Attending Freelance Baithek 2.0 was an experience I genuinely enjoyed. I went as Muhammad Hamaeel, a graphic designer, design director, and UI/UX designer at Kllakar, and came back with a memory I had been looking forward to for years: meeting Imran Ali Dina, better known as GFXMentor, in person.
There was plenty to appreciate beyond that meeting, too. The event brought together perspectives on design, AI, e-commerce, storytelling, human behavior, and freelancing. For me, it was a chance to step away from my usual work and listen to people whose experience comes from different parts of the creative and business world.
Finally Meeting GFXMentor in Person
I have followed GFXMentor’s tutorials and learned from his content for years. His teaching has been part of my development as a graphic designer, so meeting him felt personal in a way that simply seeing a familiar speaker on stage would not.
When you spend years learning from someone through a screen, their presence becomes familiar. You recognize their way of explaining things, and you associate them with the time you have spent learning. Meeting that person face to face is still a different experience.
I was excited to approach him for a photograph, but I was a little nervous as well. He noticed it. As I remember it, he said something along the lines of, “Why are you nervous? Come, take a picture!” That is my recollection of the moment, rather than a verified word-for-word quote.
His friendly response immediately made me feel comfortable. What stayed with me was how naturally he picked up on my expression. It reminded me that a good teacher can understand a student’s feelings even during a brief meeting.
It was a small interaction, and I do not want to make it sound bigger than it was. But after learning from his work for so long, being able to meet him and take a photograph was the highlight of my Freelance Baithek 2.0 experience.
Learning Beyond Graphic Design
Graphic design is my main connection to events like this, but I appreciated that the conversations reached further. Creative work sits alongside business decisions, technology, communication, and the way people understand each other. Hearing those subjects discussed together gave the day more variety.
My work at Kllakar includes thinking about how design communicates. Listening to perspectives from other industries was valuable because it gave me time to consider the wider context around that work, without turning every session into a checklist of things to implement.
I enjoyed being part of a graphic design community while also hearing about freelancing and entrepreneurship. Sometimes the value of attending is simply having the space to pay attention to subjects outside your everyday routine.
Speakers and Sessions at Freelance Baithek 2.0
These were the speakers and topics that formed part of the event experience. I have linked their individual LinkedIn profiles so anyone reading can find their work directly.
- Imran Ali Dina (GFXMentor): A graphic design and video editing mentor whose teaching has been part of my own design journey.
- Muhammad Tahir: AI and its impact on creative workflows, a subject closely connected to how creative work is changing.
- Muhammad Irfan: AI and emerging technologies, adding another technology perspective to the event.
- Muhammad Zeeshan: Founder of Zee.Sy Jewellery, covering e-commerce and entrepreneurship.
- Saad Afridi: CEO of Scents N Stories, with the session The Art of Copywriting & Storytelling in 2026.
- Ahmed Rauf Essa: Founder of Telemart & ARE Ventures, with the session AI-Powered E-Commerce: The Next Wave of Growth.
- Dr. Muhammad Qamar-ul Hassan: Personality types, human behavior, and their importance in business success.
The range of subjects was something I appreciated. Design was part of the day, but so were the businesses, technologies, and human relationships surrounding it. Each topic offered a different point of entry into that wider conversation.
Why Clients Choose You: The Freelancing Panel
The panel discussion, “Why Clients Choose You? The Secret Behind Winning Freelance Opportunities,” brought the focus back to a question that matters to people working independently.
The panelists were Syed Faizan Ali Shah, Ruba Mughal, Syed Furqan Azim, Asfand Yar Junejo, Alina Nisar, and Farheen Fatima.
I appreciated having freelancing represented alongside the other business and creative topics. The panel’s central question was relevant to my own work, and it belonged naturally in an event that brought these different professional experiences together.
What I Took Away from the Event
My strongest takeaway was the experience of being there. Much of my learning and work happens through a laptop, so meeting people in person and listening in a shared space felt refreshing.
I do not need to attach a dramatic business outcome to the day to call it worthwhile. I enjoyed it, heard perspectives beyond my own field, and finally met someone whose teaching I have valued for years. Those are enough reasons for the experience to matter to me.
A Few Pictures, Good Memories
The photographs are a way to remember the people I met and the experience of attending. The picture with GFXMentor means the most to me because I remember the nervousness just before it, and how quickly his friendly response put me at ease.
That is how I will remember Freelance Baithek 2.0: an enjoyable day, a wider mix of perspectives, and a photograph with a teacher I had known through his tutorials long before I met him in person.