Book on Faiz Ahmed Faiz’s letters launched in Brussels

Launching ceremony of the book titled “Conversations with my father – Forty Years on a Daughter Responds” by Moneeza Hashmi, the daughter of renowned Pakistani poet Faiz Ahmed Faiz, was held here on Monday evening. The ceremony was organized by the Embassy of Pakistan Brussels in collaboration with the European Literary Circle as part of activities to mark the 75th Diamond Jubilee of Pakistan’s independence. The book is based on the letters received by the author Moneeza Hashmi from her father Faiz Ahmed Faiz over the years and her response to them after 4 decades, a press release issued here by the Embassy of Pakistan said. The event started with an introduction of Mr. Faiz Ahmad Faiz. The speakers highlighted different aspects of the legendary poet’s life during the ceremony. The book reviews were presented by Dr. Ali Sherazi, Socio Religious Expert and Mr. Gio Goris, Expert on South Asia and former editor of MO Magazine. Speaking on the occasion, Ambassador of Pakistan to Belgium, Luxembourg and the European Union, Dr. Asad Majeed Khan underscored that the work and poetry by Faiz significantly influenced the literary outlook of Urdu and Punjabi literature. He emphasised that Faiz Ahmed Faiz was one of the greatest poets of the Urdu language with a unique literary focus on fundamental freedoms, democracy, labour rights, as well as political and social equality. Offering insights into the publication, the Ambassador highlighted that the biographical work by the author Moneeza Hashmi not only beautifully illustrates the relations between a daughter and her father but also provide the reader with a unique glimpse in to the life of Faiz Ahmed Faiz. In her remarks the author Mrs Hashmi lamented that during the life time of her father, she never had an opportunity to spend time with him. She said that now in her senior years, she has so much to share about her life and achievements with her father which she is doing through this book. During the ceremony the book was jointly launched by Ambassador Khan along with the author Moneeza Hashmi and Mr Imran Saqib representing the European Literary Circle. The event was attended by a large number of Belgians as well as Pakistani diaspora including diplomatic corps, academia, students, business, social services and media.