Musafir Ki Diary

11-24 November, 1938- Khwaja Ahmad Abbas has reached Istanbul where Turks are mourning the death of the founder of modern Turkey, Kamal Ataturk. He visits Angora (Ankara), Halab (Aleppo), Baghdad, Karbala, Basra before returning to Hindostan. "Even water has a religion in Hindostan. The sounds of Hindu Pani, Muslim Pani greeted me at each rail station.''Musafir Ki Diary, hailed as the first modern travelogue in Urdu has been penned by the legendary filmmaker, novelist and journalist, KA Abbas. Abbas at the age of 24 set out on a journey that would take him to several countries as he left for Shanghai on 28th June, 1938. Abbas travelled to 17 countries in 5 months, covering a distance of about 25,000 miles at a cost of 3,500 rupees. Presented by broadcaster Pervaiz Alam, the Cineink series 'Musafir Ki Diary' is produced by Achala Sharma in association with the Delhi-based Khwaja Ahmad Abbas Memorial Trust.

5 November, 1938- Novelist, journalist and filmmaker Khwaja Ahmad Abbas decides to return to India via land on a train from Paris. As the train enters Germany, a Nazi German Officer greets him with 'Hail Hitler'. Abbas shouts back 'Mahatma Gandhi Ki Jai'. The Nazi officer is confused. Abbas visits Munich, Vienna, Budapest and Bucharest. To his horror, he realises Hitler's ideology of fascism has reached all corners of Europe. He's shocked to see how ordinary jews are being persecuted in Vienna. Presented by broadcaster Pervaiz Alam, the Cineink series 'Musafir Ki Diary' is based on a travelogue written by KA Abbas. It's produced by Achala Sharma in association with the Delhi-based Khwaja Ahmad Abbas Memorial Trust.

19 September - 28 October, 1938- India's legendary journalist and filmmaker Khwaja Ahmad Abbas is in Geneva to attend a meeting of the League of Nations but he finds the proceedings useless. India's freedom fighter Jawahar Lal Nehru also happens to be in Geneva. Abbas meets Nehru. Both have a low opinion of the League of Nations. But Abbas has the most scathing remarks reserved for 'racist' London and its 'ugliness' when he visits England. Presented by broadcaster Pervaiz Alam, the Cineink series 'Musafir Ki Diary' is based on a travelogue written by KA Abbas. It's produced by Achala Sharma in association with the Delhi-based Khwaja Ahmad Abbas Memorial Trust.

Novelist, Journalist and Filmmaker, Khwaja Ahmad Abbas has seen a lot, so far, and thinks Paris is the ultimate symbol of beauty in the world. However, he also observes how rich and famous from India spend a 'gala' time in Paris, visiting clubs of nudity and sex. He shares a few anecdotes of India's celebrities, including a famous Urdu poet of Punjabi origin, who became the laughing-stock of the whole Paris glitterati.Presented by broadcaster Pervaiz Alam, the Cineink series 'Musafir Ki Diary' is based on a travelogue written by KA Abbas. It's produced by Achala Sharma in association with the Delhi-based Khwaja Ahmad Abbas Memorial Trust.

Khwaja Ahmad Abbas couldn't believe his luck when he came to know American novelist, short-story writer and journalist, Ernest Hemingway was his co-traveller on 'Normandie', world's largest and fastest passenger ship afloat. He spends a memorable evening with the author who wrote 'For Whom the Bell Tolls', discussing his politics and work on his way to France. Presented by broadcaster Pervaiz Alam, the Cineink series 'Musafir Ki Diary' is based on a travelogue written by KA Abbas. It's produced by Achala Sharma in association with the Delhi-based Khwaja Ahmad Abbas Memorial Trust.

17 - 23 August, 1938, USA. Khwaja Ahmad Abbas is so much horrified at the treatment meted out to 'Negros' (Blacks) on an American train that he decides to not eat at all in a dining car where blacks were not allowed. Though as an Indian he could have been allowed but he decided to call himself a 'Negro'. He also writes about his visits to the Harvard University, New York Time Times and other newspaper offices. He concludes Aligarh Muslim University and Banaras Hindu University are better than Harvard! Presented by broadcaster Pervaiz Alam, the Cineink series 'Musafir Ki Diary' is produced by Achala Sharma in association with the Delhi-based Khwaja Ahmad Abbas Memorial Trust.

11 August 1938- New York. Khwaja Ahmad Abbas is in New York to participate in the World Youth Conference, attended by hundreds of international delegates. He's overwhelmed in the company of Eleanor Roosevelt, First Lady of the USA. He is so much impressed by Mrs. Roosevelt during an interaction that he asks her about the probability of a woman taking over as the next President of the USA.Presented by broadcaster Pervaiz Alam, the Cineink series 'Musafir Ki Diary' is based on a travelogue in Urdu (1938) by Khwaja Ahmad Abbas, the legendary journalist, screenwriter and filmmaker, produced by Achala Sharma in association with the Delhi-based Khwaja Ahmad Abbas Memorial Trust.

Khwaja Ahmad Abbas feels insulted and anguished as he manages to read the scenario of Gunga Din, an American adventure film under production, which makes fun of Indians. Featuring Cary Grant, Victor McLaglen, and Douglas Fairbanks Jr., Gunga Din is loosely based on Rudyard Kipling's poem. Abbas delivers a radio talk in Hollywood trashing such cinematic caricatures maligning India. Presented by broadcaster Pervaiz Alam, the Cineink series 'Musafir Ki Diary' is produced by Achala Sharma in association with the Delhi-based Khwaja Ahmad Abbas Memorial Trust.

31July, 1938- Khwaja Ahmad Abbas, 24, has reached the USA via Canada. Little did he know that one day he would become an internationally acclaimed screenwriter and film director with 'Dharti Ke Lal' (1946), described as one of Indian cinema's first social-realist films. He unplugs Hollywood for the readers of 'Musafir Ki Diary', hailed as the first modern travelogue written in Urdu. Earlier people who lived in and and around a place called Hollywood, hated to be associated with filmmaking, Abbas writes. Presented by broadcaster Pervaiz Alam, the Cineink series 'Musafir Ki Diary' is produced by Achala Sharma in association with the Delhi-based Khwaja Ahmad Abbas Memorial Trust.

21July, 1938- Khwaja Ahmad Abbas concludes his travel in Japan. Now, he has boarded a ship on his way to America, enjoying Hindi songs. He gets emotional as Bande Matram is played on the deck. 'Musafir Ki Diary' is based on a travelogue in Urdu (1938) by Khwaja Ahmad Abbas, the legendary journalist, screenwriter and filmmaker. This podcast is presented by Pervaiz Alam and produced by Achala Sharma for Cineink in association with Khwaja Ahmad Memorial Trust.

19 July, 1938- Khwaja Ahmad Abbas is in Tokyo where he meets the Urdu professor Nurul Hasan Birlas, his wife and a young woman. He writes 'Zaban e Yaar Mun Turki, Wa Mun Turki Namee Danum' in her autograph book. She just laughs it off. Abbas is intrigued by the amount of interest Japanese have in their religion Shinto, shrines and martyrs. He observes: religious faith will not be able to dominate hunger and death for ever. He describes Japanese obsession with nationalism as a dangerous development, leading to war and human catastrophe. And, then he prays India must never reach this level of nationalism. 'Musafir Ki Diary' is based on a travelogue in Urdu (1938) by Khwaja Ahmad Abbas, the legendary journalist, screenwriter and filmmaker. This podcast is presented by Pervaiz Alam and produced by Achala Sharma for Cineink in association with Khwaja Ahmad Memorial Trust.

15 July, 1938- Khwaja Ahmad Abbas has reached the Japanese city of Kobe where he stays at India Lodge, managed by Mrs and Mr Sahai. He reports on destruction caused by the ongoing war between China and Japan. He also notices floods have wreaked havoc on several Japanese cities. But he is heartened by the Indian students leading a campaign to clean the city. 'Musafir Ki Diary' is based on a travelogue in Urdu (1938) by Khwaja Ahmad Abbas, the legendary journalist, screenwriter and filmmaker. This podcast is presented by Pervaiz Alam and produced by Achala Sharma for Cineink in association with Khwaja Ahmad Memorial Trust. KA Abbas wrote 74 books, 90 short stories, 3,000 journalistic articles and several plays, besides writing and directing award-winning films.

After spending his last evening in Shanghai, Khwaja Ahmad Abbas is on his way to Japan- the country he thinks is behind the suffering of all Chinese people. As he enters Japan, he sees Japanese custom officials confiscating any material that has any thing to do with revolution or politics, including books and articles. His journalistic instinct paid off. He knew this would happen. So, he had already dispatched his articles for publication through the postal service on ship. 'Musafir Ki Diary' is based on a travelogue in Urdu (1938) by Khwaja Ahmad Abbas, the legendary journalist, screenwriter and filmmaker, known for directing films such as Dharti Ke Lal, Bambai Raat Ki Banhon Mein, Do Boond Pani, Pardesi, Saat Hindustani and Shehar Aur SapnaThis podcast is presented by Pervaiz Alam and produced by Achala Sharma for Cineink in association with Khwaja Ahmad Memorial Trust.

As Khwaja Ahmad Abbas spends his last evening in Shanghai, he observes there is a large population of Muslims in Shanghai who are nationalists just like the other Chinese but quite liberal as well. They drink alcohol and yet follow their religion. Abbas finds the Chinese Theatre a bit primitive and as bad as the Hindustani Theatre. 'Musafir Ki Diary' is based on a travelogue in Urdu by Khwaja Ahmad Abbas, the legendary journalist, screenwriter and filmmaker, known for writing films such as Neecha Nagar, Awara, Bobby and Hina. This podcast is presented by Pervaiz Alam and produced by Achala Sharma for Cineink in association with Khwaja Ahmad Memorial Trust.

Khwaja Ahmad Abbas is convinced that the Japanese have been committing war crimes against the Chinese population. He is horrified to see lots of women have been forced to work as 'taxi dancers' and sex workers. 'Musafir Ki Diary' is based on a travelogue in Urdu by Khwaja Ahmad Abbas, the legendary journalist, screenwriter and filmmaker. This podcast is presented by Pervaiz Alam and produced by Achala Sharma for Cineink in association with Khwaja Ahmad Memorial Trust. Abbas wrote India's longest-running column in the Bombay Chronicle which later shifted to Blitz, and ran with continuity for 52 years, starting in 1932 and ending only with the writer's death in 1987.

Veteran journalist, novelist and filmmaker, Khwaja Ahmad Abbas shares his views on the conflict between Japan and China as he visits Singapore and Hong Kong in 1938. Nehru asks Indian workers in these two cities to support the Chinese cause, writes Abbas. Based on a travelogue 'Musafir Ki Diary' in Urdu by Khwaja Ahmad Abbas, this podcast is presented by Pervaiz Alam and produced by Achala Sharma for Cineink in association with Khwaja Ahmad Memorial Trust.

Renowned journalist, novelist and filmmaker Khwaja Ahmad Abbas spends his second day on the ship, reading Pearl S Buck, writing a novel and watching Flying Fish as he leaves Colombo for Singapore.Presented by Pervaiz Alam, Musafir Ki Diary is produced by Achala Sharma for Cineink in association with Khwaja Ahmad Memorial Trust. Abbas won a Palme d'Or at Cannes for his screenplay, Neecha Nagar.

The Beginning of My Journey I Seventeen Countries in 5 Months I Cost 3,500 RupeesAt the age of 24, Khwaja Ahmad Abbas set out on a journey that would take him to 17 countries in 5 months as he left for Shanghai on 28th June, 1938. KA Abbas wrote 74 books, 90 short stories, 3,000 journalistic articles and several plays. He directed classics like Dharti Ke Lal (1946), and eventually received National Film Awards for Shehar Aur Sapna (1963), Do Boond Pani (1971) and Saat Hindustani (1969)- the film which gave India's superstar Amitabh Bachchan his first role in films.  Presented by Pervaiz Alam, Musafir Ki Diary is produced in association with Khwaja Ahmad Memorial Trust by Achala Sharma for Cineink.