As heat waves pulverise the region, I think nostalgically back to the cooler months, marked by literary festivals across Pakistan. 

Having long experienced terrorism, economic instability and political upheaval, this country has also made efforts to stay afloat by holding on to literature, critical thinking and social gatherings over tea in urban centres. 

This year, some happiness and colour were sprinkled into Lahore’s literary festivals with the revival, after almost 20 years, of Basant Panchami, the centuries-old kite-flying festival celebrating spring. 

Inspired by the Jaipur Lit Fest, Pakistan’s first literary festival took place in the country’s largest city Karachi in 2010. Subsequently replicated in Lahore and Islamabad, such festivals now take place around the country, from the agricultural and industrial hub of Faisalabad, formerly Lyallpur, to the port city of Gwadar on the Balochistan coast.     

There are even festivals for children in cities around the country. 

The trend began in 2011 with the Children Literary Festival, co-founded by Baela Raza Jamil who heads the educational institute Idara-e-Taleem-o-Aagahi (Institute for Learning and Awareness) and well known publisher Ameena Saiyid who started the Karachi Literature Festival and now runs the Adab (Culture) Festival. The children’s lit fest, now called the Pakistan Learning Festival, aims to provide a comprehensive experience beyond textbooks and tests, promoting the culture of reading, creativity, imagination, and multi-sensory stimulation.  

Such events start cropping up around the country as the weather turns cooler, starting in late November and going into the end of February. 

Politics and Soft Power

For me, the tradition feels like meeting up with old friends. I may be biased, but I believe that Lahore, an ancient hub of literature, architecture and culture with a multilayered history, has a vibe of its own, with its trendy contemporary architecture, food shops and retail stores, Mughal and colonial structures. 

The major literary events in this city are the Lahore Literary Festival which began in 2013, Faiz Mela, since 2015, Afkar e Taza (New Thoughts) ThinkFest, since 2016, and the Asma Jahangir Conference, since 2018, commemorating a beloved human rights advocate, besides a host of other bethaks or social gatherings. 

Authors, analysts, poets and Nobel Prize winners from around the globe join these events. Visas were easier earlier, as Pakistan attempted to create a soft image, having  experienced the worst form of terrorism. 

Pakistan’s literary festivals can’t be divorced from politics, Miranda Husain, a Lahore-based editor and journalist told Sapan News, noting the soft image Pakistan has been trying to promote, like the recent Islamabad talks between Iran and US amidst the ceasefire. 

“Both the Lahore Literary Festival and the Faiz Festival were launched when the country was awash with billions of dollars of civilian aid and investment as part of the ‘democracy dividend,’” she said. 

“Foreign panelists joining the sessions showed a soft image of Pakistan and proved the security situation was under control. The presence of foreign panelists, overwhelmingly from the West, has consolidated these as soft-face projects while signaling control over the security situation.” 

Today, political tensions between India and Pakistan have drastically restricted cross-border cultural exchanges. 

Last year several Indian participants joined these festivals – before the short war of May 2025. Since then, both countries have obstinately denied visas to each other’s citizens. 

Cross-Border Participation

‘ThinkFest On Campus’ is a unique event initiated in 2024 which brings speakers to campus events around the country. One such event last February featured filmmaker Nandita Das from Mumbai at NCA, the National College of Arts in Lahore, in conversation with Pakistani filmmaker Sarmad Khoosat talking about the iconic writer Saadat Hasan Manto and his views on the Partition. They also shared their love for Manto the Faiz Festival a few days later. 

In January 2025, Indian origin filmmaker Mira Nair recalled her connection with Lahore before a full hall at ThinkFest. A year later, her son Zohran Mamdani was elected as the mayor of New York City. 

“Thank goodness she was here earlier, the event would have been overshadowed by Zohran otherwise,” as ThinkFest founder Dr. Yaqoob Bangash quipped in a chat with Sapan News.

Such cross-border discussions give some hope to ‘peacemongers’, who would like to see easy visa policies between Pakistan and India. This constituency got a boost some years back with the Aman ki Asha campaign jointly started by two leading media houses, The Jang Group of Pakistan, and The Times of India.

“The decline in international participation reflects broader bureaucratic and political constraints — including visa hurdles, security concerns, and occasionally the perception of ideological scrutiny,” commented journalist Raza Rumi, a distinguished lecturer at the City University of New York and editor of The Friday Times. 

“When international authors, scholars, and journalists participate in these festivals, they bring global perspectives and create cross-border intellectual exchanges that enrich the local discourse,” he said.

Pakistan's Reading Culture

This year, all the festivals deeply felt the absence of Dr. Arfa Sayeda Zehra, revered historian and cultural critic, who passed away on 10 November 2025. She was an ardent believer of ‘Iqra’ - an Arabic word meaning ‘read’. She believed that the reading culture has not ended but shifted to a different medium that does not involve holding books physically or turning pages but scrolling on screens. 

“Pakistan still sustains a reading culture, but it is far more fragmented than it once was,” believes Raza Rumi. “Traditional institutions that historically nurture literary engagement have weakened, while digital platforms and independent initiatives have gained more attraction by intellectuals. The appetite for ideas has not disappeared; it has simply migrated into different spaces.”      

Another highlight of these festivals is the book stalls offering books of every genre, ranging from the lowest to the highest prices. Booklovers crowding around gives a sense of hope that the reading culture still exists. But Pakistani publishers and authors are often heard sharing their struggles about getting their work published. 

Many people may have a book under their belt, but writers rarely make real money, as Miranda Husain notes. 

“Instead of relying on foreign-funded annual spectacles, why not invest in local writers and build a sustainable publishing industry? It would be a real legacy,” she suggests.

Temporary Civic Openings

These battles are not just about the cost involved but also freedom of expression. While Article 19 of Pakistan’s Constitution guarantees freedom of speech to all citizens, with certain restrictions, censorship leaves little space to produce new work. 

Students of politics flock to these spaces to hear new perspectives and these events have proven over time that not all is lost, believes Rumi. He notes that such festivals play an important role in keeping intellectual conversation alive in the public sphere. They create moments where writers, scholars, artists, and readers can engage in debates on history, politics, literature, and identity. 

The literary festivals also function as “temporary civic openings rather than permanent transformations. They cannot substitute for a robust publishing industry, academic freedom, or strong cultural institutions,” as Rumi says. “Their significance lies in sustaining dialogue and signaling that intellectual curiosity in Pakistan remains vibrant despite structural constraints.”

Freedom of expression ultimately depends less on visiting speakers and more on whether local writers, academics, and journalists feel able to speak freely, he added. 

“International participation broadens the conversation and signals openness, but the real measure of intellectual freedom lies in the strength of domestic institutions and the willingness of local voices to engage critically with society’s challenges,” noted Rumi. “In that sense, literary festivals remain valuable platforms — but their long-term impact depends on whether they are complemented by stronger academic freedom, publishing ecosystems, and cultural institutions within the country.”

Lahore’s literary events largely take place at Alhamra Arts Council barely three kilometers from the historic Pak Tea House, once was the hub of literature frequented by famous poets and writers. 

Pakistan’s festivals also celebrate these writers and poets. Saraiki, Sindhi and Punjabi poetry bethaks and mushairas – poetry recitals – are often concluding highlights of such events. This provides space for many voices that have been overlooked for decades. 

Still, festivals held in Lahore, the heart of Punjab rarely feature Punjabi writers, poets, or intellectuals.

Peace activist Saeeda Diep believes that the absence of Punjabi at many literature festivals “reflects a deeper cultural imbalance”. 

“Punjabi is the mother tongue of the majority of people in this region, yet it is often missing from spaces that claim to celebrate literature and culture,” she told Sapan News. “This is not accidental. It reflects a long-standing social hierarchy where elite circles have privileged English and, to some extent, Urdu, while regional languages are sidelined.” 

Despite their limitations, Pakistan’s literary events are a respite for many, giving people something to look forward to. 

Until the next season of festivals commences, their charm lingers like a flavour to be savoured.

(The author is a freelance journalist in Lahore with over ten years of experience focusing on minorities, survivors of terrorism, digital literacy, and animal rights in Pakistan. By special arrangement with Sapan)