Written by: Staff Report
Posted on: February 24, 2020 | 
| 中文
Saeen Zahoor Performing at PNCA (photo credits go to PNCA)
From 21st to the 23rd February, the Pakistan National Council of Arts (PNCA), Islamabad became a hub for discussions, poetry recitations, musical and theatrical performances. The 5th iteration of the Pakistan Mother Languages Literature Festival (PMLLF) took place this past weekend as a collaboration between PNCA and the Indus Cultural Forum. The chief guest for the event was Mr. Shafqat Mahmood, Federal Minister for Education, National History and Literary Heritage.
PMLLF’s objective has been to celebrate and preserve the regional languages of Pakistan in all their beauty and diversity. Artists, writers, intellectuals and translators gathered in PNCA, to ensure that the issue of language conservation could be tackled by those who are deeply invested in the cause. The panels and performances made it a point to ensure equal representation and attention to all provinces. According to Dr. Fouzia Saeed, the newly appointed Director General of PNCA, “This festival provides a platform for celebrating all 70 plus languages of Pakistan and encourages language communities to take action for saving these languages from extinction.”
The Audience at PNCA Auditorium (photo credits to PNCA)
Other collaborators of the events were the Foundation Open Society Institute (FOSI), Friedrich Naumann Foundation Pakistan (FNF), Alternative Research Initiative (ARI), Punjab Institute of Language, Art and Culture (PILAC), Culture Department, Government of Sindh, ECO Science Foundation, Pakistan Science Foundation, Society for Alternative Media and Research (SAMAR) and others. In her keynote speech, senior journalist Zubeida Mustafa spoke about how language is the gateway to community. She urged the audience to take regional languages as seriously as they do foreign languages, by having systematic ways of transmitting the grammar and structure.
Day Two featured performances such as the trilingual play “Ranjha”, presented by the Dugdugi group from Lahore. “Ranjha” focused on the quest for spiritual enlightenment, and how each regional language articulates a different journey, but with ultimately the same end towards the Divine. Other performances that day featured a Dhamaal (spiritual celebration) and Sufi musical performance by Saeen Zahoor, a Sufi musician from Sindh, who has achieved worldwide acclaim for his poetry and songs.
Zubeida Mustafa's Keynote Speech (photo credits to PNCA)
The afternoon of Day Three featured two fascinating panels. The first was “City Profiles in Mother Languages”, moderated by Qasim Sodhar. It focused on how the regional literature has provided a gateway into the history and evolution of historic cities in Pakistan, with panelists from Karachi, Peshawar, Dir and Shikarpur. Audience members took this opportunity to discuss their personal oral histories within these cities, and lamented the loss of ancient sites and neighborhoods within the cities, as a result of the rise of modernization and development.
A Scene from 'Ranjha by Dugdugi (photo credits go to PNCA)
“Mother Languages and Digital-Age Role of Magazines and Online Forums” took place right after, moderated by Zubair Torwali, and sponsored by the Literary Forum of North America. The panelists spoke about their journeys to preserve their regional languages (such as Seraiki, Sindhi, Baloch) with the help of the internet as an accessible, self-supporting mechanism. It was also an excellent opportunity for audience members interested in these languages, to find easy and well-maintained resources related to a regional language, especially when there are little tangible resources easily available.
PMLLF had included discussions on ways in which the preservation of languages can take place within an educational and a governmental level, with senators and members of regional textbook boards present in their panels respectively. During the final event of PMLLF, the chief guest and organizers reiterated that only through federal assistance and new policies can regional languages be preserved on a wider scale. “We are striving for equal dignity and respect for all Pakistani languages, as they represent a rich heritage and folk wisdom of millions of Pakistanis,” said Niaz Nadeem, Chairperson of the Indus Cultural Forum.
PMLLF concluded with a concert by the gifted and accomplished singer, Hadiqa Kiyani. Kiyani sang popular spiritual poetry and folksongs in some of the various regional dialects. Parts of the crowd roared upon hearing Kiyani sing some of the verses, and a section near the stage took to dancing.
The Constitution and Protection of Mother Languages of Pakistan Panel (photo credits to PNCA)
Such festivals are always a welcome addition to the cultural calendar of Islamabad city. They educate us on the vastness of Pakistan’s cultural heritage, and they serve to remind us of the languages we have perhaps lost touch with. As each iteration attracts more crowds, the public will perhaps begin to understand and appreciate the need for preserving and recording not just the history and intricacies of the Urdu language, but also the regional languages of their homes and their fellow provinces.
Hadiqa Kiyani's Performance (photo credits to PNCA)
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