ISLAMABAD: The Asian Study Group organised a literary evening with renowned poet Kishwar Naheed at Kuch Khaas.

Naheed is a leading Urdu poet of her generation in Pakistan, whose fiercely individual and bravely feminist voice has challenged the social constructs of gender and patriarchy and interrogated the authority of state and religion. Her poems also chart the rocky territory of intimate relationships.

Kishwar Naheed began her reading by explaining the unique aspects of the poetry she had chosen to read. She said: “The idiom and the terminology was different and most of the poems had a political background.”

English translations of each poem were displayed on the multimedia as she read it in Urdu. She started the evening by reading her poem ‘Ghaans bhi tu mujhe khanee hai’ and then read ‘Anti- clockwise’ which she said was inspired by the women domestic workers who used to ask Kishwar if her husband also beats her.

The third poem was inspired by a demonstration of 200 women on February 12, 1975, which was baton charged and most of the women were arrested.

The next day these courageous women came out to protest again and Kishwar Naheed wrote ‘We sinful women’, a poem that is the anthem for the women activists of Pakistan.

Each poem that she read out had a social context of its own but the moods varied. There was ‘My Home, My Paradise’ and another titled ‘Online’.

She also read the very famous poem which she wrote after the attack on Malala Yousafzai called ‘Conversation with Taliban’.

The audience really enjoyed her recitation style and stories that accompanied each poem. She spoke of an era of struggle and loss, her marriage and the early introduction to the world of poetry.

Later, the floor was opened for questions from the audience and Ranjana Sengupta, wife of the Indian High Commissioner asked how Kishwar Naheed perceived the role of writers and poets in our society.

Kishwar replied: “Unfortunely in Pakistan the role of the writer is limited only to the urban society and while people are writing, not much time is spent in research.”

Kishwar Naheed said: “It was a good dialogue about current events, the history of women and the role of writers in Pakistan. Such events are important because they bring together the young and old, foreigners and Pakistanis, asking questions about what is happening in the country.”

Fateh Muhammad Malik, Professor of Linguistics, said: “I thoroughly enjoyed the evening. It was very inspiring.”

Khalida Babri, educationist and social worker, said: “She’s a great writer and a good friend. Her poetry has encouraged us and given us confidence to face the problems of life. She has been a source of solace for us women.”

Michele Galopin said: “I am impressed by Kishwar Naheed as a poet, although I can enjoy her writings only through translation. I was struck when she said maturity brings out a different kind of creativity.”

Kishwar Naheed is notable for experimenting with free verse and prose poetry, breaking out of the metered and rhymed forms of traditional Urdu poetry.

She has published several collections of poems, and has been included in many anthologies of feminist verse. She was awarded the Sitara-e-Imtiaz in 2000 as a reward for her contributions to Urdu literature.

The editor of ‘Defiant Colours, Selected Poems’, Asif Farrukhi calls her, “… a topographer of discomforting experiences, fragile and splintered relationships and of private sorrows overshadowed or underpinned by public events”.

Published in Dawn March 11th , 2015

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