The way to a man’s heart is through his stomach. Well-worn maternal advice to daughters of a particular age? Well, yes, but there’s a reason clichés are clichés. There is a measure of truth in them. Because it turns out that happy marriages are just the tip of the ice-berg. One man managed to get the presidency out of it.
It is heard that Mamnoon Hussain, back when he was just your average Leaguer, has told the then PM Sharif that he could put together Dahi Bhallas like no one’s business. And that he could, apparently, because when he got around to sampling them, Sharif had quite taken to them and the rabri doodh to boot. After that, whenever a trip to Karachi was due, the PM would call Hussain in advance and tell him he wanted his fix.
Well, on one visit, Sharif informed Hussain he would be coming over to Governor House in Karachi. On the day, Hussain wasn’t allowed in by the security staff. After the PM’s meetings were over, he went out of the house in his motorcade, only to see his faithful food-buddy standing outside. Aghast, Sharif got him inside the car, went back in the Governor House, had the food with him and told him one day he’d have they keys to the mansion he wasn’t allowed into. Lo and behold! That is exactly what happened and he became Governor Sindh.
But since the rabri doodh, it turns out, was really, really, really good, a presidency was also in line later.
Sartaj Aziz, meanwhile, is a tried and tested hand at economics. And diplomacy.
