Pakistani Quran publishing company bags exhibition spot at Sharjah Book Fair

In total, only two Pakistani businesses made it to the esteemed event

SHARJAH:

SHARJAH: Considered the fourth largest in the world, Sharjah International Book Fair enjoys long-standing popularity among publishers and booksellers from across the world due to its business potential but only two Pakistani companies have made it to the literati festival this year.

One of these is the Qudratullah Company which bagged an exhibition stand at the Fair. Known for its publishing of Holy Quran in Pakistan, Qudratullah is an annual participant at the book fair.

“We have been participating in the event for the past seventeen years and we conduct very good business here,” said the sales executive of the company Mehboob while talking to The Express Tribune, adding that in the past many Pakistani publishers punctually attended the event but the practice ended four years ago.

“For the past four years, only two or three Pakistani publishers have taken part in the fair. The main reason is that most Pakistani companies are importers of books rather than publishers so they avoid book fairs,” he said.

Apart from Qudratullah Company, another Pakistani company booked but failed to establish a stall even on the second day of its inauguration. The administration reported that their shipment failed to arrive on time.

The market appears more promising across the border with over forty Indian companies returning to the Sharjah event after years of regular attendance. India has established itself as the main publishing hub for books for the past several decades.

While books in English comprise primary sales for these companies, they put on display titles in many regional Indian languages, garnering scores of visitors on their stalls.

Nearly all other countries in the region are participating in this year's event including Syria and Lebanon despite facing serious economic turmoil and social upheaval due to war and other factors.

Bazm-e-Urdu also flaunted a stand in Sharjah, offering mainly poetry books of Ahmad Nadeem Qasmi, Iqbal, Faiz Ahmad Faiz amongst others. The company leans more towards being a literary organization than a publishing company and is run by expatriate Pakistanis and Indians.

Members of the Bazam meet monthly to discuss latest poetry, fiction and other Urdu books to keep their love for written word as well as Urdu language alive and thriving.

“Despite the fact that it is our national language and Pakistan has a large population, Indians are more passionate about Urdu in UAE as per my personal experience,” said Zakia, a member of the Bazam for the past 10 years.

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