KARACHI: Friends, colleagues and members of the family of a former current affairs director of PTV and eminent media person Ather Viqar Azim, who passed away on Sept 8, gathered at the Arts Council of Pakistan’s Jaun Elia lawn on Sunday evening to pay homage to him.

Mr Azim’s son, Nadir, who resides in London and is these days in Karachi, thanked the council for putting together the event and said his father was a great supporter of the Arts Council.

“My father spent a lifetime in putting other people in focus. He would be proud of the legacy that he’s left behind. I admired so many things about him… He always did what he could do for other people, and nothing made him happier than that. There was no pretence about him. He said what he meant,” he said.

He also talked about the positive impact that Mr Azim has had on his life and added, “He will always be missed and loved.”

Arts Council President Ahmed Shah said the late media-man was part of the council’s governing body for 10 years as well as its vice-president for four years. “He was a positive man. I had never heard him speak against anyone. Even if you tried, he would smile.

“Ather bhai used to smoke. Farhad Zaidi, PTV’s former MD, was his senior. He would never smoke in front of Mr Zaidi. As long as he was general manager at PTV, the door to his office remained open. There were a lot of producers who wouldn’t let anyone enter their rooms. But not Ather bhai. Ever since his wife died, he lived alone. He had a close circle of friends… I missed his funeral [because of health] but I cried a lot at the news of his demise. He was a wonderful man,” said Mr Shah.

Former PTV producer Shahida Shoaib said Mr Azim never insulted his subordinates.

Badar Ikram, representing the Hum TV Network where Mr Azim worked in the latter period of his life, said apart from PTV, the late media person was instrumental in setting up Hum TV.

Dr Huma Mir, Misbah Khalid, Yahya Husseini, Kamaluddin, among others, also spoke.

Published in Dawn, September 24th, 2024