Wekh Lahore: Preserving history through a lens

Over 500 attend the third season of WEKH LAHORE photo contest and exhibition

LAHORE:

More than 500 people attended the third season of WEKH LAHORE photo contest and exhibition organised by the Walled City of Lahore Authority (WCLA) on Monday.

WCLA Director General Kamran Lashari and the Lahore Garrison University vice chancellor inaugurated the event.

Of the 1,389 entries received for the contest and the exhibition, 453 were displayed at Alhamra Art Gallery. There were three categories for the contest –monuments, architecture and street life in the Walled City.

Top three position holders in each category were awarded Rs100,000, Rs75,000 and Rs50,000, respectively along with gifts including microwave ovens and refrigerators provided by various sponsors. Hobbyist and amateur photographers from across the country participated in the contest.

“It is good to see a government department holding such events and giving away cash prizes. This is a great initiative,” said Abdul Rahim, the winner in the monuments category.

“I was not expecting this prize. Almost every participant has been given away a prize. This is the best part of the competition.”

Other high achievers in the category were Abdul Rahim, Syed Najamul Hassan, Sheharyar Khokhar and Adeel Chishti. In architecture category, Umar Farooq, Noman A Sheikh and Hashim Aslam bagged prizes. Shahroze Haider, Muhammad Hussain Mehmood, Tayyab Suhail and Sher Muhammad won prizes in the street life category.

Lashari said the aim of the yearly event was to promote the Walled City through photographs. “This is one way of digitising our heritage and intangible culture of the Walled City. I believe that the youth are the best resource for gathering photographs. We will also print a coffee table book of these photographs,” he said.

WCLA Marketing Director Asif Zaheer said the response had been phenomenal.

WEKH LAHORE judge Nadeem Dar said he was happy to judge the photographs. “The photographers have done a great job. I am glad to see the large number of photographers on display. It is a positive activity aimed at promoting our heritage and culture.”

Arshad Ghauri, another jury member, advised the young photographers to work harder for the next event. He offered them his support in this regard.

Published in The Express Tribune, February 9^th, 2016.