What does it take to save a nation's memory? And who decides which stories survive? The Jinnah Papers, now inscribed on UNESCO's Memory of the World Register, represent one of the most significant archival collections in Pakistan's modern history. But this collection nearly didn't survive. Its preservation required decades of painstaking work, navigating institutional indifference, resource constraints, political sensitivities, and the relentless deterioration that threatens all documentary heritage in our climate. For our inaugural Caravanserai gathering, we welcome Parveen Zaidi, a trained conservationist who, alongside her late husband Dr. Z.H. Zaidi, dedicated decades to conserving this irreplaceable collection. After obtaining specialized training abroad in document preservation, she became an equal partner in the technical work of restoring these precious and fragile documents. The story of how these papers were saved is equal parts detective work, endurance test, and love letter to the idea that documenting the past matters for understanding the present.
Parveen Zaidi is a trained conservationist who obtained specialized training abroad in document preservation and conservation. Far from simply supporting her late husband Z.H. Zaidi's work, she was a full partner in the decades-long effort to preserve the Jinnah Papers, directly engaged in the painstaking technical work of conserving and restoring these irreplaceable historic documents.
The work spanned from 1991 through 2008, involving the organization and conservation of 113 sacks of records, 46 tin trunks, and some 70,000 copies of Muslim League publications. This eventually resulted in 25 published volumes in English, Urdu, and Persian, documenting the crucial period of Pakistan's emergence. Her perspective offers intimate knowledge of both the technical challenges of preservation and the personal dimensions of committing years to work that can define a nation's collective perception.
This gathering is for anyone who cares about how memory works, how cultural heritage gets preserved or lost, and what it means to take responsibility for materials that belong not to individuals but to collective futures. We'll explore what gets preserved and what gets lost? Who has the resources and authority to decide? You don't need expertise in archival science or Pakistani history.
Bring curiosity, not credentials !