சிவப்பு நிற மழைக்கோட்டில் ஒரு பெண்

by Saadat Hasan Manto

Compiler and Translator - Udaya sankar

162 pages, Hardcover

Published October 1, 2013

About the author

Saadat Hasan Manto (Urdu: سعادت حسن منٹو, Hindi: सआदत हसन मंटो), the most widely read and the most controversial short-story writer in Urdu, was born on 11 May 1912 at Sambrala in Punjab's Ludhiana District. In a writing career spanning over two decades he produced twenty-two collections of short stories, one novel, five collections of radio plays, three collections of essays, two collections of reminiscences and many scripts for films. He was tried for obscenity half a dozen times, thrice before and thrice after independence. Not always was he acquitted. Some of Manto's greatest work was produced in the last seven years of his life, a time of great financial and emotional hardship for him. He died a few months short of his forty-third birthday, in January 1955, in Lahore.

Reviews

[Vishnupriya]

The prose and the writing itself is very beautiful, which contrasts starkly with the viscerally disturbing subjects Manto writes about. Each short story has this emotional rawness and realism to it. The stories have a matter-of-fact tone to them, no romanticizing or criticizing. Manto paints the scene as if he is a witness, an unflinching observer, and lets the reader sit with — not over the top violence — but the real cruelty that is in humans. This realism will leave its mark on you. The emotional weight of each story is so intense that it is impossible to read the book straight through — each story demands a pause afterward, to sit with the unease of the story.

Review of the ones I have read so far:

1. திட்வாலின் நாய் - 5/5 why did I think at the beginning they would co-parent the dog 😭
2. சாலையோரமாக - I read it twice and I'm not sure if I get it. It's a huge ick for me when a male author writes a story from a woman's perspective and it's mainly about her reproductive potential and breasts.
3. கடவுளின் பணியை செய்துகொண்டு - spoiler: it was not in fact god's work.