Bazm-e-Sciency Adab honours Tasleem Elahi Zulfi

By Abdul Qadir Qureshi
(Pakistan News & Features Services)

Acclaimed poet Tasleem Elahi Zulfi was accorded a standing ovation by the members and guests of the Bazm-e-Sciency Adab who organized a reception in his honour at the Saleem-uz-Zaman Siddiqui Science Centre, Karachi, on March 29.

The taqreeb-e-pazeerai turned out to be a lively affair as some of the leading intellectuals enlightened the packed audience with their creative thoughts and verses. They paid glowing tribute to Tasleem Elahi Zulfi, having relocated in Canada. 

The Bazm-e-Sciency Adab, which prides itself as the only literary society in Pakistan for the people interested in science as well as Urdu literature, kept up its tradition by hosting yet another memorable evening. 

The President of the Bazm-e-Sciency Adab, Ali Zafar Khan Afridi, who is also an Honorary Advisor at the Sir Syed University of Engineering & Technology (SSUET), welcomed the visiting poet from Canada and praised his contributions in the promotion of Urdu literature in North America.

Ali Zafar Afridi, who himself had recently undertaken a tour of Canada where he presided overe quite a few literary meetings, was confident that the untiring efforts of the individuals like Tasleem Elahi Zulfi will be immensely helpful in motivating young generation to turn to Urdu literature. 

The Ontario-based Tasleem Elahi Zulfi, who is also a newscaster and show host, besides being a prolific poet, delivered an impressive speech in which he recalled in what he described as the days when he used to live at PIB Colony in Karachi in the 1960s. 

Now also the President of the Urdu TV Canada, a 24/7 Urdu channel, he credited the veteran Masood Ahmed Barkati, who was also present on the occasion, for teaching the basics of writing when he had approached him for contributing in Monthly Naunehal, the most famous of all children’s magazine in Pakistan, being published by the House of Hamdard for the past six decades. 

Others who shared their views on the occasion included Aziz Ahmed Siddiqui, Dean, Ziauddin University Hospital, Javed Manzar, Financial Advisor, Anjuman Taraqqi Urdu, and poets Amna Alam and Shagufta Shafiq while Sirajuddin was master of the ceremony.