Light Within

Meeting Salman Rashid is always a pleasure. In addition to what I learned from him (he is a walking encyclopedia of Pakistan), I get to know him as a person a little more every time. The good news is that now he is online (Blog, Twitter, Google Plus, and Facebook), where he takes questions and answers them. We met This time, and I learned about his NGO work. He covers the human side of good work being done by them. We talked about his books.

 

The author of eight travel books (The Apricot Road to Yarkand, Jhelum: City of the Vitasta, Sea Monsters and the Sun God: Travels in Pakistan, Salt Range and Potohar Plateau, Prisoner on a Bus: Travel Through Pakistan, Between Two Burrs on the Map: Travels in Northern Pakistan, Gujranwala: The Glory That Was and Riders on the Wind – now I have them all) and hundreds of travelogues that have appeared in most List A newspapers and magazines, Salman Rashid is a top travel writers in Pakistan. He is the only Pakistani who have seen the north face of Chhogho Ri (K -2).

As a travel writer, Salman Rashid stands out very tall. Salman gives you substance that goes far beyond a travel piece, for he just doesn’t write about people and places. Each of his pieces is a free-flowing specimen, with the most knowledgeable description of people, customs, history, legends and yes, anthropology woven into the story - and in language that is fluent and crisp, and also at places containing a fair dose of humor and sarcasm. The panorama that he presents turns most of his work into a literary master piece. Sir Vidya Naipaul says, “Salman Rashid writes with wonderful clarity.”

 

Another aspect of Salman’s work is the accompaniment of his landscape photography, which is not merely a visual delight but also “replicates, as lucidly, the spatial notations and ambiance he articulates in words”. Though he says “There is really no artistry in my lensmanship; it's all fairly straightforward shooting,” still, the way he photographically documents the history, geography, and culture is pure fine art in itself. “The panoply that Salman Rashid paints through his pen and his photography is simply breathtaking- a delight for the connoisseur and general reader alike,” writes Agha Akbar.