The Lahore Literary Festival has been previously marred by bomb scares and last minute venue changes in its past years. But, compare that to the recent controversy caused by Newsweek Pakistan Editor and former LLF board member Fasih Ahmed and they seem like no big deal. Fasih tweeted insensitively following Zainab’s rape and murder, following which outrage led to the hashtag #boycottLLF trending on Twitter.
The sixth edition of LLF took place in Lahore this weekend and featured poem recitations, panel discussions and book launches by renowned writers, academics, artists, journalists and poets.
The Lahore Literary Festival has been previously marred by bomb scares and last minute venue changes in its past years. But, compare that to the recent controversy caused by Newsweek Pakistan Editor and former LLF board member Fasih Ahmed and they seem like no big deal. Fasih tweeted insensitively following Zainab’s rape and murder, following which outrage led to the hashtag #boycottLLF trending on Twitter. Fasih resigned from his role at the LLF but the hashtag continued trending throughout the course of LLF as many felt that further action needed to be taken against him.
Whether you were on the boycott bandwagon or not, the sixth edition of LLF took place smoothly this weekend at the Alhamra. The two-day event featured poem recitations, panel discussions and book launches by some renowned writers, academics, artists, journalists and poets. The biggest crowd pullers were British actor/rapper Riz Ahmed, Iranian-American writer Reza Aslan and Man Booker prize winner Ben Okri.
The yellow and red backdrops that have come to be symbolic of the LLF were placed all around the venue but the same backgrounds inside the halls felt quite jarring. Next year, organizers could make the backgrounds inside less busy for aesthetic purposes. Busy backdrop or not, these halls did remain full with discussions and performances all day. Light rain inaugurated the festival on Saturday, welcoming spring in Lahore.
The opening session titled “Light at the End of Trumpian Disruption” had Reza Aslan, Ben Okri and Mark Leonard and was moderated by Ahmed Rashid. Mark discussed that the problem is greater than Trump and “Trump is much more a symptom than he is a cause”. They questioned, “Who is mediating the world in this day and age?” The talk did end on a rather pessimistic note as Reza Aslan was asked about the light at the end of the tunnel and he laughed in response, “I hear death isn’t too bad.”
The next talk was the one that had many more Lahoris up and out of bed at 11 am on a Saturday. Riz Ahmed was in attendance and spoke about how he got started with music and acting, among other things. He discussed how the best material comes from venting like no one is watching. He said that practising makes perfect and that “showing up is 90 per cent of your creative career. It’s not an obsession that is handed to you from the heavens.”
While Reza and Riz held the crowds’ attention at their respective talks, Ben Okri was the breakout name that had everyone buzzing. A Nigerian poet and novelist, he had some riveting sessions on Saturday but his poetry slam in hall three on Sunday was really something to sit through. Joined by Salman T Qureshi, Sinan Antoon and moderated by Shaista Sirajjudin, the poetry went from being political to personal and back. Sinan recited poetry that gave the audience a sense of battlefields in the Middle East; Okri recited his poems on liberation and revolution and Qureshi shifted the mood by reciting a poem on his father. Okri followed him by reciting some of his most personal works like ‘My Mother is Sleeping’. It was definitely a poetry slam to remember.
