Call to focus on have-nots’ sufferings

LAHORE: The celebrated writer Fakhar Zaman has said that the writer’s writings should undergo forensic tests and if the DNA matches the truth then only they are the genuine writers, otherwise they are phony and fake. The literati should have integrity beyond doubt and their writings ought to be committed to the pains and sufferings of the have-nots.

Speaking at a function arranged in his honour by the Pakistan Academy of Letters, Punjab and Tafakkur International, he dwelled upon the role of writers in Pakistan since its inception. He said though there were number of writers who challenged the status quo but there were many who compromised and became lackeys of the establishment.

He said those writers who attended the meeting called by General Zia ul Haq on April 11, 1971, after the execution of ZA Bhutto, will be remembered in the history as the worst example of opportunism and compromise. Fakhar Zaman described his journey of creative writings and told the audience that he started writing in Urdu and English and for the first time wrote in Punjabi when a radio producer asked him to write a play for the radio. He said when his first Punjabi novel ‘Sutt Gawache Log’ (The Lost Seven), was published, Amrita Pritam declared on Indian Doordarshan TV that Fakhar has introduced a new trend in novel writing and from now on the art of novel writing has to be different than the old-fashioned technique. Dr Imrana Mushtaq said that Fakhar Zaman is a writer par excellence and he has given a new idiom and trend to Punjabi writings. Director of the academy, Asim Butt said that Zaman is a multi-dimensional and versatile personality. Punjabi scholar Iqbal Qaiser said that he had a long association with Zaman in the pursuance of getting a rightful place Punjabi language. Pride of Performance award holder, Tariq Khurshid read comments made by the late scholar Zamurad Malik who said in the preface of Fakhar Zaman’s modern classic novel ‘Sutt Gawache Log’ that he himself was the eight last person.