Book Launch: ‘Naa Suni Gayi Awazain’

What happens to the stories that are never told, the emotions that remain unspoken, and the experiences that are pushed to the margins of society? How do silence, memory, longing, love, grief, resistance, and hope find expression when ordinary language seems inadequate?

Published in May 2026 by AAJ Publications (Karachi), Naa Suni Gayi Awazain (Unheard Voices) is the latest work of writer Fatima Mehru. Through a collection of Urdu prose poems (nasri nazmein), the book gives voice to experiences that are often overlooked, forgotten, or deliberately silenced. Moving between the personal and the political, the poems engage with questions of identity, belonging, injustice, vulnerability, resilience, and the many forms of struggle that shape human lives.

Rooted in universal themes of feminism, marginalization, and social consciousness, the collection invites readers to reflect upon the lives and perspectives of those who remain unheard despite being all around us.

About the Author/Poet:

Fatima Mehru is a poet, writer, translator, and academic based in Lahore. She is currently pursuing her PhD in English Literature at Kinnaird College for Women University and serves as a visiting faculty member at the University of the Punjab.

A trilingual poet who writes in Urdu, Punjabi, and English, Fatima Mehru is widely recognized for her exploration of themes related to identity, memory, marginalization, gender, belonging, and the human condition. Her first collection of Urdu prose poems, Darya aur Dareechay (2021), received considerable acclaim and was recognized by the Pakistan Academy of Letters during the Pakistan Mother Languages Literary Festival (2022) as a representative work of a new generation of poets. Her Punjabi poetry has also appeared in Barah Mah, a prominent literary magazine published jointly in India and Pakistan.

Her latest collection, Naa Suni Gayi Awazain (Unheard Voices), published by AAJ Publications (Karachi) in May 2026, engages with universal feminist concerns and the experiences of marginalized communities through the form of Urdu prose poetry.

In addition to poetry, Fatima Mehru writes Urdu short stories, literary columns, articles, and book reviews for newspapers and literary journals. One of her English poems was included in Pakistan’s Single National Curriculum (2020–2022) for Grade 5 students. She has also authored English-language textbooks for Grades 3 and 5 for AFAQ Publications.

Her work has been translated into English, Sindhi, Saraiki, German, Persian, Hindi, and Telugu. She has appeared as a speaker at numerous literary forums, including the Lahore Literature Festival, where she participated in the sessions Innovations in Urdu Poetry (2022) and New Generation, New Poetry (2024).

About the Panelists:

• Fatima Mehru
  (Trilingual Poet, Short Story Writer, Columnist, Visiting Faculty at University of the Punjab)
• Harris Khalique
  (Poet, Writer, Columnist, Social Activist)
• Dr. Fakhra Noreen
  (Poet, Translator, Educator)
• Dr. Ravish Nadeem
  (Author, Poet, Educator, Critic)
• Dr. Snobar Altaf
  (Author, Poet, Educator, Critic — Moderator)

This session is free and open to all. Just visit the venue to attend it.

The Black Hole
Plot 5H, Street 100, G-11/3, Islamabad.
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