Muhammad Mujahid Syed Saudi Gazette JEDDAH — “There is no danger of extinction or damage to Urdu language in Pakistan. Urdu is ahead of other languages, and it has been enriched by the words of Siraiki, Punjabi and other Pakistani languages,” said Naseem-e-Sehar, a veteran poet and longtime resident of Saudi Arabia. He made this statement in a group discussion and reception by Majlis-e-Ilmo, Adab, Jeddah, at the residence of Syed Faizan Ahmad. “It's a good sign. Urdu poetry and prose are flourishing in Pakistan. Although the literacy rate in Pakistan is not very high yet most Pakistani children go to Urdu medium schools. Urdu is our national language and most of the official work is done in Urdu. “The publishers of Urdu books have prospered during the last five decades and this shows that Pakistan is a good market for Urdu books. The Urdu translations of famous English, Arabic and other international languages are available in Pakistan. Urdu Ghazal is very famous in the country and Urdu poets have been welcomed internationally that also shows the popularity of Urdu language and poetry in Pakistan,” he aded. Naseem-e-Sehar (Muhammad Naseem Malik, a retired official of the IDB) was on an official visit to IDB (Islamic Development Bank) as a member of the technical team that covers the proceedings of the annual Meeting of the Board of Governors. The board meets every year in a member country which offers to host the meeting while every 3 years this meeting is held at the headquarters of the IDB. “I'm very pleased to be here in Jeddah after 3 years,as it gave me an opportunity not only to perform Umrah but also to meet all his friends, most of whom are of course poets and writers and intellectuals,” he said. Syed shed some light on the creative role of Naseem-e-Sehar during his long stay in the Kingdom for the promotion of Urdu language and literature. He said that Naseem's poetic career has spanned almost five decades and during this period he has published many poetic collections that were well-received in Jeddah's poetic circles. “Urdu language in Pakistan is facing a challenge from the electronic media but it is satisfactory that at the different levels Urdu was able to prove its hidden strength,” said Zamurrad Saifee. He was all praise for Naseem-e-Sehar and acknowleged Naseem's contribution in the field of Urdu prose and poetry. Summing up the group discussion, Muhammad Ashfaq Badayuni who chaired the event, said: “I agree with Naseem-e-Sehar that Urdu language is flourishing in Pakistan. Though it is a fact Urdu too is facing challenges like any other language but is able to meet every challenge successfully.” He recollected the past Mushairahs that were organized by Naseem-e-Sehar during his long stay in the Kingdom. He too acknowledged that Naseem was able to launch a literary movement among Jeddah's Urdu-speaking people. He lauded Majlis-e-Ilmo Adab, Jeddah, for its efforts to promote Urdu language and literature. The first group-discussion session was followed by a Mushairah in which the poets Saifee, Syed and Naseem-e-Sehar recited their poems. In the beginning of the literary evening, Syed Muhammad recited a few verses from the Holy Qur'an and a Naat was recited by Naseem-e-Sehar from his latest Naat collection “Naat Nageene” that was recently released in the Kingdom. Ahmad proposed the vote of thanks.
