KARACHI, April 17: A panel of distinguished speakers from different walks of life expressed their profound admiration for eminent scholar, researcher, journalist and documentary filmmaker Obaidullah Baig for rendering extraordinary services to society, at an event organised in his honour by the Idara Qalam Dost at the Governor’s House on Tuesday.

Poet Iftikhar Arif was the chief guest of the event.

Obaidullah Baig extended his gratitude to the organisers for putting up the show. In his inimitable style he looked at the stage backdrop and said while it was true that he was a writer, a journalist and a documentary filmmaker, it was difficult to think of himself as an intellectual (danishwar) for he knew what it meant and had read people like Ghalib, Khusrau, Iqbal and Faiz. He said he had been a television producer for more than 30 years and wanted to become a journalist from a very early age. He also spoke about his novel Rajput which was published last year.

Iftikhar Arif’s heartfelt speech not only enlivened the venue but also provided food for thought to the audience. He said God had blessed him a lot, and Obaidullah Baig was one such blessing in the shape of a friend. He told the gathering that Baig had written many a thing under different pseudonyms, including couplets, and had made hundreds of documentaries out of which 40 odd were on the Quaid-i-Azam and the Pakistan Movement.

Quoting what Ghalib had written in one his letters, Iftikhar Arif said if someone’s passion became his profession, he should consider himself fortunate; and Obaidullah Baig was one such person. He talked about Baig’s love of animals and giving them names. (Once he named a rooster the Duke of Clifton.) He touched on his extremely compassionate and considerate nature too, suggesting that he never felt envious or jealous of anyone in his life and tried to be generous at times even when he was not materially well-off.

Critic Mohammad Ali Siddiqi said Obaidullah Baig was an important fiction writer. He claimed that apart from him there were hardly two or three writers who could write fiction on hunting expeditions. Referring to his novel, Rajput, he said Baig had written about a region that he (Siddiqi) belonged to which was why he could sense and feel the flora and fauna of that part of the world in the book. On the content of the novel, he said Rajputs and Jaats still ruled India and Pakistan, though they might have changed their religion. He also mentioned one of the documentaries that Obaidullah Baig made which never saw the light of day.

Prof Sahar Ansari said he had known Obaidullah Baig for the last 50 years, from the time the latter lived in Jacob Lines in Karachi. He said Baig had a profound interest in history and inordinate love of Pakistan and Muslims of the region.

Ghayasuddin went down memory lane when he used to publish a magazine. He said one fine day he received a short story which he liked very much and thought the writer was some old UP gentleman. It turned out that the story was written by Baig. It got published in a series form and was later made into a novel, Aur Insaan Zinda Hai. He vividly described Baig’s extraordinary ability to write with flair and clarity. He lamented the fact that a lot of people knew him as a celebrity from the quiz show Kasoti and not as a fiction writer.

Journalist Ghazi Salahuddin spoke about what he and his longtime friend Obaidullah Baig shared (for example, both did not have formal degrees). Touching on his private life he said his wife Salma Baig had cared for him and was an important factor in his life. Artist Rahat Kazmi in his very short but eloquent speech compared Obaidullah Baig to a sweet and gentle river.

Sindh Governor Dr Ishratul Ibad, who presided over the event, said it was a unique and rare programme and he felt proud being a part of it. Earlier MNA Khushbakht Shujaat thanked the guests for participating in the programme.

Ambreen Hasib Amber hosted the event.