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Kishwar Naheed talks about her experience of remaining in isolation while infected with Covid-19 and how the pandemic shaped her poetry.<\/em><\/p>\n Naheed had paid a visit to Habib University to speak about her latest book,\u00a0Darya Ki Tashnagi<\/em>\u00a0(The Thirst of the River, Sang-e-Meel publications, 2020) and to illuminate healing in the time of disease as a profound human experience beautifully illustrated by poets and writers.\u00a0The talk began with Naheed recalling the time she spent in isolation after contracting the Novel Coronavirus in June last year.<\/p>\n \u201cI was told I was to isolate for 15 days,\u201d she said, as she narrated her ordeal.<\/p>\n \u201cI could not meet anyone nor touch anyone,\u201d the poet said. Describing her trip to the doctor, she said that when she got there se was quite anxious. When the doctor asked her to sit down and relax, she instead asked for a book.<\/p>\n \u201cThe doctor told me that a book isn\u2019t medicine but I retorted that if I sit idle, my blood pressure may shoot up even more so please give me a book so that I can read while I isolate.\u201d<\/p>\n Kishwar Naheed recites verses from her latest poetry collection, Darya Ki Tashnagi.<\/em><\/p>\n She summarized her illness and the accompanying isolation as being \u201csynonymous to feeling scared about death \u2013 we\u2019re never prepared for it.\u201d<\/p>\n Nadeem described it as, \u201caisa lagta hai kay kisi ki buri nazar lagi hai\u201d (it feels like we have been cursed) noting that the pandemic had spread uncertainty, darkness and sadness everywhere. The Sitara-i-Imtiaz award-winning poet spoke about how social distancing is difficult to practice in a culture such as ours.<\/p>\n \u201cEmbrace holds a different implication altogether. Whether we meet someone old or young, we feel the depth of our existence and love by embracing each other.\u201d<\/p>\n Naheed mentioned that she learnt not to let depression consumer her during the pandemic.<\/p>\n A student asks Kishwar Naheed a question during the session.<\/em><\/p>\n \u201cI used to read for two hours, look for old books, watch videos,\u201d she shared. \u201cWhenever I felt my breathing complicate, I would read or write. When you read something or think about something, there is a dialogue progressing inside of you. Try and keep that dialogue going. Stories about our childhood give us strength. Keep thinking about the why\u2019s and the how\u2019s, and let some things remain incomprehensible. The mind will start to open up.\u201d<\/p>\n However, she admitted that the scenario was quite horrific given how many people would go amiss after contracting the virus.<\/p>\n \u201cWhen I watched people disappearing on the stairs, knowing that they had contracted the virus, I would wonder what will happen [to me],\u201d she said noting that she saw a lot of people scared, and some people not scared at all in the isolation ward.<\/p>\n \u201cThe distances grew between people.\u201d<\/p>\n Kishwar Naheed receives a gift presented on behalf of Habib University by Mr. Inamullah Nadeem.<\/em><\/p>\n Naheed went on to recite some of the poems she wrote during isolation including \u2018Dhoop say Aagay\u2019\u00a0<\/em>and \u2018Ghalib aur Mahatma Gandhi ka Mukalma\u2019<\/em>\u00a0(dialogue of Ghalib and Mahatma Gandhi). The later asks Ghalib to take note of the bold women of the Shaheen Bagh protests before shedding light on Urdu\u2019s diminishing presence in India and rising hatred in the region.<\/p>\n Ae nosha-e-sukhan saaz Oh happy poet Kishwar Naheed and Mr. Inamullah Nadeem pose for a group photograph with Habib University staff and faculty.<\/em><\/p>\n When asked about the activist element in her poetry, she recalled her participation in women\u2019s day marches over four decades ago and how they were baton-charged and arrested by the police. “Universities are a means to further knowledge,” she said, adding that Habib University has succeeded in creating an environment where sciences and literature can be taught with freedom for intellectual discourse where students learn to ask the right questions.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" With the world heading a deadly pandemic marauded the streets, renowned Urdu poet Kishwar Naheed reminded us that there is a need to heal our souls and to revive ourselves. She said this during a poetry recital,\u00a0Poetry in a time of Pandemic.\u00a0The event\u00a0had\u00a0been organized by the Arzu Centre on 4th March, and had been moderated<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/habib.edu.pk\/HU-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/03\/Kishwar-Naheed-2.png\")
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\nTeri Urdu ko tamasha bana diya gaya hai
\nTum ne apne zamane ka ghadar dekha tha
\nIs zamane ke ghadar mein
\nGairva rang chhaya hua hai
\nAb dozakh ki aag
\nNafraten ban kar, shehr shehr dahak rahi hai
\nDilli ki galiyon mein Amir Khusrau
\nBain karta hua phir raha hai<\/span><\/p>\n
\nYour Urdu has been made into an exhibition
\nYou had seen your own period\u2019s sedition
\nIn our own time\u2019s sedition
\nSpread is the colour of saffron
\nNow the fire of damnation
\nIs burning from city to city, becoming an abomination
\nAmir Khusrau, in the streets of Delhi, wandering
\nIs engaged in wailing.<\/p>\n![\"\"](\"https:\/\/habib.edu.pk\/HU-news\/wp-content\/uploads\/2021\/03\/Kishwar-Naheed-5.png\")
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\nShe also narrated a time during partition when a female student of Aligarh was kidnapped and how when she visited women in a remote village, and the sanitation issues they faced there.
\nNaheed explained that instances like these should be noticed, not ignored.
\nDuring the question-and-answer session, she advised the listeners to keep reviving themselves by living, laughing and enjoying.
\nIn the end, she paid tribute to the late Dr. Asif Farrukhi, who was her introduction to Habib University. She also appreciated the work being done at Habib University.<\/span><\/p>\n