Urdu Across the Border

I’ve been fishing in a sea of stories for years,” said literary historian and critic Rakhshanda Jalil,about an anthology of 30 stories from India and Pakistan,titled New Urdu Writings: From India & Pakistan (Tranquebar Press; Rs 395),which she has edited. The book launch at Alliance Francaise on Monday attracted a packed house,prompting poet-lyricist Javed Akhtar to say,“If I had known there would be so many people here,I would have been better prepared to make a speech.”

The book introduces non-Urdu readers to works by contemporary writers. “There’s no search for religious or political identities in this book. All the stories are about people’s dilemmas,” said Jalil. One of these,titled Empty Bottles,by Hyderabad-based Jeelani Bano is about an affluent woman who rejects her poetic lover for the comforts in her parents’ home. Another writer,Joginder Paul,who migrated from Pakistan during the Partition,talks about the mindless enmity between the two countries.

Discussing the depth of Urdu literature with Jalil,Akhtar told the audience,“Think of a world where you haven’t yet discovered French or German writers,what a loss that would have been. I feel that English poets such as P B Shelley and John Keats fade in comparison to Urdu poets.”

Jalil is not new to the monumental task of putting together an anthology. “No collection of work should be presented without a context,and that was my job,” she said. She has earlier edited two collections of short stories,co-authored two books on history,published eight works of translations,written a collection of essays on Delhi’s monuments,and also penned a book of fiction.