The Adabi Baithak at the Alhamra Art Center, The Mall hosts performing arts stars, writers and intellectuals. Veteran artiste Irfan Khoosat graced a sitting on Friday and shared with some media persons memories of his career spanning decades.

He stressed that quality theatre was the need of the hour and new talent could be tapped from universities and colleges. Youngsters are immensely talented and doing wonders in the performing arts field so they must be given a chance, he said.

The Punjab Institute of Language, Art and Culture (PILAC) celebrated Vaisakhi festival at Ludhayki, Kasur a few days ago.

Dr Sughra Sadaf, the director general of PILAC, said it was a centuries-old festival and celebrated on the cutting of wheat crop.

She said since it was an integral part of Punjab’s culture and heritage, the institution deemed it necessary to enthusiastically celebrate it.

Bhangra, ludi and singing of folk songs made it a fun-filled activity.

Pilac hosted the launch of a poetry collection ‘Chihnday Agar Kaiser’ by Irfan Malik this past week. The event was conducted by Prof Zubair Ahmed who in his inaugural address refreshed memories of good old days when he first met his friend Irfan Malik in 1974.

“Mr Malik was studying at MAO College and I was a student of Islamia College Civil Lines and we both were fond of poetry,” said Mr Ahmed. He said Irfan Malik was a very passionate and sensitive soul and had great respect and love for literary figures.

“Once he (the poet) asked Munir Niazi to give his half smoked cigarette and after smoking it fully he kept the filter in his pocket as a gesture of respect,” recalled his friend.

They were also part of a literary circle ‘Naye Ufaq’, he said.

Poetess Anjum Qureshi also lauded Mr Malik’s poetic works and said she had learnt a lot from him. Mr Malik’s poetry had a wave of romanticism, she said.

Writer Iqbal Haider Butt said an important aspect of Mr Malik’s poetry was that he questions his past.

Artist Rubina Gogi said she knew Mr Malik for the last 30 years. She said she had the honour of designing the title of Irfan Malik’s poetic collection.

Veteran poet Raja Sadiqullah said Irfan Malik’s poetry was philosophical. He said the criticism that Mr Malik’s poetry lacked rhyming was not justified. “We don’t have good critics when it comes to Punjabi poetry,” he said.

Prof Saeedur Rehman discussed the standards of poetry and said earlier there wasn’t any burden of the interpretation of poetry or any art, rather art was associated with magic. This debate of explaining or rationalising one’s art or poetry started with Plato’s Republic. He said what mattered in poetry was metaphor.

Irfan Malik said he started his literary career by writing stories and didn’t know when he turned to poetry.

He said he spent many years in Sweden where in first seven years he wrote only two stories. As for poetry, he said, for him it’s like meditation.

Published in Dawn, May 7th, 2018