I belong from here; I belong to its soil, to its air and to its every single thing and its everything belongs to me. As a mother nourishes and looks after her child, the same way, I study, I toil and I struggle to see it bright, developed and literate. I left my beloved Panjgur to find the answers of those all questions that often rambled in my mind and often bewildered me. I was too young when the social and political problems of Panjgur started throbbing my existence, I used to wake up at late nights and weep for Panjgur. I wanted to choose a field that could help me lift up Panjgur and represent Panjgur in a better way.

The late-night firings, the informal statements on the walls, the abusive language of people, the dirty politics and the aimless life of youth always led me towards a world where I could think for hours and remain silent. I was told to say nothing because I might get killed or unknown people might hurt my parents and family members. I have two members in my family, with whom I discuss these all issues and they give me answers and make me understand. One is my grandfather who belongs to the profession of Law and literature; he is a writer and social worker. Second person is my father, who also belongs to the profession of Law and always motivates me for raising the issues through the power of words. When I started blogging for the first time, I used a pseudo name because I was introduced to man-made customs. One day my father came to know about the writing of a friend and he suggested me to write. Then, I discussed my writing passion and he encouraged me to use my original name. It was 2016 when my father encouraged me, and today it is 2021, and my father motivates me the same way for writing. He knows that Panjgur belongs to me and I belong to Panjgur. Its issues don’t let me sleep and its progress makes me happy. Whenever I highlight an issue of Panjgur, my inner soul smiles and congratulates me that at least I don’t become dumb and deaf when I hear and see something wrong.

Panjgur has motivated me to be a straightforward writer and its beauty has encouraged me to bleed on papers. I will always be indebted to the unconditional love of my grandfather and the endless efforts of my father who have always encouraged me to be a better human rather than being a nationalist or a girl.

The issues of Panjgur have been very close to me and I have a very strong relationship with them. I can see Panjgur weep and wail, I can hear its echoes and screams, and I can feel its pain of deprivation. It always says me that help people break their silence because I am in Pain. When I was told to choose a career for myself, I went for law at first, I cleared the test on merit but couldn’t go due to my graduation. Then I opted for literature, my only purpose was to graduate in a field that could help me make Panjgur peaceful. After joining literature, I realized the main cause of our backwardness. We have never given importance to our literature. When I interviewed my grandfather for the topic of literature, I came to know that Panjgur has gotten only one literary academy that is “Izzat Academy” and it has also gotten less importance. People of Panjgur take literature as a very poor subject but literally it is the field that has helped overcome wars, made societies prosperous and people literate. I was glad when I saw the tweet of the literary festival on Twitter. I was very happy to see this initiative, and it brought tears in my eyes!

The literary festival in Panjgur spirits up the soul in the dead bodies of Panjgur. This festival was organized by a group of young people and I believe if every individual in Panjgur decides to bring 1% change on his/her part, Panjgur will grow very soon.

Their struggle and hard work deserve appreciation, as they have realized their responsibility, it seems that the golden days of Panjgur are not far. The thing that added weightage to my happiness was the interest of females in the festival. They took part and actively discussed the issues. The festival came to an end, but I hope that the food and knowledge which has been fed in the minds of people, will grow more plants of knowledge. As a child expects to be understood, Panjgur also expects to be understood by the people. I saw that Panjgur has felt happy and relaxed for the first time and I hope the process of change never ends now.

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Yasmeen Sana Studies English Literature at SBK & works as the sub-editor of The Baloch News. She hails from Panjgur.