The 17th Karachi Literature Festival (KLF) 2026 opened on Friday at the Beach Luxury Hotel with a moment of silence for the victims of the Gul Plaza incident and the recent Islamabad bomb blast.

The three-day event brings together writers, scholars and readers under the theme “Literature in a Fragile World,” focusing on the role of culture and ideas in times of global uncertainty.

Organised by Oxford University Press Pakistan, the festival is sponsored by the Government of Sindh as title sponsor and Getz Pharma as gold sponsor. Supporting partners include the British Deputy High Commission Karachi, the British Council, Goethe-Institut, Alliance Française and the Embassy of France.

Chief Minister Syed Murad Ali Shah, the chief guest, stressed the importance of literature in building an enlightened society.

“In times of uncertainty, literature provides stability and humanity,” he said. “This year’s theme is timely and deeply relevant.”

OUP Pakistan Managing Director Arshad Saeed Husain said literature was a civic responsibility, not an indulgence.

“Dialogue is the craft of this city. We gather here to question and understand,” he said.

French Consul General Alexis Chahtahtinsky described the festival as a celebration of knowledge and culture, while British Deputy High Commissioner Lance Domm highlighted efforts to bring British authors to the event.

In her keynote address on “New World Disorder,” Senator Sherry Rehman said global forums were becoming exclusive and inaccessible.

“If you are not at the table, you are on the menu,” she said, adding that KLF had become the “soul of Karachi.”

Scholar Nasir Abbas Nayyar, in his keynote, highlighted the role of literature in shaping societies and promoting critical thinking.

The opening ceremony was followed by the KLF-Getz Pharma Book Awards. Shandana Minhas won the English Fiction Prize for Ferdowsnama, Dilawar Ali Aazar received the Urdu Poetry Award for Aahang, and Naseer Soomro won the Urdu Prose Award for Namak ki Betiyan.

The event concluded with a Kathak performance by Nighat Choudhry and Kathak Souls titled “Rhythm of Traditions through Poetry and Movement.”

Day One also featured a panel on “Jinnah’s Vision for a Plural Pakistan,” with Javed Jabbar in conversation with Ayesha Tammy, and the launch of Matisse in Morocco: A Journey of Light and Colour by Jeff Koehler.

The programme included a Sindhi mushaira, film screenings of W.R.A.P. (We Really Are Pakistan) and Jinnah by Jamil Dehlavi, and a live rap performance from Gizri artists.

With more than 200 speakers and 28 book launches, KLF 2026 is set to host discussions, literary debates and cultural performances throughout the weekend, reinforcing its position as Karachi’s leading literary platform.