was born and raised in the historical city of Lahore. Known for its vibrancy, colours, flavours and aesthetics; “Jinnay Lahore nain vekheya, o jameya hi nain,” they used to say. Yet, these were hollow words and slogans to me, with little meaning. Where was, I’d wonder, the Lahore, the city of gardens that everyone talked about? I only saw an overcrowded, polluted and unmanaged metropolitan slowly turning into a concrete jungle.

Little did I know that the Lahore of our folklore was right before my eyes, only hidden beneath the dust and pollution, in its overcrowded alleys and its androon shehr. Lahore was always there but I couldn’t ‘see’ it; not until I visited Istanbul recently.

While the two cities are completely different in terms of geography and culture, Istanbul’s streets have a striking resemblance with those of Lahore. The two have the same kind of hustle and bustle, vibrancy, colours and mysticism. This, coupled with a flavour of food and music, is what marks the famed streets in both the cities.

In many ways, the city of Istanbul will give a die-hard Lahori an almost nostalgic semblance of their hometown — thanks to its bazaars, the Ottoman-era mansions (havelis), the prayer calls that resound through its awe-inspiring mosques; even its food streets and crowdedness. But this nostalgia is often accompanied by a sense of despair when you picture Lahore in comparison. Istanbul, by any measure, will strike you as a city that re-built itself.

Istanbul, once the apple of every emperor’s eye, is said to have experienced decades of decadence following the fall of the Ottoman Empire up until the 20^th Century. The locals will tell you how Istanbul adopted radical administrative reforms, and launched preservation initiatives and infrastructure development projects to compete with the world all over again. Its progress might seem to be a multi-billion-dollar affair and something that requires far-sightedness. God knows, it takes no rocket science and can certainly be replicated in Lahore.

For one thing, Istanbul turned its old neighbourhood, what we call androon shehr, into the city’s heart. Androon shehr continues to be Lahore’s heart, but imagine a revamped androon shehr, connected by public transport, fragile buildings converted into hotels, hidden gems marked and preserved, and shops given over to modern brands and traditional crafts alike. Imagine the Shah Alami Market, for instance, modelled on the Grand Bazaar only to become a more hygienic and better maintained version of itself. Imagine a network of street cars connecting Shah Alami to Akbari Mandi and to the Badshahi Masjid just the way Istanbul connects the Grand Bazaar with the Spice Bazaar and the Sultan Ahmet Square.

Imagine a public square near the Badshahi Masjid where you can experience the city’s bustle at its fullest.

Imagine the area around Data Darbar turned into a massive marketplace of traditional items a la Eyup Sultan, the shrine of Abu Ayub Ansari (with whom Allah was pleased) in Istanbul.

While roaming the streets of Old Lahore, ask yourself this: Just what are the facilities our public places lack? Ease of access, I’ll say. This, to my mind, can only be covered with a network of an effective public transport. Secondly, any city that is meant for pedestrians must cater to people who would be in the streets all day. This can be done by setting up sitting areas, either in the form of curbside benches or small parks at walking distance.

One of the greatest troubles someone like me has faced when spending a day in the androon Lahore is a lack of clean washrooms. The city of Istanbul came up with a simple but ingenious solution to this: Washroom facilities are attached to the precincts of every mosque with a nominal charge for entry. The facilities are built outside the mosque and are open to everyone. The nominal charge helps to generate salaries of those in charge of the washrooms’ cleanliness and upkeep.

Once the basic facilities are provided for, economic/ commercial activities will follow organically. Why wouldn’t the people want to go for a casual stroll in androon shehr if it is turned into, let’s say, a pedestrian zone? Imagine it free of vehicular traffic and the pollution thus generated; an androon shehr where you can find a perfect spot to sit and have a karak chai with friends or family, without anyone worrying about going to the loo.

But for all that to be put in place, the city of Lahore will need to not only invest in infrastructure and commercial activities but also in preservation of its culture and nature. Istanbul has invested generously (and wisely) in building cultural centres and libraries in every district of the larger city which could be equivalent to, say, having an Alhamra attach to a public library built separately for androon shehr, Gulberg, Samnabad, Iqbal Town etc.

Similarly, many a mosque has a library in its courtyard open to all regardless of age, gender and faith.

An aside: the azaan (prayer call), while of religious significance for us, is considered a prominent cultural attribute of Muslim societies for the outsiders. Keeping this in mind, the city of Istanbul has set certain standards: One, the muezzin must have a melodious voice; and two, the azaan must not overlap with azaan from a nearby mosque.

To preserve the city’s nature, other than the world class network of public transport which does not require roads to be widened at the cost of its trees, you barely find any detached houses in the city of Istanbul. Why? Well, the focus is on concentrating a large population on a small piece of land by preserving the older apartment buildings in the old city, and constructing high-rises farther away. This lets the city preserve its green belts for parks where the citizens can have a breath of fresh air and escape the city’s hectic life.

Remodelling Lahore wouldn’t be an easy task. That said, it requires a clear vision with respect to urban planning and ownership of the city. If only we loved Lahore as much as Istanbul’s citizens love it.

The writer is an entrepreneur, an LLB student and a freelance writer. He tweets @Khan__Bahadur