The first ever Adab Festival Pakistan is all set to be held on from the 1st of February to the 3rd of February at the Sindh Governor’s House, as announced by Ameena Saiyid OBE and Asif Farrukhi, at the launch press conference of AdabFest 2019 at the Karachi Press Club.
Ameena Saiyid speaking on the occasion said, “I am delighted to announce the first Adab Festival Pakistan in Karachi to celebrate authors, writings, artists, access to knowledge, and public spaces. Hope this becomes a movement across Pakistan.”
Talking about Pakistan’s historically rich and diverse literatures and cultures she said they have long been facing challenges, resulting in stifled diversity of expression and in stereotypes that are sometimes internalized.
According to Saiyid, at the Adab Festival Pakistan the audience will experience literature in diverse Pakistani languages, book launches, talks, interviews, discussions, mushairah and poetry sessions, a book fair, music, dance, theater, comedy, satire and film.
She said, “Over a hundred Pakistani and international authors, intellectuals, and media personalities will be participating in the festival.”
Co-founder Farrukhi speaking on the occasion said, “We want to highlight and celebrate the depth and diversity of Pakistan’s many languages and literary traditions. Our literature and authors are the best news that is coming out of Pakistan and we want the world to be as excited about these writers as possible.”
More than 100 speakers are to feature at the AdabFest such as Dr Ishrat Husain, Arfa Zehra, Peter Oborne, Haseena Moeen, Mustansar Husain Tarrar, Iftikhar Arif, Kishwar Naheed, Mohammad Hanif, Zia Mohyeddin, Zehra Nigah, Anwar Maqsood, H M Naqvi, Harris Khalique, Fawzia Afzal-Khan, Baela Raza Jamil, Kamran Asdar Ali, Tariq Khosa, Javed Jabbar, Attiya Dawood, Hameed Haroon, Salim Raza, Nadeem Husain, Richard Heller, Ian Vaughan-Arbuckle, Nafisa Shah, Nasim Zehra, Omar Shahid Hamid, Yaqoob Bangash, Nimra Bucha, Veerta Ali Ujan and Zarrar Khuhro.
Getz Pharma is the partner for the Adab Festival, speaking on the occasion Chief Executive Officer Khalid Mehmood said “We are a Pakistani pharma company and we strongly feel that the health of a nation depends not only on a healthy body but a healthy mind and a healthy soul,” he said.
According to him, without literature, art and a dialogue carried out in a democratic civil manner, the nation’s body will not have a healthy soul or a healthy mind.
“It is because of this that we are supporting the Adab Festival,” he said.
