LAHORE: The 10th Faiz Festival kicked off at Alhamra Art Centre, The Mall, here on Friday amidst a fairly good turnout.

The inaugural ceremony of the festival was held in the open in front of the administration block, as per the festival’s yearly routine.

Speaking on the occasion, Faiz Foundation Trust Chairperson Salima Hashmi thanked the Lahore Arts Council (LAC) and other collaborators for organising the festival that would continue for the next two days -- Saturday and Sunday.

She said it had been a tradition that every episode of the festival opens with a visual art exhibition. This year, she said, the exhibition is different in its theme and presentation as it was also the birthday of her father.

Adeel Hashmi from Faiz Foundation said that its been ten years that the festival was taking place, but it used to be held earlier too. In the 80s, he said, the event was called Faiz Mela and later it was given the shape of a festival. “I remember, 10 years ago the first Faiz festival was attended by only 70 people in the Hall 3 of the Alhamra Art Centre, The Mall, but now one could see how wonderful is the turnout.”

Noted lawyer and television personality Naeem Bokhari said the late Shoaib Hashmi would teach his class Economics in 1963. He said today is a special day as it is also Faiz’s birthday.

LAC Board of Governors Chairman Razi Ahmed appealed to the Lahorites to attend the festival with their families in good numbers.

LAC Executive Director Muhammad Nawaz Gondal said Faiz’s poetry was being read world over, wherever Urdu was spoken and read. He welcomed the guests and participants in the festival hailing from Pakistan as well as abroad. He lauded the Punjab government and Information and Culture Minister Azma Bokhari for supporting the such festivals.

The visual arts exhibition presented on the occasion brought together plant science and textile practices to reflect on ecological loss and displacement. By translating endangered flora into stitched textile surfaces, the artist, Naveen Haider, explores how land carries memory and how fragility demands care rather than conquest.

Hyder is a plant scientist and textile artist, whose interdisciplinary practice bridges botany and fiber art. Through layered and stitched textiles, she explores themes of fragility, memory, and repair. Her work has been exhibited internationally and engages deeply with questions of land, displacement, and environmental responsibility. Rohma Moeed Khan, the exhibition curator, is a multi-disciplinary artist and an associate professor at the BNU.

There were over 20 book stalls at the festival and a sumptuous food court.

Ajoka Theatre staged its internationally acclaimed play Dara at Alhamra Hall II on the occasion.

Published in Dawn, February 14th, 2026