Sada-e-Watan
Sydney ™
sadaewatan@gmail.com
A Comedy Play, Mushaira and Book Launch by Urdu International Australia
Hon. Dr Mehreen Faruqi MLC
Urdu International Australia Limited held its six-monthly event event on Saturday 10 October 2015 at the Hurstville Entertainment Centre, Hurstville (Sydney) that was attended by a large audience and was a great success. Renowned journalist, writer and intellectual Mr Babar Ayaz (Pakistan) was the guest of honour and a play by Ashraf Shad was staged featuring Uzma Gilani, Kumud Mirani, Khurram Qaiser, Farjad Mehmood and Dr Ayesha Saeed.
Dr Shabbir Haider and Dr Baqar Raza
The program was sponsored by Multicultural NSW, Government of NSW and a Mushaira was also held that was chaired by Dr Baqar Raza, a prominent poet from Pakistan.
Ashraf Shad
UIA’s Secretary Mr Ashraf Shad welcomed the guests and stated that this was the 3rd major event organised by UIA in 18 months since its establishment in May 2014. He thanked Multicultural New South Wales for the sponsorship of this cultural event.
The program was held in two sessions and included three segments. First session included:
Babar Ayaz
a. Book Launch:
o Mr Babar Ayaz is a famous journalist and writer from Pakistan. His new book “What’s Wrong with Pakistan” was launched that followed by a brief talk by the author about the book. This was followed by a Questions and Answers session and audience had the opportunity to participate in the discussion and express their own opinions about some of the issues discussed.
Uzma Gillani and Kumud Merani
b. Comedy Play:
o A short comedy play written by famous poet and writer Mr Ashraf Shad was presented by local artists. Renowned TV and media personalities Uzma Gillani, Kumud Merani and local artists, Farjad Mehmood, Khurram Qaiser and Dr Ayesha Saeed played their characters very well and the audience enjoyed their live performance.
c. “Poetry Recital” (Mushaira):
Arif Sadiq
o Mushaira was held in the second session, after a short break for refreshments. Famous poet Dr Baqar Raza Moosvi chaired this session. Local poets Arif Sadiq, Muhammad Ali Bokhari, Dr Yasmeen Zaidi, Ali Khawar, Farogh Zaidi, Syed Shuja Atif, Mrs Farhat Iqbal, Mrs Huma Mirza, Dr Yasmeen Shad, Mrs Kaneez Fatima Kiran, Dr Shabbir Haider, Arif Rana and Ashraf Shad recited their poetry which was greatly admired by the audience. Famous Indian poet Mr Anil Verma recited beautiful Hindi poems which were enjoyed by the audience.
Abdul Aziz Uqaili
o To continue with the old tradition, the chair Dr Baqar Moosvi recited his poetry at the end. His poems (Ghazals) were very entertaining and were enjoyed by the audience.
