Iqbal Zubairi is an honoured name in the world of journalism. He can be called an icon and torch-bearer who led the way for others to follow. Now his brother, Rafi-uz-Zaman Zubairi, has come out with a book Iqbal Zubairi: Yadain aur Baatain, to acknowledge his work. Having lost his father at a young age, Iqbal Zubairi was brought up by his mother. After coming to Pakistan after Partition and spending some time with his brother, he moved on to Rawalpindi and joined the Daily Tameer. From there, as it is said, there was no looking back. Zubairi started a new paper called Naqoosh fom Pindi and later became the chief editor of Daily Mashriq, besides being at the helm of affairs in Kohistan and later Nawa-i-Waqt. The book is a compilation of short tributes not only by his family members but also by a number of former colleagues and friends, prominent among them being Majeed Nizami and Nazir Haq who have highlighted Zubairi’s professional acumen and his ability to plan and make maximum use of minimum resources, as well his simultaneous dedication to his profession and his family.
While one may feel that the tributes by Zubairi’s daughters are more or less similar, they highlight his whole life, not only as a father but as a professional as well. The most interesting parts of the book are the chapters where one gets to learn about the way journalism was practiced, say 40 years ago. Present-day journalists, with all the information at their fingertips thanks to modern technology, can hardly comprehend the challenges faced by journalists in those days. Without any intention to underestimate the hard work and efforts of present-day journalists, one would like to quote a couple of examples from Zubairi’s early career.
His daughter Neelofer narrates that in 1968, the wedding of Princess Sarvath and Prince Hasan of Jordan, in Karachi was being covered by all newspapers, but for a paper being published from Lahore printing the pictures the very next day was a great feat. However, Zubairi sahib made arrangements in such a way that his paper managed to print the photographs which resulted in the day’s issue being received with great enthusiasm.
Then we have Nazir Haq painting a picture of how the first edition of Kohistan, Multan, was published. Haq had been called in to join the team and was surprised to find no teleprinters in the office. Zubairi calmly came up with an alternative arrangement: the APP’s office was nearby and couriers would deliver the news on an hourly basis while any urgent news was communicated via telephone. News thus gathered was sorted out and written in hand. While the technology was limited, there was no shortage of commitment. If they had set their minds on bringing out the edition the next day even a severe storm and power outage could not hamper their determination. The first edition of Kohistan was out in the market on the day and date that was set, late by only two hours.
Zubairi is also remembered as a kind person. Not only a loving and caring father, he was also a friend to all he came in contact with and did not hesitate in going out of his way to help people. Glowing tributes in the book make it clear that it is people like him who are remembered.
The reviewer is a Dawn staffer
Iqbal Zubairi: Yadain aur Baatain
(Biography)
By Rafi-uz-Zaman Zubairi
Fazlee Books, Karachi
86pp.
No comments:
Post a Comment