‘Taraqqi Pasand Afsana: Moashrati-o-Tabqati Kashmakash’ (Progressive Short Story: Social and Class Conflict)
The Progressive Movement has played an important role in world literature. The aim of this movement was to dedicate literature to the masses: to create literature that is easily understood by the masses and that reflects the problems and issues of the masses, i.e., the workers, farmers, women, and the oppressed.
The Progressive Movement has played an important role in Urdu language and literature, and prominent thinkers and writers have written on this movement. Great writers and poets like Premchand, Sajjad Zaheer, Sardar Jafri, Ismat Chughtai, Rajinder Singh Bedi, Khwaja Ahmed Abbas, Krishan Chandra, Manto, Faiz, and Majaz contributed to Urdu literature under the auspices of this movement and created masterpieces that are still read by millions of readers in Urdu as well as in major languages of the world.
The work under my review is Dr Ashraf Lone’s Urdu book “Taraqqi Pasand Afsana: Moashrati-o-Tabqati Kashmakash” (Progressive Short Story: Social and Class Conflict) . It is pertinent to mention here that I came to know about Dr Lone via his write-up, “Literature, Critic, and the Role of Literary Critic in Times of War”, (Daily Inquilab Urdu). In this thought-provoking write-up, Dr Lone has elaborated on the role of criticism and literature in present times.
In the first chapter, Dr Lone has introduced class struggle and outlined Marxist and non-Marxist class theories. In this perspective, the author has presented the theories of Marx, Engels, Lenin, and other thinkers. The author has drawn the conclusion from various sources that class struggle existed in human society before, and it still exists in many forms.
In the second chapter of the book, the author has discussed class struggle in the stories of earlier fiction writers Sudarshan, Azam Karivi, Ali Abbas Hussaini, and Premchand. And in the third chapter, the initial footprints of the progressive movement, its formal beginnings, and progressive concepts of literature have been examined. According to the author, it is not only difficult but impossible to understand the Progressive Movement without studying the writings of progressive writers and critics.
The fourth, fifth, and sixth chapters are the important parts of this book. The subject of the fourth chapter is class struggle between the landlord and the farmer. After a brief introduction of the zamindari system, Dr Lone has discussed Krishan Chandra’s short story Lala Ghasita Ram, Rajendra Singh Bedi’s short story Rehman Ke Joote (Shoes of Rahman), Dus Minute Baarish Mein (Ten Minutes in the Rain), and Sohail Azim Abadi’s famous short story Alao (The Bonfire). In the short story “Alao”, we see a rebelliousness of the Indian farmer. This farmer is fed up with the oppression of the feudal system and declares rebellion against this exploitative system. See these sentences:
“A sadhu also came. He told everyone one thing: All the farmers should become one, live together; only then can we escape the oppression of the landlord.”
In the fifth chapter, after a brief introduction of the capitalist system and its shortcomings, the class conflict between the capitalist and the worker is discussed. In this regard, the author’s opinion is :
“Capitalism is a social and economic system in which the ownership of capitalists in a private sector increases…and the gap between poverty and wealth increases day by day.”
Among the short stories, Krishna Chandra’s short story Maha Lakshmi Ka Pul (Mahalakshmi Bridge), Rajendra Singh Bedi’s short stories Garm Kot (Warm Coat) and Larvae, Khwaja Ahmed Abbas’ Back Lane, and many other short stories are analysed.
In the eighth chapter, Dr Ashraf Lone has examined the class conflict with regard to the caste. First, a brief review of the caste system in India is presented, and then Krishna Chandra’s short story Kalu Bhangi, Ismat Chughtai’s short story Do Haath (Two Hands), and Khwaja Ahmed Abbas’s short story Terry Lane Ki Patloon (The Tereylene Pant). Although, in this chapter, the absence of Premchand, especially his masterpiece story ‘Kafan’ (The Shroud), is striking, although that has been included in the second chapter.
Kalu Bhangi and Do Haath (Two Hands) are masterpieces of the world of literature. Readers who have read the novel “White Tiger” by English novelist Arvind Adiga will be aware of the significance of “Kalu Bhangi”. The topic that Chander deals with in the story is exactly the same as the one that Arvind Adiga deals with in his novel, and the novelist received the huge prize of the world of literature, the “Booker Prize”, for this novel.
Dr Ashraf Lone is not only a diligent scholar of Urdu literature, but now he has also created a reputation in the English world. He has written articles in English on great writers like Mansoor Ahmed Mansoor, Manto, Krishan Chandra, Premchand, Ismat Chughtai, Intizar Hussain, Iqbal, Faiz, and Fehmida Riaz. His articles written in English on Manto and Ismat are of referential value.
After reading the book “Progressive Short Story…”, I realised that Dr Lone is not only appreciative of the aesthetic aspect of literature but also deeply convinced of the social and resistant aspect of literature. The author’s meticulous use of English material and sources (original and translated) deserves praise.
Book Ttile: Taraqqi Pasand Afsana: Moashrati-o-Tabqati Kashmakash (Progressive Short Story: Social and Class Conflict)
Author: Dr. Ashraf Lone
Publisher: Kitab Mahal Srinagar, Kashmir
Reviewer: Sameer Sidiquee ( JNU, New Delhi)
