Twins’ Bond Transcends Volatile India-Pakistan Border Brothers, Nations Celebrate Turning 50 Years Old This Week
They were born the day India gained independence from Britain, then were separated. One twin grew up in Pakistan, his brother in India.
Both nations, and both men, are turning 50 this week. India celebrates its independence Friday; Pakistan celebrated its anniversary Thursday.
The twins’ history is inseparable from that of their countries.
Azhar Sherwani and Zafar Hameed were 1 year old in 1948, when their mother allowed her brother and his wife, her best friend, to adopt Azhar - a fairly common practice. The Hameed family soon moved to Pakistan.
People on both sides of the border thought India and Pakistan would enjoy a friendly relationship. For a year, there was no question of visas and passports, but relations worsened and the divide turned bloody. The splintering of British India into Hindu-dominated India and the officially Muslim republic of Pakistan left a half-million people dead.
Since then, India and Pakistan have fought three wars, and propaganda has kept hostility high even during times of peace.
In 1971, war was followed by the sealing of the border. When Sherwani married in 1972, his twin could not attend the ceremony.
The Sherwani and Hameed families each prospered on their side of the border. The twins are successful businessmen, Sherwani in New Delhi and Hameed in Lahore, Pakistan.
With the Indian and Pakistani governments attempting a rapprochement, travel is possible between the countries, though it requires approval that can be difficult to secure.
“Delhi is a 10-hour drive from Lahore, but I can never get into my car and drive over to meet my twin,” Hameed said during a recent visit to his brother’s home in New Delhi.
“My niece is getting married,” he said, “but my children could not come because of visa difficulties.”
Pakistan’s Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif and his Indian counterpart, I.K. Gujral, seem committed to improving relations, which gives the twins hope.
“Business will definitely prosper and, hopefully, visas will be easier to come by,” Sherwani said.
His brother agreed, as the two men do on many things. Each, however, has his own vision of the future.
Sherwani wants India and Pakistan to come together and become a South Asia superpower. Hameed believes unification is impossible, but good relations are not. This year, the men are celebrating their birthday just as their countries’ are - separately.