Urdu was celebrated in its several form depicting ancient Indian ethos of pluralism and national integration during Jashn-e-Urdu (Urdu Festival) at Jubail organized by Human Abilities Development and Advancement Foundation (HADAF) in cooperation with Hyderabad Deccan Connections, Jubail. Continuing with its determination and mission to promote art and literature and especially the Urdu language, HADAF used different genre and medium of entertainment for this purpose during the event. The objective of conducting such a fest is to bring the lovers of Urdu language and Urdu speaking community in the Eastern Province on one platform, said Safi H. Jannaty, the vice president of the organization. "It also gives an opportunity to let the new generation know the richness of Urdu literature and the great poets, philosophers and writers of Urdu," he added. HADAF presented its efforts in finding and highlighting the Urdu oratory and writing skills among students of Indian and Pakistan International Schools in the Eastern Province and showcased the speeches and poetry recital by the selected students during the event. The hall of SAFCO Beach camp reverberated with thundering applause as student after student rendered speeches and recited poetry. Many parents of young speakers were called on stage to recognize their efforts. HADAF awarded certificates to the winners of different contests, which the schools had conducted at the behest of HADAF as well as to those students who had topped in Urdu subjects in the secondary sections in those schools in the last year's exam. Saudi Gazette was the media partner of Jashn-e-Urdu. The stellar of the evening was a mime that was presented by Youth Wing leader of HADAF, Eshan Ahmed, who was supported by Dawood Abbas, Abdullah, Mohammed Mudassir and Aqeeub Mohammed. The audience appreciated inclusion of this genre in the theater group of HADAF. A special session of fun and frolic caught the imagination of the audience who in the process turned into participants. A well-known columnist, K.N. Wasif presented humorous speech and a few members of the audience shared their jokes. Eshan Ahmed stole the show through a monologue titled ‘Urdu in the ICU'. His theatrics and drama skills was very well appreciated by the audience. The continuity, spontaneity and punch punctuated with pun mesmerized the audience. He presented different characters in the monologue with ease and eventually received a standing ovation. The satire scripted by the founder of HADAF, Nayeem Javed reflected the grim situation faced by Urdu and how the opportunists are using it for their own ends. The evening concluded with a Mushaira, which was chaired by renowned Urdu poet, author and scholar, Dr. Aslam Bader. Another renowned poet, Farooq Shakil also attended the event as a special guest and captivated the audience with his heart touching poetry. Other poets who recited their poetry included Mohammed Fayaz, Rafq Akolvi, Yusuf Ali, Shawkat Jamal, Zaki Qazi, Iqbal Aslam, Masood Jamal, Ghazala Kamrani, Suhail Saquib and Nayeem Javed, The connoisseurs of Urdu literature kept repeating ‘wah wah' and ‘mukarrar Irshad' (once again) beseeching the poets to repeat some of their couplets. The Mushaira was conducted by well-known poet, Baqar Naqvi. At the start of the event, the president of HADAF, Jaweed Masoud, gave a short presentation on objectives and activities of HADAF. HADAF awarded plaques of appreciation to several social and literary activists as well as leaders of business community and they included, Rehan Alam, Syed Masoud, K.N. Wasif, Abdulqadeer Khan, Naseer Ansari, and Anzar Alam. HADAF honored the well-known community leader, Meraj-ul-Arefeen Ansari with the ‘Life Time Achievement' award for his distinguished services to the community. HADAF also gave ‘Best Urdu Teacher' awards to Ms. Sabira Shabnam Siddiqui, Shaikh Zeenatunissa, Farhat Abbas. The event was attended by leaders of different community groups including Anees Bakhsh, Syed Waheed Lateef, Asif Siddiqui, Aziz Siddiqui, Atiqur Rahman and Abdul Rasheed, Naseeruddin, who all had provided logistic support and guidance to HADAF and were instrumental in making the event successful. The vice principal of Pakistan International School, Jubail, Parvaiz Akhter who had provided immense support in organizing the contests in his school, was also present. The event was anchored by the Vice President of HADAF, Safi Hyder Jannaty.
