KARACHI: Friends, colleagues and admirers paid glowing tributes to the life and works of eminent poet Jamiluddin Aali at a condolence and literary reference held in his honour at the Arts Council on Tuesday evening. Aaliji, as he was fondly known, passed away on Nov 23.

Renowned broadcaster Raza Ali Abidi began his speech by referring to the famous song that Aaliji penned, `Jeevay jeevay Pakistan`.

He claimed if `Pak sir zameen shadbad` had not been the national anthem of Pakistan, `Jeevay jeevay Pakistan` would have been, because it was easily understandable.

Speaking about his amiable personality he recalled that once during a conference Aaliji invited the western scholar David Matthews and his wife to dinner. This prompted him (Abidi) to say to a common friend that Aaliji threwparties for those who had white skin. The friend conveyed that remark to Aaliji. The late poet came up to Abidi and apologised to him in such a way that it made Abidi wish that the ground beneath him split apart.

Abidi said Aaliji was a person who turned the smaller moments of happiness into memorable events.

In that regard he gave the example of the time when the poet visited London and had Esh at a restaurant, which he 1(ept reminiscing about during his meetings with Abidi.

Retired Justice Haziqul Khairi pointed out Aaliji`s services to different institutions, including the Pakistan Writers Guild, and commented that ever since the guild was shifted away from Karachi, it was never the same.

Highlighting the power and reach of his patriotic songs, he recounted his visit to Turkey when a man at the airport, upon knowing that Justice Khairi was from Pakistan, sang `Jeevay jeevayPakistan` with great fervour.

Dr Pirzada Qasim said Aaliji`s was a heart-warming personality, a trait which also reflected in his poetry (dohas and ghazals). He said Aaliji went through quite a few ups and downs in his life but never compromised on what he felt was right.

He was a restless soul who would be always on the go. This is the reason that he had a futuristic approach to life and thought ahead of his time.

Prof Sahar Ansari said he`d known Aaliji from his (Ansari`s) college days when one of the late poet`s verses had become the tall< of the town: Kahin to ho gi mulaqaat ap chaman aara Keh main bhi hun teri khushbu ki tarha awaara (You, beautiful like a flower, we will meet somewhere For Pm a drifter, just like your fragrance) Prof Ansari talked about the kind of gentle person Aaliji was. He told the attendees that once when he was with the poet outside ofPakistan, Aaliji would himself make early morning tea for his colleagues.

He said there was a time when people objected to his dohas saying they did not belong to the classical realm, to which Aaliji responded that they belonged to `Aali chaal` (his own style). Later on, poets emulated his style, he said.

He shed light on his epic poem `Insaan` and his penchant for getting well-versed in scientific theories because of which he would often consult distinguished scientists like Dr Salam. He also mentioned Aaliji`s fondness for Stephen Hawking`s theory of singularity.

Actor Talat Husain lauded Aaliji`s contribution to Pakistan`s cultural and literary history. With his death,he said, a chapterin our history had ended. On his kindheartedness he narrated an episode from his personal life when Aaliji helped his (Husain`s) younger brother at a critical juncture of his life.

Journalist and writer Zaib AzlcarHusain said Aaliji`s tenure had not ended; it was an ongoing phenomenon. He pointed out the late poet`s many feats when he headed the Anjuman Taraqqi-i-Urdu, which included translations of great works of world literature. On his column writing he said it had power and vision.

Raju Jamil, Aaliji`s son, said by attending the programme he got to l
Karachi Commissioner Shoaib Siddiqui, Hasina Moin, Ahmed Shah, Khalid Shah, Farheen Iqbal Jaffery, Ikramul Haq Shog, Najma Usman, Asif Ansari, M Zaheer Khan, Mubin Mirza, Anis Zaidi, Fatima Hasan and Rehana Roohi also spoke.

Roohi dedicated the following two lines to Aaliji as well: Chal dia woh bhi chhor ker dunia Jis ne rakhi thi jor ker dunia (He too has left the world Who had held it together)