ahore is living up to its claim to being the cultural and literary hub of the Punjab, if not the entire country. At the close of February, the city has already seen four literary festivals in the year so far.

The ThinkFest in January was followed by the Pakistan Literature Festival (PLF), which gave way to the more cosmopolitan Faiz Festival and the LLF, all three happening in the month of February. Huge turnouts of people at Alhamra, The Mall, the venue for each of these festivals, showed how significant such events are for the city.

In these festivals, primarily, writers and artists were given centre stage. They spoke live to the audiences seated inside the halls of the Alhamra Art Centre. Happening alongside were music concerts, activities for children, book launches, art exhibits, and food stalls. In other words, the festivals proved to be a wholesome recreation besides providing the people with an opportunity to network.

But there will always be cynics and critics around us too. No wonder, these festivals were criticised for failing to address critical issues facing the country and its people. Many also believe that these events are nothing more than capitalist ventures. However, bracketing them as just black or white is doing complete injustice to them. These festivals provide a space for lovers of literature where they can listen to their favourite authors speak. They also get the chance to have copies of books autographed.

That said, some underlying issues are often overlooked. In spite of their obvious success, the events at these festivals serve little to impact or initiate discourse. Secondly, some speakers are seen repeating themselves in every session they are invited to. Thirdly, the themes are repeated too; or they are largely created to attract audiences.

It is sincerely hoped that the festivals will be neatly spread over the entire year and not happen within a month or two.

This year’s ThinkFest seemed to be shifting the paradigm to the much needed critical discussions as it held more sessions on newly published books on relevant serious issues. The PLF, the newest addition to the Lahore’s festival culture, in its maiden edition brought a mix of concerts and panel discussions a lot of which weren’t literary by any measure.

Perhaps, the most successful (in terms of visitors’ attendance) was Faiz Festival whose every session saw overwhelming crowds. At the time of writing this, the LLF had kicked off too. The much anticipated annual event, which took a hiatus amid the Covid-19 pandemic, is back. This time too, you are going to see a graceful mix of local and foreign writers and artists converging in Lahore.

Where LLF takes the clear lead is the way it brings Nobel laureates to the country. This year, the Nobel literature prize winner Abdulrazak Gurnah is invited.

The only issue with the LLF is that it caters to a very tiny fraction of English-speaking audience. It is time the festivals started speaking to larger audiences. They should start fresh conversations and debates that resonate with the common people as well as the academia.

Lastly, it is sincerely hoped that the festivals will be neatly spread over the entire year, and not come within a month or two.

The writer is a graduate in English literature from the University of the Punjab