“The Heart Divided” by Mumtaz Shahnawaz

Post Colonial Literary Analysis

SUBMITTED BY:
JESSICA MARIE I. LACSON
AB LIT 2

SUBMITTED TO:
MS. ANGLIE MAMITES
 AUTHORS BACKGROUND
MUMTAZ SHAHNAWAZ

Mumtaz Shahnawaz (1912–1948) was a Pakistani diplomat and writer. She had held degrees in English
literature. She was born to Arain family of Mian Shahnawaz and his politically active wife, Begum Jahanara
Shahnawaz. Thus, she was the granddaughter of Sir Muhammad Shafi, the influential leader from Punjab.
Like her mother, Mumtaz Shahnawaz was drawn into the national movement as a Congress member but
slowly shifted her sympathies towards to the Muslim League. Mumtaz or Tanzee as she was known to her
family and friends was greatly influenced by Jinnah. Mumtaz Shahnawaz died at the age of 35 in a plane
crash months after the creation of Pakistan, en route to New York to represent Pakistan at the UN General
Assembly, the first woman in Asia to preside over a legislative session.
Her novel, The Heart Divided was the first novel on the partition of India. It tells the story of a Muslim family 
in North India during the 1940s. It provides a detailed account of Independence and Partition, though it stop
s short of the Partition riots. She died in 1948; leaving behind a first draft, which her family published unedit
ed 11 years later. Hers is possibly the first English South Asian novel to have been written about Partition.

The Heart Divided

By Mumtaz Shah Nawaz
Summary
The story is set in Lahore and
opens in the Household of
Sheikh
Jamaluddin, in the ladies’ part of
the house. The females of the
household and
Sheikh Jamaluddin are enjoying
tea after he returns from high
court. The
females include his two
daughters, Sughra and Zohra and
his wife, Mehrunnisa
Begum. Sheikh Jamaluddin was
an admirer of the West and even
had an affair
with an English girl, Mary, but
had accommodated to his family
traditions (as
he belonged to a prestigious and
religiously inclined family). He
was one of the
first Muslim from the Punjab to
go to Cambridge and there, he
took a degree in
law. Sughra is the elder child of
the two daughters and is engaged
to Mansur in
Multan. Meanwhile, his younger
daughter Zohra is carefree and a
beautiful
youth. The story’s trajectory
moves forward from the
introduction of the
characters when the phone rings
and Zohra returns back to the
room to ask
permission to go out shopping
with her two friends, Surrayya
and Mohini. The
mother despises Surrayya as she
and her family are among the
early Muslims
who have dropped the use of
pardah (Muslim veil) and
adopted modern
Western trends. The family gives
consent to their daughter Zohra
to go with
her friends and take the car but
Zohra, in a hurry, forgets the
head piece of her
veil and upon the insistence of
her friends, she goes out of the
car without
pardah as the car gets punctured
and they are forced to use a
tonga.
Chapter 2 begins with the
description of Nishat Manzil, the
house of the
Sheikh family, situated on
Empress Road. Another
character is introduced who
is Anwar Jahan Begum
(Anwari), the daughter of Sheikh
Nizamuddin and the
sister of Sheikh Jamaluddin. She
is a widow and has two children,
a son and a
daughter. She despises her
cousin and sister-in-law
Mehrunnisa as she is living
a happy married life and thinks
that she did some black magic on
her brother.
One day, her maid Chagan
comes and informs Anwari that
the driver Ghulam
Muhammad had told that Zohra
Bibi was shopping without a
veil. This delights
Anwari and she quickly runs off
to inform her father so that
Mehrunnisa and
her daughters are scolded. While
in the meantime, Sughra and
Zohra are
sitting in their room and having a
talk that suddenly their mother
comes
barging in the room and inquires
Zohra about the boys with whom
she was out.
Apparently, Anwari had made up
a fake story and presented in
front of her
father just to put dirt on the
teachings of Mehr. Mehr was so
angry that she
could not see the truth in her
daughter’s eyes and in a fit of
anger, she slapped
Zohra. At this point, she realized
her mistake. Later, Sheikh
Jamaluddin came
and immediately dismissed the
allegations and even he did not
mind Zohr
The Heart Divided
By Mumtaz Shah Nawaz
Summary
The story is set in Lahore and
opens in the Household of
Sheikh
Jamaluddin, in the ladies’ part of
the house. The females of the
household and
Sheikh Jamaluddin are enjoying
tea after he returns from high
court. The
females include his two
daughters, Sughra and Zohra and
his wife, Mehrunnisa
Begum. Sheikh Jamaluddin was
an admirer of the West and even
had an affair
with an English girl, Mary, but
had accommodated to his family
traditions (as
he belonged to a prestigious and
religiously inclined family). He
was one of the
first Muslim from the Punjab to
go to Cambridge and there, he
took a degree in
law. Sughra is the elder child of
the two daughters and is engaged
to Mansur in
Multan. Meanwhile, his younger
daughter Zohra is carefree and a
beautiful
youth. The story’s trajectory
moves forward from the
introduction of the
characters when the phone rings
and Zohra returns back to the
room to ask
permission to go out shopping
with her two friends, Surrayya
and Mohini. The
mother despises Surrayya as she
and her family are among the
early Muslims
who have dropped the use of
pardah (Muslim veil) and
adopted modern
Western trends. The family gives
consent to their daughter Zohra
to go with
her friends and take the car but
Zohra, in a hurry, forgets the
head piece of her
veil and upon the insistence of
her friends, she goes out of the
car without
pardah as the car gets punctured
and they are forced to use a
tonga.
Chapter 2 begins with the
description of Nishat Manzil, the
house of the
Sheikh family, situated on
Empress Road. Another
character is introduced who
is Anwar Jahan Begum
(Anwari), the daughter of Sheikh
Nizamuddin and the
sister of Sheikh Jamaluddin. She
is a widow and has two children,
a son and a
daughter. She despises her
cousin and sister-in-law
Mehrunnisa as she is living
a happy married life and thinks
that she did some black magic on
her brother.
One day, her maid Chagan
comes and informs Anwari that
the driver Ghulam
Muhammad had told that Zohra
Bibi was shopping without a
veil. This delights
Anwari and she quickly runs off
to inform her father so that
Mehrunnisa and
her daughters are scolded. While
in the meantime, Sughra and
Zohra are
sitting in their room and having a
talk that suddenly their mother
comes
barging in the room and inquires
Zohra about the boys with whom
she was out.
Apparently, Anwari had made up
a fake story and presented in
front of her
father just to put dirt on the
teachings of Mehr. Mehr was so
angry that she
could not see the truth in her
daughter’s eyes and in a fit of
anger, she slapped
Zohra. At this point, she realized
her mistake. Later, Sheikh
Jamaluddin came
and immediately dismissed the
allegations and even he did not
mind Zohr
The Heart Divided
By Mumtaz Shah Nawaz
Summary
The story is set in Lahore and
opens in the Household of
Sheikh
Jamaluddin, in the ladies’ part of
the house. The females of the
household and
Sheikh Jamaluddin are enjoying
tea after he returns from high
court. The
females include his two
daughters, Sughra and Zohra and
his wife, Mehrunnisa
Begum. Sheikh Jamaluddin was
an admirer of the West and even
had an affair
with an English girl, Mary, but
had accommodated to his family
traditions (as
he belonged to a prestigious and
religiously inclined family). He
was one of the
first Muslim from the Punjab to
go to Cambridge and there, he
took a degree in
law. Sughra is the elder child of
the two daughters and is engaged
to Mansur in
Multan. Meanwhile, his younger
daughter Zohra is carefree and a
beautiful
youth. The story’s trajectory
moves forward from the
introduction of the
characters when the phone rings
and Zohra returns back to the
room to ask
permission to go out shopping
with her two friends, Surrayya
and Mohini. The
mother despises Surrayya as she
and her family are among the
early Muslims
who have dropped the use of
pardah (Muslim veil) and
adopted modern
Western trends. The family gives
consent to their daughter Zohra
to go with
her friends and take the car but
Zohra, in a hurry, forgets the
head piece of her
veil and upon the insistence of
her friends, she goes out of the
car without
pardah as the car gets punctured
and they are forced to use a
tonga.
Chapter 2 begins with the
description of Nishat Manzil, the
house of the
Sheikh family, situated on
Empress Road. Another
character is introduced who
is Anwar Jahan Begum
(Anwari), the daughter of Sheikh
Nizamuddin and the
sister of Sheikh Jamaluddin. She
is a widow and has two children,
a son and a
daughter. She despises her
cousin and sister-in-law
Mehrunnisa as she is living
a happy married life and thinks
that she did some black magic on
her brother.
One day, her maid Chagan
comes and informs Anwari that
the driver Ghulam
Muhammad had told that Zohra
Bibi was shopping without a
veil. This delights
Anwari and she quickly runs off
to inform her father so that
Mehrunnisa and
her daughters are scolded. While
in the meantime, Sughra and
Zohra are
sitting in their room and having a
talk that suddenly their mother
comes
barging in the room and inquires
Zohra about the boys with whom
she was out.
Apparently, Anwari had made up
a fake story and presented in
front of her
father just to put dirt on the
teachings of Mehr. Mehr was so
angry that she
could not see the truth in her
daughter’s eyes and in a fit of
anger, she slapped
Zohra. At this point, she realized
her mistake. Later, Sheikh
Jamaluddin came
and immediately dismissed the
allegations and even he did not
mind Zohr

The Heart
Divided
By Mumtaz
Shah Nawaz
Summary
The story is set
in Lahore and
opens in the
Household of
Sheikh
Jamaluddin, in
the ladies’ part
of the house.
The females of
the household
and
Sheikh
Jamaluddin are
enjoying tea
after he returns
from high court.
The
females include
his two
daughters,
Sughra and
Zohra and his
wife,
Mehrunnisa
Begum. Sheikh
Jamaluddin was
an admirer of
the West and
even had an
affair
with an English
girl, Mary, but
had
accommodated
to his family
traditions (as
he belonged to a
prestigious and
religiously
inclined family).
He was one of
the
first Muslim
from the Punjab
to go to
Cambridge and
there, he took a
degree in
law. Sughra is
the elder child
of the two
daughters and is
engaged to
Mansur in
Multan.
Meanwhile, his
younger
daughter Zohra
is carefree and a
beautiful
youth. The
story’s
trajectory
moves forward
from the
introduction of
the
characters when
the phone rings
and Zohra
returns back to
the room to ask
permission to go
out shopping
with her two
friends,
Surrayya and
Mohini. The
mother despises
Surrayya as she
and her family
are among the
early Muslims
who have
dropped the use
of pardah
(Muslim veil)
and adopted
modern
Western trends.
The family
gives consent to
their daughter
Zohra to go
with
her friends and
take the car but
Zohra, in a
hurry, forgets
the head piece
of her
veil and upon
the insistence of
her friends, she
goes out of the
car without
pardah as the
car gets
punctured and
they are forced
to use a tonga.
Chapter 2
begins with the
description of
Nishat Manzil,
the house of the
Sheikh family,
situated on
Empress Road.
Another
character is
introduced who
is Anwar Jahan
Begum
(Anwari), the
daughter of
Sheikh
Nizamuddin and
the
sister of Sheikh
Jamaluddin. She
is a widow and
has two
children, a son
and a
daughter. She
despises her
cousin and
sister-in-law
Mehrunnisa as
she is living
a happy married
life and thinks
that she did
some black
magic on her
brother.
One day, her
maid Chagan
comes and
informs Anwari
that the driver
Ghulam
Muhammad had
told that Zohra
Bibi was
shopping
without a veil.
This delights
Anwari and she
quickly runs off
to inform her
father so that
Mehrunnisa and
her daughters
are scolded.
While in the
meantime,
Sughra and
Zohra are
sitting in their
room and
having a talk
that suddenly
their mother
comes
barging in the
room and
inquires Zohra
about the boys
with whom she
was out.
Apparently,
Anwari had
made up a fake
story and
presented in
front of her
father just to put
dirt on the
teachings of
Mehr. Mehr was
so angry that
she
could not see
the truth in her
daughter’s eyes
and in a fit of
anger, she
slapped
Zohra. At this
point, she
realized her
mistake. Later,
Sheikh
Jamaluddin
came
and
immediately
dismissed the
allegations and
even he did not
mind Zohr
The Heart
Divided
By Mumtaz
Shah Nawaz
Summary
The story is set
in Lahore and
opens in the
Household of
Sheikh
Jamaluddin, in
the ladies’ part
of the house.
The females of
the household
and
Sheikh
Jamaluddin are
enjoying tea
after he returns
from high court.
The
females include
his two
daughters,
Sughra and
Zohra and his
wife,
Mehrunnisa
Begum. Sheikh
Jamaluddin was
an admirer of
the West and
even had an
affair
with an English
girl, Mary, but
had
accommodated
to his family
traditions (as
he belonged to a
prestigious and
religiously
inclined family).
He was one of
the
first Muslim
from the Punjab
to go to
Cambridge and
there, he took a
degree in
law. Sughra is
the elder child
of the two
daughters and is
engaged to
Mansur in
Multan.
Meanwhile, his
younger
daughter Zohra
is carefree and a
beautiful
youth. The
story’s
trajectory
moves forward
from the
introduction of
the
characters when
the phone rings
and Zohra
returns back to
the room to ask
permission to go
out shopping
with her two
friends,
Surrayya and
Mohini. The
mother despises
Surrayya as she
and her family
are among the
early Muslims
who have
dropped the use
of pardah
(Muslim veil)
and adopted
modern
Western trends.
The family
gives consent to
their daughter
Zohra to go
with
her friends and
take the car but
Zohra, in a
hurry, forgets
the head piece
of her
veil and upon
the insistence of
her friends, she
goes out of the
car without
pardah as the
car gets
punctured and
they are forced
to use a tonga.
Chapter 2
begins with the
description of
Nishat Manzil,
the house of the
Sheikh family,
situated on
Empress Road.
Another
character is
introduced who
is Anwar Jahan
Begum
(Anwari), the
daughter of
Sheikh
Nizamuddin and
the
sister of Sheikh
Jamaluddin. She
is a widow and
has two
children, a son
and a
daughter. She
despises her
cousin and
sister-in-law
Mehrunnisa as
she is living
a happy married
life and thinks
that she did
some black
magic on her
brother.
One day, her
maid Chagan
comes and
informs Anwari
that the driver
Ghulam
Muhammad had
told that Zohra
Bibi was
shopping
without a veil.
This delights
Anwari and she
quickly runs off
to inform her
father so that
Mehrunnisa and
her daughters
are scolded.
While in the
meantime,
Sughra and
Zohra are
sitting in their
room and
having a talk
that suddenly
their mother
comes
barging in the
room and
inquires Zohra
about the boys
with whom she
was out.
Apparently,
Anwari had
made up a fake
story and
presented in
front of her
father just to put
dirt on the
teachings of
Mehr. Mehr was
so angry that
she
could not see
the truth in her
daughter’s eyes
and in a fit of
anger, she
slapped
Zohra. At this
point, she
realized her
mistake. Later,
Sheikh
Jamaluddin
came
and
immediately
dismissed the
allegations and
even he did not
mind Zohr
The Heart
Divided
By Mumtaz
Shah Nawaz
Summary
The story is set
in Lahore and
opens in the
Household of
Sheikh
Jamaluddin, in
the ladies’ part
of the house.
The females of
the household
and
Sheikh
Jamaluddin are
enjoying tea
after he returns
from high court.
The
females include
his two
daughters,
Sughra and
Zohra and his
wife,
Mehrunnisa
Begum. Sheikh
Jamaluddin was
an admirer of
the West and
even had an
affair
with an English
girl, Mary, but
had
accommodated
to his family
traditions (as
he belonged to a
prestigious and
religiously
inclined family).
He was one of
the
first Muslim
from the Punjab
to go to
Cambridge and
there, he took a
degree in
law. Sughra is
the elder child
of the two
daughters and is
engaged to
Mansur in
Multan.
Meanwhile, his
younger
daughter Zohra
is carefree and a
beautiful
youth. The
story’s
trajectory
moves forward
from the
introduction of
the
characters when
the phone rings
and Zohra
returns back to
the room to ask
permission to go
out shopping
with her two
friends,
Surrayya and
Mohini. The
mother despises
Surrayya as she
and her family
are among the
early Muslims
who have
dropped the use
of pardah
(Muslim veil)
and adopted
modern
Western trends.
The family
gives consent to
their daughter
Zohra to go
with
her friends and
take the car but
Zohra, in a
hurry, forgets
the head piece
of her
veil and upon
the insistence of
her friends, she
goes out of the
car without
pardah as the
car gets
punctured and
they are forced
to use a tonga.
Chapter 2
begins with the
description of
Nishat Manzil,
the house of the
Sheikh family,
situated on
Empress Road.
Another
character is
introduced who
is Anwar Jahan
Begum
(Anwari), the
daughter of
Sheikh
Nizamuddin and
the
sister of Sheikh
Jamaluddin. She
is a widow and
has two
children, a son
and a
daughter. She
despises her
cousin and
sister-in-law
Mehrunnisa as
she is living
a happy married
life and thinks
that she did
some black
magic on her
brother.
One day, her
maid Chagan
comes and
informs Anwari
that the driver
Ghulam
Muhammad had
told that Zohra
Bibi was
shopping
without a veil.
This delights
Anwari and she
quickly runs off
to inform her
father so that
Mehrunnisa and
her daughters
are scolded.
While in the
meantime,
Sughra and
Zohra are
sitting in their
room and
having a talk
that suddenly
their mother
comes
barging in the
room and
inquires Zohra
about the boys
with whom she
was out.
Apparently,
Anwari had
made up a fake
story and
presented in
front of her
father just to put
dirt on the
teachings of
Mehr. Mehr was
so angry that
she
could not see
the truth in her
daughter’s eyes
and in a fit of
anger, she
slapped
Zohra. At this
point, she
realized her
mistake. Later,
Sheikh
Jamaluddin
came
and
immediately
dismissed the
allegations and
even he did not
mind Zohr SUMMARY
The Heart Divided
by Mumtaz Shah Nawaz.

INDIA in the 1930s was a land marked by struggle. A land hurting as much from the Hindu-Muslim divide
as from the British rule. It was a time of strategies made and discarded, a time of accords that were tried
and failed and a desperate desire for unity that remained elusive. In the centre of it all was Punjab, proud
and strong, but torn apart by the tussle between the Congress and the Muslim League. Here we find the
Sheikh family, in the vicissitudes of whose fortune was reflected the change that was taking place all over
the country.
Written in 1948, The Heart Divided is the only novel by Mumtaz Shah Nawaz, a prominent freedom fighter,
poet, and advocate of the rights of workers and women in Delhi and Lahore. A fictional account of her
gradual disillusionment with the unity process, the novel mirrors her conversion from a Congress supporter
to one who supports the idea of a separate Muslim state. She tries to explain how the reason behind
Partition cannot be found by dissecting the triangle of the Congress, the League and the British; it was the
hearts of the people that had been divided, a process that started as early as 1930.

The story revolves around Zohra and Sughra, two sisters with differing political views. Zohra is a Congress
supporter, a dreamer, who longs for unity between the Hindus and Muslims that never comes about.
Sughra, on the other hand, is a staunch supporter of the Muslim League and the interests of her community
are supreme to her. In the meticulously etched lives of the sisters, we observe the emerging modernity in
the Sheikh family, its community and politics. Using a series of love stories, the author has woven the social
fabric of elite Lahore into the unfolding political saga of that time.

Mumtaz Shah Nawaz addresses the various social problems of her times. A vociferous spokesperson
against purdah, she has created a similar character in Zohra. The discarding of the purdah marks a new
dawn in Zohra’s personal and political life. She is a more confident and freer person. She is able to not only
take on men and defeat them in debates, but can even defy society to take up a job away from home.

The author also questions the prevalent notions about marriage. She views the institution of marriage from
four different angles. Habib, the girls’ brother, and Mohini, Zohra’s Hindu friend, fall in love but find that
marriage is almost impossible. Sughra has an arranged marriage that is a miserable failure. Though she
discovers love later in life, it is never fulfilled as that would involve divorce and girls from respected families
like hers do not have that option. Another friend, Najma, is forcibly wed to an old widower and her
subsequent divorce is considered such a stigma that she is considered unfit company for all "decent" girls.
Zohra herself falls in love with a man considered lower class by her family. The decision of right or wrong is
left to the reader.

Even though most characters do not break society’s rules, yet the fact that they think of intellectual
compatibility as a major factor in marriage is in itself a major breakthrough. Individual choices may differ but
the desire for change is common.

The various characters are so lovingly portrayed that the reader cannot help being drawn into their lives
and feeling their pain. The novel is, however, much more than mere fiction. It is an interesting chronicle of
the social and political upheavals of pre-Independence India. The depiction may be fictionalised but the
pain and the turmoil are real. The bloodshed that Vijay, Mohini’s brother, foresees towards the end of the
novel is now part of history. Zohra at one point thinks of poet Iqbal saying, "Change alone hath stability". As
our world changes anew, with various confidence-building measures and peace talks taking place, let us
hope we can put behind us the "sea of tears and blood" that Vijay envisaged and create a world in which
peace reigns.

ANALYSIS
I've examined Mumtaz Shah's work The Heart Divided in this analysis. Nawaz's journey can be traced using a
postcolonial lens. Muslim women's opposition in the public realm. The tale focuses on the three female characters
Sughra, Zohra (the siblings) and Mohni, a Hindu girl. Nearly ten years after the author's death, The Heart Divided
was released anonymously in 1957. The establishment of Pakistan Consequently, it can be seen of as a postcolonial
text that examines the social, political, and cultural factors that led to the demand for Pakistan factors that led to
inconsistencies between Muslims and Hindus in all areas of their existence. The book is set in the year 1940,
spanning the
seventeen-year period during which Muslims resisted the British colonial government's oppression on the one hand,
and the Congress' claim on serving as the exclusive voice of the Indian people on the other. The setting is Lahore,
which represents Muslim identity historically and culturally. Sheikh Jamaluddin and his wife Mehrunissa, together with
their one son Habib, two daughters, Sughra and Zohra, reside at Nishat Manzal. In this typical Muslim household, the
ladies wear the veil (purdah), and the living quarters are further split into Zenana and Mardana (for men).

Shah Nawaz, like the majority of authors who have written on Partition, mirrors the Before it is possible, there must
be harmonious sociocultural coexistence between Muslims and Hindus. Broken by a variety of things. The harmony
and cultural diversity that Shah Nawaz portrays unity between Hindus and Muslims through a beautiful and symbolic
act on the part of the Hindu Diwan Kailash Nath Kaul and the Muslim nobility Jamaluddin, higher class members who
take the brotherhood pledge and trade turbans. Nawaz emphasizes the Muslim culture's past colonialism in By
mentioning the existence of rare Persian and Urdu manuscripts in the Hindu Kauls' library while they recite Hafiz,
Saadi, and Ghalib, they also discuss India and the social and cultural synthesis between Hindus and Muslims.

She also demonstrates how the Urdu spoken by the Hindu Kaul family in Delhi and Lucknow is authentic. They take
great delight in sharing a culture with Muslims. She demonstrates how Muslims and Muslim culture saw a decrease
in stature with the British occupation of India, which caused the Muslims to become more connected to myth and
history. Earnest Cassirer, a proponent of this phenomena who claims that men frequently use the myths during
periods of crisis.

Nawaz demonstrates how the difficulties Muslims are facing now cause them to desire for simpler times. She
portrays that the Muslims start taking pride in their magnificent history and this pride in their history keeps them
hooked to their identity and culture. One of the factors in the path to unity between Hindus and Muslims in the altered
historical context is the Muslim connection to the mythology of their rich and beautiful historical, cultural past. This
awareness of the past gives Sughra the courage to begin fantasizing about an other place. Nawaz argues that the
Muslims’ feeling of their historical, cultural identity allows them to thrive, but strangely it also forms one element for
their yearning for a separate homeland.

Shah Nawaz demonstrates how Muslim culture progressively gives place to imperial culture as a result of British
colonization. As evidence of the connection between imperialism and culture, she demonstrates how Hindus are the
first to embrace the dominating British culture. She demonstrates how the majority of Muslim households at the turn
of the 20th century were still conflicted and conflicted about adopting British culture. But just like the Hindus, the
Muslims are assimilating British culture over time. Muslim nobleman Sheikh Jamal-ud-Din frequents the club, a
representation of imperial culture, but his daughter Zohra is not permitted to leave the house without a veil. A legacy
of Muslim culture is that Zohra is also not authorized to "engage into discussion with the shops." In defiance of
colonialist British ideology and out of nostalgia for the past, some Muslim households continue to separate the sexes.
According to Edward Said's definition of the assimilationist phase, this picture of the internalization and assimilation
of British culture is accurate.
According to Nawaz, the British colonizers minimized the synthesis and Hindu and Muslim cultures were
homogenized under the Mughals. In order to maintain the domination of their culture and the continuation of their
reign, the British are depicted as taking advantage of and playing up the distinctions between Hindus and Muslims in
terms of their respective religions, cultures, languages, and practices. Kaul is seen blaming the British invasion of
state after state and province after province to that tried-and-true divide-and-conquer strategy. The Muslim League
was founded, according to Mohini's grandfather, because of the British. According to Shah Nawaz, the conquerors'
part in separating Hindus and Muslims was a major contributing element in the subcontinent's partition.

The Hindus also start to realize how "glory" their history was before the Muslims arrived. Jawala Prashad Kaul
praises the Mughals' contribution to the art, culture, and wealth of the Indian people while also referring to the
"plunder" and "theft" brought about by the Muslim invaders. According to him, religion has been a major despite a
very long history of coexistence, there are forces and factors standing in the way of the Hindu and Muslim merger
and unity. It is demonstrated that as Muslim authority and position fall, Hindus learn more about their historical culture
and identity. Kaul's claims are entirely consistent with Fanon's notion, which was put forth in The Wretched of the
Earth, that the indigenous people are uncovering their traditions from earlier times. India is a huge country, and Kaul
reiterates that the true barriers of religion, language, culture, and customs separate the groups. Nawaz blames the
coming partition of India on caste Hindus and their prejudices.

CONCLUSION

According to a study based on The Heart Divided's analysis and interpretation in the context of post-
colonial perspective, Nawaz successfully conveyed the influence of imperial culture on India and Indian
culture during the first half of the 20th century. It is evident that the Indians are absorbing and adopting the
imperial civilization. She has honored the fight of the Indian people for freedom and independence, much
like a postcolonial writer would. She has also shed new light on the function and effects of the British
presence in the sub-continent. She has depicted the social, cultural, and political climate that existed in the
unified India and has highlighted the forces that shaped those conditions. These elements that finally
contributed to Partition. The book depicts the tranquil historical era coexistence of Muslims and Hindus, but
it has also highlighted the social, cultural, and religious distinctions between the two groups.

It is demonstrated that Jinnah and the Muslim League were reluctant separatists and that historical events
made the Partition inevitable. She outlines the three main causes of the subcontinent's partition and the
birth of Pakistan. First, there are the historical, religious, and cultural distinctions between Muslims and
Hindus. Second, the conquerors' part in exaggerating the distinctions to the point of no return for their own
self-serving objectives Thirdly, Nawaz demonstrates that the Congress and the caste Hindus' strict and
harsh behavior was to blame for the Muslim leadership's complete disappointment and the general
populace's disillusionment, particularly during the Congress administrations of 1937.