Different Lahore, Same Heartbeat
(2007–2026: A Nineteen-Year Reflection)
Basant was the heartbeat of our childhood. Even before sunrise, Lahore’s sky would begin to change color, slowly turning soft gold. By afternoon, rooftops felt alive. On places like Bukhari Building, roofs were not just concrete slabs — they were gathering grounds of laughter, competition, and wonder. Our rooftop felt like the center of the festival. Kites filled the air: gudda, patang, tawa, sharala, pari, and the famous white kuddas. Strings vibrated with tension, fingers burned slightly, and every cut kite was celebrated like a small victory.
But the most beautiful moment always arrived near sunset.
As the sun dipped behind Lahore’s low skyline, the sky turned orange, pink, and purple. Kites floated silently against the glowing horizon. The city paused. For a few minutes, nobody cared about winning. Everyone simply looked up. The breeze felt gentle. Tea cups appeared. Someone played music. Someone laughed. Someone shouted “bo kataaa.” It felt like Lahore itself was breathing in happiness.
It was also the time of the Pervez Musharraf era. A different Pakistan. A different Lahore. Not perfect, not ideal, but familiar. Many major leaders of the Pakistan Muslim League (N) were not in Pakistan, including Nawaz Sharif. And Benazir Bhutto was still alive. Politics felt distant from daily life. People were less obsessed with talk shows and breaking news. We were busy living inside our small worlds.
That Lahore felt like a city living in a long, relaxed sentence. Things happened, but nothing felt rushed. There was no Metro, no Orange Train, no forest of flyovers slicing the sky into layers. People planned their day with patience, not with apps. Electricity disappeared regularly, and candlelight was not romance — it was routine. Solar panels were not a concept; rooftops were just rooftops. And most importantly, there was no smog. Winters were cold, foggy, and sometimes mysterious — but the air did not feel poisonous. You could see the horizon. You could breathe without thinking about breathing. Yet despite the darkness of load-shedding, there was a strange brightness in how people lived.
I was also at a stage of life where I was earning only a salary in thousands. It was not much, but it felt like everything. Dreams were bigger than bank balances. Hope was richer than income. Life was not about how much you had — it was about how alive you felt.
Social life in those days had weight. Friends actually met. If someone wanted to say something, they showed up or picked up a call. There was no Facebook, no Instagram, no TikTok. And even if YouTube technically existed somewhere in the world, it was not a daily part of our lives. Silence meant something was wrong. Today, silence usually means someone is scrolling. In 2026, Lahore is hyper-connected. Everyone is online, yet somehow everyone feels slightly unavailable. Messages are instant, but understanding takes longer. The city gained speed, but lost some pauses — and those pauses were where stories used to grow.
Technology around cameras and video tells another quiet story of change. In 2007, mobile phones with video capability did exist, but they were not common. Most people carried simple phones meant only for calls and messages. Cameras that could record good-quality video were very rare and very expensive. Extra features felt luxurious. It was not easy for everyone to own such equipment. Making a video required serious effort, money, and planning. Today, every phone is a studio. Everyone is a photographer. Everyone is a filmmaker. High resolution is normal. Stabilization is expected. Editing apps live in pockets. Content is endless. Yet strangely, the value of a single captured moment feels smaller than before.
Cricket feels like a perfect metaphor for this passage of time. In 2007, there was no Babar Azam, no Mohammad Rizwan, no Shaheen Shah Afridi. But we still had Misbah-ul-Haq — calm, patient, misunderstood, carrying pressure quietly. In a way, Misbah represented that era: slower, steadier, less flashy, more burdened. Today’s cricket is explosive, aggressive, data-driven. Yesterday’s cricket was about survival, resilience, and long waits.
Transport tells another story of transformation. In 2007, getting somewhere meant rickshaw negotiations, bus stops, and the famous phrase: “Bhai, yahin utaar do.” In 2026, you tap a card, enter an air-conditioned station, and cross the city underground or on elevated tracks. It feels futuristic and efficient. But sometimes you miss the chaos, the arguments, the unplanned detours that accidentally turned into memories.
Lahore’s skyline also grew an ego. Once, the sky was visible. Now glass towers compete with clouds. Construction cranes feel permanent. The city looks richer, heavier, shinier. But under the concrete, the same old Lahore still eats too much, laughs too loudly, and stays awake too late.
There was also a time when housing societies were few. The city had edges. You knew where Lahore ended and fields began. In 2026, housing societies stretch endlessly in every direction. New phases, new blocks, new gates, new names. Lahore did not just grow — it sprawled. Green land turned into grey land. Trees were replaced by boundary walls. What was once a breathing city slowly started to feel like an urban jungle.
Food changed too. In 2007, you ate what was available. Daal chawal, roti, sabzi, anda paratha, nihari on weekends, and samosas that tasted like home. Fast food existed, but it was not a lifestyle. In 2026, pizza, burgers, shawarma, wraps, and endless café menus dominate the streets. You just wanted paratha. Now you need to choose a lifestyle.
Photography explains time beautifully. In 2007, one photo was taken. If someone blinked, destiny accepted it. In 2026, two hundred photos are taken. One is posted. Regret remains.
Perhaps the biggest change is inside us. In 2007, we thought the future was far away. In 2026, we realize the future arrived quietly while we were busy living. We are not the same people. The city is not the same city. But something stubborn remains: the urge to create, to remember, to gather, to play music, to talk about old times as if they happened yesterday.
Basant, once Lahore’s greatest joy, was not just a festival — it was a feeling. Sadly, because of rule-breaking, unsafe practices, and illegal strings that caused tragic accidents, the festival was banned. What was meant for happiness became a source of pain.
Yet hope still lives.
Hope that one day Basant will return — not as chaos, not as danger — but as a safe, peaceful, regulated celebration. A festival where joy does not cost a life. Where happiness does not carry blood. Where the sky once again becomes a place of color, not fear.
There was no solar.
There were no metros.
There were no Babars, Rizwans, or Shaheens.
There were very few video mobiles.
There were only a few housing societies.
And I was earning only in thousands.
Yet life was full.
Now everything exists.
Yet we still search for the same feeling.
Different Lahore.
Different era.
Same heartbeat
