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Lahore applauds Lahore

2013-03-03
T came as no surprise that the session `Lahore in Literature` was a love fest, given the Lahoris` obvious affection for their city. Half of Lahore, it seemed, was in attendance and the doors to Alhamra`s largest hall had to be locked when it was filled to capacity.

Disappointingly, though, the session lacked direction in spite of a charismatic panel made up of Pran Nevile, Bapsi Sidhwa, Ebba Koch and Intizar Husain.

Moderator Ahmed Rafay Alam, an environmental lawyer and activist, began the discussion with Nevile, the author of Lahore: A Sentimental Journey,who called Lahore an `eternal city, which can only be felt and experienced.

`I have travelled all over the world but Lahore is Lahore,` he declared. `I have carried Lahore in my heart. It has been with me since childhood.` At this point, members of the audience were beside themselves with joy at the affirmation of their city`s superiority.

Talking about his emotional connection with Lahore, Nevile said that the first time he had visited the city after Partition, it was like a pilgrimage for him. `I visited Lahore for the first time in 1997, 50 years after I had left it. I did not want to visit Lahore before finishing my book on Lahore [which was published in 1992].

Alam then switched the conversation over to architectural historian Koch, asking her if she felt there was a misappreciation of the many monuments in the city. Koch disagreed. `As soon as I crossed the border into Lahore, I was impressed by the warmth, the openness and the culture of this city,` she said, delving deep into how the Shalimar Gardens is an architectural phenomenon.

Next, Alam asked Sidhwa, a number of whose novels have been based in Lahore and who has edited Beloved City: Writingson Lahore, if she felt whether Lahore was a violent city as comes across from tales of Partition, or a city of courtesans, high art and culture. `It is certainly not a violent city,` said Sidhwa and added that Beloved City was a labour of love for her.

`It took me three years to develop this book. I felt I owed it to my city. It is a city that I know best and that I want to write about. It is the city that has nurtured me as a writer.

Husain was undoubtedly the highlight of the session and spoke passionately about the city that he has observed over many, many years. `In 1947, so many writers migrated to Lahore and so many migrated from Lahore,` he said.

He then related several personal stories in which Lahore featured prominently.

`Once, a long time ago, I wrote a story on Krishen Nagar to which a woman from India wrote a rebuttal titled `Intizar Husain ruko`. In her story, she laid out the map of Krishen Nagar as it was before Partition,` he said.

He also spoke about how he and his wife and friends got seats on a train from India by virtue of being from Lahore. `When I said I am from Lahore, the railway official [who had been ignoring their requests for seats] asked after a short pause `How is F.C. College?`. I said it`s fine. He then asked about Gawalmandi and I told him that is also fine. I had made inroads into his heart because of my association with Lahore and he immediately put us on the train.` E Zainab Imam