What makes a space eligible to be declared ‘public’ is perhaps its easy accessibility. These spaces are non-elite in nature — that is, these are inclusive and cater for the needs and tastes of the laity.

Some of these places have certain symbolic significance which can attract the public. Similarly, historical sites have their own significance. Unfortunately, for most visitors, these (historic sites) are nothing more than recreational spots.

Recently, I, along with my cousins, had the chance to visit the Greater Iqbal Park which enshrines Minar-i-Pakistan. We also visited the Badshahi Masjid, Lahore Fort and the Samadhi of Ranjit Singh. It turned out to be a revelatory trip for many reasons.

First, we were witness to the restoration work for which the Walled City of Lahore Authority (WCLA) deserves a pat on the back. The grand Picture Wall, which is considered the biggest mosaic mural in the world and was restored recently, offered a fresh perspective to the Fort. Every image on the wall seemed to tell a tale. Further, the fully restored exit gate adjoining the Picture Wall made the Fort appear even more appealing.

However, aside from the architectural renovations conducted at the Lahore Fort and the ongoing expansion work at the Samadhi, there was something queer that caught our attention: At every few metres there was a battery of people absorbed in creating TikTok content. (The nature and quality of their content is a different subject altogether.) Only a small chunk of people seemed to have come to the place with the desire to witness the glorious relics of the past.

TikTok enjoys the greatest popularity today, especially among the youth. No wonder the most common type of ‘visitor’ you meet at the historic sites these days are the young TikTok-ers who seem to have no care for the surroundings beyond being a beautiful backdrop in their videos.

But the relation between the camera and public spaces isn’t new. Before the advent of smartphones, film roll cameras were used for recordings, but because of their high cost and accessibility issues the use of historic places as background was quite limited.

Lastly, a large number of picnickers are also, quite like the TikTok-ers, oblivious to the grandeur and significance of historic places. They are there as if they were in a public park, where they have ample green spaces to sit on and make short work of the food laid out before them. Their inability to distinguish between a park and a historical place reminds me of a poem by Majeed Amjad, titled Maqbara-i-Jehangir, in which he laments the indifference shown by the visitors. Here’s a segment translated from Urdu by Riyaz Latif:

Spreading a rug over the corpses of innumerable ages, Some sit, engrossed in their own drifts, As the image of charming tresses falls onto the eyes,the smoke of histories descends into goblets!

The writer has a BS in English literature from the University of the Punjab