PESHAWAR: Noted Urdu and Hindko writer Bushra Farrukh recently represented Khyber Pakhtunkhwa in Iran where she was received with great respect and appreciation owing to her literary acumen during the last several decades.

She in addition to being a radio and TV anchor is author of 21 books and recipient of several awards for her contribution to advancing the cause of women. She is presently heading Karwan-i-Hawwa, a literary organisation of women poets and writers.

Ms Farrukh returned from the 10-day trip of Islamic Republic of Iran after attending an international conference in Tehran. She led delegates from Peshawar and became the first to have had represented the province for the 10th time at international level. The event was a training workshop in which educators, scholars and literati imparted insights on Islamic way of life to teenage girls.

She told this scribe that Pakistan and Iran enjoyed long historic and cultural ties mostly clothed in linguistic traditions. She said that members of her delegation shared their knowledge, observations and scholarships with young participants of the international conference.

Ms Farrukh said that it was a privilege for her and her colleagues to represent Khyber Pakhtunkhwa in the international conference. She garnered great appreciation, especially for a poem composed in Urdu and rendered in Persian in tribute to Iranian people. “I ask other women too to come forward to represent our people and land for portraying positive image and culture aboard,” she added.

The delegation of Peshawar comprising Dr Shaheen Umar, the principal of Frontier College for Women, Rubina Moen, chief administrator of Minhajul Quran Women’s League Peshawar chapter, Tabinda Farrukh, a young author, and Bushra Farrukh, who represented the province and shared their scholarship and intellectual insights regarding the character building of young girls according to the Islamic tenets.

“It was a moment for me and my colleagues to represent KP in an international event. Our delegation received great applause from the Iranian hosts and especially I garnered a thunderous applause for my poem I had composed as homage to Iranians. It was 10th times that I represented my people and country at large at international level,” she claimed.

She said that her stay in Iran was wonderful among other delegates from Karachi, Hyderabad, Lahore and Quetta where participants were given a trip to scared historical places with brief background history.

Published in Dawn, March 5th, 2025