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A number of people gathered at the Pakistan Academy of Letters (PAL) on Wednesday at a reference for fiction writer Khalida Hussain, who died earlier this month.

Dr Fatima Hassan, one of the participants and a writer, said Hussain’s fiction impressed generations since the 1970s and depicted Pakistani society.

Discussing Hussain’s book Kaghazi Ghaat, she said the book was written about the situation just after Pakistan was created.

“The main character of the story, Mona, was a local but she even had not seen all of Lahore city. Her grandparents were living at a distance of just a few streets but Mona was not able to memorise even the way to her grandparents’ residence.

“So she was in love with the path to her grandparents, and also scared of that path at the same time,” she said.

She said Hussain’s stories took readers to an imaginary world from which it was difficult to return.

Yasra, Hussain’s daughter, said that her mother focused on Sufism and believed that one could change his or her mental state by reading, which was why book reading was very important.

“Though my mother was considered to be a very serious woman she had very good sense of humour. It was very easy to communicate with her. I have been benefited the most because of her library,” she said.

Hussain never compromised on quality, which is why every story she wrote was a masterpiece, writer Nilofer Iqbal said, adding that there was a lot in her work for new writers to learn from.

Hussain’s life revolved around movements and resistance, and she struggled for her ideology, writer Hameed Shahid.

“Though she was not a feminist she highlighted women’s issues and played a role to address them,” he said.

PAL Chairman Syed Junaid Ikhlaq said Hussain was one of the most prominent fiction writers and her work would always remain alive.

Published in Dawn, January 24th, 2019