Free Library Of Philadelphia: Celebrating Pakistan's Independence Day With Music, Film, And Literature

Philadelphia PA

19 August, 2021

7:55 AM

Description

Press release from the Free Library of Philadelphia: August 18, 2021 Jashn-e-Azadi Mubarak! Happy Independence Day! This past Saturday, August 14, was Pakistan's Independence Day. Formed in 1947, Pakistan celebrated 74 years of its independence and freedom from British colonialism and the formation of Pakistan as a new country. Pakistan is a country of many different cultures and traditions. There are people of various religious faiths like Muslims, Hindus, Sikhs, and Christians, among many others. There are also people who speak different languages like Punjabi, Gujrati, Sindhi, Urdu, Pashto, Hindi, Bengali, Balochi, Saraiki, and more. Pakistan's Independence Day is a time of celebrating shared national identity strengthened through Pakistan's cultural diversity. August 14 is also a day to reflect on the violence of Partition that happened as Pakistan and India became two separate, independent nations. Partition between Pakistan, originally composed of West Pakistan (present-day Pakistan) and East Pakistan (present-day Bangladesh), and India was a time of mass migration, violence, and trauma. Partition displaced nearly 15 million people and killed more than one million people. In honor of Pakistan's Independence Day, I invite all of us to learn more about Pakistan, its history, and its cultures. Listed below are some of the incredible Pakistani poetry, music, and literature you can access through the Free Library's catalog. Faiz Ahmed Faiz Farida Khanum Abida Parveen Noor Jehan Kishwar Naheed Fahmida Riaz Saadat Hasan Manto Allama Iqbal Mohsin Hamid This press release was produced by the Free Library of Philadelphia. The views expressed here are the author's own.