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It was with great anticipation that I read out the invitation card of a toon extravaganza to my son, Omar, recently. Knowing the logo of the international cartoon channel, he got all worked up when he realised he could spend an evening and mingle with his favourite cartoon characters. And so, despite a hectic schedule, we made sure we reached the venue on time to enjoy the entertainment programme as mentioned on the invite.
The venue, a forces museum, was an apt choice keeping in mind it provided ample space for children to run around. As we were ushered inside we looked all around us to check out the options we had for a meal. Like all Pakistanis, it seems our aim also remains to plunder the snack stalls wherever we go and then check out what else there is. Eating has, over the years, become the sole source of entertainment for most Pakistanis as unfortunately there’s not much that we can do in Karachi otherwise. And so we were in for a disappointment as after scouring the grassy environs we discovered there weren’t many options made available for eating. The main stall was that of a leading franchise chicken joint, the only other choices being a couple of stalls offering crisps or biscuits.
And we actually ended up paying a fortune for a cold meal - that we had been assured at the time of placing our order - was hot from the pan. Still, I consoled my son we were there for the entertaining evening with his cartoon friends, as he likes to call them, rather than eating. And I promised him a yummy meal after a thrilling programme. One thing that struck me as odd was that there was not a single cartoon character to be seen. It would have been good had the characters been told to mingle with the kids on the ground as it would have certainly thrilled the kids to be shaking hands or getting photographed with their fave cartoon characters - in my son’s case, Tom & Jerry.
We were informed there were various activities for children that they could participate in. But wherever we went, we were met by long queues of impatient people waiting for their turn and their booty – stickers, pencils, balloons, masks, and other such knick knacks. However, when I witnessed a brawl at one of the stalls, I decided to keep my son away as it’s not the easiest of things to stand in a queue with a 4-year-old.
I looked around frantically for a balloon, or some other such giveaway but not even a single pebble could be found in the name of a giveaway item. You would expect that an event sponsored by an international children’s network, and that too only through invitation, would at least have some memento for the little ones as it is the idea of a gift that surpasses every other charm for a kid.
By this time there was some flurry on the stage, so I heaved a sigh of relief that my son would now be engrossed in the onstage antics of the cartoon characters and so we went on to where the commotion was. Was I taken aback when I saw Johhny Bravo move his limbs to the beats of some Indian ditty; this segued into the Tom & Jerry act, the moment I had been waiting for. What a bummer then it was to see these characters also dance to Indian tunes, something my son could not relate with. It would have been much better had the characters danced to the original songs as it was quite absurd to see Power Puff Girls and the rest do a jig to Paisa Phenk, Tamasha Dekh! After just five minutes, Omar announced he wanted to leave and hence our “thrilling” evening came to a disappointing end.