LAHORE - Editor ‘Family’ Magazine of Nawa-i-Waqt Group, senior journalist, eminent writer and film producer Ali Sufiyan Afaqi passed away on Tuesday at the age of 82. He was laid to rest at a local graveyard.
Many leaders including Punjab Chief Minister Shahbaz Sharif, JI Ameer Sirajul Haq, MQM chief Altaf Hussain have expressed their grief and sorrow on his demise. Ali Sufiyan Afaqi, who has been ill over last few days, was born on August 22, 1933 in the State of Bhopal, India. He received education from Meerath and after doing graduation he joined the profession of journalism through JI Pakistan newspaper, Tasneem.
After that he served in weekly Chattan, Aqwam, Asaar, daily Afaq and then Nawa-i-Waqt, where he performed duties in difference capacities. The deceased was the pioneer of ‘filmi review’ which he started in Afaq. Under title of ‘Daam-e-Khayal’ and ‘Darechey’, he also contributed as a columnist to Nawa-i-Waqt, Amroz, Ahsan, and Jang daily.
He founded Family magazine which now is reckoned among the leading weeklies of the country.
Other than media, the deceased also had a good contribution to film making in the county and earned a big name. With his old friend Shabab Karanwi, Afaqi produced motion film Thandi Sark in 1957 while in 1958 he sidetracked from media when martial law regime of Ayub Khan had put curbs on the freedom of press. He then completely devoted himself to the showbiz world and won tremendous popularity by producing films in collaboration of Director Hassan Tariq. In 1965, he wrote story and produced film, Kaneez, which was followed by film Mera Ghar Meri Jannat and then Saza.
Saza was his sole production where he introduced the pair of Jameel and Rozina to the showbiz world.
In 1972, Afaqi wrote, produced and directed film, Aas, following which he wrote stories of a number of films including Aadmi, Aaj Kal, Joker, Katal key baad, Aik Hi Rasta, Asra, Adalat, Shikwa, Deewangi, Naya Safar, Mein Wo Nahin, Andleeb, Mere Hamsafar, Gumnam ‘Meharbani,’ ‘Bandgagi,’ ‘Kamyabi,’ ‘Hum or Tum,’ ‘Playboy,’ ‘Miss Colombo,’ ‘Daman or Chingari,’ ‘Dewar Bhabi,’ ‘Dil Aik Aiyana,’ ‘Mohabbat,’ ‘Ilzam,’ ‘Intizaar,’ ‘Insaniyat,’ ‘Dosti,’ ‘Namak Haram and others which hit the box office. His three movies Aas, Ajnabi and Saiqa were selected for exhibition in the Tashkent Film Festival where they were translated into many Russian languages. The deceased was eight times recipient of the Nigar Award, six times recipient of Graduate Award and one time each Kartak and Musawar Award.
The deceased was also writer of as many as 28 books on different topic of them Alif Laila became the most popular. The deceased also had the recognition of ‘filmi encyclopedia’.