DALLAS: Only a message that resonates with the audience can earn a standing ovation at three in the morning.

But it is surprising that people connected with Iftikhar Arif’s recitation of the poem Kub Yeh Tamasha Khatam Hoga (when will this ordeal end), written years before the current political turmoil in Pakistan started.

This was the scene at the APPNA annual mushaira. Most of the poets who participated were from North America, although some had come from Pakistan, Germany, and Dubai too. So it was, as claimed, an international mushaira of Urdu poets.

The local, and some non-local as well, recited traditional poetry as well – poems that talk about love, togetherness, separation, pleasure, grief, and of course popular Sufi thoughts.

Yet, the audience clearly seemed influenced by the current political situation in Pakistan and wanted this sentiment reflected in the poetry on offer.

So, like Iftikhar Arif, a young Urdu poet from Germany, Ali Tauqeer, also received enthusiastic applause when he recited his poem Ghaddar (traitor).

“Hunger is treason. So is thirst. Words are treacherous, they reveal too much. Even to breathe is an act of treason.” Like Iftikhar Arif’s Tamasha, this poem too was written before the current political crisis.

The atmosphere at this event in Dallas, Texas, was such that even ghazals, which clearly had a soft, romantic tone, were somehow connected with politics, whether the poet intended to do so or not.

Inamul Huq Javed, whose hilarious poems are also a potent commentary on social ills, was among the most popular poets of the evening.

Finally, it was Iftikhar Arif who brought the focus back on the poems that were not necessarily political but still beautiful.

Published in Dawn, July 8th, 2023