KARACHI: Tamanna betab, autobiography of famous story writer Dr Rasheed Amjad, was launched here at Sadaat-i-Amroha Centre on Thursday.

Presided over by Dr Farman Fatehpuri, the speakers included Mahmood Wajid, Mazher Jameel, Saba Ikram, Muslim Shamim and Adeeb Sohail. Ahmed Zainuddin, editor of his own journal Roshnai, and one of the sponsors of the launch, compered the proceedings. The Progressive Writers Association and two other journals — Aenda and Sukhanwer — were also among the sponsors.

Dr Amjad, who had come from Islamabad to speak about the book and also about himself, in a brief speech expressed his lamentation, belonging to a “cursed and luckless generation, brought up under the baneful shadow of martial laws.” Recalling the past political history, Dr Amjad said that he saw the first martial law when he was eighteen, the second at the mature age of forty, the prime period of his academic career, and the last time at the age of 60 when he was going to retire from service. “We are reaping what we sowed in the past,” he said, adding: “Only we are to be blamed for keeping quiet when it was time to speak.”

Known for his Jadeediat (modernity) in stories, he said it was an attitude of mind (ravayya) and not against the progressives and their ideology. Rather it was to him a continuity of the progressive movement.

Dr Hanif Fauq admired the book for being a truthful account of not only the writer’s personal life, but also the life of his age, of the literary trends and also political pitfalls. Dr Fauq also praised the book for being unbiased, written in “decent and chaste prose.” He termed the book a “very important publication of our time.”

Adeeb Sohail, the chief guest of the evening, admired Dr Amjad’s stylish prose, which had brought to the fore a galaxy of writers to enlighten the reader. He said the prose blended with eyewitness and personal experience of the writer had given it a touch of spontaneity.

Mahmood Wajid found the book a portrait of the last fifty-five years and “dangerously truthful.” Dr Amjad, he said, had captured the spirit of his age.

Mazher Jameel found Dr Amjad’s book a “very important publication among the autobiographies,” and he was impressed by the writer’s plain truth with no prideful narration of his forefathers and affluent family background.

Muslim Shamim welcomed the book as a “progressive” one, and said that modernity was actually an extension of the progressive movement. He also spoke about the contents of the book, quoting impressive passages.

At the outset, Ahmed Zainuddin, in a brief paper, introduced the guest.—Hasan Abidi