Karachi Literature Festival (KLF), the first and by far the foremost literature festival in the country, needs no introduction. It has become an integral part of the social and intellectual calendar of this city and, indeed, of the country.
16th KLF Speakers
16th KLF Programme
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Day 1
Feb 7, 2025
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Day 2
Feb 8, 2025
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Day 3
Feb 9, 2025
- Main Garden
- Jasmine Hall
- Aquarius Hall
- Room 007
Main Garden
Arrival of Guests
4.00 p.m. -
4.45 p.m.
Main Garden
Welcome Speech by the Festival Organizer: Arshad Saeed Husain
Managing Director, Oxford University Press Pakistan
5.00 p.m. -
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Main Garden
SPEECHES by the GUESTS OF HONOUR: HE Nicolas Galey
Ambassador of France to Islamic Republic of Pakistan
5.15 p.m. -
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Main Garden
Scott Urbom
US Consul General, Karachi
5.20 p.m. -
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Main Garden
Martin Dawson
Deputy Head of Mission, British Deputy High Commission, Karachi
5.25 p.m. -
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Main Garden
REMARKS BY SPONSOR: Ali Habib
Chief Marketing & Communications Officer, HBL
5.30 p.m. -
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Main Garden
KEYNOTE SPEECH by F.S. Aijazuddin OBE
Art-historian and author
5.35 p.m. -
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Main Garden
KEYNOTE SPEECH by Asghar Nadeem Syed
Playwright, writer and poet
5.50 p.m. -
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Main Garden
BOOK AWARDS
KLF-Getz Pharma English Fiction Prize; KLF-Getz Pharma Urdu Prose and Poetry Prize; KLF-The Little Book Company Readers’ Choice Awards for Best Books in: Sindhi, Balochi, Punjabi, and Pashto languages
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PERFORMANCE: Kathak aur Kathakar presented by Mohsin Babar Productions
Main Garden
PANEL DISCUSSIONS
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Main Garden
Bapsi Sidhwa: A Literary Legacy inspiring Future Voices
Kamila Shamsie, Uzma Aslam Khan, Saba Pirzadeh
7.00 p.m. -
8.00 p.m.
Moderator : Framji Minwalla
Jasmine Hall
Dialogue: Pakistan’s Economy & Business Climate - Is Pakistan Ready for a Turnaround?
Arif Habib, Miftah Ismail, Khurram Schehzad, Amjad Waheed, Khurram Hussain
7.00 p.m. -
8.00 p.m.
Moderator : Azfar Ahsan
Aquarius Hall
Book Launch:لو ہم نے دامن جھاڑ دیا by Ashfaq Hussain
Iftikhar Arif, Najeeba Arif, Asghar Nadeem Syed, Syed Kashif Raza, Ashfaq Hussain
7.00 p.m. -
8.00 p.m.
Moderator : Ambareen Haseeb Amber
Room 007
Manzar: Art & Architecture from Pakistan-1940s to Today
H.M. Naqvi, Marvi Mazhar, Kiran Ahmad
7.00 p.m. -
8.00 p.m.
Moderator : Zarmeene Shah
Main Garden
Film Screening: In Flames
8.15 p.m. -
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- Main Garden
- Jasmine Hall
- Aquarius Hall
- Room 007
- Society Suite
- Tulip Hall Youth Pavilion
Jasmine Hall
Media and Youth Mental Health: Role of Organizational Leadership
Ayesha Mian, Azhar Abbas, Noor Ahmed, Sajjad Syed
11.00 a.m. -
12.00 noon
Moderator : Humair Yusuf
Aquarius Hall
Hamari Saqafat Kay Naye Maymar ہماری شفق کے نئے معمار
Ali Jan Balouch, Aisha Faisal, Shoaib Arshad, Rani Abdul Qayyum
11.00 a.m. -
12.00 noon
Moderator : Ghazal Ansari
Tulip Hall Youth Pavilion
Unlock Your Creativity
Theatre Games with Atif Badar
11.00 a.m. -
12.00 noon
Main Garden
Creating Resilience through Climate Change Education
Sherry Rehman and Ambreena Ahmed
12.00 p.m. -
1.00 p.m.
Jasmine Hall
کاغذ کی مہک ر وٹھنے کو ہے: کتاب سے ای بک تک کا سفر
Mubeen Mirza, Hoori Noorani, Iqbal Khursheed, Maniza Naqvi
12.15 p.m. -
1.15 p.m.
Moderator : Inaam Nadeem
Aquarius Hall
Book Launch: Home: # its complicated by Saba Karim Khan
Junaid Zuberi, Omar Shahid Hamid, Khaled Anam, Farrukh Karim, Amber Zaffar Khan
12.15 p.m. -
1.15 p.m.
Moderator : Saba Karim Khan
Room 007
Book Launch: Legal System of Pakistan by Hamid Khan
Hamid Khan and Faisal Siddiqui
12.15 p.m. -
1.15 p.m.
Moderator : Salahuddin Ahmed
Society Suite
Book Launch: Caring for the Carer by Zamena Hassan
Zamena Hassan and Jaseem Siddiqui
12.15 p.m. -
1.15 p.m.
Moderator : Humair Yusuf
Tulip Hall Youth Pavilion
Let's play and learn with Syed Nusrat Ali
12.15 p.m. -
1.15 p.m.
Main Garden
A Journey of Friendship and Political Activism
Sherry Rehman and Victoria Schofield in conversation
1.00 p.m. -
2.00 p.m.
Jasmine Hall
Book Discussion: Three Tales from Gulistan-i-Saadi, ed by Zarminae Ansari
Bari Mian, Zarminae Ansari
1.30 p.m. -
2.00 p.m.
Moderator : Junaid Zuberi
Aquarius Hall
Book Launch: Dream DeutschLand?
Abeer Kasiri and Ayesha Tariq
1.30 p.m. -
2.00 p.m.
Moderator : Rumana Husain
Room 007
Book Launch: Coming of Age by Salman Tariq Kureshi
Salman Tariq Kureshi, Amberina Kazi, Sheema Kermani, Zarmina Raza
1.30 p.m. -
2.00 p.m.
Moderator : Hoori Noorani
Society Suite
Book Launch: تمناوں کے دیار سے شمالی امریکہ کی خواتین شعرا کی نظمیں انتخاب و ترجمہ زینت حسام
Zeenat Hisam and Shahida Hassan
1.30 p.m. -
2.00 p.m.
Moderator : Ghazi Salahuddin
Tulip Hall Youth Pavilion
Music and Dance with Atif Badar
1.30 p.m. -
2.00 p.m.
Main Garden
A Literary Bond
Muneeza Shamsie and Kamila Shamsie in conversation about their writing and the influence of family stories
2.15 p.m. -
3.15 p.m.
Jasmine Hall
Book Launch: Pakistan: Origins, Identity, and Future by Pervez Hoodbhoy
Pervez Hoodbhoy, Nadeem Farooq Paracha
2.15 p.m. -
3.15 p.m.
Moderator : Shehzad Ghias Shaikh
Aquarius Hall
Are we listening to our Youth?: Redesigning Learning for Tomorrow
Nadeem Ghani, Faisal Mushtaq, Myra Murad Khan, Khadija Bakhtiar
2.15 p.m. -
3.15 p.m.
Moderator : Faisal Bari
Room 007
Voices by the Sea: English Verse
Minaa Shahzad, Salman Tarek Kureshi, Fatima Ijaz, Peerzada Salman, Moeen Faruqi, Moosa Gardezi
2.15 p.m. -
3.15 p.m.
Moderator : Zarmina Raza
Society Suite
Finding a Voice in World English Literature
Taha Kehar and Shazaf Fatima Haider
2.15 p.m. -
3.15 p.m.
Moderator : Nusrat Khwaja
Tulip Hall Youth Pavilion
Heroes in Frames: Pakistani Icons Get a Graphic Makeover
A session on the Graphic Novel series with Zubaida Mustafa Sheema Kermani and Sibtain Naqvi
2.15 p.m. -
3.15 p.m.
Moderator : Rumana Husain
Main Garden
Book Launch: معین اختر:ون مین شو
Anwar Maqsood, Zeba Shahnaz, Ghazal Ansari
3.30 p.m. -
4.30 p.m.
Moderator : Sharjeel Akhtar
Jasmine Hall
We the People: Our Constitution and the Rule of Law
Raza Rabbani, Abid Zuberi, Sara Malkani, Salahuddin Ahmed, Zameer Ghumro
3.30 p.m. -
4.30 p.m.
Moderator : Ayesha Tammy Haq
Aquarius Hall
Across the Decade: Discovering New Dimensions, New Histories
Kamila Shamsie, Maniza Naqvi, Omar Shahid Hamid
3.30 p.m. -
4.30 p.m.
Moderator : Saba Karim Khan
Room 007
From Learning to Leading: Climate Education and Advocacy
Afia Salam, Danish Rashdi, Syeda Rinam Fatima, Athar Usama, Tabinda Jabeen
3.30 p.m. -
4.30 p.m.
Moderator : Maha Husain
Society Suite
Book Launch: آئینہ: دیکھا نہ جائے از کشور ناہید
Kishwar Naheed, Shama Afroz, Aijaz Mangi, Saabhiyan Sangi
3.30 p.m. -
4.30 p.m.
Moderator : Aqeel Abbas Jaffri
Tulip Hall Youth Pavilion
کہانیوں کا میلہ عامرہ عالم اور عاطف بدر کے ساتھ
3.30 p.m. -
4.30 p.m.
Main Garden
Book Launch: Broken Threads: My Family From Empire To Independence by Mishal Husain
Mishal Husain in conversation with Muneeza Shamsie
4.45 p.m. -
5.45 p.m.
Jasmine Hall
ایک صدی کا قصہ : ناصر کاظمی ،جمیل الدین عالی، انتظار حسین
Iftikhar Arif, Najeeba Arif, Mubeen Mirza
4.45 p.m. -
5.45 p.m.
Moderator : Irfan Javed
Aquarius Hall
From Emergency to Empowerent: Unlocking the Power of Public-Private Partnerships
Sardar Shah, Arshad Saeed Husain, Amin A. Hashwani, Shehzad Roy, Khadija Bakhtiar, Shazia Kamal
4.45 p.m. -
5.45 p.m.
Moderator : Faisal Bari
Room 007
Book Launch : کراچی پریس کلب
The Island of Truth by Ashraf Shad; Fazil Jamili, Raza Rabbani, Ashraf Shad, Shahnaz Ahad
4.45 p.m. -
5.45 p.m.
Moderator : Mujahid Barelvi
Society Suite
Book Launch: Born to Struggle by Arjumand Wajid
Arjumand Wajid, Zobaida Jalal, Sara Wajid
4.45 p.m. -
5.45 p.m.
Moderator : Victoria Schofield
Tulip Hall Youth Pavilion
نظم و نثرکے رنگ، پتلیوں کے سنگ!
With Fozia Ahsan Farooqui
4.45 p.m. -
5.45 p.m.
Main Garden
Karachi Comedians: Stage or Insta?
Ammar Zaidi, Ali Abdullah, Akbar Chaudry, Natalia Gul
6.00 p.m. -
7.00 p.m.
Jasmine Hall
Cinema Verité: Exploring Non-Fiction Films from Pakistan and Beyond
Zakir Thaver, Haya Fatima Iqbal, Samia Khan, Mai Masri
6.00 p.m. -
7.00 p.m.
Moderator : Ziad Zafar
Aquarius Hall
Book Launch: میرے جن نکل گئے: غیر سنجیدہ شاعری از حامِد عتیق سرور
Faisal Subzwari and Hamid Ateeq Sarwar
6.00 p.m. -
7.00 p.m.
Moderator : Sharif Awan
Aquarius Hall
Book Launch: آسماں در آسماں از شاہد صدیقی
Shahid Siddiqui in conversation with Nasira Zuberi
6.00 p.m. -
7.00 p.m.
Room 007
Interrogation of Amin Gulgee: No Man’s Land
Amin Guljee in conversation with Sara Pagganwalla and Adam Fahy-Majeed
6.00 p.m. -
7.00 p.m.
Tulip Hall Youth Pavilion
Book Launch: Marni Khan and the Ancient Silk Route
The Epic Story of a Pakistani Energy Warrior by Saniya Chugtai followed by Storytelling
6.00 p.m. -
7.00 p.m.
Moderator : Khurram Koraishy
Main Garden
مشاعرہ
Sadarat: Iftikhar Arif - Nizamat: Faisal Subzwari
7.15 p.m. -
8.15 p.m.
Sabir Zafar, Ashfaq Hussain, Shahida Hasan, Najma Usman, Mehboob Zafar, Nasira Zuberi, Inaam Nadeem, Waheed Noor, Shabbir Nazish, Peerzada Salman, Salman Sarwat, Saeed Shariq - Sponsored by Dawlance
Jasmine Hall
سینما، سماج اور ادب
Sarmad Khoosat in conversation with Asghar Nadeem Syed
7.15 p.m. -
8.15 p.m.
Aquarius Hall
"Dr Faustus" by Thomas Mann A Dramatical Performance by Grips Theatre
7.15 p.m. -
8.15 p.m.
Room 007
A Tribute to the Masters: Sitar aur Gayeki by Suhel Rais Khan
Introduction by: Malahat Awan
7.15 p.m. -
8.15 p.m.
Sponsored by Tehzeeb Foundation
Tulip Hall Youth Pavilion
Poetry Readings with Atif Badar
7.15 p.m. -
8.15 p.m.
Main Garden
Feature Film Screening: Nayab
8.45 p.m. -
11.30 p.m.
- Main Garden
- Jasmine Hall
- Aquarius Hall
- Room 007
- Society Suite
- Tulip Hall Youth Pavilion
Main Garden
Pakistan-Bangladesh Relations: A Reset
Ikram Majeed Sehgal and Mushahid Hussain Syed
11.00 a.m. -
12.00 noon
Moderator : Salma Malik
Jasmine Hall
Pakistan's Population: Time Bomb or Dividend?
Lubna Naz, Azra Fazal Pechuho, Rehana Ahmed, Khalid Masud
11.00 a.m. -
12.00 noon
Moderator : Naeem Sadiq
Aquarius Hall
Integrating Impact & Sustainability into Business, Investment, and Life
11.00 a.m. -
12.00 noon
Martin Dawson, Maya Inayat Ismail, Qasim Ali Shah
Moderator : Ali Habib
Sponsored by HBL
Room 007
Book Launch: Poems: On Being Human by Ghazala Alam
Ghazala Alam in conversation with Amra Alam
11.00 a.m. -
12.00 noon
Moderator : Nusrat Ali
Tulip Hall Youth Pavilion
Theatre Fun and Games with Atif Badar
11.00 a.m. -
12.00 noon
Main Garden
اردو کی تازہ بستیاں
Iftikhar Arif, Harris Khalique, Ashfaq Hussain
12.15 p.m. -
1.15 p.m.
Moderator : Zarminae Ansari
Jasmine Hall
Have Electronic & Social Media eroded the quality of Political Debate?
Azhar Abbas, Faisal Subzwari, Amber Rahim Shamsi, Shehzad Ghias Shaikh
12.15 p.m. -
1.15 p.m.
Moderator : Nadeem Farooq Paracha
Aquarius Hall
Crime Fiction and the Pursuit of Justice
Omar Shahid Hamid in conversation with Tooba Masood-Khan
12.15 p.m. -
1.15 p.m.
Room 007
Book Discussion: In the New Century: An Anthology of Pakistani Literature in English Compiled & Edited by Muneeza Shamsie
Muneeza Shamsie in conversation with Syra Vahidy and Ghazi Salahuddin
12.15 p.m. -
1.15 p.m.
Tulip Hall Youth Pavilion
Mind Twisters: The Thinking Zone with Amna Ghulam Hussain
12.15 p.m. -
1.15 p.m.
Main Garden
Book Launch: Of Reason, Romance and Ruin: A Conceptual History of the 'Pakistan Ideology' by Nadeem Farooq Paracha
Nadeem Farooq Paracha in conversation with Khurram Qureshi
1.30 p.m. -
2.00 p.m.
Jasmine Hall
Book Launch: شاکاہاری مترجم اسماء حسین Urdu Translation of 2024 Nobel Prize for Literature Winner Han Kang's Novel The Vegetarian
Najeeba Arif and Tanveer Anjum
1.30 p.m. -
2.00 p.m.
Moderator : Syed Kashif Raza
Aquarius Hall
Book Launch: Soliloquies? Existing on Earth: In Verse by
by Tariq Alexander Qaiser; Tariq Alexander Qaiser in conversation with Ayesha Tammy Haq
1.30 p.m. -
2.00 p.m.
Room 007
Book Launch: A Woman on a Suitcase by Shazaf Fatima Haider
Shazaf Fatima Haider in conversation with Taha Kehar
1.30 p.m. -
2.00 p.m.
Society Suite
Book Launch: Akbar in Wonderland by Umber Khairi
Umber Khairi in conversation with Maheen Usmani
1.30 p.m. -
2.00 p.m.
Tulip Hall Youth Pavilion
Music and Dance with Atif Badar
1.30 p.m. -
2.00 p.m.
Main Garden
Urban Dialogues: Karachi Katchehri
Murtaza Wahab, Mansoor Raza, Bilal Hassan
2.15 p.m. -
3.15 p.m.
Moderator : Mahim Maher
Jasmine Hall
Kuch Ghazlain Kuch Nazmein
Moazzam Ali Khan Ki Zubani
2.15 p.m. -
3.15 p.m.
Moderator : Maya Khan
Aquarius Hall
Call to Action: Transforming Education in Pakistan
Farid Panjwani, Shahid Siddiqui, Pervez Hoodbhoy, Faisal Mushtaq, Myra Murad Khan, Anjum Halai
2.15 p.m. -
3.15 p.m.
Moderator : Faisal Bari
Room 007
کراچی کہانیاں اور نظمیں
Raja Shehzad, Sajjad Ahmed, Afzal Ahmad Syed
2.15 p.m. -
3.15 p.m.
Moderator : Peerzada Salman
Society Suite
Book Discussion: No Funeral for Nazia by Taha Kehar
Taha Kehar in conversation with Christie Marie Lauder
2.15 p.m. -
3.15 p.m.
Society Suite
Book Discussion: No Funeral for Nazia by Taha Kehar
Taha Kehar in conversation with Christie Marie Lauder
2.15 p.m. -
3.15 p.m.
Society Suite
Book Launch: Coining A Wishing Tower by Ayesha Raees
Ayesha Raees in conversation with Christie Marie Lauder
2.15 p.m. -
3.15 p.m.
Tulip Hall Youth Pavilion
Story time by Aunty Tashi
2.15 p.m. -
3.15 p.m.
Main Garden
Weaving Worlds with Words
Kamila Shamsie in conversation with Hasan Zaidi
3.30 p.m. -
4.30 p.m.
Jasmine Hall
Ode to our Fathers: Hameed Akhtar, Talat Hussain
Saba Hamid and Tazeen Hussain
3.30 p.m. -
4.30 p.m.
Moderator : Harris Khalique
Aquarius Hall
Book Launch: کلیات احمد فراز: یہ میری غزلیں یہ میری نظمیں
Ashraf Shad, Ashfaq Hussain, Fazil Jamili, Ambareen Haseeb Amber
3.30 p.m. -
4.30 p.m.
Moderator : Mehboob Zafar
Room 007
Book Launch: Forgotten Images – Postcards of Pre-Pakistan 1890-1947
F.S. Aijazuddin in conversation with Victoria Schofield
3.30 p.m. -
4.30 p.m.
Society Suite
New Directions in Teaching and Teacher Education
Anjum Halai, Mohammad Ali Shaikh, Salma Alam, Khadija Bakhtiar
3.30 p.m. -
4.30 p.m.
Moderator : Neda Mulji
Tulip Hall Youth Pavilion
گیتوں کی محفل
Sohail Rana's famous Songs by Atif Badar
3.30 p.m. -
4.30 p.m.
Main Garden
چھوٹی سکرین کی بڑی فتوحات
Saba Hamid, Nadeem Baig, Noorul Huda Shah Sarmad Khoosat
4.45 p.m. -
5.45 p.m.
Moderator : Shaista Lodhi
Jasmine Hall
The Role of AI in Stepchanging Educational Outcomes in Pakistan
Salma Alam, Hammad Malik, Zeeshan Hassan
4.45 p.m. -
5.45 p.m.
Moderator : Khurram Jamali
Aquarius Hall
سچّل ، سامی ، لطیف
Jami Chandio and Madad Ali Sindhi
4.45 p.m. -
5.45 p.m.
Moderator : Sher Muhammad Mehrani
Room 007
Book Launch: A Man with a Pen by Waqas Khan
Waqas Khan in conversation with Naazish Ata Ullah
4.45 p.m. -
5.45 p.m.
Sponsored by HBL
Society Suite
Book Launch: بے موسمی خواہشیں از ناصرہ زبیری
Nasira Zuberi and Inaam Nadeem
4.45 p.m. -
5.45 p.m.
Moderator : Syed Kashif Raza
Tulip Hall Youth Pavilion
Play: ان فٹ بال ہے دنیا میرے آگے
Grips Theater with Khaled Anam and team
4.45 p.m. -
5.45 p.m.
Main Garden
Book Launch: Journey Through Chaos by Mazhar Abbas
Saeed Ghani, Mazhar Abbas, Mushahid Hussain Syed, Wusatullah Khan, Faisal Subzwari
6.00 p.m. -
7.00 p.m.
Moderator : Ahmed Shah
Jasmine Hall
Emergence of Urdu Rap in Pakistan
Babar Mangi, Arshad Mahmud, Ash Rohan
6.00 p.m. -
7.00 p.m.
Moderator : Anoushey Ashraf
Aquarius Hall
شاعری کے رنگ جوانوں کے سنگ
Sadarat: Ambareen Hasib Ambar - Nizamat: Abdul Rehman Momin
6.00 p.m. -
7.00 p.m.
Ali Zaryoun, Umair Najmi, Dilawar Ali Aazar, Naeem Sameer, Sadiq Marri, Zahida Raeesi, Amar Pirzado, Sabeela Inam Siddique, Imtiaz Danish
Room 007
From Chapters to Change: Literature and Environmental Justice
Uzma Aslam Khan, Tariq Alexander Qaisar, Saba Pirzadeh
6.00 p.m. -
7.00 p.m.
Moderator : Framji Minwalla
Tulip Hall Youth Pavilion
Young authors and poets with Scherazade Jamali
6.00 p.m. -
7.00 p.m.
Main Garden
Closing Ceremony
Keynote Speech by: Arfa Sayeda Zehra; Educationist and Urdu language expert - Mishal Husain; Journalist, broadcaster and author
7.15 p.m. -
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Vote of Thanks by: Khalid Mahmood, Managing Director & CEO, Getz Pharma Pvt. Ltd. - Vote of Thanks by: Maya Inayat Ismail; Chief of Staff to the Chairman and Chairperson, Sustainability Forum-HBL - Vote of Thanks by: THE FESTIVAL ORGANISER, Arshad Saeed Husain, Managing Director, Oxford University Press Pakistan
Main Garden
Qawwali
by Ustad Farid Ayaz & Ustad Abu Muhammad
8.15 p.m. -
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SPONSORED BY: Arts Council of Pakistan Karachi
Official Sponsors
PLATINUM
GOLD
