LARKANA: Anchorperson, teacher, bureaucrat, politician were some of the facets highlighted of Mehtab Akbar Rashdi at a book launch held at the local press club on Saturday night. The book Mehtab: Personality, Role and Recognition penned by Muhammed Ali Pathan was praised by speakers for highlighting the various aspects of her life and her many contributions.

The author praised her role in introducing Sindhology and sponsoring ‘Indus Expedition’ as secretary of the culture department where a team of historians, archaeologists, photographers and sociologists undertook the important task. “She was instrumental in rewriting the Sind Gazetteer that was later reprinted with fresh entries,” he said. “Her father, a teacher, played a key role in her life,” he added. In the early part of his speech he spoke about Ms Rashdi’s professional journey from her entry to Radio Pakistan in Hyderabad and then to PTV as an anchorperson. “She had the guts to disobey the orders of Gen Ziaul Haq to cover her head with a dupatta,” and called it a daring act.

Aziz Qasmani in his speech dilated on her name Mehtab or Chand which means the moon and traced the history of the Chandkas who were said to be moon worshippers and inhabitants of this region.

Anthropologist Manzoor Kohyar, Larkana Historicial Society secretary Prof Mukhtar Sammoo and District Hindu Panchayat Larkana chairperson Kalpana Devi in their speeches also focused on the qualities and contributions of Ms Rashdi. According to them she was never a part of the status quo and said she was multidimensional personality and an icon for positive changes. All of them urged that she pen her memoirs.

Sindhi Adabi Sangat (SAS) secretary general Dr Mushtaque Phull, SAS former secretary general Dr Zulfikar Siyal, Prof Jilani, Syed Akbar Shah Rashdi and Larkana range DIG Dr Sain Rakhiyo Mirani praised Ms Rashdi in their address. But they also urged her to use her position as a politician and member of the provincial assembly and raise the issue of non-teaching of Sindhi language in private schools in the province.

Finally Ms Rashdi came to the podium and expressed her gratitude for all the kind words spoken about her during the book launch. However, she said, “in comparison to towering personalities such as Muhammed Ibrahim Joyo, Ali Ahmed Brohi, Shamsher-ul-Daidri and Anwar Pirzado, I am a small person.”

During her speech she recalled the contributions of Sufi singer Abida Parveen, legends of Sindhi literature Pir Husamuddin Rashdi, Pir Ali Muhammed Rashdi and German scholar Annemarie Schimmel who often visited Larkana.

She said in 2014 she had moved a resolution in the Sindh Assembly to adopt the languages of four federating units as national language including Urdu and it was unanimously passed. “But it is still with the standing committee and we don’t know about its fate,” she said. She also committed to writing her autobiography.

Being a member of the Sindh Assembly and belonging to the Pakistan Muslim League-Functional party she took the opportunity to criticise the Sindh government over the issue of teaching Sindhi in schools saying that it was all the time putting forward lame excuses for [not teaching the language].

Published in Dawn, November 16th, 2015