Bald Angel

Indeed a very nice sketch, portrayed after a comprehensive research. great work Gill sahib...

Gill Sahib, One thing you forgot to mention is the unique characterisation in Manto`s Short Stories, from the prostitutes to Gangsters, He gave each character something unique, something that isolates them from every other prostitute or gangster ever written about. I agree with your analysis of the sketch about Quaid-e-Azam, but the catch was that it was not a story about the Quaid as much as it was a story about a man who lived in the great man`s shadow. Meray Sahib is a unique tale of an old man`s respect for a one time employer. It is also a manifestation of the importance and strength of memories. I beleive aparts from Meray Sahib, there are hardly any stories about Quaid`s Personal Life. And so generations will know about Quaids personality through a few recollections of his driver. (I am not able to recollect the name of the American Author who wrote Jinnah of Pakistan)

One of my favourite Manto Short story is ``Kal jo saweray meri aankh khuli``, I may have taken the wrong title but it was about his first days in Independent Pakistan and his walk around in karachi. He wrote so vividly about the strangeness of this new found country and how identities were held together, and how patriotic fervour took hold of everyone. That story also described the innocence of the newly found nation and its people. An innocence and patriotism that would become blurred in the future with what the partition writers referred to as `` Har koi apni dahi gaz ki masjid bana raha hai``.

And offcourse no one can complete Manto`s sketch without mentioning his Letters to Uncle Sam in which one quote caught hold of my imagination. Manto Wrote `` Chacha it feels like this world and all its resources are made for you and your fellow americans..........we are just wasting our time here``.

=== Interact Filtered ===
view this users filtered interacts

Here lies buried Saadat Hasan Manto in whose bosom, are enshrined all the secrets and art of short story writing. He, buried under maunds of earth, even now is contemplating whether he is a greater short story writer or God


Mohammed:

..good write up…wish you had emphasized Khol dO…

re: the epitah, I have been told that it was never put on his tombstone…

urdu adub had its glorious period when the four musketeers (Krishn Chander, Ismat Chughtai, Rajinder Singh Bedi and Manto) were in full swing…

rgds,

t

Very interesting little piece Gill sahib. I enjoyed it immensely. I am not a big Manto fan but have read quite a few of his stories. Indeed, I began to translate Khol Do into English for Chowk but then stopped..may be I should complete it?

**

I think he is overrated as a writer of Urdu prose. Yes, his topics and themes are often hard hitting and daring but controversy alone doesn`t make one `great`. Still an enjoyable piece of work and much preferred to your sermons on science vs religion!! :-)

Thanks for the informative sketch Gill Sahib.

temporal

~~urdu adub had its glorious period when the four musketeers (Krishn Chander, Ismat Chughtai, Rajinder Singh Bedi and Manto) were in full swing… ~~

Can I make a suggestion? Could you write an article about these four writers to educate Urdu-ignorant people like me? I would be interested in learning about them and their work and lives.

regards

PunjabiZulu:

sorry cannot...maybe someone else reading this can...

i have been sweet talked into transcribing and translating an `interview-chat` i had with ismat chughtai...i have transcribed it into urdu and am in the process of letting procrastination sweet talk me into delaying the translation process till the kashmir issue is settled;)

...t

temporal

I look forward to reading whatever you write...File away in your long term memory for future project, at least?

:)

regards

PunjabiZulu:

...will let you in on a secret;)...go through my i-log and search the older entries as well...i often provide links to what interests me...and that includes literature related links...recall posted one there about frances pritchett`s home page...what a wealth of links there...one of my favorite was an interactive link to her passion ..ghalib...

...i will find some useful links to the four musketeers and will post them later this week...thanks for your interest...

rgds,

t

ps: and you come across some interesting links pass them along and i will mention them there...

temporal

Cheers mate, I will certainly pass along any interesting stuff that comes my way and I will start trawling through your back catalogue now.

regards & thanks

:)

Dear Inter-actors:
Thanks for your interest in Manto’s sketch. Jahil and Azure expressed their appreciation and there was interesting exchange between temporal and punjabizulu.

Regarding temporal’s comment on Manto’s epitaph, I like to clarify that Manto had written his epitaph although I’m not sure if he left any instructions for it to be erected on his grave. I believe it was just a literary quip. Regarding his comment on ‘Khol Do’, Naqshbandi has indicated in his comments that he is considering translating this story for publishing it on Chowk. If he does so, he’ll compensate for the deficiency that temporal noted in my sketch.

Regarding Wajahat’s comments, I do not know if Manto wrote a short story or essay, captioned “Saveray Jo Kal Aankh Meri Khuli.” Pitrus had written an essay with this caption and I had translated and published it on Chowk.

And lastly, I appreciate Naqshbandi’s comments. May I suggest to him that he should go ahead and publish ‘Khol Do’s’ translation on Chowk. It is a sad story reflecting on the atrocities committed during the partition of India. Women were victimized in the worst manner as it has happened in the history of humankind ever so often. Manto wrote this story to reveal the bestiality of men when they get out of control and not restrained by the law enforcement authorities. The transition of the partition process was totally lawless. The people of Indo-Pakistan had gone berserk, out of mutual communal hatred.

Manto received a lot of unjustified negative publicity for writing on ‘normally taboo’ themes in his time. He wrote about prostitutes, the neglected part of our community, who are as human as any other human being. Their stories also needed to be told and Manto told them in a ‘down-to-earth’ manner for which he was criticized.

Naqshbandi Saheb, please do not feel restrained by any feelings of ‘religious correctness’ to translate Manto’s stories if you feel like doing so. One doesn’t need to be ‘judgmental’ always. Loosen up a little bit, now and then, if I may so suggest.

Wishing you well,
Mohammad Gill

Gill sahib--I am quite `loose` (no not in that sense!!) but i think i will go ahead and translate Khol Do into English when I get some spare time after your comments. The main reason i stopped was the fear of not doing justice to the Urdu...

***

Wonderfully written piece. I have read somewhere that Manto was reluctant to leave Bombay and he only did this as the rest of his family had left for Pakistan - is this true. Also was there no place for him in Pakistan`s film industry?

Asif:

…it is good to note that you plan to translate Manto’s Khol DO…translations are never an easy job…one has to be well versed in the nuances of both languages, in addition to having a great deal of familiarity with the author and his/her times… wish you well…and hope to read the translated story here…

…i hope you look over the previous translations of Khol DO…there have been several…there is one by tahira naqvi and another i believ by khalid hasan and others…and have posted some other links to articles on manto in here

rgds,

t

Nice introduction to Manto.

Now that everyone and their peon has discovered Manto, it is important to keep a few things in mind.

1)Manto was primarily read for the titillation value he provided to its readers. Very few readers were interested in the literary merit of his works. Just like Madame Bovary, critical appreciation of his efforts came much later.

2)Manto deemed his work in the scriptwriting department more important than short stories or sketches. Almost everyone of his works mentions his endeavours in that area. Maybe the recognition he thought he was due as a film writer and couldn`t get drove him to his drinking problems. Drinking was emblematic more of a lifestyle than a need in the `creative` circles he moved in.

3)Manto borrows heavily from French literature which was in vogue at the time. It is claimed that he was fluent in French and he borrowed several patterns used in French literature. Use of the prostitute as a human character with conflicting emotions was a French device.

4)There was an effort on part of the purists who belonged mostly to Urdu speaking elites to deny him his due. While they wanted a monopoly on the pandans and the tawaifs, they just couldn`t acknowledge the genius of someone who was not a `ahl-e-zabaan`.

5)As Gill Sahib alleges, most of Manto`s work is largely forgettable. But the gems in there are enough to certify him as the best short story writer Urdu has produced.

The mere thought of Naqshbandi translating `Khol Do` is enough to make a grown man cry. Naqshbandi, I beg you. In the name of Ghazali and Ibne-Batuta please spare us the misery. I am willing to trade you whatever little sawaab I may have on the day of judgement in return.

later
-sac