NEW YORK- Lahore Literary Festival (LLF) reaches New York on 12 May for thethird time. LLF in New York, part of a three-year partnership with AsiaSociety, will feature panel discussions with Pakistani writers, artists andopinion leaders, including Ahmed Rashid, Arfa Sayeda Zehra, Bapsi Sidhwa,Dr. Azra Raza, Salima Hashmi, Salman Toor, Sarmad Khoosat, Syed Babar Ali,Tahira Naqvi; other speakers include Amin Jaffer, Francis Pritchett, HughEakin, Roger Cohen. It will also feature performances by Zeb and Haniya andqawwali by the Saami Brothers.
This is not the first time that a Pakistani literary festival is takingplace abroad. The New York edition is generating keen interest in Pakistanand abroad.
“Don’t miss the amazing Lahore Literary Festival at Asia Society,”Marc-André Franche, country director for the UNDP in Pakistan, posted onFacebook. Experience “ambassadors of culture, analysis and literature, allthe good and hope for a better Pakistan!”
Since 2012, LLF has been working for the better representation and revivalof Pakistan’s literature and art.
Patrons and friends of LLF in New York include Maleeha Lodhi, Aneela Shah,Nusrat Jamil, Hameed Haroon, Marina and Shaukat Fareed, Nighat and SyedYawar Ali, Sadia and Osman Waheed, Razak Dawood, Maniza Naqvi, Nasreen andKhurshid Kasuri, Spenta Kandawalla, and Farrokh Captain. These people willbe hopefully attending the event also.