Book documents achievements of Indian community
Fakir Hassen pays tribute to the many involved in 20 years of democracy
SEASONED journalist Fakir Hassen swapped his notebook and camera to become the news on Wednesday night at the launch of his book A Thousand Inspirations — Reflections on 20 Years of Democracy .
The event was held at Killarney Mall CineCentre and attended by 180 guests, many of whom are featured in his book.
Hassen had donned a grey sherwani (Indian suit) for the evening, but he complained that he was not one for traditional wear. He greeted the guests and signed copies of his book in the foyer.
He said the coffee-table book paid tribute to some of the major achievements of the Gauteng Indian community. It is intended to be part of the 20 years of freedom project.
More than 2 500 people receive a mention in the book, including freedom fighters, philanthropists, community workers, cultural enthusiasts, and sportsmen and women.
Journalist Ashraf Garda attended the event with his beautiful wife, Jamela. Garda was one of the speakers and is also mentioned in the book. He said he was honoured to have witnessed many of the events mentioned in it.
Businessman Sammy Naidoo echoed Garda’s views, as did the president of the Tamil Federation of Gauteng, Nad Pillay.
Hassen said the book did not cover all the historical events in the Indian community, but it is his account of events in the past 20 years. There were many others who contributed but are not mentioned. He hoped other writers would document the community’s history.
Television presenter Ayushi Chhabra, who also spoke at the event, told me that she was off to Las Vegas to pursue an acting career. If that did work out, she would head to Bollywood to try to make her dreams come true, she said.
After the formalities, the guests were treated to a Bollywood film, Koyelaanchal, starring Sunil Shetty and Vinod Khanna.