For its fifteenth year, Pakistan’s most anticipated cultural event, the Karachi Literature Festival (KLF), is returning. According to a press release, the festival is set to take place at the esteemed Beach Luxury Hotel in Karachi from February 16–18, 2024, and is expected to be a lively celebration of literature, art, and thought-provoking conversation.
The 15th KLF, with the theme “Sustainability: Words changing Mindsets,” will include more than 200 national and international speakers from 8 different countries who will participate in 75 sessions addressing a wide range of subjects like current events, education, the environment, literature, and economics. In addition, visitors may anticipate 25 book releases in addition to entertaining events including satire, theater, film screenings, and exhibitions.
The public is welcome to attend the inaugural event on Friday, February 16, which will feature keynote addresses by well-known individuals like British-Palestinian writer and lawyer Selma Dabbagh and Pakistani architect and activist Arif Hasan. Nighat Choudhry, a gifted poet, will then perform Faiz’s poetry.
Jordanian academic Joseph Massad, political scientist Dr. Martin Axmann, award-winning journalist Hasnain Kazim, renowned novelist and writer Mohsin Hamid, French journalist and novelist Kenize Mourad, fiction writer Claire Chambers, poets Michael Cirelli and Ronya Othman, poets Zehra Nigah and Kishwar Naheed, writer of short stories Noorul Huda Shah, and novelist Bina Shah are just a few of the notable speakers that KLF will be welcoming over the weekend. Sessions on political changes, sustainability, Urdu poetry, and a magnificent Mushaira led by the renowned Iftikhar Arif will also be held.
KLF programs will provide guests a rich tapestry of intellectual engagement through incisive talks on books, ethical governance, urban dynamics, comedy, storytelling, human rights, and sustainability. On launch day, OUP will publish Maleeha Lodhi’s eagerly awaited book, Pakistan: Search for Stability. In a session suitably named “Noor Jahan Suroor Jahan,” Nazia Ejaz Khan, Salima Hashmi, and Ahmed Ali Butt pay particular tribute to the famous Madam Noor Jehan. “Sustainability and the Evolving New World Order,” a different seminar, will discuss concepts that are equitable, stable, and good for everyone.
Eminent scholars Najeeba Arif and Joseph Massad will deliver keynote addresses to commemorate KLF literary luminaries as the Crystal Edition celebrations come to an end. Qawal Najmuddin Saifuddin & Brothers will next conduct a soul-stirring Sufi Qawwali performance.
In order to celebrate the transformational power of words and foster a better appreciation for literature, the Karachi Literature Festival extends an invitation to all enthusiasts to join them on this intellectual adventure.
I am a dedicated student currently in my seventh semester, pursuing a degree in International Relations. Alongside my academic pursuits, I am actively engaged in the professional field as a content writer at the Rangeinn website.