Laughter-coated lessons at Sharjah book fair

Sharjah: Pakistani writer Atta-ul-Haq Qasmi was thronged by fans at the Sharjah International Book Fair during his presentation on Monday.

The 69-year-old newspaper columnist is known for his satirical style of taking aim at controversial issues in Pakistan.

“I’ve got death threats from people in power and members of the public [in Pakistan]. I always respond in the same way: ‘I’m not going to stop, go do want you want,’” Qasmi told Gulf News.

Fans also typically expect Qasmi, a former Pakistani ambassador to Norway and Thailand, to share personal anecdotes.

He said:: “I met a Pakistani gentleman once in Washington. He told me he spends six hours of his day at the Pakistan embassy, six at another job, six at a factory, and six running a business.

“I replied that it adds up to 24 hours in a day – so when does he sleep? He said ‘didn’t I tell you I spend six hours at the embassy?’”

Pakistan is the Country of Focus this year at the annual book fair, which ends on November 17 at Expo Centre.

The book fair, said to be one the biggest in the world, features 385,000 titles from more than 920 publishers from over 60 countries.