SHORT STORY WRITERS OF PAKISTAN

Short story writing is a difficult calling. This particular type of literature has a narrow audience,
is easy to criticise, is a difficult to execute, and is not commercially viable. The novel is
something that the reader is willing to invest in. Short stories, on the other hand, are a rare buy
for the bookshop frequenter. The medium is usually restricted to literature classrooms where the
works of greats are discussed.
There have been few writers of the modern era that have succeeded as short story writers. Junot
Diaz is perhaps the greatest contemporary writer, with Roald Dahl a significant name of the 20th
century.
In Pakistan, the short story has greatly been restricted to the Urdu language and the Afsana.
Certain attempts were made at it by the legendary Taufiq Rafat and names such as Athar Tahir
regularly contribute to literary anthologies – for despite all the troubles surrounding the short
story, it is also easy enough to write for any prolific writer. But perhaps the only attempts made
at actual compilations in recent times have been by the writer Bilal Tanweer, who published The
Scatter Here is Too Great in 2013 – and even that ended up being a novel-in-stories with a
converging plot.  
This is not to say that english short story compilations are not published in Pakistan. Indeed, a lot
of retired writers, public servants with some pretense to letters often end up writing short stories
rather than a memoir if they fancy themselves as the creative sort.
One recent addition to the list of short story compilation s “Storyteller’s Tales” by Khaled Saeed.
But what makes this particular collection of work different that it is a thoroughly unassuming
book. Not necessarily in the writing that is, but in the way it has been structured – and even
printed. A flimsy looking paperback not even 150 pages strong, the full title Khaled has given his
book is “Storyteller’s Tales – a collection of short stories and musings.”  “Storyteller’s Tales” is
about our world – the world we live in, breathe in and are very much grounded in no matter how
much one may think otherwise. For sure the writer is not shy about occasionally delving into
other-worldly concepts, unknown to most, there are allusions to the divine and the extra
terrestrial. But they are not a waxing and waning on science or philosophy, but rather just a
painfully simple explanation of the extraordinary that is very much part of the everyday.
TARIQ RAHMAN

Tariq Rahman is presently an associate professor of lingustics at the

National Institute of Pakistan Studies, Quaid-i-Azam Univiersty, Islamabad. He did his master’s
and Ph. D from the university of Sheffield in English Literature. Later, he also studied
Linguistics in Glasgow. Dr. Tariq Rahman is a renowned Pakistani linguist and literary figure
who has produced a number of research papers and literary writings. He is a man of international
repute. He is also the first to write a linguistic description of Pakistani English (1990) as well as
the first history of Pakistani Literature.

Most people who know Dr Tariq Rahman as a scholar and a columnist

are not aware of the fact that he has written three books of short stories. The Third Leg, his third
collection, contains 24 stories, all symbolically significant, yet conventionally realistic. Though
his themes are philosophical and thought provoking, the real beauty of these stories lies in the
sheer simplicity of narration and plot.

Dr Tariq Rahman, as a writer of fiction, is a humanitarian who advocates

social equality and justice while denouncing elitist and racial prejudices. His characters are
human beings in a society of equals, and his stories describe situations where they defy the basic
principal of equality to become, in George Orwell's words. He is one such writer who
accomplishes this feat remarkably well. Anyone who has experienced loss can identify with the
loss of the doll, the toy jet, and the lamb in the stories titled The Doll, The Toy and Sacrifice.
These are stories about children who value their possessions, no matter how worthless others
deem them.

The beauty of the stories is that they are meant for lay readers as well as
critics seeking symbolic interpretations. In fact, certain stories like The Toy, The Zoo, Game,
The Doll, Kid and Crying Baby can provide good spare-time reading for the youngsters bored by
a forced reading of the classics. Though these stories vary in style, narration, plot and
characterisation, the one common element that gives unity to the book as a collection is a deep
understanding and a remarkable insight into the human psychology and predicament.

His first collection of short stories were The Legacy and Other Short

Stories(1989). Work and Other Short Stories is his second collection of stories written between
1982 and 1988. Most of the stories in this collection preserve the narrative style of the last
century; but the concerns and themes are contemporary. Stories are symbolic as well as contain
symbols in them.
As far as the purpose of the stories is concerned Tariq Rahman says, ‘my purpose is to
communicate thought and experience or to create a world of microcosm’. The themes of
injustice, inequality and fate are all fused in the book to suggest the painful absurdity of the
contemporary life. Though Dr Tariq Rehman is not a pessimist, his optimism is characteristic of
"Waiting for Godot". His other stories are the work, a friend, the professor.

AAMIR HUSSAIN
Aamir Hussein was born in Karachi, Pakistan, in 1955, and moved to London in 1970. He is the
author of five collections of short stories: Mirror to the Sun (1993), This Other Salt (1999),
Turquoise (2002), Cactus Town: Selected Stories (2003)  and Insomnia (2007). He is also the
editor of Kahani: Short Stories by Pakistani women (2005). He reviews regularly for the
Independent. His most recent work is a novella, Another Gulmohar Tree, which will be
published in May 2009.

Aamer Hussein is a master calligrapher, weaving delicately together the story-shaped ways we
embrace loss, memory and intensities of place. His steady, intricate gaze is global, taking war
and wounded politics as background to individual experience in Asia or England. —Ruth Padel

His work include Another Gulmohar Tree — 2009. Insomnia — 2007 Cactus Town — 2003
Turquoise — 2002 This other salt — 1999 Mirror to the Sun — 1993

MOHSIN HAMID
In 2016 "Of Windows and Doors", short story adapted from Exit West, from: the New Yorker

2013 "Alien Invasion in the G.L.A.C.", short story for the New Year issue, from: the
Financial Times "Don't Fall in Love", short story adapted from How to Get Filthy Rich in
Rising Asia, from: Granta
 2012 "The Third-Born", short story adapted from How to Get Filthy Rich in Rising Asia,
from: the New Yorker

2011 "Terminator: Attack of the Drone", short story in the Guardian Review Book of Short
Stories, from: the Guardian

2010 "A Beheading", short story for the Pakistan issue, from: Granta

2008 "The (Former) General in his Labyrinth", interactive short story for Penguin's digital
fiction project, from: We Tell Stories

2006 "Focus on the Fundamentals", short story adapted from The Reluctant Fundamentalist,
from: the Paris Review

DANIYAL MUEENUDDIN 
He is a Pakistani-American author who writes in English. His short-story collection In Other
Rooms, Other Wonders, has been translated into sixteen languages, and won The Story Prize,
the Commonwealth Writers' Prize and other honours and critical acclaim.

AZHAR ALI ABIDI 

He is a Pakistani Australian author and translator. He went to school in Pakistan and later
studied electrical engineering at the Imperial College London.
Translations
"Old Croc" - a short story by Hasan Manzar (Annual of Urdu Studies, Vol 16, 2001)
"The Fall of Baghdad" - essay by Azeem Beg Chughtai (Annual of Urdu Studies, Vol 18, 2003)
His works are "Secret History of the Flying Carpet", Meanjin, Vol 63, No 2, 2004 (reissued in
United States in Southwest Review, Vol 91, No 1, 2006)
"Rosa", Words Without Borders, April 2006
"A Passage to the Past", [1] The Pakistan of Azhar's childhood was already coming to an end
when he took his leave, The Age, June 2009
"Road to Chitral", Granta, September 2010.
H.K BURKI
Burki is another well known short story writer and has published only 8 short stories under the
title “saqipursecred” 1969 His stories generally a protagonist who is struggle against moral or
social forces of some kind while being in a temporarily unstable state of being the guiding values
are humanitarian and writer transcends the prejudices of his society example in his story “some
men are brothers” he refused Pakistani method that all Sikh struggle against moral or social
forces under unstable circumstances and condemnation of utilitarian and values and the people
who hold them.
MEHDI ALI SELJOUK
Mehndi Ali is another writer belonging to the same decayed he published the collection
of short stories called corpses. His tirade reminds one of d h Lawrence is similar tirade as
depicted in the novel Kangaroo it is true that Mehdi storytelling follows anecdotal pattern the
conflict is not presented with the sufficient skill and the total effect is to use a metaphor one of
the thinness.
The major theme in Mehndi work is a struggle of one main character against
circumstances. the circumstances always defeat the individual who dies but in some ways
individual sometimes transcends the pettiness of his life. ShUch themes are sophistically
portrayed in ‘the Jungle’ the ‘father and the sinner’.
ZAIB UN NISA HAMIDULLAH
Among the short story writers zeb-un-nissahamidullah the writer of the
“youngwife”and other stories was a prominent figure during this era some writers had started
agreeing with the perspective dictum that their work has lofty purposenamely “ to serve the
society” this a propagandist and progressive view of literature became popular in 1950 is with
special emphasis on didactic literature.
Mrs hamidullah collection comprising of 15 short stories which can be divided according
to the theme through stories “the Peepal trees” and “ fame” are identical and written on the style
of Maupassant and O Henry ;two “ the young life” and “the first Born” show the conflict
between the traditional values of the rural areas of Pakistan and individualism; two “ Motia
flower” and “wonder Bloom” are related to preternatural; and the rest are about old age
Mrs. hamidullah claim to literary significance lies in those short stories which have a
social theme especially authoritarian social norms of the male dominated society personal Desire
and religious Sikh Puritanism. in some of her works Mrs. Hamidullah expresses the liberal view
of Pakistan westernized intellectual in the language of religion rather than that of secular way of
thinking. however ,the fact is that Mrs hamidullah has not transcended the prejudices of high
society and distance to come between her and her perception of the truth about Pakistani society.

TRANSLATORS OF PAKISTAN’S SHORT STORIES

Today, for any literary tradition to establish its recognition at the global
level, the most compelling condition is to get translated into English. At
present only those literary traditions are known the world over which
either have the works directly written in English such as American,
Canadian, British, etc., or have managed to get translated into English.
From this perspective, Urdu literature is at a serious disadvantage and, in
spite of its remarkable artistry and amazing sweep, remains largely
confined to its four walls. Historically the asymmetrical power relations
between Urdu and English always have had their bearings upon the
translation tendencies between the two languages. As a result the number
of works translated from English to Urdu is incredibly higher than the one
translated from Urdu to English. This lopsidedness has more to it than an
initial thought may suggest. Today, if in the international academia and
publishing industry Urdu literature is lost in anonymity, it is because it has
not been communicated to the world as such. Whereas there are legions of
English-Urdu translators; there have been really very few skilled Urdu-
English translators. The present paper takes into consideration some of the
linguistic, literary, historical, and sociopolitical concerns and makes a
plea for the greater visibility of Urdu literary works at the global level
through translations which are not just linguistically accomplished but also
culturally viable.

SAADAT HASAN MANTO

He was born into a middle-class Muslim family in the predominantly Sikh city of Ludhiana in
1912. In his early 20s he translated Russian, French and English short stories into Urdu, and
through studying the work of western writers he learned the art of short story writing. He usually
wrote an entire story in one sitting, with very few corrections, and his subjects tended to be those
on the fringes of society. Saadat Hasan Manto was born into a middle-class Muslim family in the
predominantly Sikh city of Ludhiana in 1912. In his early 20s he translated Russian, French and
English short stories into Urdu, and through studying the work of western writers he learned the
art of short story writing. He usually wrote an entire story in one sitting, with very few
corrections, and his subjects tended to be those on the fringes of society. In the early 50s Manto
wrote a number of essays entitled “Letters to Uncle Sam” which are distressingly prophetic on
the direction that Pakistan was to take.
Ten Rupees and Mozelle: Two Short Stories by Saadat Hasan Manto. Translated from
the Urdu by Matt Reeck and Aftab Ahmad
Thanda gosht that is also translated from Urdu
Tithwal ka Kutta. Tithwal ka Kutta is a mockery on the futility of war and how it turns
regular humans into suspicious beasts, Bu, Toba Tek Singh, Kaali Shalwar, Khol Do.

Saadat Hasan Manto used the theme of conflict, fear, loyalty, trust, hatred and
betrayal. Taken from his Kingdom’s End and Other Stories collection the story is narrated in the
third person by an unnamed narrator and from the beginning of the story the reader realises that
Manto is using the setting to explore the theme of conflict. In Toba Tek Singh by Saadat Hasan
Manto we have the theme of confusion, identity, separation, change, control and ignorance. ... If
anything Manto may be ridiculing both governments over their handling of repatriation. It is also
possible that Manto is exploring the theme of identity.

TAHIR NAQVI
He was born in 1942 in India, is a Pakistani writer. He has been writing short stories since
1972. Several of his short stories have been translated into English and some regional
languages. He has been praised by several writers for his short story work. Band labon ki
cheekh- 1982, Habs k baad pehly barish- 1988, Shaam ka parinda- 1998, Dair kabhi nahein hoti-
2005, Kawwon Ki Basti Mein Aik Aadmi- 2011 Aankhon se gira khaab, Afsana nigar ki apnay
kirdar se aakhri mulaqaat, Ubaal, Ajnabi, Mas'ala ,Aazmaesh . The current state of Pakistani
English literature can be found in The Djinn Falls in Love, a captivating collection of short
stories edited by Mahvesh Murad and Jared Shurin. Included in this collection are spellbinding
and riveting stories by contemporary writers of Pakistani origin such as Sami Shah and Usman T
Malik. 

AMINA AZFAR 
She was educated in Bangladesh and Pakistan. She now works as a freelance
editor and translator. Her books, The Dust of the Road, and The Oxford Book of Urdu Short
Stories won the Hasan Askari Award for best translation work from the Pakistan Academy of
Letters, in the years 2007 and 2009, respectively. Azfar has authored textbooks, as well as
storybooks for children in Urdu and English. 
Modern Urdu Short Stories from Pakistan translated by Amina Azfar This
anthology brings together English translations of twenty-six Urdu short stories by renowned
Pakistani writers. Stories included in the anthology were written between 1947 and the present
time. Authors range from the celebrated Saadat Hasan Manto and Intizar Husain to Dr Shershah
Syed and Zafar Mehmood. Not all of these stories are necessarily the most famous works of their
authors, and most of them have not been translated into English before. However, their exquisite
depiction of diverse experiences and social realities justifies calling them unforgettable gems of
Urdu short story writing. Amina Azfar works as a freelance editor and translator.
ZAHIDA HENA
She was a great novelist, columnist and short story writer Zaheda Hina,
considered by many to be one of the most pivotal voices to have emerged from Pakistan, was
present at the IBA on Thursday where the recently published English translation of her short
stories, The House of Loneliness, was launched.
GHULAM ABBAS

Translation of "Bahar Ki Hawa" by Ghulam Abbas into English Language

The translated version of one of precious Urdu short stories "Bahar ki Hawa" written by Urdu
novelist and short story writer Ghulam Abbas, into English language. The selected short story
depicts the social and individual psychological instincts of humans. One of main themes of this
story revolves around the point that greed and lust ruin happiness and contentment, making the
mankind astray from their real purpose. He wanted to share the Pakistani literature at global
level, making the world aware of Pakistani cultural, moral and ethical values, alongside the
convenience of people unable to read Urdu language is also kept in consideration. Different
models, translation methodologies and approaches have been applied on the text while going
through the process of translation.

WOMEN CHARACTERS AS A FICTION IN SHORT STORIES

The question of women’s position in society has figured in Pakistani English fiction
since independence in 1947. It is reflected in the works of early writers such as Zaibunissa
Hamidullah, Bapsi Sidhwa, Sara Suleri and Zulfikar Ghose. In recent times, writers such as Talat
Abbasi, Mohammed Hanif, Mohsin Hamid, Kamila Shamsie and Uzma Aslam Khan have also
directly and indirectly tackled the same question in their fiction.

Female characters in the works of these writers often highlight the various values,
customs and traditions that shape a woman’s life in our society. An assessment of changes in the
portrayal of these characters over decades, however, requires their evaluation in the context of
what several literary and gender theorists call a feminine consciousness — that is, their reaction
and response to their familial, social, political and economic contexts, among other things.

Women in early Pakistani English fiction were shown either as cogs in the
wheels of the patriarchal system or as targets of various forms of patriarchal oppression. As with
19th century British and American fiction represented by the works of Charlotte Perkins Gilman,
Kate Chopin and George Eliot, Pakistani fiction writers in the second half of the 20th century
drew upon moments of suppression — when female characters/protagonists questioned the
nature of patriarchal customs and traditions surrounding them but were not allowed to get away
with their questioning.

Such characters, like the ones Zaibunnisa depicted in her short stories, The
Young Wife and Other Stories (published in 1958), either had to die or obey their oppressors.
 We can argue that a feminine consciousness is not entirely absent in them even
when it gets suppressed. By showing them within the context of their restrictions and dilemmas,
the writers seem to suggest that in their suppression exist traces of a nascent resistance.

The Sweetness of Tears is a gripping narrative attempt to understand and navigate

through multiple religious and national identities that exist simultaneously within individuals
living in exile.

In contrast, Talat’s short stories, Bitter Gourd & Other Stories (published in 2001),

portray mostly working-class women who not only question social norms and their position
within the domestic and the public spheres, but also break out of patriarchal suppression in their
own unique ways. The resistance that was nipped several decades ago has now become a visible
and active rebellion.

USMAN T. MALIK
Usman T. Malik is an award-winning speculative fiction author from Pakistan. His
short fiction has been published in magazines and books such as The Apex Book of World SF,
Nightmare, Strange Horizons, and Black Static and in a number of "year's best" anthologies. He
is the first Pakistani to win the Bram Stoker Award for Short Fiction. He has been nominated for
the British Fantasy Award, the World Fantasy Award, and has twice been a finalist for
the Nebula Award.
Malik's short fiction has been published in magazines and books such as The Apex
Book of World SF, Nightmare, Strange Horizons, Black Static, and Tor.com. His stories have
also been reprinted in a number of "year's best" anthologies including The Year's Best Dark
Fantasy and Horror, The Years Best YA Speculative Fiction, The Best Science Fiction and
Fantasy of the Year, and The Year’s Best Weird Fiction.
MOVIES IN LITERATURE OF PAKISTAN
WAAR

Waar is a 2013 Pakistani action-thriller film directed by Bilal

Lashari and written and produced by Hassan Rana. The film features Shaan Shahid, Meesha
Shafi, Ali Azmat, Shamoon Abbasi, Ayesha Khan, Suhaib Rana and Kamran Lashari. It is
the sixth highest-grossing Pakistani film. It is a stylized depiction of events surrounding
Pakistan's efforts to conduct a war on terror on state-sponsored Islamic terror groups, which
resulted in warfare among tribal units in North-West Pakistan. One incident included a
terrorist attack on a Police Academy at Lahore in 2009.
Major Mujtaba Rizvi (played by Shaan Shahid) is a former Pakistan
Army officer who took an early retirement. The plot involves a counter-terrorism operation being
conducted in the northwestern tribal region of Pakistan, led by Ehtesham Khattak (played
by Hamza Ali Abbasi) and coordinated by his sister, Javeria Khattak (played by Ayesha Khan),
an intelligence officer. Ehtesham and Javeria learn of a major terrorist attack that can only be
countered with the help of Major Mujtaba.
Major Mujtaba's family was assassinated by Ramal (played by Shamoon Abbasi), an
agent in India's spy agency Research and Analysis Wing's (RAW) operation. Major Mujtaba
wants to take revenge on Ramal. Recognizing Ramal through his actions and tactics, Major
Mujtaba is able to counter his attacks.
Mulla Siraj, a Taliban working with Ramal, is operating from a fort in the tribal area.
He gives Ramal two bombs which Ramal is going to plant somewhere in Pakistan. Planned by
Laxmi, a RAW spy; terrorists conduct an attack on a police training center to divert the attention
of the security agencies. They have been watching any suspicious activity as they have learned
that a major terrorist action is imminent. One bomb is loaded in a vehicle, which Ehtesham
drives away in order to dispose the bomb. He is killed when the bomb explodes. The second
bomb is planted in Jinnah Convention Centre, Islamabad but Major Mujtaba counters this attack
and saves the country from another deadly terror incident. He takes his revenge by killing Ramal,
saying "Good wins over evil in the end".

YALGHAAR

Yalghaar  is a 2017 Pakistani war-epic film
directed by Hassan Rana. The film is produced by MindWorks Media and is based on the true
story of Pakistan Army's Swat Operation.
The film "explores what happens in the lives of those involved, including the
militants and how all of them are affected at a personal level because of the ongoing operation".
It stars Shaan Shahid in the lead role, along with Humayun Saeed, Adnan Siddiqui, Armeena
Khan, Aleeze Nasser, Ayesha Omer, Sana Bucha, Bilal Ashraf. [1] It is the most expensive
Pakistani movie to date.[4] Apart from budget and extensive cast, the film features 150 written
characters. On 19 December 2014, Hassan Waqas Rana revealed that this film is a tribute to slain
children of the 2014 Peshawar school attack Based on a true story, over 76 hours of a successful
military operation conducted in the Piochar region of Swat district, Yalghaar goes up close to
follow the lives of the young, passionate officers and soldiers whose patriotism is throbbing with
every heartbeat for their country (Pakistan).

KHUDA KAY LIYE

Khuda Kay Liye (also released as In The Name of

God in international markets is a 2007 Pakistani drama film directed by Shoaib Mansoor, and
stars Shaan Shahid, Fawad Khan and Iman Ali in pivotal roles, with a cameo appearance
by Naseeruddin Shah. The film follows Mansoor and Sarmad (played by Shaan and Khan), two
singers whose lives change after the events of 9/11 attacks in America and misinterpreted
teachings of Jihad.
Mansoor and Sarmad are two successful singers from Lahore. Sarmad eventually
gets influenced by an Islamic activist Maulana Tahiri, as he begins to practice Islamic way of
living and gives up his music career as it is considered "haram" by the Islamic activist. Maryam
(Mary), a westernised British Pakistani girl, falls in love with Dave from the British community.
However this displeases her father, who is hypocritical, despite himself being in a live-in
relationship with a British woman.
Meanwhile, Mary's father plans to take her for a trip to Pakistan to meet Sarmad
and Mansoor. While touring FATA, she gets deceived by her father to marry her cousin, Sarmad.
Mary is forcefully married off to him and abandoned in their household. In an escape attempt,
Mary tries to run from the village but gets caught by Sarmad. He eventually consummates their
marriage by force as a sort of punishment so that Mary would not escape again.
Mansoor goes to a musical school in Chicago, where he meets Janie. They both
eventually fall in love with each other and Janie stops drinking alcohol for him. However, shortly
after the events of 9/11, Mansoor gets arrested by FBI due to his Islamic background and gets
detained for a year in Guantanamo Bay detention camp.
Mary is rescued by Sarmad's father under the protection of the British government. A
devastated Mary takes her father and cousin to court in Pakistan for justice. Wali (Naseeruddin
Shah), a Maulana, then explains to the court how Islam is being misused in the name of war and
hatred, bringing the religion forward in a believable and peaceful manner. Traumatised by all the
suffering he has seen and caused, Sarmad withdraws from the case. He also realizes the damage
that he was made to inflict in the name of religion. Mary is now free and returns to the village
where she was kept prisoner so she can educate the girls there. Meanwhile, Mansoor is still in
FBI custody after a year of torment; the last torture session having inflicted permanent brain
damage. After a failed rehab attempt, he is deported and reunited with his family in Pakistan
where he begins to recover.