Manto Ke Afsanay


Manto Ke Afsanay is a collection of short stories in Urdu by Saadat Hasan Manto. It was first published in 1940. Rekhta has the largest collection of 233 stories written by Saadat Hasan Manto.

Background

Manto Ke Afsanay was first published in 1940 from Lahore. This was the Manto’s second collection of original short stories. His first publication was titled Atish Paray. Included in this second collection are new stories and also some reprints of stories such as Tamasha, Taqat ka imtahan and Inqilabi. The reprints are necessary as these stories were excluded in the later editions of the first publication.

Content

The stories in this collection include:Naya Qanun Shaghl Khushiya Banjh Na’rah Shah nasin par Us ka pati Tamasha Taqat ka imtahan Inqilabi Istudant yubyan kaimp Sharabi Shushu Mera aur uska intiqam Mausam ki sharat Begu Phaha Mantar Tehri lakir Mom batti ke ansu Diwali ke diye Pahchan Darpok Das rupaye Misiz di Kosta
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Themes

The themes of Manto’s stories show considerable variation. Stories such as Inqilabi, Sharabi and Istudant yubyan kaimp deal with political issues with characters who identify as revolutionaries or activists. Naya Qanun explores the character of Ustaad Mongu, a tonga-driver and the political atmosphere in India in the backdrop of the commencement of Government of India Act 1935. Tamasha, first published in Rusi Afsare and later in Atish Paray dealt with the Jallianwala Bagh massacre.
Manto explores the theme of social realism in stories such as Shaghl, Na’rah and Das rupaye. Influenced from Maxim Gorky’s Twenty-six Men and a Girl, Shaghl deals with the abduction of a girl by some rich men. In Das rupaye, he depicts the life of Sarita, an innocent young girl who works as a part time prostitute.
Manto also depicted romance in some of his stories such as Shushu and Mera aur uska intiqam, both of which dealt with teenage love.

Cited sources

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