ISLAMABAD: Renowned writer and poet Ashfaq Hussain on Saturday said that he was inspired by the progressive writer’s movement at Karachi University as there were a number of literary figures at that time, but he believed poetry gave him fame .

While talking to participants of an event titled ‘Meet a Writer Over a Cup of Tea’ at Pakistan Academy of Letters (PAL), he said as a student of Karachi University he got a chance to meet writers such as Mumtaz Hussain, Majnun Gorakhpuri and others.

“I was brought up in a literary environment and later in the college I joined student politics. I was also part of the movement against Gen Ayub Khan but soon realised that I was not born for the politics so joined progressive writers,” Mr Hussain, who has recently arrived from Canada, said.

He said before going to Canada in early 1980s his first poetry book had been published. However, he said that his life’s new era began in Toronto.

“In 1990s, I started writing prominent events of my life. Though most of them were about activities in Toronto, I realised that notable events of my life had some connection with Faiz Ahmad Faiz. So I decided to write exclusively about Faiz Ahmad Faiz and time spent with him in Canada,” he said.

Earlier, the PAL Chairman Dr Mohammad Qasim Bughio eulogized the services of Ashfaq Hussain for the promotion of Pakistani literature.

“Many editions of his book regarding Faiz have been published. Moreover, he is the writer of 10 books,” he said.

Dr Bughio said it was the 25th sitting under the title “Meet a writer over a cup of tea” and PAL will continue holding such events to highlight the contribution of writers to Pakistani literature.

Published in Dawn, October 29th, 2017