An increasing number of Punjabi writers in our part of Punjab are turning to fiction writing which shows unmistakable signs of a change; we are moving from orality to literary. Our literary landscape hitherto has remained studded with poetic expressions a large part of which is monotonous and inane.

Poetry largely is a product of an intuitive state of mind while fiction is the outcome of an organised mental effort, of course, coupled with imagination. Fiction more than poetry is a chronicle of life situations that reflects contemporary realities as well as presages the changes which are in the offing. One can detect the signs of future transformation of Russian society in the fictional writings of Gogol, Dostoevsky and Tolstoy. It‘s difficult to fully measure the depth of the working class’s deprivation and misery in the 19th century England without going through Dickens’ novels.

Fiction writing in our context is like transitioning from a rural way of life to urban living. Saleem Raza Thakur has joined the club of fictionists with his debut novel Maanta published by Sulekh and Lok Saar. The novel is inspired by a real life story. “It’s a habit with me that if I meet a man a number of times his manners and demeanour leave an imprint on my mind. It so happened that I met a man by the name of Amanat in a neighbouring village who had been through a number of ordeals and had done a number of things to make a living. After some meetings I was in the mood to write about his life,” says Saleem Raza in his introductory note. It’s a narrative of a simple life of a simple man who in a way represents a large deprived segment of our society. The protagonist after having served in the army tries various things to eke out a living. When retired he sets up a shop with the funds he gets but this small venture fails because of what he is, a simple person, being not cunning enough. Then he raises goats but again it ends up as a failure. Finally some of his buddies advise him to raise a herd of cows which turns out to be profitable. The structure of the narrative is traditional but well-constructed. The socio-cultural details provide a window that opens onto the prosaic but painful existence of ordinary mortals who appear extraordinary in their survival struggle.

Darpok is the Urdu translation of Hussain Shahid’s novel Darakal written way back in Punjabi language. It has been translated by Dr. Mushtaq Adil and published by Fiction House.

Hussain Shahid, a novelist, poet and literary critic, was prominent among the early post-Partition writers who chose Punjabi as medium of creative expression. He was born in Gujranwala and later he moved abroad and lived a good part of his life there but continued to write in his mother language all his life. Some of his critically acclaimed books are “ La Preet (short stories), Poornay (criticism), Darakal (novel) and Ishq te Roti”.

Hameed Razi, a well-known fiction writer and competent translator, writes in the blurb: “Credit goes to Mushtaq Adil for translating fiction of Punjabi language into Urdu. He has already rendered Afzal Ahsan Randhawa’s novel Duaba into Urdu. ..The story narrated in the novel spans more than four decades. In the very start of the novel the author exposes the shenanigans of upper classes which exploit and oppress the masses. It also highlights the excesses committed by martial law (regime) by subverting the constitution of the country. “It’s a good translation that has a flow that carries the readers with it. Translation creates cultural bridges. Hence we need more of it. One expects that Dr. Adil will continue enriching us with his translations.

IK Hor Pul Sraat is Baldev Singh Grewal’s novel transliterated from Gurmukhi script to Shahmukhi script by Khalid Farhad Dhariwal and published by Kitab Trinjan. In the foreword Farhad has informed us that Baldev Singh worked as magazine editor of Punjabi language daily Ajit. He migrated to the USA three decades ago and started his own newspaper Sher Punjab. He is a journalist as well as a novelist. His novel Parkarma has already been translated into Urdu and published here. He also has two collections of short stories titled Roshni di Dastak and Seetay Bullhan da Saneha. The novel under review deals with an uncommon situation full of uncommon occurrences.

In the last quarter of the last century, East Punjab witnessed a huge surge of militancy in the aftermath of Operation Blue Star - military raid on the Golden Temple, Amritsar and killing of Jurnail Singh Bhindrawala and his followers who were holed up there. The military operation rattled the entire Sikh community. In the background of the Green Revolution and denial of Punjab’s legitimate rights - share in the river water and dispute over the city of Chandigarh - there was great uptick in political anger. Sikh massacre immediately after Indra Gandhi’s assassination by her Sikh bodyguards exacerbated the already taut situation. The militancy pitched against the Indian government and the state was bloody and response from the state was bloodier. Police brutality, lawlessness on a large scale and indiscriminate killings created hellfire in Punjab. That was when so many young men had to flee their homeland and seek refuge in foreign lands through illegal means. It was a case of crossing a razor thin bridge in a state of utmost dread. Across the bridge there was no surety of a safe life being lived in indignity. The struggle of aliens in an alien land, the USA in this case, as expressed in the narrative is psychologically and emotionally as challenging as it is physically demanding. It’s not just an experience of unbearable alienation. The absolute uncertainty of life in such conditions creates a dread not only of being marginalised but also of simply fading away unmourned. The novel is a powerful story of various people thrown together from diverse socio-cultural backgrounds. But all face a similar ordeal making their sufferings shared. Baldev’s novel has contemporary relevance and is impactful. Don’t miss it. — soofi01@hotmail.com

Published in Dawn, February 10th, 2025