Issue: January Year: 2016

NEWSLETTER Content

Faiz Ghar trip to Rana Luxury Resort ...... 3

Faiz International Festival ...... 4

Children at FIF ...... 11

Comments ...... 13

Workshop on Thinking Skills ...... 14

Capacity Building Training workshops at Faiz Ghar ...... 15 [Faiz Ghar Music Class tribute to Rasheed Attre ...... 16 Faiz Ghar trip to [Rana Luxury Resort

The Faiz Ghar yoga class visited the Rana Luxury Resort and Safari Park at Head Balloki on Sunday, 13th December, 2015. The trip started with live music on the tour bus by the Faiz Ghar music class. On reaching the venue, the group found a quiet spot and spread their yoga mats to attend a vigorous yoga session conducted by Yogi Sham- shad Haider. By the time the session ended, the cold had disappeared, and many had taken o their woollies. The time was ripe for a fruit eating session. The more sporty among the group started playing football and frisbee. By this time the musicians had got their act together. The live music and dance session that followed became livelier when a large group of school girls and their teachers joined in. After a lot of food for the soul, the group was ready to attack Gogay kay Chaney, home made koftas, organic salads, and the most delicious rabri kheer. The group then took a tour of the jungle and the safari park. They enjoyed the wonderful ambience of the bamboo jungle, and the ostriches, deers, parakeet, swans, and many other wild animals and birds. Some members also took rides on the train and colour- ful donkey carts. The ride back was full of , live music, jokes, and parodies.

3 [Faiz International Festival (FIF) The Faiz International Festival 2015, a small step by the Faiz Foundation Trust, has proved to be a big leap for the people of Indo-Pak, the literary community and admirers of Faiz Ahmed Faiz on both sides of the border.

The city of lights spread its arms wide to welcome and accommodate dozens of distinguished Indian, Paki- stani and foreign writers, artists, , intellectuals, teachers and prominent personalities who converged at the Alhamra Arts Council, The Mall.

The entire length and breadth of the Alhamra Arts Council resonated with poetry of Faiz sung by many promi- nent singers of including , , Nayara Noor and others for four days. The two main halls of the Alhamra and its Adabi Baitahk were brimming with participants and audiences of the highly entertaining and educating sessions on various subjects. The string of programmes started right from 10:30 am in the morning and continued till 9:30 pm every day.

The most enthralling element of this unique literary activity was the huge participation of youth volunteers who roamed the grassy lawns of Alhamra clad in Red Souvenir T-Shirts with Faiz’s prole picture on them. The walkways of the Alhamra were buzzing with the gleeful laughter and chats of the youngsters moving from one hall to another to attend various programmes.

Literary and political talk sessions, a mushaira, dance performances, book launches, theatre, puppetry work- shops and Punjabi plays were also part of this diverse festival. The audience was as diverse as the programme. Children under 10 years to senior citizens were all there

The festival also exhibited a photographic exhibition from the archives of Faiz.

4 [19th November

The festival started with ceremonial inaugu- ral speeches by the Governor of Punjab Malik Muhammad Raque Rajwana and the Chair- person Faiz Foundation Trust, followed by a play by , Rozan-i-Zindan Se based on letters between Faiz and his wife written during Faiz’s time spent in prison. The performance was interspersed with dance performances by Suhaee Abro and Wahab Shah, visualizing some of the ’s most famous verses.

[20th November The second day kicked o with a keynote address by the eminent novelist and critic Shamsur Rehman Faruqi from Allahabad , who spoke on ‘Faiz ki maqbooliat kay asbaab’. The programme for the rest of the day had some exciting sessions to look forward to, including and Tasneem Zafar sharing memories of ‘Faiz and ’ with Arshad Mehmud; launch of ‘Faiz Ke Nayab Khatoot’ authored by Dr. Imran Zafar talking to Dr. Tariq Hashmi; ‘Novel ka fun’ with and Ayub Khawar; launch of ‘R.D. Burman: The Man, The Music’ with the author Anirudha Bhattacharjee talking about the book with Ali Aftab Saeed and Mira Hashmi, and singing Burman songs on the guitar; Intizar Husain in conversation with ; Ajmal Kamal and Mehr Farooqi talking about ‘What We Read: Fiction in Translation’; a tribute to Pakistani women political and social activists by some renowned women including , Zahida Hina, Khawar Mumtaz, Fehmida Riaz, Mariam Ortt-Saeed and Dr Fouzia Saeed; Yousuf Kerai and Shehroze Hus- sain taking the audience on a ‘Journey Through the Music of South Asia’; Ikramullah and Afzal Ahmed Syed talking with Musharraf Ali Farooqi on ‘The Writer and his Literary Culture’.

5 We Read: Fiction in Translation’; a tribute to Pakistani women political and social activists by some renowned women including Salima Hashmi, Zahida Hina, Khawar Mumtaz, Fehmida Riaz, Mariam Ortt-Saeed and Dr Fouzia Saeed; Yousuf Kerai and Shehroze Hussain taking the audience on a ‘Journey Through the Music of South Asia’; Ikramullah and Afzal Ahmed Syed talking with Musharraf Ali Farooqi on ‘The Writer and his Literary Culture’.

In the gallery a group of artists attended a public art workshop entitled ‘Inheritance: Where the Mind is With- out Fear’ conducted by the well-known Indian artist activist Shilo Shiv Suleman, assisted by Nida Mushtaq, of the Fearless Collective.

Naeema Butt’s Pehlaj Theatre also held a workshop the same day on ‘Theatre of the Oppressed’. This is a unique idea being pioneered by Pehlaj Theatre in Pakistan, providing media for people to explore collective struggles, analyse their past and present circumstances, and invent a map of struggle through theatre. In the evening a Punjabi play, ‘Chog Kusumbay Di’, written by Najm Hosain Syed and directed by Huma Safdar, was performed.

The day at Alhamra concluded with a mushaira arranged by PTV in which some major poets partipated. The mushaira was later telecast on PTV.

Evening performances kicked o to a start at Falettis Hotel.

Adeel Hashmi and Asad Anees mesmerized the audience with a unique amalgamation of poetry and piano! Later on the charts was an evening with Tahira Syed who performed items of Faiz and also her mother Malika Pukhraj’s most popular and songs.

6 [21st November

The third day of the Faiz International Festival drew larger crowds as intellectuals shed light on the literary and political facets of Faiz’s personality and his work in eleven di erent sessions.

The day started with the Dr Memorial Lecture on ‘War and Peace in the 20th century’ delivered by noted British-Pakistani writer, journalist and lmmaker Tariq Ali, who was introduced by veteran rights champion I.A. Rehman. This was followed by a session with the eminent Indian lm maker Muza ar Ali discussing the journey of socio- logical stereotyping and socio-political commentary in the perspective of the great work “Umrao Jan” with and Mira Hashmi.

The quintessential literary genre of ‘Short Stories’ that is by far the simplest and most complex in its own right was explored by Afzal Ahmed Syed, Annie Zaidi and Musharraf Ali Farooqi in the session “Short Stories and Prose Poems”.

The second session housed the launching of the book “Zaikay Frontier Ke” by Dipa Singh Bagai which is a cross-border and cross-cultural demonstration of food for peace and preservation of culture. The book is the rst Urdu-, Pakistan-India mixed venture which includes some of the most famous recipes of the curator of the vegetarian cuisine of the Hindu Pathans of Dera Ismail Khan, by the late Pushpa Kumari Bagai. Padma- vati Dua, Shilpi Gulati, Atul Bagai and Vinod Kumar Dua were on the discussion panel for this one of its own kind cookbook.

Dr Arfa Syeda introduced the book ‘Zikr-e-Faiz’ in conversation with Syed Mazhar Jameel. She discussed various spaces and the relevance and criticality of Faiz’s work during those times in context of the sociopoliti- cal history of the not just the country but the region at large.

Zehra Nigah and Salima Hashmi uncovered some golden incidents from the dusty archives of memory and history in the session ‘Aaj tum yaad behisaab ayay - Remembering Faiz’. While Usman Peerzada, Arshad Mehmud, and Navid Shehzad discussed the journey non-conformist Pakistani literature has lived through and transformed over the years, sharing their memories in the session titled ‘Kuch yadain kuch batain’.

7 Abid Hassan Minto took the audience through the past, present and future of the leftist political ideology in Pakistan, the rise and fall of the Communist Party and the way the practice and perception of the ideology has evolved in the country and worldwide in the session ‘Politics of the Left: The Way Forward’. Tariq Ali, Alia Amir Ali and Aasim Sajjad Akhtar were the other panelists in the discussion.

Mihir Sharma, Annie Zaidi and Quddus Mirza had a thought provoking discussion moderated by Musharraf Ali Farooqi about ‘Public Appeal and Critical Praise: Economies of Arts, Past and Present’.

The audience enjoyed the illustrative Dance Performance by LGS students and Adnan Jahangir over ‘Ae Zulm ke maato lub kholo’. This was followed by a unique performance of orchestral readings accompanied by a range of Eastern and Western instruments.

‘Tapish ne kiya zinda-tar zindagi ko’ was a session in which Zahida Hina, Asghar Nadeem Syed, Atul Tiwari in conversation with Dr.Ali Hashmi, delved into the Role of Progressive Writers Association in Literature and Politics. They analysed the space for progressive writers and the way it expanded nominally and shrunk most of the times. They shared their methods with the audience regarding ways to write without being abrasive yet not compromising the criticality of social criticism.

Fresh from his mega success ‘Manto’, Sarmad Khosat, in conversation with Mira Hashmi and Bilal Sami discussed the intricacies and technicalities of script writing for commercial cinema. They talked about how apparently controversial and made-for-art-movies subjects can be transformed into popular commercial movie making in the session ‘Writing for Film, Writing About Film’.

The largest crowd, without a doubt, was witnessed for “Einstein”, the play that has been at the heart of this event. Naseeruddin Shah has overtime become a sweetheart of 's literature and performing arts savvy crowd that has grown over the past few years.

Meanwhile at the Faletti’s, vocal sensation mesmerized the audience with his tribute to Faiz Ahmed Faiz. Later Sonam Kalra, the queen of So Gospel, enchanted the audience with her exceptional spell of melody. 8 [22nd November

The fourth and the concluding day of the festival attracted the maximum crowds. The day comprised the most exciting, entertaining and enriching sessions and activities.

Shamsur Rehman Faruqi talked with Ajmal Kamal and Ali Hashmi on ‘Gulshan-e-: The Poetry of Mir Muhammad Taqi Mir”.

Director Sarmad Khoosat and writer took the audience through the journey of their critically acclaimed lm “Manto” with Mira Hashmi moderating the session.

Canada-based Pakistani scholar Dr. Taqi Abedi presented shared archival materials related to the work of Faiz in ‘Baaqiyat-e-Faiz’, moderated by Asghar Nadeem Syed. Another Canada-based Pakistani writer, recipient of the Presidential award Dr. Ashfaq Hussain talked with Yasmeen Hameed about his liter- ary writings. Dr. Osama Siddique talked with Ali Akbar Natiq on ‘Khoon-e-dil ke kasheed: Afsana, novel aur shaeri’. Mehr Farooqi talked with Dr. Arfa Syeda on ‘Andaleeb-e-gulshan na-afreeda’.

TV luminaries , Asghar Nadeem Syed, Amina Mufti and Ayub Khawar reminisced about the days of the glory that TV drama in Pakistan enjoyed and talked about where it stood today, sharing their expe- riences over the years and stories from the days gone by.

'Progressive Politics in the Subcontinent' was another interesting topic of discussion among Abid Hasan Minto, Osama Siddique, and Ali Hashmi. Atul Tiwari described Faiz’s visit to Lucknow; Indian director, poet Muza ar Ali talked about his association with Faiz through his books as well as personal interactions; a very important topic, Pursuit of Free Speech Among Youth and the Role of Faiz’s Poetry was discussed by Ammar Rashid, Sara and Aisha Sarwari; and a gigantic panel of some of the best in politics and society: Dr Abdul Malik, Aitzaz Ahsan, Abid Hasan Minto, Mehtab Rashidi, Bushra Gohar, Khawaja Salman Raque, Shafqat Mehmood, and I.A. Rehman talked about the politics in Pakistan of yesterday, today and tomorrow.

9 One of the best sessions of the day, besides the one on politics, involved the very talented father-son duo of Sarmad and Irfan Khoosat with the veteran TV personality Navid Shahzad as the moderator. The best thing about this session was Navid having ample knowledge of the past and present of lm and TV that she discussed at length with both Sarmad and Irfan leaving the audience mesmerized. The knowledge and experi- ence of a moderator is what makes or breaks a discussion.

Meanwhile, outside in the lawn, Huma Safdar’s Fareed Rang theatre group performed ‘Avaeen Nahi Oo Gal’, a Punjabi play by Najm Hosain Syed, drawing a huge crowd, much more than the sessions inside had, that stayed on till the end. The play revolved around politics of the Left, factory workers and the language divide. The theatre group, consisting of amateur actors, performed to perfection. The play was dotted with Punjabi songs and dances.

At the Burney Gardens of Alhamra, PTV had set an entertaining stage that hosted a number of folk singers including , Jawad Ahmed, Abrar ul Haq, Fareeha Pervaiz and many others. The mela continued the entire evening.

In the evening Lok Virsa presented scintillating Punjabi and Pashto folk songs and dances by children from various parts of Pakistan, which had the audience clapping and dancing. The grand festival concluded with a houseful performance of Tina Sani at Faletti’s and ‘Einstein’ at AlHamra.

10 [Children of FIF 1. Interactive book launch on Faiz

2. Puppetry Workshop with Farooq Qaiser (Uncle Sargam)

3. Session by The little Art • Ali, Babli aur Pari - Puppet performance • Art Beat multimedia exhibition of child art

4. Children Folk Singers from Pakistan (Lok Virsa)

11 [4 Days, 13 performances! A cultural fest for Lahore

12 13 [Comments Anirudha Bhattacharjee

Being part of the Faiz International fest was as much a pleasure as a dream come true. Con- sider myself privileged to be there. Loved the people, and especially the Biriyani. Wish it hap- pens on a grander scale next year, and in all the years to come

Annie Zaidi

So many of us in India have heard the line: ‘Jis Lahore na dekhiya, o janmya hi nahin’. Each time I heard it, I would be lled with a mix of curiosity and perhaps a tiny bit of resentment too. What is so special about the place, I’d wonder. And what are the chances that I’ll get to see it?

Thanks to the Faiz International Festival, in 2015, I can nally say that I saw Lahore and it is, indeed, a special place. The city and especially festival venue, Alhamra, was beautiful. In fact, it felt like a tting space for a festival dedicated to Faiz. It was open to the skies but full of warm colours, elevating but not exclusive. It was a wonderful opportunity to meet poets like Afzal Ahmed Syed and translators like Ali Madeeh Hashmi, thanks to whom I can now enjoy the work of Ali Akbar Natiq. I can only hope that the festival will continue and the spirit that drives the work of Faiz Ahmed Faiz will grow stronger – not only in Lahore but all over the subcontinent.

Atul Bagai

What a betting tribute and shraddhanjali to Faiz sahab. The Festival brought Faiz sahab closer to the younger generation in the sub continent, who realised how relevant he is to the present global narrative. The response to the launch of my mother's book during the Festival was a testimony to his dream for peace.

Sonam Kalra

Participating in the Faiz Festival was a very moving experience for me, one that I shall remem- ber for a long time to come. It was such an honour to sing Faiz sahabs poetry and to be asso- ciated with the values he stood for. Pakistan and india, to me, have always been children of the same mother and that is how I will always see them. And the love I received from the audience in Lahore as well as Faiz sahabs family and Moneeza Ji, is testament to that belief.

I hope to come back again soon. And may this festival and initiatives like this bring peace to the region. 14 [Workshop on Thinking Skills The International Youth and Workers Movement (IYWM) headed by singer Jawad Ahmad and the Institute of Social Sciences organised a workshop from 21st September to 9th October in collaboration with Faiz Ghar to develop the thinking skills of youth and workers. The workshop comprised of four two hour weekly sessions. Participants saw a slide show on thinking skills in Pakistan, and practised a number of thinking tools designed to broaden their perception, including looking at the positive and negative sides of an idea, considering all factors, determining short and long term consequences, dening one’s objectives, generating alternatives, looking at others’ point of view, and prioritizing. Some 19 youth and workers completed the workshop, and received certicates, followed by a music and dance programme and refreshments.

15 [Capacity Building Training workshops at Faiz Ghar

Faiz Ghar now hosts capacity building trainings for youth, adults, professionals and everyone! These trainings cover a diverse range of topics such as motivation, communication, time management, team building, con- dence building and personal development. The Trainer is none other than Miss Tanzila Khan who is an Interna- tional Trainer and Public Speaker. Her amazing team comprises of Waqar Rana who is a brilliant professional photographer and handles all media and PR related matters, Khamis Chaudhary, another dynamic individual and workshop facilitator, and Anam Shah who handles all marketing and sales. The main workshops are as follows: • Let’s Get MAD-Making a difference: A workshop for young people which targets the importance of change-making and creating an impact in society. • Stand Up Speak Up: An adult version of the same workshop that applies to the corporate world and covers topics such as Communication, Personal Development and Soft Skills • Event Management: A workshop to kick start your Event Management Skills!

For more information keep up through the Faiz Ghar Facebook page and www.faizghar.net !

16 [Faiz Ghar Music Class tribute to RASHEED ATTRE The Faiz Ghar Music Class paid a tribute to the musical maestro Rasheed Attre on his 48th death anniversary on 18th December, 2015. Despite being a cold December evening, the Faiz Ghar hall was packed with music lovers. Welcoming the guests, Salima Hashmi, the Chairperson of the Faiz Foundation Trust, recalled her child- hood living in a house near , and hosting guests related to the arts and the lm industry, includ- ing Khwaja Khursheed Anwar, Feroz Nizami and Rasheed Attre, all close friends of Faiz Ahmed Faiz. Her speech was followed by a video showing of lm clips of songs composed by Rasheed Attre, including hit lms like Sarfarosh, Wa’ada, Anarkali and Saat Lakh, and picturized on actors like Sabiha, Santosh Kumar, , Musarrat Nazeer, Muhammad Ali, and Zeba.

This was followed by performances by Faiz Ghar music class members. Some of the super hit Attre composi- tions that were sung included ‘jab tere shehr say guzarta hoon’, ‘thehr ja yaar da nazara lain day’, ‘Mujh se pehli si mohabbat’, teri ulfat may sanam’, ‘lath uljhi suljha jaray baalam’, and many other classics. The evening concluded with performances by the teachers of the music class, followed by rendition of two Attre hits on the violin by Akram Farooqi, who is reputed to have played the violin for Mr. Attre himself. After a lot of food for the soul, the guests enjoyed hot tea and cookies.

17 [Upcoming Events @ Faiz Ghar 126-F Model Town - Lahore

Screening of the critically acclaimed movie MANTO

Saturday 6th February, 7:00 pm Limited seats. Get your pass today!

A Musical Tribute to Master Inayat Hussein

Performance by Faiz Ghar Music Class Saturday 13th February 6:00 - 7:30 pm

Open Invitation

Documentary Screening Mrs. President: Women and Political Leadership in Iran By Shahla Haeri

Date: Friday 26th February, 7:00 pm Open Invitation [BECOME A FRIEND OF FAIZ Faiz Ghar Membership The Faiz Foundation Trust (FFT) has established the Faiz Ghar to promote the progressive and humanistic ideas of the foremost Urdu poet and the humanist Faiz Ahmed Faiz (1911-1984). The Faiz Ghar displays memo- rabilia related to Faiz, and organizes activities to promote love of the arts and literature. The activities include art performances, seminars, workshops, exhibitions, lm shows, literary gatherings, commemoration of special days, training classes (performing arts, self-development, etc.); specic activities for children, such as art competitions, essay competitions, guided tours, music classes and painting exhibi- tions. You can also contribute as a teacher or as a student.

FFT now o ers you the opportunity to become a Friend of Faiz, and participate in the promotion of artistic activities in the country. In return you will receive: • Priority invitation and/or discounted tickets to FFT- events in your city. • The opportunity to benet from Faiz Ghar premises for organizing or conducting your own cultural events.

Student Individual Institutional Membership Membership Membership

Rs. 2,400/- Rs. 6,000/- Rs. 12,000/- Annually Annually Annually

Contact us Website www.faizghar.net Life Facebook: Membership www.facebook.com/Faiz.Ghar.Ocial

Phone Rs. 100,000/- +92 42 35835289 0313 4230999

Email: [email protected]

Street Address 126/F, Model Town, Lahore