प्रेमचंद की सर्वश्रेष्ठ कहानियां

by Munshi Premchand

प्रेमचंद ने हिन्दी कहानी को निश्चित परिप्रेक्ष्य और कलात्मक आधर दिया। उनकी कहानियां परिवेश बुनती हैं। पात्रा चुनती हैं। उसके संवाद बिलकुल उसी भाव-भूमि से लिए जाते हैं जिस भाव-भूमि में घटना घट रही है। इसलिए पाठक कहानी के साथ अनुस्यूत हो जाता है। प्रेमचंद यथार्थवादी कहानीकार हैं, लेकिन वे घटना को ज्यों का त्यों लिखने को कहानी नहीं मानते। यही वजह है कि उनकी कहानियों में आदर्श और यथार्थ का गंगा-जमुनी संगम है। कथाकार के रूप में प्रेमचंद अपने जीवनकाल में ही किंवदंती बन गये थे। उन्होंने मुख्यतः ग्रामीण एवं नागरिक सामाजिक जीवन को कहानियों का विषय बनाया। उनकी कथायात्रा में श्रमिक विकास के लक्षण स्पष्ट हैं, यह विकास वस्तु विचार, अनुभव तथा शिल्प सभी स्तरों पर अनुभव किया जा सकता है। उनका मानवतावाद अमूर्त भावात्मक नहीं, अपितु सुसंगत यथार्थवाद है।

Genres: Fiction, Short Stories, India, Classics, Literature

160 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 2004

About the author

Munshi Premchand (Hindi: मुंशी प्रेमचंद) was an Indian writer famous for his modern Hindustani literature. He is one of the most celebrated writers of the Indian subcontinent,and is regarded as one of the foremost Hindustani writers of the early twentieth century.

Born Dhanpat Rai, he began writing under the pen name "Nawab Rai", but subsequently switched to "Premchand", while he is also known as "Munshi Premchand", Munshi being an honorary prefix. A novel writer, story writer and dramatist, he has been referred to as the "Upanyas Samrat" ("Emperor among Novelists") by some Hindi writers. His works include more than a dozen novels, around 250 short stories, several essays and translations of a number of foreign literary works into Hindi.

Premchand is considered the first Hindi author whose writings prominently featured realism. His novels describe the problems of the poor and the urban middle-class. His works depict a rationalistic outlook, which views religious values as something that allows the powerful hypocrites to exploit the weak. He used literature for the purpose of arousing public awareness about national and social issues and often wrote about topics related to corruption, child widowhood, prostitution, feudal system, poverty, colonialism and on the India's freedom movement.

Several of his early works, such as A Little Trick and A Moral Victory, satirised the Indians who cooperated with the British colonial government.

In the 1920s, he was influenced by Mahatma Gandhi's non-cooperation movement and the accompanying struggle for social reform. During this period, his works dealt with the social issues such as poverty, zamindari exploitation (Premashram, 1922), dowry system (Nirmala, 1925), educational reform and political oppression (Karmabhumi, 1931).

In his last days, he focused on village life as a stage for complex drama, as seen in his most famous work Godan as well as the short-story collection Kafan (1936).Premchand believed that social realism was the way for Hindi literature, as opposed to the "feminine quality", tenderness and emotion of the contemporary Bengali literature.

Reviews

[Pallavi · Rating 5 out of 5]

[Aditya Watts · Rating 5 out of 5]

My father isn’t a very vocal man. Not gifted with great self expression I sometimes mistake him for a simpleton. In my high falutin modern day extravagant complex philosophies I try to teach him about life and he would humble me without meaning to or perhaps even self-awareness with gentle clarity of wisdom. My argument “Preservation of culture! Western Corruption!” His simple respone “All things must pass.”
This is the essence of Indian Spirituality. Acceptance. What is also termed Fatalism. Indian “Philosophy” is or for that matter the essence of any religion is not rooted in Material Analysis but exploration of the self.
Around 6-7 years ago, when I was merely 22-23 and watching myself destroying my own life though drugs, self-hatred, self-pity and self-enforced isolation. Refusing to let go of my old wounds instead scratching and clawing and digging ever deeper. In my bid to save myself I went out alone on the roads, traveled on buses exploring our country, trying to get away from myself and “fatalistically” I happened upon Vipassana. With no knowledge beforehand, a modern day young liberal atheist, I went just to get away from myself. It changed my life as an essential touch with deep spirituality changes anyone. The philosophy so simple yet most profound, no complex analysis or term papery academic jargon. A human being we were told is connected to the world in one very simple way. We breathe in the world and we breathe out, and when we stop, we disconnect. The breath is the connect and hence exploration of God/Self begins from merely observing this connection of “Life” with “World”.
Why all this in a review of Premchand? Because lately I’ve come to witness - perhaps falsely as most observations are eventually proven false, however, I’ve noticed a unique Goodness in the Indian. In the creature found on the sub-continent. Whether this be in out movies of old - Naya Daur, Shree 420 etc. The music of Burman, Kishore etc. or Premchand’s literature. More than any other quality, the qualities of the heart/spirit - kindness, gentleness, simplicity, love and care seem to dominate. I propose this is owed to our very strong spiritual heritage rooted in our essentials Ramyana and Mahabharata and the many sister disciplines of Buddhism, Sikhism, Jainism etc.
I remember a long time ago I saw a Gita in my fraternal grandparents home and on it the writers name happened to be not Vyasa, Ganesha or Krishna, but my grandfather. A curio. I learned and realised that there is a strange tradition of rewriting Gita in your own hand. I don’t know why, but that’s pretty much all he read and all he wrote the entirety of his life. Simplicity.

[Kajol Rustagi]

आप सभी को हिंदी दिवस की हार्दिक शुभकामनाएं। वैसे तो हिंदी हमारी मातृभाषा हैं पर आज भी हम अंग्रेजी का ज़्यादा इस्तेमाल करते हैं इसका उदहारण हैं किसी भी एक शब्द का पर्यायवाची बताना जैसे की अगर हम Option शब्द का अंग्रेजी पर्यायवाची जानना चाहे तो तुरंत choice,alternative बता देंगे परंतु जब हिंदी पर्यायवाची की बात आएगी तो हमें गूगल का सहारा लेना ही पड़ेगा । इससे पता चलता हैं की हिंदी हमारी मातृभाषा होते हुए भी उस पर हमारी पकड़ कितनी कमज़ोर हैं।
इसी अवसर पर क्यों ना हिंदी साहित्य के महान रचनाकर मुंशी प्रेमचंद के बारे में बात की जाए | आज ही मैंने उनकी किताब प्रेमचंद की सर्वश्रेष्ठ कहानियां पढ़ कर खत्म करी | उनके द्वारा लिखी गयी एक एक रचना मोती सामान हैं और कथाकार के रूप में प्रेमचंद जैसे ना कोई थे और शायद ही कोई आएगा। उनकी कहानियाँ उनके अनुभव को अच्छे से बयान करती हैं। बड़े भाईसाहब वाली कहानी पढ़ कर स्कूल का समय याद आ गया और ईदगाह एक छोटे से बच्चे की मासूमता को भली भांति प्रस्तुत करती हैं ।

[Shikhar Bansal · Rating 5 out of 5]

No wonder why Munshi Premchand is so much celebrated in Hindi Literature. His stories give a glimpse of the kind of lives our grandparent's parents would have lived. Their thinking, priorities, and relationships with society. Totally worth it.

[Neetu Garg]

i don't know...wht i say about that

[Rohit Sharma · Rating 5 out of 5]

Just finished my 4th Hindi book of the year, and that too from one of my all-time favourite writers - Premchand. I’ve read almost all his books and stories back in school and college time, as my mother had most of them. All his stories and novels are based on the early 20th century and show us the true face of typical Indian society back in those days. Heart-touching true-to-life stories always reminded me of so many movies based on similar subjects and stories by my favourite movie director, Satyajit Ray. On your face, the straight truth is always on the right mark. This book too had a collection of 17 short stories, which sent me back in time when I actually used to play the game of Gulli-Danda with my friends and cousins. After reading the heart-touching story of two friends who meet again after decades of separation, where one has grown to be a big shot, and his friend remains the small-town guy with almost no life to claim any fame for. How they end up playing one last game and who wins is the story to read. This one made me actually call my cousin to understand how we played the game and what the penalty was for the loser :), Do you remember playing a game like that in the past? Then comes another terrific story of an untouchable woman, who wants to get inside a temple to pray for his dying son and to my shock and amazement, the then society won’t allow her to enter the temple, let alone touch the statue. How his son’s life ends without her prayers brought tears to my eyes. Thank God that this isn’t done anymore in today’s time, and we have come a long way on that prospect at least. But from all these stories, my favourite was the one called “Dhokha” where a prince goes in search of his would-be life partner without anyone’s knowledge, just to see who he was supposed to marry. Fortunately, without her knowledge, he leaves a very deep mark on her with his mythological singing, which he performs for her. Later, they do marry, but since she doesn’t know who she married, she keeps looking for that unknown singer. How the story ends was totally amazing.

And then there are so many stories touching the typical Indian subjects with such ease that I can call his words magical; reading them in Hindi actually makes it special. Of course, after reading four back-to-back Hindi books from Jai Shankar Prasad, Sarat Chandra and even Tagore, I will say Premchand’s Hindi is the best and simplest. I actually didn't have to Google any words that made no sense to me this time. Most of his stories are either based on the women’s plight, untouchability or about those who were too poor to fight for their own rights one way or another. One of the stories reminded me of my own grandmother, who used to tell me about a very old superstitious story (not for her, though) about a girl who had three brothers. They used to call her “Tainter” (in Hindi), and she usually brought trouble to one of the brothers by just being born in the family. Can you believe that? Unfortunately, in our neighbourhood, one of the kids actually died in an accident, and since they too were three brothers and one sister, they blamed the girl for it, and since then, she was called a Tainter in our little town for the rest of her life (till we lived there).

After reading these gems from the master storyteller, which I felt were too short with hardly 200 pages, I am looking forward to reading a few of his novels again. Do let me know if you have read anything from Premchand in recent times or if you have a personal favourite. I have so many that I don’t want to list them, but rather get them soon and read at the earliest.

[Amit · Rating 5 out of 5]

हालांकि मुंशी प्रेमचंद की गोदान को मैने पहले पढ़ा है, परंतु यह कहानियों का संकलन अपने आप में बेजोड़ है। इन कहानियों से न केवल उनकी विविध भावनाओं पर सूक्ष्म पकड़ दिखती है बल्कि हर एक कहानी अपने आप में कई गहन बारीकियां छुपाए रहती है। ईदगाह, गुल्ली डंडा , नशा, कफन कहानियां मुझे ज्यादा पसंद आयी।

[Shafali Jaiswal · Rating 4 out of 5]

मुंशीजी और बदलता दौर


"मुंशी प्रेमचंद की सर्वश्रेष्ठ कहानियाँ". इस किताब मे मुंशीजी की लिखी कुल १८ लघु कथाएं हैं. मुंशीजी के बारे मे हमेशा से सुन रखा था. माँ ने उनकी पुस्तक "निर्मला" पढी हैं. वो हमेशा बडी आत्मीयता से उस किताब की बात करती हैं. कइ दिनों से विचार था इस किताब को पढने का, मगर अपने ही हिंदी भाषा के ग्यान मे अभाव के कारण कभी हिम्मत न हुई.

किताब पढने पर ग्यात हुआ कि मुंशी जी की शैली एकदम सरल है. वे सादे शब्दों में कई गहन बातें यूहीं कह देते है. और मैंने जाना के शुद्ध हिन्दी भाषा मे भी एक अलग मिठास है. वह मिठास जो हमारी रोज़मर्रा की मिलावट वाली हिंदी मे कहीं खो गई हैं. उनकी सभी कहानियों में कुछ ना कुछ संदेश छिपा है. वे अस्थिर और बदलते मानवी स्वभाव से अवगत थे. इसका प्रमाण कथा "नशा" मे झलकता है. 'बीर', एक सिद्धांतों पर चलने वाले मनुष्य में भी परिवर्तन कितनी जल्दी आ सकता हैं यह उन्होंने उचित रूप से दर्शाया है. "ईदगाह" पढते ही सालों पहले देखी गुल्जा़र की टीवी सिरीयल की याद आ गई. गुल्जा़र साहब ने प्रेमचंद की लघु कथा को छोटे परदे पर बखूबी चित्रित किया है. "पूस की रात" पढ कर रघुवीर यादव के अतुलनीय अभिनय की याद आ गई.

पढते पढते जातीवाद और अग्यानता, जो आज भी हमारे देश में जिवित हैं, इसका एहसास हुआ. खुद के priviledged होने का एहसास हुआ. आज भी कई किसान और मजदूर है ���िनकी जिविका दैनिक मजदूरी पर निर्भर है. इसका अनुभव हमें lockdown की खबरों में होता हैं. हम कैसे अपने आप को प्रगत मान ले जबकि मजदूरों की सद्य स्थिति और मुंशीजी के pre independant भारत के वक्त की स्थिति में ज्यादा अंतर नहीं है. वो आज भी दो वक्त के खाने के लिए तरकीबें ढूंढ रहा है. औरतों की तरफ लोगों की देखने की "मनोवृत्ति" मैं थोड़ा सा ही बदलाव आया है. गरीब लोगों की अवस्था, औरतों की ओर देखने की मनोवृत्ति आज भी वैसी ही. तब भी लोग नये ज़माने के freedom को कोसते थे, अब भी नई generation की सोच को कोसते है. मुंशीजी की कहानियां पढना भारत के इतिहास में झांकना नहीं बल्कि दर्पन मे देखने जैसा है.

कुछ तो कहानियां नहीं, केवल किस्से है. आम लोगों के, मजदूरों के, बेकार बैठे नवाबों और सफा ताकते लेखकों के, जीवन के कुछ क्षण जिन्हें कथा का नाम नहीं दे सकते. लेकिन सीख उनसे भी मिलती हैं. आश्चर्य है कि मुंशीजी की बातें आज भी उतनी ही कारिगर मालूम होती हैं. उनके विचार प्रगतिशील थे जो आज के पिढी के लिए भी प्रेरणा स्त्रोत बन सकते है.

मुंशीजी प्रगत विचार के थे, अपने समय से कहीं आगे. निराशा की बात है कि उनका दौर अब भी नहीं आया. और उनके उठाए सवाल आज भी ज्वलंत है. न बूझती लौ की तरह.

[Pankaj Patil · Rating 4 out of 5]

हिंदी साहित्य के मुकुटमणि मुंशी प्रेमचंद का मेरा यह दूसरा परिचय था| उनके लेखन के मेरे पहिले परिचय गोदान में मैंने जो अनुभूत किया दिल बहेला देने वाला अनुभव था,जिससे मेरी उनके प्रति रूचि और बढ़ी ओर में उनके लेखन से प्रभावित होकर उनकी सर्वश्रेष्ठ रचनाओं की तरफ मुड़ा|
मैंने इस किताब की हर कहानी में वो सब पढ़ा जो मेरे ख्याल से बिना अनुभव के लिखा नहीं जा सकता,मैंने जुलुस में अहिंसा किस प्रकार लोगो को अपने मन में झाकने का अवसर देती हे यह पढ़ा| मैंने सवाशेर गेहू में किस प्रकार धर्म के लिए उधार लाये गेहू शोषण का अंग बनते हे यह पढ़ा| दूसरी ओर आत्माराम में आत्मा की चिंता ओर कार्यमग्नता देखि|वही लाटरी वाली कहिनी में जब रिश्तो में स्वार्थ आ जाता हे तो इंसान का बर्ताव पढ़ा| ईद की कहानीमे मासूमियत पढ़ी ओर बैलो की कहानी में जानवरो के भाव से रूबरू हुआ |

निसंदेह प्रेमचंद हिंदी साहित्य की ओ प्रतिभा है जो अपने हि आप में सर्वश्रेष्ठ है,उनकी हर एक कहानी जीवन का एक नया सच बया करती है|

[Book'd Hitu · Rating 1 out of 5]

This one star rating is for the translation of this book not the stories of legend Premchand.

When a classic lands into wrong hands for translation, the result is utterly disappointing.

The books doesn't supply any information about the translator otherwise I would have wrote him/her a scolding mail for publishing such a disaster. I am thoroughly pissed with the translator, editor and the publishing house for this book.

Extremely poor translations makes this book a very difficult and intolerable read. I discarded the book after doing around 30% anyhow. It was a complete waste of time and money.

I would recommend this book to be read in its original version.

[Utkarsh Arya · Rating 5 out of 5]

Premchand sees what nobody else sees or they see it but don't want to believe until someone expresses it. He's brutally honest, he has experienced the destitution, the pennilessness. And, that's the reason his stories are relevant even after more than 70-80 years.

[Kshitiz Goliya · Rating 3 out of 5]

Great stories.

[Utsav Chaudhary · Rating 4 out of 5]

Nice short stories. Stories like Juloos and Prerna are very good!

[Karmanya Singh · Rating 4 out of 5]

it was very awesome book

[Aniruddh · Rating 5 out of 5]

"Eidgah" was my favourite short story from this collection.

[Rageshree Gengane · Rating 5 out of 5]

Best!!

[Vidya · Rating 4 out of 5]

I am not a native Hindi speaker, but I have always wanted to read, write, and speak the language well. At the beginning of this year, I set myself a goal: to read at least three books in Hindi. Sitting on my shelf for a long time was a collection of short stories by Premchand — and with it, I began my first step toward that goal.

This book contains 18 stories, including some of Premchand’s most celebrated works such as Idgaah, Ram Leela, Bade Bhai Saheb, Juloos, and Sava Ser Gehoon. Many of these are familiar to us from our school textbooks, though back then we rarely paused to appreciate their literary depth. Reading them now as an adult, I found myself savoring the sensitivity, irony, satire, hypocrisy, and gentle humor that run through these tales.

Take Ram Leela, for instance: Choudhary shamelessly exploits prostitutes to collect donations from the crowd but refuses to pay even the travel fare of the performers themselves. Or Bade Bhai Saheb, where the elder brother repeatedly lectures his younger sibling about the importance of studying — all the while failing his own exams. I laughed out loud at the biting humor. In contrast, Premchand’s heartrending portrayal of a poor farmer being manipulated by an abusive moneylender carries a Dickensian weight of tragedy.

What makes these stories remarkable is how grounded they are in everyday reality. The characters and situations never feel far-fetched; instead, they mirror the lives of ordinary people in early 20th-century India. Premchand depicts even the simplest incidents with vivid detail and a graceful command of language. Some of these stories, like Shatranj ke Khiladi, have even been adapted into films, further testifying to their enduring relevance.

Overall, this collection gave me both joy and reflection. For its timeless humanity and storytelling craft, I would rate it 4 out of 5.

[Alex Marcus · Rating 3 out of 5]

The more I try to understand what Premchand held as his opinion, the more I feel stuck in the nerves of his mind. Every story manifolds in a different way than the former. Each brings its own webs and solves it in a way contradictory to the other. What remains consistent is the way Premchand explains the details: he believes there is a difference in intelligence and beauty, he takes a sensuous interest in women, he talks of hard-work, he draws variations between men and women and their roles and how they differ and unite. Premchand draws a world so similar to the real one that one stands in awe looking at the sketches he has drawn in our mind.
Undoubtedly, Premchand has an inclination towards rural life, perhaps more due to the times in which he was writing. Moreover, his short stories lack the usual depth, they may make you stop and think for a while, they may leave a slight mark here and there but (in my case), they failed to leave a deep impression. His books, on the other hand, are much more impactful.

[Tanya Sharma · Rating 4 out of 5]

यह कहानियाँ कुछ चुराए हुए पल, जो प्रेमचंद जी पाठकों को भेंटते हैं। हर कहानी जीवन शैली, समाज व समय पर प्रकाश डालती हैं। प्रेमचंद जी की ख़ूबी तो है ही कि वह कई विचार धरों को बाँधना, लिहाज़ा इन कहानियो में कई किरदार हैं। इतने दृश्यों से दो पल जीने का अवसर पाकर, कोई भी पाठक स्वयं को प्रेमचंद जी का आभारी कैसे ना समझे?

मैं समझती हूँ की प्रेमचंद जी का नाम अति उचित हैं: अन्याय के अंधकार में, प्रेमचाँद जी प्रेम, त्याग, योगदान, साहस, दया, व आशा की रोशनी प्रदान करते हैं। पाठकों को शायद इसलिए वह इतने प्यारे हैं: उनकी कहानियाँ हमें कहीं न कहीं ख़ुद से मिला देतीं हैं और ख़ुद को तराशने का अवसर प्रदान करतीं हैं। मेरी प्रिय कहानियाँ: बड़े भाई साहब, कफ़न, और ईदगाह।

[Anandhi · Rating 5 out of 5]

Superb Collection of stories

This book has one of those most awesome writings of Premchand ji .....saarree kahaniyan Dil Ko Choo dene wali hain ...waastavikta ke bahut Kareeb Satya ghatnao par aadharit ye kahanniya manushya ke kai pehluon Ko kholti hain ...ek Baar padhna shuru karenge to khatam kiye Bina band karne ka Mann nahi karta ...None of stories are hyped ..Very real very down to earth happy and sad..Very human stories

[Deepanshu Gupta · Rating 5 out of 5]

Premchand’s short stories provide a wonderful peep hole into the life’s of a common man in 1920s and 1930s. There are books from others but none are so realistic a portrayal of life than Premchand’s. I have always considered Anton Chekhov to be the master of short stories but Premchand is the person you go to see the real India.

[Ritika Rana · Rating 5 out of 5]

प्रेमचंद जीवन की कठिन सच्चाइयों जिस सरलता से बयान कर जाते हैं, वह दिल को छू जाता है| यथार्थवाद में लिपटी हुई उनकी कहानियाँ आपको सोचने पर तो मजबूर करती ही हैं पर साथ में आप को सरलता की सीख भी दे जाती हैं|

[Abha Mishra · Rating 4 out of 5]

good book !

[Amit Kumar]

Amit

[Simant Bharti · Rating 5 out of 5]

Thanks for making my childhood so great.

[Devika Das · Rating 5 out of 5]

One of my favourite authors in Hindi literature. All stories in this book have such a deep meaning and leave the reader thinking about their life. It was a great time reading the short stories.

[Suraj Jayaraman · Rating 5 out of 5]

cannot stop reading eidgaah. such a touching tale.

[Vijay · Rating 5 out of 5]

Best storybook for Gujjus.

[Tony Sheldon · Rating 3 out of 5]

I feel Premchand writes really good stories but his beauty lies in the details.The ability to describe the conditions and the feelings of the people really well in certain kind of situations.
But I feel all the more betrayed when and if Premchand writes a short story void of that beauty.
Of course, this book deserves a 4 or 5 Star rating.But with the missing details and that really personal touch with characters, these become just plain stories.
And I looked for an experience not just a bunch of stories.
Already writing this I fear I could be dead wrong but I'll just act brave and give it 3 stars under the blanket of my personal preferences.

P.S. Since this book is a collection of stories, I must mention that the review does not cover all stories.There still are some stories in still that far surpass the 5-star rating.

[Snigdhanjali Sahu]

premchand