From Beach Luxury Hotel in 2016 to Mohatta Palace in 2026: the dates, venues and themes of every Sindh Literature Festival.
The Sindh Literature Festival has been held eight times since 2016, and the ninth edition takes place on 21–22 November 2026 at Mohatta Palace Museum, Karachi. There was no festival in 2018, and the 2020 edition was cancelled because of COVID-19.
Here is each edition in order, with where it was held and what it focused on.
- 9th, 2026: 21–22 November, Mohatta Palace Museum, Karachi. Theme to be announced.
- 8th, 2025.
- 7th, 2024: 14–15 December, Liaquat Memorial Library, Karachi. Theme: Save Indus, Save Life.
- 6th, 2023: 3–5 March, Karachi. Theme: Aalam Sabh Abaad Kareen (climate change).
- 5th, 2022: 18–20 March, Arts Council of Pakistan, Karachi. Theme: the centennial of the discovery of Mohenjo-daro.
- 4th, 2021: 12–14 March, Arts Council of Pakistan, Karachi.
- 3rd, 2019: 22–24 February, Beach Luxury Hotel, Karachi. Culture, language, Sufism and Karachi's past.
- 2nd, 2017: 27–29 October, Beach Luxury Hotel, Karachi. Sindhi language, literature and social issues.
- 1st, 2016: November, Beach Luxury Hotel, Karachi.
2016: the first festival
The first Sindh Literature Festival opened in November 2016 at Beach Luxury Hotel in Karachi. Dawn reported that it opened with a performance by Abida Parveen. Journalists Naseer Gopang and Zohaib Kaka had started it to give Sindh's writers and languages a public stage, and the Sindh Literary Foundation organised it.
2017: three days at Beach Luxury
The second festival ran from 27 to 29 October 2017, again at Beach Luxury Hotel. Sessions looked at Sindhi culture, the Sindhi language, new Sindhi writing and social issues in the province. Book and handicraft stalls, mushaira and folk music filled the rest of the programme.
2019: Sufism and old Karachi
After a year off in 2018, the third festival was held from 22 to 24 February 2019 at Beach Luxury Hotel. It was organised jointly by the Sindh Literary Foundation, the Information Department of the Government of Sindh and the Endowment Fund Trust. The programme covered culture, language, Sufism and literature. Karachi's own past was a recurring subject, including stories from the city's coastal islands.
2021: back after the pandemic
The festival planned for March 2020 was cancelled because of COVID-19. The fourth edition went ahead from 12 to 14 March 2021 at the Arts Council of Pakistan, Karachi.
2022: a hundred years of Mohenjo-daro
The fifth festival, held from 18 to 20 March 2022 at the Arts Council, marked 100 years since the discovery of Mohenjo-daro. The main stage was designed around the ancient city. The opening ceremony began with a theme song, "Mohenjo-Daro", written by the Sindhi poet Ali Akash and composed by Saad Alavi.
The festival had 28 sessions, including one where archaeologists from Pakistan and abroad discussed Mohenjo-daro. Ten books were launched. A multilingual mushaira brought together poets from every province, and there were two music nights.
2023: climate change
The sixth festival took place from 3 to 5 March 2023. Its theme, Aalam Sabh Abaad Kareen, a line about wishing the whole world to flourish, was used to raise awareness of global warming and climate change.
2024: the Indus River
The seventh festival was held on 14 and 15 December 2024 at Liaquat Memorial Library, Karachi, under the theme "Save Indus, Save Life". Sessions looked at the river's place in the ecology, economy and heritage of Sindh, and a special poetry recital was held in its honour.
2025 and 2026
The eighth festival was held in 2025. The ninth comes to Mohatta Palace Museum in Clifton on 21–22 November 2026, with free entry by pass.
Quick answers
When was the first Sindh Literature Festival? November 2016, at Beach Luxury Hotel, Karachi.
How many editions have there been? Eight up to 2025. The 2026 festival is the ninth.
Why was there no festival in 2020? It was cancelled because of the COVID-19 pandemic.
What was the theme of SLF 2022? The centennial of the discovery of Mohenjo-daro.
What was the theme of SLF 2024? Save Indus, Save Life.
Sources
- Dawn, 5 November 2016: "Sindh Literature Festival opens with Abida Parveen's performance"
- The Express Tribune, 28 October 2017 and 17 March 2022
- Images (Dawn), 23 and 25 February 2019
- Arts Council of Pakistan, Karachi, March 2022
