A Chughtai Collection: The Quilt and Other Stories, The Heart Breaks Free & the Wild One

by Ismat Chughtai

Collection of three collections by leading Urdu writer, trans. by Tahira Naqvi.includes "The Quilt and Other Stories, The Heart Breaks Free, and The Wild One.

Genres: Short Stories, India

382 pages, Paperback

First published January 1, 1991

About the author

Ismat Chughtai (Urdu: عصمت چغتائی) (August 1915 – 24 October 1991) was an eminent Urdu writer, known for her indomitable spirit and a fierce feminist ideology. She was considered the grand dame of Urdu fiction, 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. She explored feminine sexuality, middle-class gentility, and other evolving conflicts in the modern Muslim world. Her outspoken and controversial style of writing made her the passionate voice for the unheard, and she has become an inspiration for the younger generation of writers, readers and intellectuals.

Reviews

[Naomi Kenorak · Rating 4 out of 5]

Chughtai was born in 1915 into a progressive Muslim family in north India and she wrote in Urdu in the 19030s-1950s. She was influenced by O'Henry as well as other Western writers and the dry wit of her stories - acerbic in many cases - reflects his style. But her subject matter is uniquely Indian/Pakistani, opening windows to the hidden world of women and the sorrows and joys and treacheries of their lives.

Some of the stories will make you grind your teeth in despair over the pitiful hand dealt these women; others will make you smile wryly at how they overcome. Some of the stories feature men in a leading role; all deal with the interrelationships of people and family. Thankfully there is a glossary at the back to explain the Urdu words used in the text and a list of kinship titles in the front to help the reader understand the myriad different ways in which people's names change depending on who is addressing them (similar to reading Tolstoy).

[Ismaa Khan · Rating 3 out of 5]

Ismat Chughtai is known as the grand dame of Urdu literature, she was a true feminist of her time and this comes across quite clearly in her writing. This collection is a window into the lives of the middleclass of India in the1940’s and 50’s. Their lives as they faced a changing world, the bonds placed by culture and tradition and how it impacted and transformed them.

The Quilt, one of the stories in this collection landed her in a court case on charges of obscenity, (a case she won). For me her work is doubly interesting not just because of the content but also since it shows me the history of the land I belong too. Now I want to read her works in Urdu to get the full flavor of her genius. What a woman and what amazing writing.

[Charvi · Rating 4 out of 5]

I loved this collection of stories spanning over such a wide variety of topics.
All of them were written in a simple yet gripping language with stunning use of metaphors and descriptions. I'm just falling for Chughtai's writing style.

Also, I love how she explores topics that nobody else dares to, especially controversial topics in relation to women. She was probably the best feminist of her time. I would definitely recommend everyone to read her stories, especially The Quilt.

[Z · Rating 3 out of 5]

3.5 stars

[M · Rating 4 out of 5]

It is interesting to see the culture of the subcontinent through a woman's pair of eyes...but I still prefer Manto's stories.

[Riz Javaid · Rating 4 out of 5]

Interesting read. This all had happened on those times. True but harsh reality .

[Tanveer · Rating 4 out of 5]

i want to read all collection of Ismat Chugtai