Heights of intellect.

Byline: F.S. Aijazuddin

IT was said once that Life magazine was for those who cannot read and Time magazine for those who cannot think. Litfests have been invented for those to whom a mobile phone has become their third eye. Attendees can record events even while they are watching them; better still, they can take selfies with authors without having to read their latest books.

The star of the Lahore Literary Festival 2020 over the last weekend, was undoubtedly Orhan Pamuk, the Turkish Nobel laureate in literature 2006. A trail of devotees snaked to have a copy of his book - any book by him - signed with a personal inscription. Every one of his books on display at the Al Hamra complex had been sold out by the time he spoke at the closing session. Booksellers had thoughtfully stocked enough books by him and also by every author participating in the litfest.

Orhan Pamuk had serious competition. Second in popularity came William DalArymple, a co-founder of the Jaipur Literature Festival which has become the template for such litfests across the subcontinent. Dalrymple's presence at the Lahore litfest is more than a benediction by a portly patriarch. For those privileged to hear him speak on a spectrum of subjects - history, Mughal art, Pahari paintings, work done by local artists for imperialist British patrons - is to complete a PhD course in under 50 minutes.

Dalrymple knows the danger of imparting history through PowerPoint presentations. Done incompetently, they can be flawed examples of reductio ad absurdum, as inherently dangerous as national governance though tweets. Done skilfully with the dramatic panache Dalrymple employs, it is as instantly assimilable and stimulating as a distilled tonic.

The LLF offers all things to all men and women.

Litfest sessions in Pakistan are bilingual. They offer conversations between authors whose forte is Urdu and those who choose to write in English. Inevitably, there is a slippage of the tongue from one language to another, from either into hybrid Urdish. Whoever is privileged to hear Zehra Nigah recite Faiz Ahmed Faiz's poetry will understand why nightingales fall silent when she trills. Blessed with a faultless memory, softly, very softly, she echoes recitations by fellow panellists, and occasionally discreetly, ever so politely, she completes the verse when their memories fail.

The LLF offers all things to all men and women. One session addressed the challenges of translation from one language to...