Renowned Brazilian author Paulo Coelho – who has written several international bestsellers including The Alchemist – has defended PML-N Senior Vice President Maryam Nawaz mispronouncing his name.
According to the details, Maryam Nawaz recently gave an interview where she revealed the names of her favorite authors and books, however, she mispronounced Paulo Coelho’s name, calling him “Paulo Coedo”.
“Like there’s Paulo Coedo, he’s a Brazilian author, whom I read with much joy. [He’s] written [The] Alchemist and Warrior of Light,” Maryam Nawaz said.
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Needless to say, Maryam Nawaz became the target of much trolling for her apparent slip of the tongue. Netizens even went as far as to tag Paulo Coelho who came to the defense of Maryam Nawaz, shutting down critics.
“I make mistakes very often in pronunciation of foreign names, so don’t be critical,” The Alchemist-novelist said.
https://twitter.com/paulocoelho/status/1634217415738380288?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1634217415738380288%7Ctwgr%5Ef7adc5a6a3c07624d132dad635558c1a4d22fdb5%7Ctwcon%5Es1_&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fwww.geo.tv%2Flatest%2F475577-renowned-author-paulo-coelho-defends-maryam-nawazs-faux-pas
Interestingly, the netizens then responded to Paulo Coelho’s comments by bringing him up-to-speed on the country’s political scenario. Netizens said that the issue isn’t her mispronouncing the name, but rather her pretending that she has read Paulo Coelho’s books.
In the interview, Maryam Nawaz revealed her favorite books, writers, poets and thinkers in a recent interview. She said that her favorite reading genre is Fiction and History. She went on to name her favorite writers who’s books she enjoyed reading while she was incarcerated.
Apart from Paulo Coelho, Elif Shafak’s The Forty Rules of Love is one of Maryam Nawaz’s favorite books. She said she loves reading the work of Irish poet Seamus Heaney, especially his work on freedom. Recalling her time in jail, Maryam Nawaz said that was the first time she could read Urdu novels and poetry.
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“One has a lot of time in jail, so I miss how I used to read there. I read the work of Ahmad Faraz, Sahir Ludhianvi, Parveen Shakir, and Amjad Islam Amjad. Apart from this, I have enjoyed reading the work of thinkers and even implemented their philosophies in my life. I have really enjoyed the work of Francis Bacon and Friedrich Nietzsche,” the PML-N leader said.