The recently concluded Afkar-e-Taza, a two-day Thinkfest, reaffirms Lahore’s standing as the nursery of political and cultural ideas. There were occasions in recent decades when Lahore could not live up to its historic role as the progenitor of cultural and social movements. With Lahore Literature Festival (LLF) having established its due place as an annual moot of literati, the addition of Afkar-e-Taza broadens the scope of cultural debate and engagement in the city.
Afkar-e-Taza has grown steadily, attempting to bring solid academic ideas to a larger audience and create a space for intercultural communication and a rare chance for Pakistani students, middle-classes and civil society to engage with global intellectual trends. This year Christopher Jaffrelot, Ayesha Jalal and a host of other scholars presented their cutting-edge ideas and insightful commentaries that helped the general public to understand Pakistan’s predicament and opportunities beyond the sterile TV debates that have become a hallmark of our usual public discourse. For such a flawed discourse is bound to stymie the future trajectory of the world’s fifth most populous nation. Given the paucity of public spaces and avenues of thinking, especially in times when press and academic freedoms are stressed, such festivals serve an even more urgent purpose.
The panels also brought together an array of speakers from the two leading political parties and surprisingly the party leaders and supporters acted in a dignified manner – unlike what happens on national TV or in street politics. It was rare to see PTI and PML-N leaders enter and exit the venue without the ugliness of the political shenanigans that the two parties have indulged in over the past two years. It is important to set healthy standards in the public domain.
Unfortunately, the general critique of such festivals holds ground in the case of Afkar-e-Taza as well. The panels and various discussions address a more economically advanced segment of the middle classes and continue to exclude vernacular voices and trends. It is only in the past decade, with civilian spaces expanding, that the possibility of such dialogue has opened up. It would be essential for civil society to step up its efforts to support their counterparts in the marginalized areas of the country and to strengthen the voices that generally do not find their due place in the mainstream.
Having said that, the Afkar-e-Taza has contributed immensely to the cultural life of Lahore. It was a collaborative venture by the civil society and Dr Yaqoob Bangash of Information Technology University (ITU) led the effort. The government of the Punjab should also be commended for facilitating the festival and it is hoped that Afkar-e-Taza will continue to be a regular, annual event. *
Published in Daily Times, January 14th 2019.