ISLAMABAD: The 10th edition of the Islamabad Literature Festival (ILF), ‘Sustainability: Words change Mindsets’ opened at the Gandhara Citizens’ Club in Fatima Jinnah Park on Friday.

Organised by Oxford University Press (OUP) Pakistan, the inaugural session featured keynote speeches by British High Commissioner Jane Marriott, former permanent representative of Pakistan to the United Nations Maleeha Lodhi and Zehra Nigah, poet and scriptwriter.

Managing Director, OUP Pakistan, Arshad Saeed Husain welcomed the speakers and audience to the three-day event, saying, “In this age of constant innovation, understanding the minds shaped by the digital era becomes paramount. We must move beyond traditional systems to build one that meets the evolving needs of a world torn by conflict yet striving for connection.”

Drawing attention to the troubling numbers of out-of-school children in Pakistan, where some 26 million children are out of school, Mr Husain said: “Today Pakistan spends only 1.9pc of its GDP on education, which is half that of the rest of the world and less than a third of the developed world. These are worrying statistics and require immediate attention.”

High Commissioner Jane Marriott spoke eloquently about sustainability and resilience amid looming climate crises and dramatic technological advancements. She said: “In this age of constant innovation, understanding the minds shaped by the digital era becomes paramount. We must move beyond traditional systems to build one that meets the evolving needs of a world torn by conflict yet striving for connection.”

“Pakistan’s heritage is under threat — from the Indus Valley to Hazara, its an incredible history and culture need protection. Closing schools for a week is not a sustainable solution; the UK will focus on both climate and education emergencies, and measures will be expedited,” Ms Marriott said.

Maleeha Lodhi stated: “Utilisation of the undervalued soft power is needed for navigating the terrain of global environment today. Sans agility we risk being marginalised, and therefore we must work with the technology in the increasing digital world and utilise the outreach of social media to maintain a positive image.”

Zehra Nigah appreciated the OUP for the space given to Urdu literature at the festival.

“Literature festivals have shown a remarkable resilience; amidst all chaos – the words of literature have proudly held their place. OUP’s history has been bilingual, reflecting a legacy where English runs parallel with Urdu — a tradition shaped by many leaders of the subcontinent who attended Oxford University,” Ms Nigah said.

The inaugural session concluded with riveting classical dance performance celebrating diversity through a melding of Bharatnatyam and Kathak, titled ‘Jaag’, by Samiya Mumtaz and Adnan Jahangir.

Mr Jahangir said: “We specially made this dance piece for this festival in 10 days. The last poetry recitation along with the writing is done by Samiya Mumtaz, who performs bharatnatyam while I do kathak. The whole piece is about the human journey and finding connections from other people. The message is to spread love and peace.”

In the session titled, ‘Zindagi, Shaeri, Zindagi’, Zehra Nigah and Inaam Nadeem explored the nuances of Urdu poetry, highlighting the concerns for new writers and poets to innovate and transcend beyond the traditional.

The day ended with Wiqar Ali Shah, Shahida Shah and Iqbal Hussain Afkar in discussion with Afrasiab Khattak sharing their insights into state and value of Pashto literature.

Published in Dawn, November 9th, 2024