Personages who had made a mark in various fields after the independence of Pakistan and had done the country proud figured at a book launch at the Alliance Francaise in town on Saturday evening.
The personalities were as diverse as the late writer Intizar Hussain, film actor Shan, Abida Parveen and 50 others who had been interviewed by journalist Khurram Sohail, currently a writer on cultural and literary affairs with Dawn (Urdu) Online.
The book, titled “In conversation with legends”, is an expose of various facets of Pakistan’s literary and cultural life since the dawn of independence. In his book, Sohail examines the cultural currents and cross-currents in the nation’s life.
Talking about the book, journalist Afrah Jamal, in her impeccable English, praised the work as highly incisive while addressing a packed conference hall of the Alliance Francaise. Afrah’s comments were followed by the screening of a video featuring shots of Sohail in conversation with various people famous in their respective persuasions, both local and foreign.
Among those whom Sohail interviewed was the late Ustad Rais Khan, who passed away recently. As a tribute to his memory, Turab Ali Hashmi presented a number on the Sitar. Hashmi is a musician of the Delhi Gharana. Asif Sinan presented a number to the accompaniment of guitar strumming. It was a tribute to Aamir Zaki, a musician (guitarist) who passed away recently.
Speaking on the occasion, Rafe Mehmood, a journalist, highlighted Sohail’s achievement and said his main achievement was writing on cultural and literary matters in the Urdu press, a domain where cultural affairs and writing on them had become a dying phenomenon.
He said Sohail had successfully navigated cultural matters in the Urdu press. “We need people who should be able to see through and through and determine where art and culture are,” Mehmood said.