KIBF stands to show books as popular as ever

Thousands throng to Expo Centre to visit the five-day book fair

KARACHI: It is a commonly-held belief that people growing up in the age of the Internet, where every piece of information is just a click away, are fast losing interest in books. The 15th Karachi International Book Festival (KIBF), a five-day event which is currently underway at the Karachi Expo Center, however, has portrayed a different picture as thousands of Karachiites of all ages and backgrounds are enthusiastically thronging the venue in search of their favourite books. The book fair ends tomorrow (Monday).

Not a dying culture

“While figures reveal that book reading culture is fast dying, I have observed that people of all ages still take a keen interest in reading,” Rashid Ashraf, author of various biographies and travelogues, who came to the fair to promote his books at Atlantis Publications’ stall, told The Express Tribune.

“I have been attending KIBF for the past many years and I can say with surety that there is a 10 to 15 per cent increase in book sales every year,” he shared. “Per an estimate, more than three million books were sold out last year at the fair and we are expecting a similar response this time too.”

Tahir Akhtar, the Chief Executive Officer (CEO) of Children Publication, said that for the past 12 years, the culture of book reading has increased because schools urge students to read books outside of their curriculum.

“Asking whether book reading culture is still alive in Pakistan is the wrong question, to begin with,” Akhtar said. “Since the independence of Pakistan, not a single book publishing company has run out of business. In fact, their numbers are only increasing which shows that book reading culture is not only alive in Pakistan but it is a thriving one.”

Suleman Yousuf of New Century Education was of a similar opinion.

"From the very first day of the fair, we have hundreds of people visiting our stall. The number has increased today because of the weekend."

Sajid Ali, event manager at Readers’ Heaven, however, said that children are not as enthusiastic in reading books as they used to be in the past.

“We did not get as many visitors as we did last year. However, I have observed that most readers are interested in purchasing motivational books,” Ali said. “Parents and teachers should urge children to buy books instead of wasting all their time on smart gadgets," he opined.

Muhammad Huzaifa Jamal, a student from NED University who was visiting the fair, was of the view that despite the influence of technology in every sphere of life, books still hold a special place in some people’s lives.

“Books will always continue to be a source of pleasure for reading lovers. I think that students should continue their relationship with books to have successful lives,” Jamal suggested.



Children still love to read

“When my sons were told at school that there is a book fair happening in the city, they couldn’t contain their excitement and requested me to bring them here,” Rabia Sohail, a teacher by profession and a mother of two teenage boys said.

“I thought they are more into smart gadgets but when they expressed their interest in reading mystery and suspense genre, I was very happy to know that,” she said.

It was not only Sohail’s children who expressed their excitement towards the event but thousands of children, who came with their schools and their parents, could be seen purchasing their favourite books with a lot of enthusiasm.

“It’s Saturday and schools are off, but parents have sent kids to accompany us at the fair because of their growing interest,” Javeria Akram, a teacher from Scintillate Schooling System in Karachi’s Qaim Khani neighbourhood shared. “We live in a far-away town but children have been very enthusiastic to come here. They love to read books.”

Fairly-priced books

Many people also attended the fair because of the massive discounts offered by sellers. According to stall owners, the cheapest book at the fair costs Rs30 while the most expensive one is for Rs6,000.

“I am a student, so I have limited money in my pocket, but I would gladly spend it on books than wasting it on other activities,” Shahid Ali, a student from Karachi’s City School, said. “I am here to search for books related to history, as I am very keen to learn about the past. So far, the prices are very reasonable."

Ali Amjad, a banker, who came to the fair with three of his kids, also expressed his satisfaction with the prices.

“There are lots of discounts here, so naturally, a lot of people are attracted to buy books. I have bought books for all three of my children and it has been a very pocket-friendly experience,” he said. “Once I am done shopping for the kids, I will look for a book for myself too.”



Inculcating the reading habit

Hira Fahad, a housewife who visited the fair with her six-year-old son, said that she deliberately brought her kid to the book fair so that his interest is developed in reading from an early age.

“He is already showing a lot of interest in bedtime stories which is a good sign. Coming to this fair will also teach him how to select good books from a wide variety,” Hira explained.

Similarly, another housewife named Marvi Uzair said that she is an avid reader herself that is why she brought her eight-year-old daughter to the fair.

“My daughter is interested in books related to fairies but I also urged her to buy some general-knowledge books. She is gradually taking interest in other genres,” Marvi said.

Shedding light on how her kids take time out for their daily readings, Marvi said that it takes a while for her kids to commute to and from school, so they carry their storybooks with them to read in the van.

Bestsellers

While people showed interest in a wide variety of reads at the fair, most people bought books related to Urdu literature, politics, and self-help.

“In my experience, the works of Ishtiaq Ahmed, Ibn-e-Safi, and the category of Zinda Kitabain have been the best-sellers this year,” Rashid Ashraf shared.

“We sell books in Urdu but there is still a keen interest among the public to read them. At our stall, Pakistan ka Aien (The Constitution of Pakistan) has been the hottest-selling book this year, said Munam Farid, manager at Farid Publishers.

“Most people purchased The 12 Rules for Life by Jordan Peterson, which is a book on self-help,” Sajid Ali from Readers’ Heaven, said. “Despite costing Rs1,050, we have sold more than 200 copies in a day and more people are demanding it.”

Our hottest-selling book is called “The Battle for Pakistan: The Bitter US Friendship and a Tough Neighbourhood,’ Hitendra Jadav, senior manager at Liberty books informed The Express Tribune. “That apart, books on self-improvement are doing quite well. We did not have a book launch this year, but even then, the response has been tremendous so far.”

Even though the academic sessions in schools has not started yet, bookstalls selling textbooks have also received a great response from the public.

“Many schools are visiting the stalls and they are selecting books for the next academic session. They have also pre-ordered a lot of books and we are in the negotiation phase with others,” said Mukhtar Ahmed, distributive manager at AFAQ books. “Aside from that, books on general knowledge are doing very well too.”

E-books

Considering the importance of digitalisation in people’s daily lives, a lot of publishers also set up stalls to sell e-books at the fair.

Adeeb Online, a one-of-its-kind digital library for Urdu books, received a very positive response from Urdu book lovers.

“We are launching a web and mobile library which will have thousands of Urdu books to cater to all tastes,” Syed Fasih Uddin Ahmed, co-founder of the startup, stated.

“The best part is that we have taken great care in ensuring that all the books uploaded to the library are in compliance with copyrights laws and we have taken permission from authors or their distributors,” he said. “We will launch the app soon.”

Akin to Adeeb Online, Nabeel Akram from Bolti Kitabain, which publishes textbooks for pre-primary to secondary school-level children, said that their digital books are becoming very popular.

“Most people are not aware of e-books but they are taking interest in them. So far, we have received an overwhelming response from the public.”

Jam-packed with people

Organised by Pakistan Publishers and Booksellers Association, over the years, KIBF has turned out to be one of the largest trade fairs in Pakistan, since its inception in 2005.

“As you can see, all the three halls are jam-packed with people and the number of visitors is only increasing,” said Mirza Mansoor, Media coordinator of KIBF. He shared that many political and social figures, including the Pakistan Electronic Media Regulatory Authority (PEMRA) Chairperson Mohammad Saleem Baig, National Book Foundation head Dr Inam-ul-Haq and Muttahida Qaumi Movement’s (MQM) leader Amin-ul-Haq also visited the fair on Saturday.

“Per estimates, sales are better than last year. We are expecting more people to join us in the next two days,” he said.

Photos by author