new voices: "after that we are ignorant" by Bilal Tanweer

After That, We Are Ignorant

Yesterday, an old man, bloody idiot, surely off his rockers, got on the bus from the Lucky Star stop … tall in his height, some six-three, wore a new, bright red Coca-Cola cap that you get for free these days, bloody joker. His shirt I think he had been re-ironing since the creation of Pakistan. His crumpled brown pants seemed never-washed … He caught my eye as soon as he got on the bus. I pulled out my sketchbook and started to make his cartoon. The rectangular golden frame of his spectacles covered his long, thin face. Acha, at first he did not say anything, just took a seat, sat there and looked around. Then turned to the guy next to him and without any, whatsitsname, any hesitation questioned him, 'Who are you?'

via granta.com

Click on the link to read the rest of the story, one of the new voices in fiction presented by Granta Magazine.

Filed under: Literary Tagged: Bilal Tanweer, new fiction from Pakistan