LAHORE: Known businessman Abdul Jalil Jamil breathed his last in the wee hours of Wednesday. He was 78.

He is survived by his journalist wife Nusrat Jamil, actor daughter Nadia Jamil and journalist son Omer Jamil.

He was buried in Miani Sahib and his qul will be held at his Zafar Ali Road residence between 4pm and 6pm on Saturday (tomorrow).

He was a businessman dealing in shipping and chemicals.

Businessman Iqbal Z Ahmad, a life-long friend of Jalil Jamil, told Dawn they had been friends for the last 60 years, since their Aitchison days. He said he was always more than happy to help others and had no complaints with anyone all his life.

He said Jalil Jamil was a loving husband and father.

Daughter Nadia Jamil, a cancer survivor, seconds Iqbal Z Ahmad when she says her father was equally into literature, philosophy and all other refined pursuits of life. He was a poet, philosopher, hilariously funny, suave and super cool father. He taught us power of faith, the joy of loving animals and nature, the peace in Sufi poetry, she says.

Tehmina Durrani, wife of Prime Minister Shehbaz Sharif, had her own tale of benevolent behaviour that the family bestowed on her: “It was Jalil Jamil, who made me from a docile, timid Tehmina Khar to a Tehmina Durrani, who could fight for life, and found courage to write biography (My Feudal Lord). I was completely shattered when divorced by Ghulam Mustafa Khar. It was Jalil who helped me collect my pieces and return to life: his house became my refuge and rehabilitation centre and here I turned into Tehmina Durrani, having my own identity.”

Omer Jamil, son and a businessman, was also as full of praise for his father as were others. “He introduced me to the world of literature and instilled love for books and philosophy in his children. He would sit with us randomly and recite Ghalib or Faiz or Neruda.”

Nusrat Jamil, his wife for 55 years, thinks equally highly of him but also laments that he might have survived had the private hospital he was taken to had its nebuliser in proper working condition, where delayed treatment caused a massive heart attack, which ultimately proved lethal. Telling the family to arrange half a million rupee in cash instead of charging through debit or credit cards is something the hospitals should avoid, she says.

Published in Dawn, May 5th, 2023