Daily Times

“News of death, especially if unrelated to the dreaded coronavirus, seems all the more dismal. Where newspaper accounts are lean on details, I follow up with a Google search.” This is an excerpt from Dr. Asif Aslam Farrukhi’s article that was published on May 10, 2020, in an English language newspaper of Pakistan. Who would have thought that three weeks later, people would be shocked upon hear his sudden passing away. He breathed his last on June 1. He was 60.

Dr. Farrukhi was born in Karachi on September 16, 1959. He attended Karachi’s St Patrick’s School before doing his intermediate from D.J. Science College. Dr. Farrukhi completed his MBBS from the Dow Medical College, Karachi in 1984, and Masters in Public Health (International Health) from Harvard University, USA in 1988. In 2012, he completed a short course on Health Economics and Financing from the London School of Hygiene and Tropical Medicine. He worked in the capacity of Health and Nutrition Programme Officer at UNICEF, Karachi from 1994 to 2014. His key responsibilities pertained to the planning and managing issues about maternal and child health interventions.

He was born in a family where literature had enveloped and inspired his early childhood. It also made him into an institution par excellence. A physician by training, Dr. Farrukhi had edited and compiled anthologies of Pakistani writers. He was also the recipient of the Tamgha-e-Imtiaz, the fourth highest civilian honor of Pakistan that was bestowed upon him in 1995. Dr. Farrukhi found his true calling amid the pages of books and among readers. He was at home when he found himself absorbed writing, translating and editing literary texts and manuscripts. Where he was proficient in the English language, his love for Urdu remained deeply embedded in his heart. Dr. Farrukhi’s father, Late Aslam Farrukhi was an Urdu author, critic, and poet and for many years served as the Chairman and professor at Karachi University’s Department of Urdu.

While Dr. Asif Farrukhi’s contributions to literature are beyond measure, his recent efforts – the one for which he is celebrated by – were associated with the Karachi Literature Festival (KLF). In 2010, when this novel idea was put forward, it was Asif Farrukhi who took the torch in his hands alongside Ameena Saiyid to establish and launch the KLF. He remained its co-founder since 2010.

As this writer pens his words, he wonders the kind of void that has been created with the passing away of an icon of literature as that of Dr. Farrukhi. His articles and write-ups for print publications were filled with insights that added profound value to the readers’ thoughts. They exhibited to the readers the truth whereby compelling them to think and question what the subjects or the topics Dr. Farrukhi discussed. There was a purpose in his articles; there was a mission in his narrative. When Dr. Farrukhi spoke at public events, conferences, and seminars, more notably at the KLF, audience members would listen to his words with conviction. They found a purpose in what Dr. Farrukhi said for he always used his intellectual prowess to talk according to the demographics of his audience. Dr. Farrukhi’s words – written or verbal – were that of an editor, analyst, writer, reader, and a speaker. He was more than just a writer or a translator. He knew the delicacies involved in writing and working around literature, and took the pains to perfect it for the readers.

While Dr. Asif Farrukhi’s contributions to literature are beyond measure, his recent efforts – the one for which he is celebrated by – were associated with the Karachi Literature Festival (KLF)

Dr. Farrukhi was the editor of Dunyazad, an Urdu publication. He was also known for his proficiency in translating works from English and foreign languages to Urdu. He was best known for his essays and short stories. However, his passion was to delve into the modalities of language and literature. He had published seven collections of short stories in fiction and two essays. One of his recent works was Look At The City From Here. He was working as Professor of practice, Arzu program for Languages and Literature and Director, Arzu Center for Regional Languages and Humanities at a private university in Karachi.

His latest article was published on May 31, 2020 in a weekly English publication of Pakistan. It was titled, Jewels from forgotten Persian Poetry. An excerpt from this article reads as, “Immigration is such an integral part of the modern world that it takes a while to realize how this phenomenon has long been common in our part of the world, how it peopled the entire terrain for a long period and the enlivening effect it had on the arts and the literary heritage.” Asif Farrukhi’s soul has migrated to the other realm but not before his selfless devotion and services for literature and language invigorated, rejuvenated and revitalized the literary sector of Pakistan benefiting those associated with it. His words shall always be remembered.

The writer is an independent researcher, author and columnist.