LAHORE:
In February 2014, Lahore Literary Festival grew from a two-day event featuring 60 delegates to a three-day event featuring over 100 local and foreign delegates.
LLF Advisory Committee member Ahmed Rashid says the goal of the festival was to transform Lahore into an intellectual hub - a city for cultural interaction
The festival included multiple formats; recitals, book launches, panel discussions and exhibitions. A variety of writers, poets and intellectuals spoke on a blend of subjects; politics, South Asian identity, journalism, literature and children’s fiction.
The featured speakers like Vali Nasr, Vikram Seth, Sherry Rehman, Aitezaz Ahsan, Zia Mohyeddin and Tehmina Durrani. Festival organisers also made room for humour; Muhammad Hanif, Jugnu Mohsin, Ali Aftab and Shobhaa De’s wit left many in stitches.
The LLF was held at Alhamra Cultural Centre. Over the years, the festival has been supported by the Punjab government.
The government revamped and repaired the venue and coordinated on security arrangements.
The secret to LLF’s success has been remaining accessible. The only rule is: first come, first get.
The International Advisory Committee for the LLF 2015 has been announced.
It includes directors and organisers of various literature festivals including Maina Bhagat of the Apeejay Kolkata Literature Festival; Libby Owen Edmunds of the Galle Literary Festival; Yasmin El Rifae of the Palestine Festival of Literature; Namita Gokhale of Jaipur Literature Festival and Sadaf Saaz Siddiqi of the Dhaka Hay Festival.
The LLF committee says it wants to ensure this cultural and intellectual exchange continues at the third festival in 2015.
Read the full year-in review here.
Published in The Express Tribune, December 31st, 2014.
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