Memoir of Ismat Chughtai

ISMAT CHUGHTAI: Kaghazi hai Pairahan

The Paper Attire

Translated by Noor Zaheer

The book is an honest and compelling memoir of Ismat Chughtai, one of the most significant Urdu writers and thinkers of the subcontinent. Written in a fictional, non-formal style, it provides an authentic and delightful account of several crucial years of her life. It contains vivid descriptions of her childhood and her experiences of growing up in a large Muslim family during the early decades of the twentieth century. An intimate view is provided of the writer’s fierce struggle to find her own voice. She writes with passion and precision the visible and subtle tyrannies of contemporary society. Besides the book, essays written by Ismat Chughtai on some well-known Urdu writers have been included, along with sketches written on Ismat by Saadat Hasan Manto and Patrus Bukhari. The book is a valuable addition to the body of autobiographical writings.

AUTHOR DESCRIPTION

Noor Zaheer is a writer and researcher. Her important published works include My God is a Woman (novel), Winner, SAARC Foundation Award, Silent Dunes, Raging Forests(short story collection), Mere Hisse ki Roshnai, Winner, Delhi Hindi Academy Award,Surkh Karavan ke Hamsafar (Hindi), travelogue-Pakistan, Ret Par Khoon (short story collection in Urdu/Hindi), Patthar ke Sainik (plays for Children-Urdu and Hindi), Aaj ke Naam (biography of Urdu poet Faiz Ahmed Faiz), and The Dancing Lama on Buddhist performance traditions of North-Western Himalayas. She writes in English, Hindi, and Urdu.