poor children in Pakistan receive a better education. Besides raising funds, the pageant raised eyebrows and blood pressures among the more traditional community members. The Pakistani Student Association of Carleton University, which represents about 180 students, boycotted the pageant on the grounds that “...this is not really the kind of event that is consistent with our social values.” This event even managed to rile some Pakistanis back home. One of the messages posted on the web read, “Bound yourself only in the limits of bedrooms of your friends and don’t use the name of Pakistan for your evil deeds.” The message also added, “Be careful next time otherwise you will face worse consequences.”
The organizers don’t seem to be too worried though; they are already looking for participants, sponsors and performers for the next Miss Canada Pakistan 2004. I wonder what ex-beauty contestant Neelum Noorani would have to say about this.