The crocodiles are here to swim

by Khalid Hasan

Khalid Hasan isn't just another funny writer on the current scene because, behind those hilarious digs that he takes at the people and events of today, is an earnest writer who feels deeply about what's going on here. He believes in having the grace to laugh at ourselves and, in the process, improve as a people. Corrective satire is Khalid Hasan's metier to which he brings a freshness of approach; a delightfully impudent knack for pinpointing the comic and the absurd; and a crisp, fast, readable style that makes him irresistible. We'll feel better, and somehow cleaner, for having read - and laughed with - Khalid Hasan.

205 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1970

About the author

Journalist, writer and translator, Khalid Hasan has authored over 40 books. He spoke several languages fluently, and is the worldʼs preeminent translator as he is best remembered for brilliant English translations of verses of Faiz Ahmed Ahmed, short stories of Saadat Hasan Manto and many other distinguished writers.

He was born in Srinagar, Kashmir. He was a proud Kashmiri, writes his son. "He lived and breathed the culture, history and politics of his homeland, and never stopped working towards peace and freedom in the region."

Khalid Hasan worked for a specialised international news agency in Vienna from 1981 to 1991 and was first press secretary to Pakistani Prime Minister Zulfikar Ali Bhutto.

After spending five ears in the country's foreign service, he resigned to return to the profession of journalism, barring a two-year break from 1997-99 when he worked as head of the Shalimar Television Network in Pakistan. From 2000 to 2002, he was special correspondent of the Associated Press of Pakistan in Washington D.C.

Khalid Hasan is known as one of Pakistan's best known columnists. He used to "write tantalizingly fresh and lively columns full of humour, gibe and barbs that attracted instant attention in the country", reminiscences Afzal Khan, a journalist and Hasan's fellow, in this obituary.