“Bombay Stories” by Saadat Hasan Manto is a collection of short stories that depict women

in a very low manner. Women are presented as objects or as possessions in many of the short
stories. Moreover, the short stories depict women as mere tools for the satisfaction of men. A short
story where this is seen is “The Insult”.

“The Insult,” showcases the position of women in the social hierarchy at that time through
the words “Saugandhi… I’ll grab your hair and throw you out”. This line shows that Madho expected
Saugandhi to be loyal towards him and threatens to get abusive if she continues to be a prostitute,
this shows how men feel that they can do anything to a woman, without any consequences, if she
doesn’t work at their accord. The fact that Ram Lal does not value Saugandhi’s freedom of choice
when she says she is “not in the mood today” and makes her come with him to the rich man’s car by
telling her “You’ll start feeling better,” shows that Ram Lal believes he owns Saugandhi and she will
have to do everything she is asked to do. Saugandhi, too, did not retaliate which shows that even the
women accepted and internalised their position in the society.

Additionally, women are depicted in this story as people who long for love and, sometimes,
need to settle with unorthodox ways of receiving it, such as prostitution. Every time she decides to
treat the people who come to her “indifferently,” she would “give in” due to her “desire to be
loved”. Manto also shows how men exploit a woman’s desire to be loved. Initially, the reader
develops the notion that Madho, in his own way, cares for Saugandhi, but later in the story, it is
evident that his love is not for Saugandhi but rather for her money.

Furthermore, Manto depicts women as people who nobody really cares about. The fact that
the rich man said “Yuhkk” as soon as he saw Saugandhi and completely ignored her feelings shows
the extent to which a woman’s feelings are disregarded. Towards the end of the short story, Manto
shows a shift in Saugandhi’s character as she goes down a spiral. Saugandhi is now depicted with the
traits of a man: uncaring, rude and violent. This shows the extent to which her encounter with the
rich man has affected her psyche.

Manto has given a lot of weightage to Saugandhi’s emotions in “The Insult” in order to
communicate his ideas with the reader in a satisfactory manner. Manto has adequately depicted
women in these short stories by using vivid imagery and several literary devices.