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The Achievers Journal
Volume 3, No.2.
ISSN (ONLINE): 2395-0897 / ISSN (PRINT): 2454-2296 April-June, 2017
Breaking the Prolonged Silence of Agonies: A Glimpse into Ismat Chughtai's

Short Stories
Kalpana Pandey
Research Scholar
&
Dr. V.K.Singh
Prof & Head
Dept. of English and Other Foreign Languages
Dr. Shakuntala Misra National Rehabilitation University, Lucknow
Abstract
Ismat Chughtai was one of the most prolific and courageous Urdu writers known for her
revolutionary and unconventional writings. She was a legend of Urdu literature who remained
champion of 'terhi lakeer' instead of ‘the straightway’. She often struck an outrageous attitude in
her writings. Undoubtedly, she was an excellent story writer of an individual and unique style.
Instead of adopting the common path Chughtai presented the hidden sexual relations and problems
of the male dominated society in a very ingenuous and impressive manner. She made a special place
among the hearts of women because in her short stories there was a settled new world concerned
with women. Here the women were not weak, wretched and exploited. They were not constrained to
fulfil the duties of women against the injustice of the patriarchal society but they were always two
steps ahead of men. She has written many memorable stories in which some recognizable stories
are Lihaaf, Chauthi Ka Joda, Gainda, Nanhi Ki Nani, Ghar Wali ,The Wedding Suit, The Home
maker, Tiny’s Granny, etc. Some of her stories (Lihaaf,Gainda, The Wedding Suit, The Home
maker, Tiny’s Granny) will be analysed in the present paper to focus on the conservative patriarchy
of the society and rebellious steps of her women against it.
Keywords : ingenuous; irrepressible; susceptibility; zenana; impertinence; vulnerability
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TAJ: Journal of English Language, Literature and Culture
http://theachieversjournal.com
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Volume 3, No.2.
Ismat Chughtai (1915-1991) was one of the most famous and accomplished Indian writers
in Urdu. She was born into a muslim family of Uttar Pradesh. She was the ninth of the ten children
born to Mirza Quaseem Beg. Her father was an honest civil servant. All her sisters were older than
her. When she was quite young she got married. Her father supported her education while her
mother and relatives were against her education. In her Memoir, “ Leaving Aligarh once again,”
Chughtai says “ When I read that the women were the weaker sex and that they were easily
corruptible ; it had strange impact on me. I felt angrier with myself rather than the society, thinking
there must be something lacking in me. I felt pity , not anger, for my parents. They were trapped
in their limited world.” (Chughtai 110) She was a writer and director, known for Arzoo (1950),
Junoon (1979) and Scorching Winds (1974). She was the first Indian Muslim woman who had the
degrees of B.A and B.Ed. In this period she started writing in secret, due to violent opposition to
her education from her Muslim relatives. Chughtai’s short stories reflect the cultural legacy of the
region in which she lived. She was a liberal Muslim whose daughter and nephew were married to
Hindus. Her brother, Mirza Azim Beg Chughtai, an established writer, was her first teacher and
mentor. The frankness in her nature and writing was due to the fact that the better part of her
childhood was spent in the company of her brothers. Many of her books have been banned during
their publication history because of her reformist and bold attitude.
The miserable situation of women, their pain, affliction and exploitation have been some
of the much-written-about themes from ancient time to the present day. Many renowned innovative
writers have given an account to the sentiments, problems and struggle of women with utter disgust
and despair. Ismat Chughtai was one of them who justified and explored women’s desires and
women’s sexuality through her writings. She writes art for life mode with irrepressible honesty
and truthfulness. She advocates modernity and progress in her writings and is known for her
indomitable spirit and a fierce feminist ideology. The focus of the present paper is on some of the
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Volume 3, No.2.
most memorable Urdu short stories by Ismat Chughtai which are concerning the mutiny and
serenity of women for ages.
Ismat Chughtai is perhaps one of the most evocative, controversial and powerful writers of
Urdu literature. Along with Rashid Jahan, Wajeda Tabassum and Qurratulain Hyder, Ismat’s work
stands for the birth of a revolutionary feminist politics and aesthetics in twentieth century Urdu
Literature. Ismat Chughtai was such an artist who popularized female susceptibility by articulating
their feelings and problems. She speaks ardently in opposition to orthodoxy and obstinacy of the
society through her writings. She also offers middle class manners and other emerging conflicts of
modern India. She conveys the themes in bold, innovative, rebellious and unabashedly realistic
way. Chughtai was a successful supporter against hackneyed traditions and customs that were
draining the middle and lower-middle class social order. She writes against the cultural practices
of the society and gives the fervent voice for the unheard.
Chughtai wrote in multiple literary genres starting from afsanas to novels, novellas, drama,
and traditional genres of Urdu literature. Her well-known novel Terhi Lakir (The Crooked Line)
produced a lot of readers to Chughtai both at home and abroad, and it also enhanced the reputation
of modern Urdu fiction. But her most noteworthy achievement lays in short story form. She
especially used the common Urdu words and idioms which were prevalent among the women
within the zenanas. Her language vividly describes various aspects of a woman whether it is related
to her individual or social life. An economical and appropriate use of words is the best quality of
Ismat’s writings. After reading her stories it seems that Ismat is like a photographer who is taking
pictures around her. In present time, many of her works have been not only translated, but also
adapted and performed. In her stories Ismat portrays rich heritage mingled with sturdy western
influences. She comprehends the intricacies of a woman’s mind and evidently presents it in the
world of modernity and nationality.
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Volume 3, No.2.
It is said that Ismat Chughtai represented that society in her writings which she faced in
reality. In his book A History of Indian Literature Sisir Kumar Das says that Ismat Chughtai was
one of the best writers who gave new direction to Urdu literature. She had good family background
yet she had to fight for her education, only because she was a girl. He says that Ismat Chughtai
was known for her short story Lihaaf. About her Qurratulain Hyder said that ‘as a friend Ismat
Apa was loving, warm-hearted and sincere. She had a lot of self pride and never mentioned her
financial difficulties. During the lean period she never sought any sympathy or help for anybody.’
This self pride could also be seen in many of her women characters.
Ismat has presented different aspects of a woman in her stories Chauthi Ka Joda (The
Wedding Suit), Lihaaf (The Quilt), Gainda (Marigold), Gharwali (The Home Maker), Nanhi Ki
Nani (Tiny’s Granny), Badan Ki Khushboo (Lingering Fragrance), Chui-mui (Touch Me Not), Til
(The Mole), Beemar (The Invalid), Bachchu Phupi (Her Father’s Elder Sister) and so many. One
can see in her stories an educated girl, a lower class girl, a prostitute, a devoted housewife, a
repulsive girl, a passive girl, a lesbian, a conventional woman, a proficient woman etc. These
female characters of varied shade of Ismat’s stories are related to some common basic qualities
that facilitate to determine their status.
Ismat’s short story Lihaaf (The Quilt) has been published in 1942 in Urdu literary journal
‘Adab-i-Latif ’ published from Lahore. This is the most celebrated and controversial story which
created a splash in the field of Urdu literature and made Ismat a recognizable path breaker for
women writers. Ismat has taken a step first to write on the sexual life of women and on this point
she has obtained so much reputation that no one could attain so far. This story has charges of
obscenity and Ismat was summoned by the Lahore court in 1944. In an effortless translation by M.
Asaduddin, A Life in Words: Memoir allows a welcome glimpse into the tales of Ismat Chughtai’s
life. Lihaaf is the most famous story which deals with a lesbian encounter as well as homosexual
relationship within an all-woman setting (zenana) in a traditional Muslim household. Bonnie
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Volume 3, No.2.
Zimmerman refers to Faderman’s definition of lesbianism as follows: “ ‘Lesbian’ describes a

relationship in which two women’s strongest emotions and affections are directed towards each
other … the two women spend most of their time together and share most aspects of their lives
with each other”. (Zimmerman, 1997:81)
The main protagonist of the story Lihaaf is Begum Jaan who does not receive
consideration, love, truthfulness, consent and companionship even after her marriage to a rich
Muslim. So she begins to find happiness in her housemaid Rabbu’s service. The story is narrated
by a young girl who does not directly express about the relationship between Begum Jaan and
Rabbu but she describes what she hears at night from the Begum’s bed and what she sees under
the Begum’s quilt. In her memoir Kaghazi hai Parihan (1998) Ismat Chughtai tells to older writer
M. Aslam about her inspiration of writing this story, ‘Actually Aslam Sahab, I was never told by
anyone that I should not write on this particular subject of Lihaf. Neither did I read in any book
that one should not write about this...illness (marz)...or...addiction (lat). Maybe my mind is not the
brush of Abdurrahman Chughtai, it is instead a cheap sort of camera, whatever it sees, it clicks,
and my pen becomes helpless in my hand.’
Chughtai describes about the Nawab as, ‘the Nawab who was of ‘ripe years’...very
virtuous. No one had ever seen a nautch girl or prostitute in his house... He, however, had a strange
hobby. Some people are crazy enough to cultivate interests like breeding pigeons and watching
cockfights. Nawab Saheb had contempt for such disgusting sports. He kept an open house for
students- young, fair and slender-waisted boys whose expenses were borne by him.’ This shows
Nawab’s habit for same-sex desire. Nawab Saheb had married Begum Jaan but had ‘tucked her
away in the house with his other possessions’, as he is to other hobbies. Begum Jaan is neglected
by her husband who favours young men instead of her. This is the reason that she started to find
pleasure in the arms of her housemaid. Even after knowing about her husband’s homosexual
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Volume 3, No.2.
relation and his uncaring nature, Begum Jaan has to depend upon her husband. Because it was not
allowed for a woman to say something against her husband as he is the dominant member of the
society. It also shows that only a married woman has a position in the society because she has a
man with her.
However, it is revealed in Lihaaf that after marriage a woman’s life becomes disastrous
and she has to face humiliation and impertinence.
Gainda is a more mature and subtle story than other stories. In it the narrator, who was the
younger cousin of Gainda, tells the story in an indirect way about a girl named Gainda who was
her childhood playmate. Gainda was married at a very young age and soon after her marriage she
is deprived of happiness. She had become a widow at the age of thirteen. Even after her husband’s
death Gainda used to play with her cousins the games of bride and bridegroom. Afterwards she
was seduced by one of her cousins and gives birth to a child, whom no one takes care of. In spite
of knowing the fact, the elders sent him far away to study. Here it is obvious that the girl or woman
has not the permission to speak against the male dominated patriarchal society. Even in this story,
Gainda was very young to know anything about family life, yet she was married without asking
her desire in this matter, as “Gainda hardly fourteen or fifteen did not understand many things...”
In just a few pages of fragmented conversation and expression Chughtai manages to convey the
subject matter of gender and class without the self-consciousness. She does not unveil a lot about
this however she is successful in transmitting the issues to the readers.
The Wedding Suit is the story of three women- Bi Amma and her two daughters Kubra and
Hamida. This is Ismat’s admirable story of great pain and suffering. It portrays a living picture of
disillusionment and vulnerability of the poor class in our society which is also related to the
mortification of dowry. Kubra belongs to a poor family and her widow mother is very much
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Volume 3, No.2.
worried about her marriage. She tries to collect the money for her daughter’s dowry by stitching
clothes, but she is unable to do so. The conversation between Bi Amma and her cousin is sufficient
to prove the dowry system, ‘Well, if one can afford to give fifteen tolas of gold as dowry and a job
in the Burra Saheb’s office thrown in, there should be no dearth of suitable boys’. This
demonstrates the real problem of a woman that she cannot talk to a man directly about the marriage.
The same condition was with Kubra’s mother as there was no male member in the house. So she
was incapable to communicate her desire to Rahat who was Kubra’s maternal uncle’s elder son.
But because there was no male in the house to represent their wish for marriage, Rahat leaves the
place after a couple of days. One time Bi Amma becomes unwell, “after that, Hamida gave up
making demands for sweet roti, and Kubra’s marriage proposals somehow lost their way. It was
as if no one ever knew that behind the ack-cloth curtain someone’s youth was at its last gasp. And
there was another whose youth was raising its head like a serpent’s hood.” And at last Bi Amma
departs away from this world with a thousand wishes in her heart. These lines clarify that women
are still unable to break their silence if there is not any man to support them.
The story The Homemaker is about a girl named Lajo who was an orphan. She had to
work as a maid in various houses for livelihood. After becoming young she was used by many
men in the society and she also takes pleasure in it. Afterwards Lajo meets Mirza who is attracted
towards her and despite being conscious about the facts of her life, Mirza marries Lajo. He does
not ask for Lajo’s permission and takes the decision, “That evening, Mirza decided that he would
marry Lajo, and to hell with family honour.” Mirza wishes to make her a traditional housewife,
‘Mirza puts ban on lehenga and instructed her to wear tight fitting churidar pyjamas. Lajo was
used to open space between her legs. Two separate clothes joined by a strip of cloth were really
bothersome.’ But Lajo fails to become and has again sexual relationship with Mithwa. Then Mirza
beats Lajo badly and decides to divorce her without asking her. Even Mullaji, the chief of the
community, supports Mirza and says that ‘The Nikah was not valid, brother. No one knows whose
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Volume 3, No.2.
illegitimate brat she was. Nikah with a bastard is haram-strictly forbidden.’ Here Lajo could not
voice her problem to the society. And she also had to listen to the norms and conventions laid on
her by the dominant group.
Tiny’s Granny is also a living and notable creation of Ismat Chughtai in which Granny
(grandma) used to shed tears on her poverty, adversity and impoverishment throughout her life,
but neither the people of the society paid attention to it nor did the Almighty God. She spends her
life as a beggar and does not get any comfort and pleasure throughout her life. Her granddaughter
Tiny used to do "job at the Deputy Sahib's for her food, clothing and one and a half rupees a
month". Granny always stands with her "like a shadow" but "a pair of old hands cannot wipe out
what is inscribed in a person's fate". Nevertheless her innocent granddaughter Tiny was sexually
exploited by the men of the upper class society at a very small age and she was also badly beaten
by Deputy. Tiny and her grandma could not say anything about it to anyone as they belong to the
lower class of the society and they also had no male, as father, brother or husband to support them.
Grandma had to suffer a lot and keep her difficulties within herself. She spends an isolated life
with her little granddaughter and gives comfort to "the wounded bird" with sweets. As a result,
Tiny lost her innocence at a very young age and becomes a woman and not a “fully-fashioned
woman moulded by Nature’s skilled and practised hand, but one like a figure on whom some giant
with feet two yards long had trodden-squat, fat, puffy, like a clay toy which the potter had knelt
on before it had hardened”. Moreover, the men of the society demonstrate their claim on Tiny as
“when a rag is all dirty and greasy, no one minds too much if someone wipes nose on it”.
Consequently, Tiny runs away to some unknown city and works as a prostitute, for the reason that
“they say that in places like Delhi and Bombay there is an abundant demand for this kind of
commodity”. Poor Granny did not know anything and with a lot of sufferings and misfortunes of
her life she passed away in an extremely awful condition. Here Ismat brings to light the artificial
and repulsive face of the society and makes an effort to present the torments of men whether it is
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Volume 3, No.2.
physically, mentally or sexually through the characters of Tiny and her grandma. The concluding
lines of the story are very significant as it reveal the truth of society: “On judgement Day…
(Granny) burst into the presence of God the All-Powerful and All-Kind... and God, beholding the
degradation of humanity, bowed his head in shame and wept tears of blood.” (Russell, 1959:129)
As depicted in these stories, women are just treated as sexual objects or things of exchange
in patriarchal society. By presenting the miseries and exploitation of women, Ismat Chughtai
makes a sketch of the wishes, requirements, humanity and individuality of the women. She has the
courage to expose female sexuality along with the other dimensions of social and existential
reality. Through her writings Chughtai tries to lift the veil the women wanted to say truth to the
society. She questions male authority and hierarchical power structure in patriarchy with great
sensitivity. The subject matter of her writings is chiefly associated with women and their position
in Indian society. In fact, Ismat gives voice honestly against the prevailing social order in which
women were not allowed to break the conventions and talk to the society. Undoubtedly, Ismat
Chughtai was a reputed name among her contemporaries of Urdu fiction writers- Rajinder Singh
Bedi, Saadat Hasan Manto and Krishna Chander and they together are also recognized as the four
pillars of Urdu short stories, and after the demise of Ismat the fourth pillar stands lost. It is now
difficult to find her replacement.
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Volume 3, No.2.
Works Cited
Asaduddin, M. “Gainda.” Trans. M. Asaduddin. Lifting the Veil: Selected Writings of Ismat
Chughtai. New Delhi: Penguin, 2001.
Asaduddin, M. “Lihaf.” Trans. M. Asaduddin. Lifting the Veil: Selected Writings of Ismat
Chughtai. New Delhi: Penguin, 2001.
Asaduddin, M. “The Homemaker.” Trans. M. Asaduddin. Lifting the Veil: Selected Writings of
Ismat Chughtai. New Delhi: Penguin, 2001.
Asaduddin, M. “The Wedding Suit.” Trans. M. Asaduddin. Lifting the Veil: Selected Writings of
Ismat Chughtai. New Delhi: Penguin, 2001.
Chughtai, Ismat. “Tiny’s Granny.” Trans. Ralph Russell. Contemporary Indian Short Stories 1959.
New Delhi: Sahitya Akademi, 1984, pp.117-29.
Das, Sisir Kumar. A History of Indian Literature 1911-1956, Struggle for Freedom. Delhi: Offset,
Shahdara, 1995.
Negi, Manjula. Ismat Chughtai: A Fearless Voice. New Delhi: Rupa, 2004.
Narang, Gopi Chand, Irteza Karim and Aslam Jamshedpuri, ed. Azadi Ke Bad Urdu Afsana (An
Anthology), Vol. I. New Delhi: Kaumi Council Baray Farokh Urdu Zaban, 2003.
Zimmerman, Bonnie. “What has Never Been: An Overview of Lesbian Feminist Literary
Criticism.” Feminisms: An Anthology of Literary Theory and Criticism. Ed. Robyn R.
Warhol and Diane Price Herndl. 2nd ed. USA: Rutgers UP, 1997.
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The Achievers Journal

Breaking the Prolonged Silence of Agonies: A Glimpse into Ismat Chughtai's

Keywords : ingenuous; irrepressible; susceptibility; zenana; impertinence; vulnerability

Zimmerman refers to Faderman’s definition of lesbianism as follows: “ ‘Lesbian’ describes a

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