KARACHI: The autobiography of a Pakistani, who achieved eminence from a humble background through his lifelong struggle, travelled across the globe, knew ordinary and influential people alike and did not hide his criticism for those whom he thought deserved that, was dubbed as a personal story carrying all ingredients of a fictional page-turner.

“This book is an autobiography in which an individual has narrated ordinary and important events of his life, but it has all ingredients of an unputdownable novel,” said writer Khwaja Razi Haider, in his keynote speech at the launch of the book Shikasta tabeer [Shattered realisation] — Life and times of a Pakistani citizen authored by Aslam Siddiqui at the Arts Council of Pakistan, Karachi.

Aslam Siddiqui was a Pakistani banker from Uttar Pradesh, India, who opted for Pakistan after the independence. He was part of series of historic happenings and a witness to future-defining events of a country carved out from British India.

Mr Haider said as novelists did, Siddiqui kept his characters in the mist of mystery and revealed them when he built them with the craftsmanship of a top-notch fiction writer.

He said the author’s candid style was icing on the cake in which he conveniently shared failings of his own and qualities of others.

“This book is the transparent scenario of human’s inner self,” said Mr Haider.

He said the book was all-encompassing where reader could find everything from the vortex of the partition to Karachi’s whirlpool.

Anwar Maqsood said the writer did not fight anyone but against his own self.

“Aslam Siddiqui fought with and against himself the whole life,” said Maqsood, himself a performer, writer and satirist par excellence.

“He found the tree he wanted to get shelter was already cut. His tale explains you with tragic details about the fact that marauders leave something behind while leaving, but, if anyone attacks you from within leaves nothing behind,” said Maqsood.

He said the author’s entire narrative was against feudal lords and feudal mentality.

Former information minister Javed Jabbar said the book carried kaleidoscopic view of the history of South Asia, though, otherwise, it was extremely personal account of ‘a very private person’.

“In the book, we see his continuous concerns about the plight of the poor,” he said, adding that the book opened with a scene of the hospital and ended, again, with view of a hospital.

“Hospital can be taken as a metaphor about South Asia,” he said.

He disagreed with the author’s desire for the ‘United States of South Asia’, a confederation of India, Pakistan and Bangladesh.

Dr Shershah Syed, who translated the book from English, said the writer’s depiction, in the beginning of the book, of his stepmother’s death in labour was stunning.

Author’s daughter Dr Tabinda Azam also spoke. Akhlaq Ahmed moderated the proceedings.

Published in Dawn, December 31st, 2017