awards
Pakistan is a country with a rich and colourful culture. Pakistan is also full of literary geniuses but what they lack is recognition. Fatima Bhutto very aptly described Pakistani authors as “the keenest observers of this complicated country of ours; they are honest, curious and self-critical. They best investigate essential human stories, bypassing tired news headlines to portray a world otherwise unseen. And they do with wit, razor sharp prose, and a fine sense of negotiation.” And in light of that, it is high time that we recognise extraordinary talent and encourage the dormant writers to come forward.
Recently, the 8th UBL Literary Awards were held in Karachi, celebrating the literary efforts of Pakistani writers. The awards were held at a local hotel and the event was attended by a host of writers, literary and media personalities, socialites and celebrities.
Over 130 entries were received as nominations for the seven categories of the awards. The books, which were written by Pakistani authors and published in Pakistan in 2017 & 2018, were shortlisted by an esteemed panel of judges which included the likes of Dr. Asghar Nadeem Syed, Dr. Asif Farrukhi, Mr. Ghazi Salahuddin, Dr. Arfa Syeda, Ms. Kishwar Naheed, Dr. Anwaar Ahmad and Mr. Masood Ashar.
The winners from each category were: ‘Jindar’ by Akhtar Raza Salimi for Urdu Fiction; ‘Us Ko Ik Shakhs Samajhna Tou Munasib Nahin’ by Dr. Nasir Abbas Nayyar for Urdu Non-Fiction; ‘Tum Kabeer’ by Fahmida Riaz for Urdu Poetry; ‘Dur Uftada Shehr Say Aik Taveel Nazam’ by Munawar Hussain for Translation into Urdu; ‘Nazmein, Pahelian Aur Nasr Paray’ by Shanul Haq Haqqi for Children’s Urdu Literature; ‘The Faltering State’ by Tariq Khosa for English Non-Fiction; ‘Partition’ by Amina Azfar for Children’s English Literature. Moreover, for the first time in the history of the Awards, a Lifetime Achievement Award was also presented to Ms Zehra Nigah for her extensive and extraordinary body of work.
Sima Kamil, President and CEO of UBL, said during her speech, “Pakistan is a wonderful mix of cultures, languages and ethnicities and our literary lineage is best proof of that. We consider it incumbent upon ourselves to recognise and inspire writers to continue contributing to the country’s literary wealth. We hope that the literary impetus does not slacken and that future generations continue to take advantage of these literary treasures.”
While these awards may encourage writers to do more but to truly motivate and help sustain this craft, we need more than mere appreciation. It would have been better had they given out cash prizes, as writers have to pay the bills too. Hope the concerned authorities will take this into consideration next time.
— A. Jafri