THESE days, one seldom gets to see a show where handicrafts made by local artisans are on display. This was not the case in the past. On April 15, 1974 a news item with reference to an exhibition held as part of the three-day Sindh Literary and Cultural Conference at the Sindh Centre near the YMCA highlighted, among other objects, a ja’i namaz with embroidery on a spotted deer skin as the choicest handicraft on view. The exhibition also had pieces of jewellery, textile and furniture; tiles; works of literature; and official historic documents. Also displayed was the 350-year-old Dalayal-ul-Khairat in Arabic with its Persian translation and a volume on medicine titled Tib-i-Akbar.

Another similar noteworthy programme on April 20 grabbed the media’s attention when an exhibition of personal belongings, letters, books and photographs of Allama Iqbal was inaugurated at the National Museum of Pakistan by the Provincial Education Minister Pyarali Allana to commemorate the 36th death anniversary of the poet. Among the exhibits were: a rare photo taken in Jerusalem where a meeting of the Motamar-i-Alam-i-Islami was held 43 years ago in which the grand mufti of Palestine and Iqbal were shown together; a chair used by the poet, his coats, a stick, an umbrella, pictures taken with the Quaid-i-Azam Mohammad Ali Jinnah during the Round Table Conference and some paintings.

Certain old pieces of recent history also became the centre of attention that week albeit in a different context. On April 17, it was reported that dozens of buildings were posing a serious threat to the lives of over 20000 residents, mostly in the old city area. From 1969 to 1973, 71 buildings were declared dangerous by the Karachi Municipal Corporation (KMC) but 28 of them could be demolished. Action in respect of the remaining 43 was suspended when owners or occupants moved the court against the KMC and obtained a stay order. According to the corporation, it had been withholding demolition work in many cases for five years due to legal complications. Most of the structures, it suspected, might not survive the forthcoming monsoon season as they were in an extremely poor condition. The residents had been warned by the KMC and advised to take necessary precautions. The oldest pending case was that of a double-storey building in Bombay Bazaar. It was declared dangerous in 1967.

What sometimes, if not always, takes out citizens from ‘dangerous’ spaces is a sense of humour. On April 17, a humorous mushaira titled Shab-i-Qehqaha on the occasion of the 10th death anniversary of poet Zareef Jalalpuri was held at the Karachi Press Club (KPC). Poets who participated in the event included Syed Mohammad Jafri, Dr Inam Ahsan, Mister Dehalvi, Prof Taha Khan, Ustad Bedil, Majeed Majid, Saif Sultanpuri, Amirul Islam Hashmi, Azim Ahmed Abbasi, Fazal Ahmed Siddiqi Bashshash, Ismail Anis, Harfan Lakhnavi, Shahid Alwari and

Quaid bin Zareef. An audio clip of Zareef Jalalpuri’s poem ‘Teddy Boy’, too, was played at the mushaira which was presided over by Dr Mahmud Husain, Vice-Chancellor of Karachi University.

Published in Dawn, April 15th, 2024