LAHORE: Editorial cartoonists and visual artists flocked to attend the first day of the two-day Satire Fest at the Interactive Resource Centre, Raiwind Road, on Friday.

The country’s best editorial cartoonists, visual artists and animators and journalists came together to discuss the state of journalism as well as their issues with special emphasis on editorial cartoons.

Moderated by Sabir Nazar, one of Pakistan’s renowned cartoonists, the first day of the festival was inaugurated with a video conference with Daryl Cagle, the editorial cartoonist from the US, the publisher of ‘Cagle.com’ and owner of Cagle Cartoons, Inc, a newspaper syndicate.

Cagle, in a dialogue with Pakistan’s artists, including Feica, Zafrullah and Zahoor, discussed the universality of the plight of the artist. He delineated the role of culture, geography and values in acceptance of cartoons and also their resistance. Artistic freedom, intellectual property rights and unsympathizing editors were the topics that instantly struck every chord in the room, furthering inclusivity in the conversation.

Sabir Nazar said all cartoonists, illustrators, animators were basically image makers who traded in images, thought in images and produced images.

“Cartoonists have a very small but powerful contribution to newspapers and their work is not always taken as a commentary on society. It is usually considered as means of laughter, and is brushed off as comic relief,” Nazar lamented.

Jugnu Mohsin, the editor of the Friday Times, spoke on the state of journalistic freedom in Pakistan, referring to current media in Pakistan as ‘gagged’ and restrained. She insisted on the importance of revolution from a grassroots level. The artists did live drawing of caricatures, with the first day of the Satire Fest closing with an elaborate exhibition of the local cartoons.

Mian Ejaz ul Hassan, Zafarullah, and Ayesha Ashfaque took part as panelists, while participants included Anwar Iqbal (The Friday Times), Shahzeb (Pakistan Today), Zahid Masood (caricatures, Card Company), Akhtar Shah (The News), Zahoor (Dawn), Ejaz Anwar (Pakistan Times), Lala (Akhbar-e-Jahan, Pakistan Today), Sabir Nazar (Express Tribune, The Friday Times), Mudassar Butt (animation), Feica (Daily Times), Yahya (CFX comics), Ahmad (CFX comics), Unaiza Ali Barlas (comics), and Maria Khan (Mangobaaz).

Published in Dawn, August 31st, 2019