LAHORE: A fine combination of speeches, revolutionary poetry and dance was all about an evening dedicated to popular poet with masses Habib Jalib at Alhamra Art Centre on Tuesday.
The evening was organised by the Fikar-i-Jalib Foundation in collaboration with Lahore Arts Council. Speakers, poets, intellectuals, trade unionists, representatives of different non-government organisations and political parties spoke on the revolutionary poet.
A very responsive audience during the evening kept chanting slogans ‘Zinda Hai Jalib Zinda Hai’. To comrade Tanveer Ahmed Khan, Jalib was the voice of common man and a sincere human being who all his life highlighted the issues of common man through his poetry. Poets Anees Ahmed and Arshad Iqbal Adeel recited verses for Jalib. Former general-secretary of the Awami National Party Ehsan Wyen said that despite poverty, Jalib did not accept any offers to join Bhutto government.
The evening was not only all about speeches; it had also the spice of music, poetry and dance. Ansar Khalid and others presented a rap on social issues in between the speeches.
Javed Aftab from the Progressive Writers Association, Punjab, presented resolutions that Mozan Road Trade Union office Road be named after Habib Jalib and the Punjab government provide the Fikr-e-Jalib Foundation with some place to build the Habib Jalib Labour Hall.
A poet from Kabirwala, Talib Hussain Talib, was also highly appreciated by the audience for his wonderful Punjabi poetry, dedicated to Jalib.
To Farrukh Suhail Govindi, Jalib was a man of ideology. He said nowadays politics had become an industry and had its own gimmicks.
Classical dancer Amna Nawaz from Islamabad presented a beautiful dance to the poetry of Jalib, while Lal the Band also performed and presented revolutionary poetry of Jalib.
Journalist Hussain Naqi said that after Nazir Akbar Abadi, Jalib was the first poet who got popular among the masses and was close to their hearts as an awami poet. Mr Naqi was of the view that Jalib did not leave any aspect of the progressive movement’s struggle unexplored in his poetry. He recited some of the verses by Jalib.
Abid Hassan Manto recalled memories of Jalib and said he first met Jalib during his student life when he was contesting for president seat in the college union elections in 1954.
Published in Dawn, March 14th, 2018
