A Celebration Of Literary Giants

By Humair Ishtiaq
THOUGH regrettable, reading Urdu literature is a trend not in vogue in our social scheme of things. The reality, however, is that unfortunate are those who are unable to appreciate and enjoy the variety and genius of pen-pushers who have enriched the body and soul of Urdu literature, and have defined and glorified its contours with their enviable writing tools. Since ignorance is said to be a bliss of sorts, the ‘in’ crowd today may, therefore, never realise what it is missing out on, but, to be true to the masters, calling such souls ‘unfortunate’ is nothing but an understatement.

Amid this gloom, the Pakistani Adab Kay Maimar series comes as a timely and wonderful reminder to society of all the legendary figures who contributed their bit to develop and nurture what we can today delightfully call Pakistani literature within the broader spectrum of Urdu literature. Ironically, this is one of the rare areas where we, as a nation, can take pride after more than six decades of independence.