KARACHI, May 16: Speakers at an Arts Council seminar on Friday commended journalist-cum-broadcaster Anwar Khalil for singing a paean of praise for his city, Karachi, rather than wallow in nostalgia and write about Delhi, the city in which he was born.
The launching ceremony of Anwar Khalil’s book, which began one and a half hours behind schedule, saw leading critics speak about the anthology of poetry, titled Shaher-i-Sukhan.
Poet Sahar Ansari recalled that over the years he had seen Mr Khalil at close quarters. “It is indeed praiseworthy that he continued to compose poetry in addition to his regular professional duties which were both taxing and time-consuming. Mr Khalil’s poetry has all the attributes of good poetry: romanticism coupled with deep consciousness of social and political issues.”
Mr Ansari pointed out that the poet was conscious of the fact that Karachi had lost much of cultural vibrancy it had enjoyed in the 1960s and 1970s. He also quoted couplets by Mr Khalil in which the poet drew on the verses of Ghalib.
Critic Dr Mohammad Ali Siddiqui referred to his column, “A time to remember”, in which he said he had written about the halcyon days of Urdu literature. He said: “In those days Ghazal was being fiercely opposed by some critics, who were willing even to dispense with Mir, Ghalib and Iqbal. Unfortunately, this campaign of Ghazal vilification was led by some academics. It must, however, be remembered that it was Karachi which forcefully resisted those critics who had sentenced Ghazal to death. Anwar Khalil belonged to that group of poets in Karachi who continued to compose Ghazal in the teeth of opposition.”
Leading scholar Dr Abul Khair Kashafi noted that Anwar Khalil had done us a favour by making us remember Karachi. “It is evident that the poet has very closely observed Karachi. It is no wonder that he called his anthology of poems Shahar-i-Sukhun. It is heartening to note that students are doing their PhDs on the poetry and prose written in Karachi. I request all these students to consult Anwar Khalil.”
Anwar Khalil thanked the speakers and the audience for attending the function. Despite the fact that he had a sore throat, he read out a poem of his. Mahmood Sham and Farman Fatehpuri also spoke.
