AdabFest2023

Ameena Saiyid, the pioneer of literature festivals in Pakistan, will launch the fifth Adab Festival, organized by her Lightstone Publishers, on November 25 and 26 2023 in Karachi at Habitt City, Sharea Faisal/Tipu Sultan Road. Adab Festival is one of Pakistan's most prestigious celebrations of literature and culture.

Ameena’s reason for launching literature festivals in Pakistan was that, in a young country like Pakistan, we are lucky to have a rich and longstanding literary and cultural heritage and have a duty to preserve and build on it.

It was believed in Pakistan that the golden days of Urdu were over; that Ghalib, Iqbal and Manto belonged to the past, that Faiz was unique, and so on. There was little enthusiasm for literature and reading books. The literary culture in Pakistan was almost barren. Being in the business of books, she felt that her job was not just to make books available but to involve the public in the literary world. She tried to open the esoteric, haloed ground of Literature, previously occupied by small, exclusive groups of literary people, to everyone, bring people close to authors and books and show the young that books are also for pleasure and entertainment. She demonstrated that literature and its associated culture could bring enjoyment, fulfilment and value. She showed the youth that not just sports or soldiering but literature too could have its heroes.

She organized the first literary festival in Pakistan in 2010 along with Asif Farrukhi and the response was extraordinary. One could never have predicted the number of enthusiasts. Literature Festivals then emerged and spread everywhere in Pakistan. The truth became obvious—this land is not barren; in fact, it is fallow land, waiting to be seeded.

Once the general public was made aware of their literary and cultural heritage which festivals facilitate, Ameena and her team prepared for growth at great speed to make up for lost time. They worked to mine heritage for the appreciation of what is sublime and relevant to the human condition for implements like language and style, as well as the art of clearly conveying a creative idea. 

Heritage can also provide material for future literature. For example, the numerous legends and folklore of Balochistan, Pakhtunkhwa, Punjab, and Sindh await the Brothers Grimm to give them the imaginative and skilful treatment that will turn them into stars in the firmament of universal literature. The folklore and ballads of Balochistan and some other parts of Pakistan, already slipping away from our collective memory, need to be documented and preserved for their beauty as well as historical and anthropological value.

 The fifth edition of Adab Festival is set to captivate audiences once again with a vibrant array of intellectual and artistic offerings. Ameena Saiyid, the pioneer of Literature Festivals in Pakistan, the founder and previous director of the Karachi and Islamabad Literature Festivals and the founder and director of Adab Festival said “We organise Adab Festival to highlight the importance of culture and literature in promoting debate and dialogue in order to bring about understanding. Thus, it gives me the greatest pleasure to unveil our remarkable lineup of speakers. In fact, Adab Festival has a great history of success over the years. Since its inception in 2019, it has played a pivotal role in promoting literature and the arts, celebrating the rich tapestry of Pakistani culture and bringing together some of the finest minds in the world of letters. From thought-provoking discussions to electrifying performances, Adab Festival has consistently ignited the flames of creativity and imagination.”

Adab Festival has consistently aimed at providing a platform for diverse voices, encouraging dialogue and creativity. With the steadfast support of partners like Habib University, the Bank of Punjab, Jang Group, Institute of Business Management, British Council, Getz Pharma and Alliance Francaise, Adab Festival has grown making it a cultural highlight on the city’s calendar. This year, we are especially grateful to Habitt City for providing us with this wonderful and unique venue for holding our press conferences and the Adab Festival.

As in previous years, this year, too, the Adab Festival promises to be an unforgettable experience featuring renowned luminaries including Dr Ishrat Hussain, Kishwar Naheed, Azad Iqbal, Iftikhar Arif, Tanvir Anjum, Stephen Lyon, Shahnaz Wazir Ali, Wasif Rizvi, Moeed Yousuf, Zehra Nigah, Dr Pirzada Qasim, Fatema Hasan, Sarmad Ali, Shoaib Arshad, Nurul Huda Shah, Arifa Noor, Tariq Alexander Qaiser, Talib Karim, Omar Shahid Hamid, Zahid Hussain, Nasira Zuberi, Dr Anjum Halai, Hassan Khan, Salma Alam, Dr Huma Baqai, Inaam Nadeem, Khalid Anam and many more.  

There will be sessions on books including those on Betrayal by Omar Shahid Hamid, the Memoirs of Iskander Mirza, Honourbound to Pakistan in Duty, Destiny and Death edited by Syed Khawar Mehdi, Beyond the Fields by Aysha Baqir, Jinnah: A Life by Yasser Latif Hamdani, In Pursuit of an Ethical State: Reflections of a Police Chief by Syed Kaleem Imam, Face to Face with Benazir by Zahid Hussain and many more. Other sessions include Power Women of Pakistan, Higher Education, School Education, Down to the Last Dollar, From Boston to Beaconhouse (an interview of Moeed Yousuf, Cricket and the Pakistani Imagination, a Mushaira, a theatrical performance by the Grips Theatre, Artificial Intelligence, Mental Health, Mangroves, a musical session with Azad Iqbal, eldest grandson of Allama Iqbal.

BOOK TALKS AND BOOK LAUNCHES

• OMAR SHAHID HAMID’S BETRAYAL AND QAIDI, URDU TRANSLATION OF OMAR SHAHID HAMID’S THE PRISONER BY INAAM NADEEM. The translator with the author. Moderator: Aysha Baqir

• ZAHID HUSSAIN’S FACE-TO-FACE WITH BENAZIR. Sherry Rahman and Raza Rabbani with the author. Moderator: Ghazi Salahuddin 

• نئی زبان کے حروف لکھنے والی A CONVERSATION WITH TANVEER ANJUM ON HER LATEST COLLECTION, INCLUDING POETRY RECITATION BY THE POET HERSELF. Nasira Zuberi with the poet. Moderator: Syed Kashif Raza 

• ISHRAT HUSSAIN’S DEVELOPMENT PATHWAYS: INDIA, PAKISTAN, BANGLADESH 1947-2022. Muhamad Azfar Ahsan, Sima Kamil with the author. Moderator: Ehsan Malik 

• HUMA BAQAI’S COLLECTED WORKS ON FOREIGN AFFAIRS AND SECURITY POLICY. Moeed Yusuf with the author. Moderator: Nadia Naqi

• AZAD IQBAL’S POETRY COLLECTION: DANAYE RAZ. Rukhsana Saba in conversation with the author. A heartfelt exchange on the poetry of Allama Iqbal’s eldest grandson with readings from his Diwan and a closer look into the life of the impressive and accomplished poet.

CULTURAL HISTORY

SPORT

• CRICKET AND THE PAKISTANI IMAGINATION. Hadeel Obaid, Salman Faridi, Qamar Ahmed. Moderator: Saad Shafqat. Exploring the many facets of cricket and its impact on Pakistani life, character, and conscience.

EDUCATION

• نئی نسل کو اردو پڑھانا: موقع یا مشکل

Shoaib Arshad, Uzma Farman Farooqui

Moderator: Ambareen Haseeb Amber

• BREAKING BOUNDARIES: INSPIRING MEN IN HUMANITIES. Jehan Ara, Muhammad Ashar Khan, Gulraiz Khan, Aaron Mulvany Moderator: Najeeb Jan . Breaking stereotypes and discovering the significance of promoting boys in the field of social sciences.

• THE POWER OF COMMUNITY: ENABLING ACCESS TO HIGHER EDUCATION. Jamal Nasir, Salma Alam, Talib Dhanji, Furqan Karim Moderator: Aqsa Junejo. A discussion on the shared responsibility of the community to ensure higher education, collaborative efforts to redefine affordability, and the evolving role of philanthropy in education.

• BUILDING A GENERATION: ARE SCHOOLS PASSING THEIR EXAM? Salma Alam, Rana Hussain, Hassan Khan, Faisal Mushtaq, Rukaiya Salman. Moderator: Stephen Lyon.  The role of schools, their responsibilities, and their influence on students

• HUMAN SCIENCES  EDUCATION IN THE ANTHROPOCENE

Muhammad Haris, Shama Dossa, Anum Asi, Shah Jamal Aslam

Moderator: Nauman Naqvi

A discussion delving into the vital role of education in understanding and addressing the complex issues of our times, from environmental sustainability to social justice.

• PAKISTAN KI ZARKHEZ ZABANEIN

Amar Sindhu, Saani Syed, Makham Khattak

Moderator: Waheed NoorChair: Noor-ul-Huda Shah A look at the development and growth of Pakistani languages, their influence on society and their future.

• HIGHER EDUCATION. Anjum Halai,  Moeed Yousuf, Talib Karim, Anzar Khaliq. Moderator: Shahnaz Wazir Ali 

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