Sacramento Holds Its Largest-ever Pakistan Independence Day Event
By Ras H. Siddiqui
The Pakistani Community Members of America (PCM) group held Pakistan’s 77th Independence Day celebrations (78th if one counts the first) at Discovery Park in Sacramento, California on Saturday, the 17th of August 2024. This region has some of the oldest Pakistani presence in the United States as some families in the area can trace their origins back to the Punjabi Muslims from British India who arrived here in the early 1900s along with the larger Sikh population. The partition of British India into the states of India and Pakistan in 1947 partitioned the communities here too.
But back to the present, during Pakistan’s Independence Day event in Sacramento last year, some had suggested that with around 4,000 attendees, the venue was too small, so PCM decided to follow the advice “Go Big or Go Home” and booked Discovery Park this year. This venue is possibly the largest in the region with a capacity of around 25,000, as some big-ticket music events like the Aftershock Festival are also held here. But despite this fact, there remained logistical issues. Many people were stuck in line outside when purchasing their parking tickets, and restrooms were also a problem, as portables were not enough. The food available looked great but the wait time to purchase it was very long. However, in the organizer’s defense, no one could have predicted that so many people would show up!
It was around 7 PM in Discovery Park when Sohail Shahzad (DJ) invited co-emcees for the first part, Raniya Hassan and Ibrahim Iqbal to the stage to officially start the event, and these young people did a great job here. First off Khalil Imran, a young kid delivered about a minute of inspiration including the “Pakistan ka matlab kiya?” (What does Pakistan mean?) slogan. This set the stage for a Qur'an recitation, which was presented by Amna Rehman, followed by Mohammad Ammar who translated the verses. By this time there were an estimated 3,000 people present and more were pouring in. Pakistani American kids next graced the stage and presented the American Star-Spangled Banner first, followed by Pakistani Anthem Pak Sar Zamin Shad Baad.
As emcee Raniya stated, this event celebrated not only our Pakistani heritage but our American home as well, and it was great to see the two flags flying together on the stage with thousands standing at attention. And speaking of the two countries, Zaina Saleemi representing our college going youth was the first speaker. She spoke of being a first generation Pakistani American, and on how her parents came to America for a better future. Despite being far from home, they did not leave their culture behind. She grew up speaking both English and Urdu at home, eating Desi food, and being taught the values of community and togetherness at a very young age. Zaina added that Pakistan will always be a part of her identity as an American.
The children’s segment returned, as kids dressed in colorful clothes from different provinces of Pakistan brightened up the stage. A huge shoutout to Anila Saleemi and Rukhsana Qumar for coordinating this segment and for encouraging our otherwise shy community kids to perform on stage. The older kids started off by reciting national poet Allama Iqbal’s “Lab Pe Aati Hai Dua” (A prayer comes to my lips). Next was an energetic dance to a Balochi tune “Daaney Pey Daana” followed by the song Ae Jawan. Their last performance was singing “Dil Dil Pakistan” made famous by the Vital Signs. Great job kids!
There were just two more short speeches, a refreshing change from usually speech-heavy Pakistani events. Sohail DJ, one of the pillars of the PCM, came back to emcee the remainder of the gathering. By this time, the crowd had doubled in size to around 6,000. Sohail greeted everyone and thanked Allah (SWT) for letting us gather to celebrate Pakistan’s Independence Day. He also thanked all the sponsors. He said that it is not easy, but we do this to pass on the love of our homeland to our kids here. He added that despite differences of opinion within our community about Pakistan, the country should come before political parties. Is Parcham kay Talay Hum Sab Aik Hain! Pakistan Zindabad!
PCM President Qumar Ashraf spoke next in his official capacity. He greeted everyone, wished them well on the celebration of Pakistan’s 77 th Independence Day, and expressed his happiness seeing so many people enjoying themselves here. We have great singers performing for you today including Malkoo and Sara all the way from Pakistan, our local singer Sherry and the one and only Bohemia, he said. He also thanked the PCM group, and his entire team who by the grace of Allah (SWT) worked very hard to make this happen. He added that it is not easy to set up and execute a huge event like this and thanked all the sponsors for making it all possible, because besides group effort a lot of resources are required, which they had provided. Qumar also thanked all the support people (stage, sound, photography and media). Thank you, everybody, Pakistan, Zindabad, said the PCM President.
After the “Best Dressed Pakistani Kids” recognition there was a break for Maghrib Prayers. The PCM Team was recognized on stage after that, and the winners of the raffle were awarded prizes. The music segment followed with Sherry Khan as the opening act. Sherry started with Allah Hoo and Dil Dil Pakistan. He was followed by the very versatile denim-clad Sara Altaf whose rendition of Jeevay, Pakistan, Dholna , and Punjabi Bhangra were very well received.
And then there was Malkoo whose song content and stage chemistry with Sara created a sensation for all in attendance, which by now may have reached close to 10,000 people. Malkoo was here in Sacramento ten years ago when he performed the opening act. This time he was the headliner (in more ways than one). He sang songs in Punjabi, Saraiki, and Urdu, and did we hear Sindhi and Pashto too? When he sang his many versions of his signature Nak Da Koka with Sara, the crowd went wild. Whether one agreed with him or not Malkoo sure made his point. As agreed, I will have to hold back the details here!
The last singing act of the evening was Punjabi Rapper Bohemia. This young man has developed quite a following amongst young South Asian Americans and many came here just to see him perform live on stage. He is not a performer but a phenomenon, and his delivery is only getting better. Besides Punjabi and English, his Urdu-speaking skills are also spot on. He started with Char So Bees (420), Aik, and then went into uncharted territory (for us old guys). In this, he was also assisted by some backup dancers. An electrifying performance.
This was the largest Pakistani event that this writer has ever covered in Sacramento and possibly even in Northern California history. During the 1990s Pakistan’s Independence Days held in San Francisco at Golden Gate Park or the Civic Center were huge, but this one just might have been bigger. And the credit for that goes to the PCM Team and their sponsors. Great job everyone!
To conclude, we need to remain hopeful about Pakistan’s future. Insha’Allah things will turn around. If a young man from Mian Channu by the name of Arshad Nadeem can win the Gold Medal for Pakistan at the Paris Olympics with a new Javelin record, the whole country can shine one day too!
