The 65th death anniversary of legendary author and playwright Saadat Hasan Manto was observed on Saturday.
While fans and well-wishers of the late writer took the opportunity to celebrate his literary contributions, cultural departments across the country generally remained silent. No tributes or memorial events were held in Manto's honour - not even by Lahore Arts Council, Alhamra Arts Council and Punjab Institute of Language Art and Culture.
According to sources, certain officials within Lahore Arts Council are also blockading the Manto Festival. "A group of right wing and traditional clerics that have dominant roles in the Lahore Arts Council are not in favour of Manto Festival," a senior official of the department told The Express Tribune.
"Even other colourful activities like the Gilgit-Baltistan Festival have been stopped at Alhamra. Although poet Faiz Ahmad Faiz's daughter Muniza Hashmi is the chairperson at Alhamra, she only managed to arrange Faiz Festival and has now ignored Manto Festival," he added. "Lahore Arts Council has received immense criticism over this from civil society and Manto's admirers from all over the world."
Furthermore, the official highlighted that although committees such as Punjab Arts Council and Punjab Institute of Language, Art and Culture have high budgets for cultural activities, they have chosen against hosting an event for Manto.
Just last year, Lahore Arts Council cancelled the Manto Festival on account of the writer's work being perceived as controversial. However, after facing public pressure, the administration did reverse it's decision. But unlike last year, a change of heart seems unlikely.
Born in Ludhiana on May 11, 1912, Manto is regarded as a prominent figure in the world of Urdu literature in both India and Pakistan. He was primarily known for unearthing societal taboos and evils in his writings, as a result of which he is often called controversial - even today. In spite of his writings being perceived as obscene by a large segment of society, many - especially those that belong to the realm of Urdu literature - celebrate Manto as a hero.
"Manto is one of the greats when it comes to Urdu literature. He told us about the realities of life that were largely ignored. He was a brave writer who talked about the evils in society," said renowned writer, poet and former DG Punjab Language Arts and Culture, r Sugra Sadaf, said.
A strong critic of Partition, many of Manto's works alluded to the dark side of the division between India and Pakistan. His final work, Toba Tek Singh, sheds light on mental illness within the context of Partition.
Manto's boldness often resulted in run-ins with the law led him at odds with the authorities. Aside from his unique style and the themes he tackled, the storyteller is also revered for being one of Pakistani literature's most prolific contributors.
[caption id="attachment_2139910" align="alignnone" width="334"] Bollywood actor Nawazuddin Siddiqui portrayed Manto in a biopic of the writer[/caption]
During the course of his career, Manto produced five series of radio plays, three collections of essays, 22 compilations of short stories and one novel. In 2012, the government of Pakistan rewarded him with the Nishane Imtiaz in honour of his contributions.
Have something to add to the story? Share in the comments below.
↧
Cultural departments turn a blind eye to Manto's 65th death anniversary
↧
I am not excited by TV anymore: Sarmad Khoosat
Critically acclaimed director Sarmad Khoosat opened up about his woes with the local entertainment industry. In a live session with director and producer Rafay Rashdi, Khoosat expressed his disappointment with the lack of a real fraternity in the industry.
" I started in 1999 to be exact. It's going to be almost 21 years. I never felt that spirit of fraternity. At award shows yes. Everyone wants to rub shoulders against each other. So no I don't think there is a sense of fraternity and it's sad," he said.
Khoosat then went on to talk about how the state of television has deteriorated over the years. " I'll be honest, Iam not excited by TV anymore and not as a practitioner. But what I see on TV, it's just about what manages to excite people on a short term and people are happy with it," he said.
Adding further, the Manto director critcised creators for churning out content in a haphazard way. "I feel that it's such a hotchpotch. I don't feel that anybody is sitting down even for their own channel designing content. Or thinking or where the year is going to be headed towards or what are they gonna say about their body of work. Content wise I don't feel excited," he said.
Watch full video here:
https://www.instagram.com/p/CAi88SDHrXu/
At the same time he did maintain that his personal disappointment with the state of affairs on TV would only matter if he was a contributor. However carrying on, Khoosat identified 'dull writing' as the main problem for content he deemed 'lackluster'.
"I don't find the writing inspiring. There are definitely some good writers but you know it's lackluster. There is so much to write. So many episodes to write, that it's dull writing" he said.
"And dull writing translates into dull direction, dull performances. Everything looks the same. "
Khoosat further highlighted that the powers that be get actors on board on the basis of their Instagram followers describing it as 'horrifying'.
Have something to add to the story? Share in the comments below.
↧
↧
Ajoka Theatre takes ‘Manto Online’
Renowned performing arts group Ajoka Theatre streamed an online play this weekend. Produced entirely on the cloud meeting platform Zoom, the play was called Manto Online and based on Shahid Nadeem’s much renowned play Kaun Hai Yeh Gushtakh.
As the name suggest, the play - directed by Nirvaan Nadeem - is an amalgamation of different stories essayed by legendary writer Saadat Hasan Manto.
The play was essentially an experimental production wherein actors from various cities including Lahore, Karachi and Houston participated via Zoom app. The production was designed in such a way that each actor was able to record their scene in isolation whilst at the same time, maintaining constant continuity.
The production received massive response and appreciation on Facebook and YouTube. The actors expressed their gratitude for Ajoka and director Nirvaan Nadeem for the opportunity to be included in such an experiment.
According to Nirvaan, who is also the executive director at Ajoka, the company has been facing many obstacles countless times before. "Ajoka Theatre has always continued its work, even in the most difficult of circumstances in the country. With Covid-19 being the latest challenge, Ajoka has still managed to come out on top,” he told The Express Tribune.
Adding on, Nadeem talked about how this is the first of many online plays by Ajoka. “Entertainment is an important factor for the relaxation and peace in society. Ajoka has introduced a new trend of online performances. In future, more such shows will be performed with the purpose of giving relief to theatre lovers in these testing times.”
The cast of the play included Feza Farooq, Usama Shah, Jehanzeb Khan, Jawad Tariq, Ahmad Ali, Saad Syed, Asad and Anam Jalil. The play can be viewed on Ajoka’s YouTube and Facebook channels.
Have something to add to the story? Share in the comments below.
↧
Sarmad Khoosat unveils 'Manduva', a curation on Pakistani cinema
Kamli director-producer Sarmad Khoosat has unveiled his recent curated project, titled Manduva, on his Instagram. The curation, in collaboration with the Lahore Biennale Foundation and British Council Pakistan, aims to highlight the history of Pakistani cinema. The curation was launched at the National College of Arts (NCA) yesterday.
“Manduva is an exploration of seven and a half decades of Pakistani cinema. An attempt to initiate archiving and reading of our very indigenous cinematic syntax. We have loved and owned it sometimes but also hated and abandoned it intermittently. It’s our heritage and let’s reclaim it, to inspect, dissect and interpret,” Khoosat wrote, introducing the curation to his followers.
View this post on Instagram
A post shared by Sarmad Ali Sultan (@sarmadkhoosat)
Speaking to The Express Tribune over a phone conversation, Khoosat explained the curation in more depth, saying “This is primarily for the Lahore Biennale Foundation’s Virtual Museum, which has several components. My component is cinema, and I’m calling it Manduva.”
Explaining his thought process behind naming the curation, the Manto actor said, “Manduva is the Punjabi word for cinema. And it’s not only for cinema per se, as in, what you see on screen, but the whole experience of cinema. A cinema house can also be called a manduva, for instance.”
View this post on Instagram
A post shared by Lahore Biennale Foundation (@lahorebiennalefoundation)
"The inspiration or, you could say, the ethos of it is how back in the day, people used to also do these touring theatres, touring movies. There was another interesting Punjabi word called tourentaaqi, which is again, a kind of twisted or mispronounced version of touring talkies. So as opposed to cinema being just a space where you have to go and then watch stuff, that space can come to you too, like in a tent which just a projector and speakers," he continued.
View this post on Instagram
A post shared by Sarmad Ali Sultan (@sarmadkhoosat)
The trailblazing director has curated three components within his section on cinema, which is then broadly called Manduva. Shedding light on each of the three components, Khoosat said, “There are three parts to it – one is a bit called Seven and a half, which are the reels created by these newer, younger filmmakers kind of sifting through decades and decades of films, looking for themes. Each filmmaker has picked one theme and then edited these montages or reels. Another is called Uncensored, which is this kid called Usman Allauddin from Beaconhouse National University (BNU), who has done an interesting thing on Zindagi Tamasha. And then there is Hamid Ali Hanbhi, who is a painter and mixed medium artist, and has done a scene depicted in a painting.”
“We don’t have many virtual museums, I don’t think. I’m assuming it’s almost like the first of its kind,” the Joyland producer concludes.
Have something to add to the story? Share it in the comments below
↧