International New York Times correspondent and renowned journalist Roger Cohen who recently visited Lahore wrote in INT of February 24 under the title "Pakistan in its labyrinth". There is a wealth of talent and energy in Pakistan. A Taliban suicide bomber killed five people in Lahore this month. The people of Lahore responded by bravely hosting the Lahore Literary Festival, a wonder of creativity. Eclecticism, ideas and dialogue. Openness is what Pakistan needs".
The third edition of the three-day Lahore Literary Festival 2015 from 20th to 22nd February explored the dialogue and interface between literature and arts , brought together , discussed , and celebrated the diverse and pluralistic literary traditions of Lahore-a city of the arts, activism, and big ideas. Lahore's pre-eminence in giving birth to new ideas, poetry and prose, manifestos and movements, makes it a vital node for Pakistani culture and a befitting site for a literary festival.
The festival included multiple formats; recitals, book launches, panel discussions and exhibitions. A variety of writers, poets and intellectuals spoke on a blend of subjects; politics, South Asian identity, journalism, literature , music and children's fiction.
It also featured discussions on a variety of subjects-fiction and non-fiction writing, music, painting, filmmaking, architecture, politics-to reclaim and employ Lahore's rich and varied literary traditions.
It featured thought-provoking panel discussions with some of the most insightful voices in the arts and literature, book launches and signing, poetry recitals, musical performances and art exhibits. With over 100 tantalising thinkers from home and abroad LLF-2015 brought a variety of writers, journalists, musicians, analysts and politicians from not just across Pakistan but all over the world to the city.
While the majority of sessions were conducted in English, audiences also had the choice of attending discussions in Urdu and Punjabi. Among the famous national and international figures who attended the event were Lyse Doucet, Akar Patel, Shoba De, Najam Sethi, Naseeruddin Shah, Salil Tripathi, Peter Oborne, Ayesha Jalal and Roger Cohen, who talked about various issues, international politics, books, poetry and the work of some of the legendary artists of the sub-continent like Faiz Ahmed Faiz and Noor Jehan. Despite tight security outside the Alhamra Arts Council, the festival venue, featuring armed policemen, security scanners and barricades nearly one hundred thousand enlightened people attended the festival that, celebrated the best of Pakistan. The venue came to life with the colourful décor, book shops, food stalls, live classical music and an art exhibition titled 'The Wall: Fixing Androon Lahore'.
According to Razi Ahmed, the founder and CEO of the LLF, : "LLF has come a long way this year. As we had five sessions. In fact the visitors had to cope with the difficulty of choices to make." There was a "bigger international component" to the programme with people like Joe Sacco, a respected figure in comic journalism and many Indians, including Romila Thapar, a distinguished historian, whose participation had given LLF a "comparative advantage" over other literary festivals around the world as she normally did not deliver lectures at such events. The crowd comprised students from far-off areas like Waziristan, Bahawalpur, Larkana, Gilgit, and Hunza., "geographic diversity", the mix of people attending the sessions made it quite a unique place to be.