Ali Dayan Hasan

In the 1920s the living room of a family in Hyderabad Deccan hosted weekly gatherings of poets. Iqbal. Faiz. Firaq. Majaz. Makhdoom. A little girl sat in that room and listened. Her name was Zehra Nigah. Born May 14, 1935 in Hyderabad, India into a family that breathed literature. Her father a civil servant who wrote poetry. Her maternal grandfather who offered five rupees to any child who memorised Iqbal's Jawab-e-Shikwa correctly. Her sister Fatima Surayya Bajia who became one of Pakistan's greatest playwrights. Her brother Anwar Maqsood who became one of its greatest satirists. Her other sister Zubaida Tariq who became Pakistan's most beloved cooking expert. One of the most literary family Pakistan ever produced. And the most overlooked. In 1947 they left Hyderabad. Left the living room where Faiz had sat. Left the city that had shaped every word she would ever write. Came to Karachi with nothing but their education and each other. She was twelve years old. She had been memorising poetry since she was ten. At 14 she was composing her own. At 15 she stood on a mushaira stage and recited. This was almost unheard of. Mushairas in the 1950s were male spaces. Women were not expected to have the skill. Not expected to have the nerve. Not expected to take the microphone and hold an audience. She held them. For 70 years. She wrote about love and separation and the compromises of being a woman in a world that was not built for women's voices. She wrote with grace not anger. With precision not performance. Her poetry was called progressive feminine rather than feminist. A distinction she embodied. Her popularity at mushairas at times overshadowed even the eminent male poets sharing the stage with her. Shaam Ka Pehla Tara. Waraq. Firaq. Gul-e-Chandni. Four collections of poetry. Television scripts including the celebrated serial inspired by Umrao Jaan Ada. Pride of Performance Award 2006. Allama Iqbal Award. Kamal-e-Fun 2023 lifetime achievement from the Pakistan Academy of Letters. She is 90 years old. Still immaculately dressed in cotton sarees. Still performing at mushairas. Still writing. The little girl who listened to Faiz in her living room in Hyderabad. Became the woman who outlasted every barrier that tried to keep her off that stage. Zehra Nigah. Zehra Apa. Pakistan Zindabad. 🇵🇰

Christopher Nolan wearing a custom Indian Ajrakh silk tie, one of India's oldest surviving block-printing traditions, for The Odyssey premiere in NYC. Designed by @AahaanTandon. — ⭑.ᐟ

Former Qatari prime minister Al Thani has called for the formation of a strategic defence alliance bringing together Egypt, Saudi Arabia, Turkey and Pakistan, describing it as an “urgent need” in light of shifting regional and international dynamics. middleeastmonitor.com/202601…

Khaled Ahmad passes away. Weep Pakistan. Thy finest son is no more.

Excellent choice for #LUMS VC. Dr. Ali Cheema is a man of great integrity, insight, empathy, vision & commitment & someone who deeply cares about quality, standards, merit & achievement. I have been a lifelong witness to it. Hope the old management gives him space to do his job

Then we have the great Hassanally founder of Sindh Madrassah (MA Jinnah's school). During the war between Turkiye & Russia he collected a lot of funds for Turkiye. In recognition he was given the titles of Bey Majidi & Effendi in 1889 and was made Hon Ottoman Consul in Karachi.