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Qila-e-Faramoshi / قلعہ فراموشی
This is a historical novel about the life and times of Mazdak, a man who lived in the 5th century AD, and has the reputation of having been the first socialist revolutionary in history.
The novel is a fascinating account of the interacting forces at play in those times. All the action takes place in the Sassanid Empire when its capital was Ctesiphon on the banks of river Tigris. Contingent to it was its arch rival, the equally vast and powerful Byzantine Empire .Between the two Empires lay the Arab lands, largely inhabited by the desert –dwelling Bedouin tribes. Close to the borders of the Sassanid Empire and the Indian subcontinent, were the Khanates of the White Huns. All these entities played a role in shaping the story of Mazdak, the continuation of his revolutionary movement for seven long years, and ultimately his execution and the crushing of the socialist movement throughout the Sassanid Empire. At the same time the story reveals an interesting insight in the growth of religions and religious ideas during this important century.
Relating it to the present-day world, the author, Fahmida Riaz, gives the story a relevance to today’s turbulent times and the eternal human quest for social justice .It is a novel by a well-known author that would certainly catch the imagination of the reader.
The novel is a fascinating account of the interacting forces at play in those times. All the action takes place in the Sassanid Empire when its capital was Ctesiphon on the banks of river Tigris. Contingent to it was its arch rival, the equally vast and powerful Byzantine Empire .Between the two Empires lay the Arab lands, largely inhabited by the desert –dwelling Bedouin tribes. Close to the borders of the Sassanid Empire and the Indian subcontinent, were the Khanates of the White Huns. All these entities played a role in shaping the story of Mazdak, the continuation of his revolutionary movement for seven long years, and ultimately his execution and the crushing of the socialist movement throughout the Sassanid Empire. At the same time the story reveals an interesting insight in the growth of religions and religious ideas during this important century.
Relating it to the present-day world, the author, Fahmida Riaz, gives the story a relevance to today’s turbulent times and the eternal human quest for social justice .It is a novel by a well-known author that would certainly catch the imagination of the reader.
184 pages, Paperback
Published January 1, 2017
About the author
Fahmida Riaz
29 books49 followersFahmida Riaz (Urdu: فہمیدہ ریاض) is a Progressive Urdu writer, poet, and feminist from Pakistan.
Born in 1946 in Meerut, educated in Hyderabad (Sindh) and London, she is among the front rank writers and poets of Urdu. She is also the author of several short stories and novels. Three volumes of her novels and collection of short stories, apart from the Urdu translation of selected verses from Shaikh Ayaz and the Iranian poet, Farough Farrakhzad have also been published. She has translated a selection of ghazal from Divan-e-Shams Tabriz into Urdu. She has travelled widely and lectured at universities and cultural forums in many cities of Europe and the United States.
She lives in Karachi where she has been publishing for women and children.
Born in 1946 in Meerut, educated in Hyderabad (Sindh) and London, she is among the front rank writers and poets of Urdu. She is also the author of several short stories and novels. Three volumes of her novels and collection of short stories, apart from the Urdu translation of selected verses from Shaikh Ayaz and the Iranian poet, Farough Farrakhzad have also been published. She has translated a selection of ghazal from Divan-e-Shams Tabriz into Urdu. She has travelled widely and lectured at universities and cultural forums in many cities of Europe and the United States.
She lives in Karachi where she has been publishing for women and children.
Ratings & Reviews
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Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews
October 14, 2018
Overall, an interesting quick read but a novel that unfortunately fails to drag you in due to its lack of characterization and very limited imagery. However, the language is powerful and there are some great anthropological tidbits as far as forgotten Zoroastrian and Mazdaic customs are concerned. One can only wish that there should have been more references to Zend-Avista and intricate narrative building. Author tried not to compromise historical authenticity but ended up compromising literary expansion. A sad lost opportunity.
April 28, 2026
I loved the translation of this novella! It read like a fairy tale or a scripture, made all the more impressive that there is a historical basis. I wish there were more novellas like this because I would absolutely pick them up!
May 2, 2026
3.75
I feel giddy! I got such a kick out of this book.
Such a sweeping, expansive novel that introduced me to a civilization that I'm ashamed to have known nothing about before. Learned so much about Zoroastrianism, and its congruencies and syncretism with other faiths, especially Islam. The first half dragged a little, and I found that it read too much like scripture (as another review mentioned) for my taste. The second half is more fast paced, and I loved how it concurrently interweaved the Roman Empire, Jewish nations, and Arab Bedouins into the story. Gorgeous use of food—worthy of a book about the equal distribution of resources. Instead of the super on-the-nose final chapter, I would've loved to see what happened to the women in the story after all the men's plotlines wrapped up, but maybe that was beyond the scope of what was already an insanely ambitious project. Incredible that the book itself functions as a sort of Fortress of the Forgotten Ones by painstakingly excavating and piecing together a purposefully erased history. So relevant to our current world. Wheel of time indeed.
I feel giddy! I got such a kick out of this book.
Such a sweeping, expansive novel that introduced me to a civilization that I'm ashamed to have known nothing about before. Learned so much about Zoroastrianism, and its congruencies and syncretism with other faiths, especially Islam. The first half dragged a little, and I found that it read too much like scripture (as another review mentioned) for my taste. The second half is more fast paced, and I loved how it concurrently interweaved the Roman Empire, Jewish nations, and Arab Bedouins into the story. Gorgeous use of food—worthy of a book about the equal distribution of resources. Instead of the super on-the-nose final chapter, I would've loved to see what happened to the women in the story after all the men's plotlines wrapped up, but maybe that was beyond the scope of what was already an insanely ambitious project. Incredible that the book itself functions as a sort of Fortress of the Forgotten Ones by painstakingly excavating and piecing together a purposefully erased history. So relevant to our current world. Wheel of time indeed.
November 21, 2017
فہمیدہ ریاض کا یہ پہلا ناول ہے جو پڑھنے کا اتفاق ہوا۔ یہ بنیادی طور پر پارسی مذہب اور اس سے جڑے غالبا پہلے سماجی انقلاب کی روداد ہے۔ کتاب کا عنوان انتہائی دلچسپ ہے حالانکہ کہانی میں قلعہ پس منظر میں رہا جو ایک طرح کا 'کالا پانی' ہے جہاں مزاحمت کرتے عناصر کو بھیج دیا جاتا ہے مگر دوسروں کے طرح بجائے جبر کے ہر طرح کی آسائش کا بندوبست کیا جاتا تاکہ واپسی کی کوششیں کم سے کم کریں۔ کتاب بہرحال وسائل کی غیر مساوی تقسیم اور سوشلسٹ نظریات سی جڑی ہے ۔ ایک باغی پیش رو کی کہانی جو روایتی پاپایت ترک کر کے انسانی مساوات کی تحریک اور اس کےا نجام کی کہانی۔
مجموعی طور پر ایک اچھی کتاب ہے بہت سی جگہوں پر تشنگی رہ گئی معلوم پڑتا ہے مصنفہ کو تکمیل کی جلدی تھی ورنہ کہانی کی مزید پرتیں کھولی جا سکتی تھیں۔
مجموعی طور پر ایک اچھی کتاب ہے بہت سی جگہوں پر تشنگی رہ گئی معلوم پڑتا ہے مصنفہ کو تکمیل کی جلدی تھی ورنہ کہانی کی مزید پرتیں کھولی جا سکتی تھیں۔
July 19, 2026
Rating: 4* of five
The Publisher Says: Winner of the Armory Square Prize for South Asian Literature in Translation
In Fortress of the Forgotten Ones, Fahmida Riaz transports readers to fifth-century Ctesiphon, the zenith of the Sassanian Empire, in a brilliant historical novel that blends rich cultural memory with striking political relevance. Set against the backdrop of fire worshippers, Parsi kings, and the ancient Avesta, this ambitious tale follows Mazdak, the first socialist revolutionary in history, as he challenges the power structures of his time.
With vivid depictions of the Great Palace of King Qobad, the lands of the White Huns, and the impoverished masses, Riaz delves deep into the forces of history that shaped Mazdak’s quest for social justice. A masterpiece of historical fiction, Fortress of the Forgotten Ones is a powerful meditation on erasure, cultural identity, and the fight for justice that resonates with our contemporary world.
I RECEIVED A DRC FROM THE PUBLISHER VIA EDELWEISS+. THANK YOU.
My Review: What a fascinating read! I was constantly intrigued by the strangeness of the settings, and eager to get the next interesting tidbit of knowledge.
And that's where my problem lies. I genuinely could not wait for my lessons in history to commence but I was never empathetically crushed when the history was dark. I am still not sure who the characters are, but I am very clear on what happened to them. Ctesiphon is no longer a name on a map of archaeological sites, it's a place. It vibrates with events so huge their echoing claps of collapse, of rupture, their crackling roars of inflammation, reverberate (I now see) in 2026's tragedies.
That's heady stuff. It's why there are four stars up top. There'd be six if I could remember anyone's name. Events occur...curiously impersonally. Power vanishes...but no one lost it. It's a narrative choice that other authors have made over time, and more particularly when telling sweeping historical stories. If one isn't willing to create a doorstopper like War & Peace, Jean-Cristophe, or their ilk, a narrower focus on facts and events will keep pages turning.
It worked on me. It would most likely have worked on me with many more pages, too. As things stand I'm a happy reader, sated in my desire to be presented with a very interesting story about places and events completely new to me in a landscape foreign to my eyes.
I missed the portraits that could've showed me the people is all.
The Publisher Says: Winner of the Armory Square Prize for South Asian Literature in Translation
In Fortress of the Forgotten Ones, Fahmida Riaz transports readers to fifth-century Ctesiphon, the zenith of the Sassanian Empire, in a brilliant historical novel that blends rich cultural memory with striking political relevance. Set against the backdrop of fire worshippers, Parsi kings, and the ancient Avesta, this ambitious tale follows Mazdak, the first socialist revolutionary in history, as he challenges the power structures of his time.
With vivid depictions of the Great Palace of King Qobad, the lands of the White Huns, and the impoverished masses, Riaz delves deep into the forces of history that shaped Mazdak’s quest for social justice. A masterpiece of historical fiction, Fortress of the Forgotten Ones is a powerful meditation on erasure, cultural identity, and the fight for justice that resonates with our contemporary world.
I RECEIVED A DRC FROM THE PUBLISHER VIA EDELWEISS+. THANK YOU.
My Review: What a fascinating read! I was constantly intrigued by the strangeness of the settings, and eager to get the next interesting tidbit of knowledge.
And that's where my problem lies. I genuinely could not wait for my lessons in history to commence but I was never empathetically crushed when the history was dark. I am still not sure who the characters are, but I am very clear on what happened to them. Ctesiphon is no longer a name on a map of archaeological sites, it's a place. It vibrates with events so huge their echoing claps of collapse, of rupture, their crackling roars of inflammation, reverberate (I now see) in 2026's tragedies.
That's heady stuff. It's why there are four stars up top. There'd be six if I could remember anyone's name. Events occur...curiously impersonally. Power vanishes...but no one lost it. It's a narrative choice that other authors have made over time, and more particularly when telling sweeping historical stories. If one isn't willing to create a doorstopper like War & Peace, Jean-Cristophe, or their ilk, a narrower focus on facts and events will keep pages turning.
It worked on me. It would most likely have worked on me with many more pages, too. As things stand I'm a happy reader, sated in my desire to be presented with a very interesting story about places and events completely new to me in a landscape foreign to my eyes.
I missed the portraits that could've showed me the people is all.
October 21, 2018
A historical novel about Mazdak, who started a revolution which has shattered the kingdoms of Iran back in 5th centuries.
The story is told very well and has a moving content.
It would be considered an epic novel of Urdu in coming days.
The story is told very well and has a moving content.
It would be considered an epic novel of Urdu in coming days.
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
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January 23, 2021Ok
This entire review has been hidden because of spoilers.
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June 4, 2026I can't rate this book. I ended up taking it as unintential comedy or truly 5d chess given the rampant anachronisms (starting on the frontspiece map) and style of the writing.
Displaying 1 - 8 of 8 reviews