Bushra Ansari’s website is a fantastic example of how one can create a brilliant online archive by saving numerous photographs and putting together many articles from the web.
It took two and a half years to complete bushraansari.com, but one can certainly take a look and see how the time and effort placed into the project has paid off. Featuring colourful pictures of the actress, a sea of articles throughout the ages (mostly from the 70s) and a timeline which featured important life events from Bushra’s life. All, literally, a click away.
“It’ll make it easy for me introduce myself to other people,” Bushra Ansari had stated about the website to a local website. The website also served as a dose of nostalgia for Ansari, who had forgotten most of the songs she performed, when she started out as a singer for PTV.
“The collection of old songs on the website revived a lot of old memories. I joined PTV as a singer, I never rated myself as a proper singer, but they’re so many songs that aren’t with me anymore, so I’m glad some were preserved,” she said to the same local website.
The website was helmed by Nariman Ansari, Bushra’s 35 year old elder daughter who is a photographer and visual artist in Toronto. By going through the archive tab, one can view a collection of photos, videos, articles and music related to Bushra, each deservedly getting its own category. The pictures take you through Bushra’s career, starting from a white photographed girl singing on a microphone to her posing with the Pakistan Idol judges, from last year.
The website is a much needed tribute to an actress of note. Other artists should take notice of this and compile a plethora of pictures, videos, articles and live performances of legendary artists.
Pakistan’s entertainment industry is full of actors, actresses, comedians, musicians and artists of stellar quality which will be forgotten. In the current era of science and technology, preserving the work of some of Pakistan’s artists is an obligation on us.
