Naymah Adnan, Jeddah Saudi Arabia.
This week was a great one for the overseas Pakistanis residing in Saudi Arabia. Not only did they get to meet Mr. Iftikhar Ahmed Usmani, they also got to learn from his insight and detailed discussion.
Mr. Iftikhar Ahmed Usmani or more popularly known as Iftikhar Iffi is a common name in a Pakistani households. He is an actor, director, poet, and writer. His roles such as ‘Gully Badshah in the popular television series ‘inkaar’ and ‘Kamali’ in the blockbuster show ‘Parizad’ has gained him great popularity.
He is also a renowned poet who happens to a student of the legendary late Ashfaq Ahmed whom he quotes and frequently refers to as ‘baba jee’. Recently, he came to Saudi Arabia for the privilege of Umrah and to launch his recent book called ‘Chikar Cholay’. Mr. Jamshed Jimmy, a famous Overseas Pakistani invited him to Jeddah Point cafe for a meet and greet with his fans and to launch his book. The event was organized by Mrs. Mariam Shahid and hosted by Fakhar Adnan.
Needless to say, the cafe was packed with his fans and followers who came in heavy numbers prior to his arrival with the sole purpose of meeting him. He shared his thoughtful insights with everyone regarding life, Pakistan, self-love, forgiveness, Sufism and much more with references to his life experiences and poetry. He emphasized on living in the moment and life lessons he has learned over the years.
His humble nature was refreshingly pleasant. The conversation was followed by a Q&A session where his fans got to ask him questions regarding his book, his life, his poetry and his acting. In the end, there was an auction for his book and 5 lucky bidders won a signed copy of his book. While he promised to ship everyone presents a copy of his book as a present.
He interacted and took pictures with all his fans, who had flown in from different parts of Saudi Arabia and even outside Saudi Arabia to meet him. The event concluded with a lavish dinner in his honour.
The overseas Pakistani community residing in Jeddah were grateful for the surreal experience of listening to his insightful remarks in person. He shared his further plans to explore the world in the near future and will be travelling back to Pakistan on Friday, 13th January 2022.
Posted by Syed Mussarat Khalil.
