Year of festivals comes to a close

Organisers say their efforts are meant to revive culture and art scene in the city

LAHORE:

The year 2015 was a year of festivals for Lahoris. During November and December, some festival or the other was held every other weekend. These featured discussion sessions, movie screenings, and musical and theatre performances.

Among the more popular festivals held this year were the Lahore Literary Festival (LLF), the Faiz Aman Mela, the Faiz International Festival, the Khayaal Festival, the Alhamra Literary and Cultural Festival, the Children’s Film Festival, the Ajoka Youth Theatre Festival, the Mystic Music Sufi Festival, the International Film Festival, a Puppet and Youth Performing Arts Festival.

Speaking to The Express Tribune, the organisers of some of these festivals said the city had been identified in folklore and historical accounts with rich culture and literary traditions. They said over the past years deteriorating law and order and poor decision making on part of the government like banning basant festival had eclipsed the city’s tradition of festivity and public life. They said they had started these festivals with the intention of reviving the art and culture scene in the city.

Razi Ahmed, who founded the LLF in 2012, said the reason given by the government for the ban on basant was a high casualty count. He said he believed the real reason was the opposition from extreme right-wing religious and political parties.

“The LLF was started with the intention of reviving the city’s image as a place of literary, cultural, and artistic fervor,” he said.

Ahmed said the LLF had helped the Lahorites reclaim their right to public space and use it for dialogue and engagement with renowned authors and thinkers.

Saadaan Peerzada, co-founder of the Rafi Peer Theatre Workshop, said the response to all four festivals organised by the group was overwhelming. “Most people in Lahore are outgoing. They come out in droves to attend festivals,” he said. Peerzada recalled that there had been a terrorist attack on the second-last day of a World Performing Arts Festival organised by the group in 2008. Still, he said, there was no fall in attendance on the last day.

He said the festival had not been held from 2009 onwards. He said the group was planning to revive it in 2016.

Imran Peerzada, a co-founder of the Rafi Peer Theatre Workshop, said cultural exchange was an important aspect of festivals. He said one of the purposes of the group in starting its ventures was to showcase films, theatre and dances produced in other parts of the world to people here.

He said he had noticed a progressive rise in interest in the festival among the youth.

Speaking about the Faiz Amn Mela, Salima Hashmi stressed the need to learn about the context in which the festival had been started in 1985. “It was a conscious effort to provide a platform to those opposed to General Zia’s military government,” she said.

She said festivals allowed people to come together and develop a sense of common identity. “Faiz was pro-peace and pro-humanity.
He was interested in promotion of arts, poetry, prose and writing. We have tried to spread his message through the festival.

She said this year the first edition of the Faiz International Festival had been held to mark the 31st death anniversary of poet.

Published in The Express Tribune, December 30^th, 2015.