PESHAWAR: Speakers at a literary event here on Tuesday urged women poets and writers to use their gifted talent to highlight the issues plaguing society.

The event was held at Khana-i-Farhang Iran to launch a Pashto poetry collection titled ‘Muskay Okhkay’ (smiling tears) authored by Dr Roshan Kalim.

Addressing the gathering, speakers said that women of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa were not short of the strength to craft images highlighting social issues around them. They shed light on various aspects of the newly-published book and also critically evaluated way of expression of the poet and main themes of the publication.

They said that Dr Roshan Kalim being a rights activist had deep insight and vision when it came to issues being faced by women in the society alongside several social evils plaguing the populous.

Speakers at a book launching ceremony say literary activities carve out niche for themselves in society

Pashto poet Prof Iqbal Shakir chaired the function while Prof Gulzar Jalal Yousafzai and Zarnosh Shahab were guests of honour on the occasion. Commenting on the book, they stated that Ms Kalim’s poetic images always inspired youth to contribute to society through their inborn talent.

Prof Farkhanda Liaquat, the director of Pashto Academy, said that women writers like Dr Roshan Kalim should be credited for their bold stance regarding the rights of womenfolk. She said that being a fearless bard, Ms Kalim contributed to positive image of Pashtun women.

“Women of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa are not lagging behind in any field of life including literature and have always depicted true image of Pashtun women in a befitting manner. From Alif Jana Khattak, Zaitoon Bano, Salma Shaheen to Haseena Gul and quite a large number of young women literati are out in the arena of crating poetic images with substance. Dr Roshan Kalim is one prominent name on the list of women writers. Her voice is strong, clear and loud,” Ms Liaquat observed.

Urdu writer Bushra Farrukh said that literary activities carved out a niche for themselves in the society owing to their creative talent and courage for raising voice for their genuine rights and place in the community. “Dr Roshan Kalim’s poetic images are reflective of her fair comment on the plight of women,” she said.

A few participants of the event rendered selected poems and ghazals of Ms Kalim in their heart rending voices and garnered a thunderous applause from the audience.

Published in Dawn, December 18th, 2024