The fourth day of international urdu conference started with the session “A look at Urdu fiction”. This session chaired by Asad Muhammad Khan, Hasan Manzar, Masood Ashar, Qazi Afzal Hussain, Zahida Hina and Neelum Ahmed Basher where Anees Ashfaq, Mirza Hamid Baig, Muhammad Hameed Shahid, Asif Farukhi and Akhlaq Ahmed attended the session. The session was hosted by Iqbal Khursheed.
Asad Muhammad Khan welcomed to all the guests who come from the other countries of the world to attend 10th international Urdu conference. He said that Fiction is the name of understanding of the society. It is related to our past specifically short stories and novels are the reflected on post partition era. Where many writers turned their pen and write on the partition. Hasan Manzar said that it was the era of a generation who migrated from their land and missed the streets and houses where they played and bring up.
Hasan Manzar said the urdu novel is diverting into the new consequences of life. In the past people were writing what there society was and today we are writing what the new society is. We cannot change the perceptions of the society however still we are connected with our history. Masood Ashar said philosophy and the novels are interlinked, novels cannot be completed without philosophy however it is depend on how much writer is involve in the philosophy. Our era is post truth era and we opted all the philosophies from west we are not creating philosophy and literature yet and it is a big gap, from technology to literature we are borrowing from west. Qazi Afzal Hussain said that many new novels and stories are more impressive and it is the example of we are progressing he further said that novel should not be documentary as we are seeing some writers are just making it a documentary or historical book there should be a touch on novelistic touch in the novel. Zahida Hina said that I saw and gap here between progressive fiction and modern fiction, it should be discussed here. Neelam Ahmed Bashir said our children are more interested in English literature. We push them in the world of English for our so called progress in the society. We apart them from urdu and our social norms today they can discuss what is west but they don’t know the urdu or even our social and cultural aspects.
Anees Ashfaq Said that Novel, history and philosophy is interrelated. Novel cannot be completed without history and it should also have a touch of philosophy. Mirza Hamid Baig Read his article on the urdu short stories he said that there are different dimensions and consequences of urdu Afsana. Every era has its own reflection but the most effected era was the era of partition which impact largely our short stories. This era born Manto, Hasan Askari, Shahab, Mumtaz Mufti, Intazar Hussain and many other renowned writers. Muhammad Hameed Shahid said that the question is did we really get the freedom or we are still not free and just divided subcontinent into two parts. Our women and men both are living in the clasicial era.
Asif Furkhi said that our novel is progressing but we have a lack of criticism. Urdu novels is changing its dimensions for last one decade but the gape of criticism is not providing it space to improve. Where Akhlaq Ahmed said without knowing the personal life of commoners we cannot know how countries like china and india progressed in the recent decades.
“The new society of Urdu and the conditions of translation” a seminar held at arts council of Karachi in the second session of the fourth day of international Urdu conference. Many famous scholars, writers, poets and translators from the different countries of the world attended the seminar including Raza Ali Abdi from London, Arif Naqvi from Germany, HerjiKataoka from Japan, Ibrahim Muhammad Ibrahim from Egypt, Nasar Malik from Denmark, Arshad Farooq from Finland, Wakeel Ansari from America, Sadaf Mirza from Denmark, Suman Shah from Paris, Ghazal Ansari from London, Rahat Zahid from Scotland, Ghazanfar Hashmi from America and Farooq Saghir from England, the session was hosted by Rukhsana Saba.
Raza Ali Abdi said that Urdu is being banished from the society, unfortunately, our children are not speaking Urdu and there is a new trend has been started in the subcontinent that people are writing fiction in English and reading fiction in English. Arif Naqvi said that I believe Urdu will emerge more in the west than east. There are many societies in every county and even in the major cities of the world where Urdu is being spoken and translations are writings are being done.
Hero Ji Kataoka said that he will divide his work for Urdu into three sessions there was a time when I came to Karachi to learn Urdu and I enrolled in Karachi University since that I am more Pakistani than Japanese. In the beginning, I translated Faiz Ahmed Faiz into Japanese and I write a letter to him which he replied later we have many exchanges of letters. Ibrahim Muhammad Ibrahim Egypt is doing more work than any country of the world, Al Azhar University is one of the largest university where Urdu department is working since 1970 and we have been translating hundreds of books into Egypt language. It is an honor to me that I am working with the Urdu language.
Nasir Malik said that we have been translated many books and we are working on all the aspects of literature whether it is poetry, prose, novels, short stories or translation. Arshad Farooq and Ghazanfar Hashmi said it is the duty of all Pakistani to where they go they have to promote Urdu languages. BasitJalali said it is an honor they are serving Urdu language and the culture of Pakistan in the west. Urdu is one of most emerging language in the USA as every city has a separate community and everyone is working and promoting the Urdu language.
Ghazal Ansari, Rahit Zahid, Suman Shah, Sadiq Mirza, Farooq Saghir and Wakeel Ansari said that in the west we do not forget Urdu every year we organize different events and we have been developed many organizations that are working for Urdu and translation. There are many newspapers, booklets and magazines are publishing in the west. People who migrated to west from Pakistan are playing a great role in promoting Urdu.
Arts council of Pakistan Karachi organized a session on “A journey of Urdu film” for the fourth Day of international Urdu conference. Famous film director Syed Noor, most senior actor Manawar Syed, Qavi Khan and recently successful Director Nabeel Qureshi and writer Fiza Ali attended the session.
Syed Noor said that he is seeing great and revolutionary changes in the film industry and today the future of film is better in the recent years film industry reemerged. In the recent decades the technology changed the way of watching movies and films today we have a new generation of viewers they not only
have great knowledge but can criticize the condition and compare the creativity with the other industries. He further said if this new generation and technology has not appeared the film industry in the Pakistan is about to end. The strongest factor that demolished film industry was the breaking down of cinemas.
Qavi Khan said it was not film industry who destroyed actors but it was the people of film industry who destroyed it. Each of us was pulling the legs of other and we were jealous of others success which lead to end of the industry. Manawar Saeed said past was a golden era of our film industry. I worked more in Punjabi films than Urdu. He further said that the past of our film industry was great and we are looking for a great future of film industry in Pakistan. He urged people to visit cinemas houses for watching movies. It is people who encourage film makers to make film for them. Nabeel Qurashi said we cannot denied the role of technology in the reemergence of the film industry of Pakistan however hard work and dedication is more important than using technology. It was a hard time when I made Namlooom Afrad but now the situation of the city of Karachi has been changed. We have three sensor boards and even largest industries like Hollywood and Bollywood has only one sensor board. Fiza Ali said film is actually a dream and we convert it into the film and people come to watch dreams. Today social media has a great role in the promotion of films.
“Ghazal and Classical music is about to end, the time has been passed when people were fond of classical music and the listen to the classical teachers. The era of Ustad imanat ali khan and ustand salamat ali khan has been gone, the concern of media and other social and cultural organization and institute should focus on it” Classical singer Hamid Ali Khan said in a discussion at arts council of Pakistan in the fourth session of fourth day of international urdu conference on the discussion on “The journey of Music In Pakistan”. Arshad Mahmood, Amjad Hussain Shah, Mulahat Awan, Akhtar Waqar Azeem and Imran (Imu) also attended the session. He said that we should focus on the classical music and the singers who are related to classical music. He also praised Ahmed Shah and his team for remarkable work in the culture promotion.
Amjad Hussain Shah Said that our musician never give up and they always created beautiful music, they sing evergreen songs and we should never forget them. Our youth should take it with them instead they are ignoring it. Today youth don’t know what music is and what is Ghazal. Mulahat Awan said that it is our duty to promote music at any cost and it is the responsible of every institute and individual to promote music and participate in this promotion.
Arshad Mahmood, Amjad Hussain Shah, Akhtar Waqar and Imran said musician and organization should have close relation and contact this thing promote music and ghazal singing. We are not promoting Ghazals. Music and lyrics are not something that is out of understanding.