I SAT for hours, pen in my hand — stunned and frozen, trying to bring myself to writing a few lines in tribute to Murtaza Razvi — who is no more in this world. My association with him was a very short one. I came in contact with him when he shifted to Lahore as Dawn’s resident editor. He needed a house for himself and rented the lower portion of my house. He stayed here for one-and-a-half years.

I found him to be a thorough gentleman, an extremely down-to-earth personality. He used to call me ‘Begum Sahiba’ and my son ‘Sahib Zada Sahib’. He had a beautiful voice and had no airs about him. He used to bring presents for me from his foreign tours, respected me like his mother and always rang me and wished me on Eid days.

As a writer, he had his own style — very courageous and never compromising. He was a very well-read and highly qualified journalist. He did all his work himself. I cannot forget him. I share his family’s grief. May Allah rest his soul in peace and grant him a higher place in the life hereafter. This world was not meant for him.

Mrs MAMOONA ARSHAD Lahore