The reality is that Pakistan’s publishing industry has not moved with the times, and still obsesses over print books at a time when the country has well over 100 million people online.

The Abdal Literary Forum (ALF) recently hosted the celebrated Jashn-e-Kitab festival, an event that gathered publishing houses, literary personalities, and cultural organisations from across Pakistan. The festival was deemed a resounding success, drawing vast audiences and reaffirming ALF’s commitment to promoting literature and culture.

To be clear, there were no numbers given in reportage to suggest how big the crowds were, but the event featured book stalls from esteemed institutions such as the Iqbal Academy Pakistan, Academy of Letters Islamabad, National Book Foundation, and a long list of other regional and national literary organisations.

Held in Hassan Abdal, the festival attracted attendees from areas including Wah Cantt, Rawalpindi, Islamabad, Peshawar, and beyond.

Inclusivity and Cultural Significance

The event has been widely praised for its inclusivity and cultural significance, highlighting ALF’s pivotal role in organising such an impactful celebration of literature and fostering connections between publishers, writers, and readers.

The Jashn-e-Kitab festival has, per the press release, set a benchmark for literary events in Pakistan, strengthening community engagement and showcasing the nation’s vibrant publishing landscape.

All of which is standard media-speak and, like so many press releases of this nature, actually tells us little.

The View From The Beach

I can’t imagine many would describe Pakistan’s publishing landscape as “vibrant”, but can say there is a vibrant community of readers and writers in Pakistan doing their best in challenging conditions.

As reported earlier this month, a three-day book fair in the Punjab sold over 100,000 books – https://thenewpublishingstandard.com/2025/02/23/pakistan-punjab-university-3-day-book-fair-sold-100000-books-300000-visitors-had-been-expected/ – and bigger national book fairs run to hundreds of thousands of visitors.

But the reality is that Pakistan’s publishing industry has not moved with the times, and still obsesses over print books at a time when the country has well over 100 million people online.

This post first appeared in the TNPS LinkedIn newsfeed.