When the Duke and Duchess toured Pakistan

From the political message of the visit to the royal couple’s dress, everything was in media focus

Britain’s Prince William and his wife Kate Middleton were on a five-day trip to Pakistan last week. The Duke and Duchess of Cambridge visited Islamabad, Chitral and Lahore before leaving for the U.K. on Friday. During the trip, President Arif Alvi and Prime Minister Imran Khan hosted them separately, and they visited the Army Canine Centre in Islamabad, where Britain offers support to train dogs to identify explosives.

The only change in the itinerary was the cancellation of a trip to the Khyber Pass bordering Afghanistan due to bad weather. They stayed overnight in Lahore on Thursday and returned from Islamabad the next day. Before leaving Pakistan, Prince William hailed ties between the U.K. and Pakistan. “We’re involved with the Pakistanis for a very good reason. It will actually keep people safe back in the U.K.,” he told reporters.

While the Duke and Duchess were touring Pakistan, the first Royal trip to the country in more than a decade, the media frenzy was building up. From the traditional dress the Duchess wore througout the trip to the couple’s cricketing skills, everything related to the visit was discussed. Their trip even brought issues such as colonial hangover, Brexit, climate change and, of course, fashion into discussion.

Senator Mustafa Nawaz Khokhar of the Pakistan People’s Party thinks that after Brexit, the U.K. would like to see enhanced trade relations with the Commonwealth countries. “Exiting the EU also leaves the U.K. with a loss of political and economic influence as compared to the EU as a bloc. It is in this context that the visit should be seen,” Mr. Khokhar said.

Khadijah Shah, entrepreneur and creative director at Pakistan’s leading luxury brand Élan, believes that it’s obvious that people are excited about the royal couple’s visit as the world over, there’s a fascination for royalty. It’s not nostalgia for colonialism. “It is more of a nostalgia for the romanticism associated with royalty, kings, queens, prince, princesses, dukes, etc.”

International icon

One of the kurtas the Duchess wore while in Pakistan — a cream silk one with black embroidery on it — was designed by Ms. Shah’s Élan.

The public’s fascination with her clothes arises from the fact that Princess Middleton is an international icon with a global celebrity status.

“When she honours the local culture and heritage, it gives us an immense sense of pride and relevance. By wearing our silhouettes and our designers, she is honouring us and that is extremely important for Pakistan.”

Educationist and academic Soufia Siddiqi says there is a lot of focus on what the Duchess wore because she chose to wear local dresses. But there were more important aspects of the visit than just what she wore. She is also critical of the way the Duchess was portrayed by the mainstream media — just as a “pretty, rich, white lady”.

“Kate is a human being. She fell in love with a royal and thus got married into royalty. Look at how she carries herself, how she engages with others. Let us not turn this into a ‘Us vs Them’ divide. These two are young, inspirational people who are doing great work. They are both activists in their own rights. Kate and William have worked on urban forests in London, have highlighted climate change issues and raised their voice for education. Even during their Pakistan trip, they met forest rangers, went to schools, and to the foothills of the Hindu Kush mountain range.”

She sees a larger message as well in the visit. The royals came to Pakistan despite travel advisories and warnings issued to travellers planning to come to Pakistan by several Commonwealth countries, says Ms. Siddiqi. “There is a little bit in it for the U.K. and a little bit in it for us but that’s a good thing because a diplomatic relationship isn’t unilateral in nature. This is how diplomacy works.”

Daniyal Noorani, founder of Lahore-based Awesamosas and Wakhra Studios, says it’s just exciting that somebody of such an international profile is coming to the country as a guest. “You take pride in them absorbing your culture… For example, William had worn a sherwani at the reception in Islamabad. It was something that I really liked that they were trying to immerse themselves in our culture.”

Mr. Noorani says that while some people are viewing it from the post-colonial lens, for him, “this is just a high-profile tourist coming to Pakistan and seeing our country”. Mr. Noorani’s famous fusion samosa bar — Awesamosas — catered to the royal visit at SOS Village in Lahore.

(Mehmal Sarfraz is a journalist based in Lahore)

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