‘Integrity, commitment, ideology make a true writer’

A true writer should have three basic qualities; integrity, commitment and ideology.
This was stated by World Punjabi Congress Chairman Fakhar Zaman, Friday, while addressing the participants of a special gathering organised by Pakistan Academy of Letters, Lahore, with eminent poet and columnist Asad Mufti, who resides in The Netherlands and is on a visit to Pakistan. Fakhar Zaman in his presidential address said that he believed that a true writer should have three basic qualities; integrity, commitment and ideology and Asad Mufti has all these characteristics as he is a progressive and secular writer.
He said the history of writer’s struggle shows that how icon writers like Lorca, Pablo Neruda, Ernest Hemingway and André Malraux fought against the military dictators in the Spanish Civil War. Fakhar Zaman paid compliments to Asad Mufti and said he is a very sincere friend and he has generously entertained celebrity writers like Faiz Ahmad Faiz, Qurat-ul-Ain Haider and Ahmed Faraz and many others.
Fakhar said the diction of Asad’s poetry particularly in Punjabi is not burdened with purist vocabulary. He concluded by saying that purism in Urdu and Punjabi literature is counter-productive and should be discouraged, if these two languages have to become people’s languages. He said literary fundamentalism by a mafia in Punjabi is the main reason as to why Punjabi is not being accepted at the middle class level.
A large number of writers and poets attended the function which was presided by Fakhar Zaman. Dr Imrana Mushtaq gave the introduction and also recited some verses of Asad Mufti’s Urdu and Punjabi poetry. Ghulam Hussain Sajid spoke about the poetry and columns of Mufti and said he is doing a great service to Punjabi and Urdu language while sitting in Amsterdam. Afzal Rehan described some interesting incidents of friendship with Asad Mufti. Rashad Lahori said his organisation will also hold a function with the visitor.
Neelam Ahmad Bashir said he Asad Mufti is a man of ideas. The director of Academy of Letters Punjab, Asim Butt said the Academy was grateful to Mufti for giving time for the arranged evening. The journalist and writer Sarfaraz Syed narrated the details of his friendship with Asad over last 40 years and said Asad is an honest and straightforward human being. Asad Mufti recited some of his Urdu and Punjabi poems and dwelt upon his journey from Lahore to Moscow, Vienna and The Netherlands. —Correspondent