FOR a country with a literacy rate of only 58pc, Pakistan seems to host an abundance of literary festivals. The past few years can be described as being witness to the rise and rise of the literary festival — ironically at a time when reading habits even among the educated seem to be on the decline. Next month will see the ninth edition of the Karachi Literature Festival, which was the first event of its kind in the country, superseding all other such festivals. Prior to KLF, envisioned by Ameena Saiyid and Asif Farrukhi, there were only the occasional book fairs that were held by various publishing houses. Now, just two months into the new year, three festivals have already taken place. First, there was the first Adab Festival held at the Governor’s House in Karachi. Then, there was the third Sindh Literature Festival, also in Karachi. Away from the port city, the seventh Lahore Literature Festival took place at Alhamra Arts Centre at the same time as SLF. Oxford University Press organises the Islamabad Literature Festival, in addition to the KLF. Quetta, too, saw its very first two-day literature festival in May 2018. Other events in Balochistan include a children’s literary festival in Turbat and a book festival in Gwadar.

All these events are open to the public, are typically multilingual, and give the greater community a chance to interact with their favourite authors, intellectuals and artists. Question-and-answer panels allow them to have their voices, observations or apprehensions heard. Besides readers and writers, these events are welcomed by local publishing houses and booksellers to sell copies in an otherwise slow market. One just hopes that these festivals are actually conducive in promoting a love for language and literature, while instilling reading and debating habits, rather than simply dissolving into ineffective echo chambers. Even so, we’re all better off with literature festivals than without them.

Published in Dawn, February 26th, 2019