Ismat Chughtai Case Study
Introduction
During the ancient age, one of the basic foundations of India’s rich cultural heritage lay in the fact that women enjoyed an equal position and status in the society. According to Hindu tradition, women being the ‘Ardhangini’ (the better half) of the male counterpart had to be part and parcel of any traditional ritual that was performed. One could not imagine any traditional ceremony fulfilled without the presence of the wife. So, wife enjoyed an equal status as the husband. But soon that status and equality were challenged with the coming of Islam influence. The Muslims brought with them a dark and blank phase for women. They considered women to be commodities who have been always readily available for fulfilling male sexual fantasies. …show more content…
Ismat was born into an upper middle class family yet no one could take away the stringent mindset that trickled down with conventions. While other girls were raised to gain perfection at sewing, cooking and other homely chores, Ismat was more than happy to embrace books, much to the dislike of her mother. "She hurled her shoe at me but missed me," she writes, and as a reader we cannot help but be amazed at her adamant defiance towards her mother's countless taunts. Perhaps the only rebel in the pack of ten brothers and sisters, her only two pillars of familial support were her …show more content…
But Abba Mian offers a supportive conclusion, completely in her favour. Elder brother Munne Bhai is no less encouraging. He is aware how much Ismat detests the burqa. During their visit to Agra where all women were required to veil their faces, he devises a plan that hides her burqa away inside a pile of mattresses. Munne Bhai is therefore her companion in all mischief.
Ismat Chughtai died on 24 October in 1991 at the age of 67. There is no denying the fact about her literary greatness. She was really a great short story writer.An extract from the letter written by film actor Janki Das which he had written immediately after her death. The letter said, ‘Ismat Chughtai had the habit of saying or doing something startling in her life. She had once said that she should be thrown into the sea where fishes would swallow her and when the people would eat the fishes, she would come back to
During the ancient age, one of the basic foundations of India’s rich cultural heritage lay in the fact that women enjoyed an equal position and status in the society. According to Hindu tradition, women being the ‘Ardhangini’ (the better half) of the male counterpart had to be part and parcel of any traditional ritual that was performed. One could not imagine any traditional ceremony fulfilled without the presence of the wife. So, wife enjoyed an equal status as the husband. But soon that status and equality were challenged with the coming of Islam influence. The Muslims brought with them a dark and blank phase for women. They considered women to be commodities who have been always readily available for fulfilling male sexual fantasies. …show more content…
Ismat was born into an upper middle class family yet no one could take away the stringent mindset that trickled down with conventions. While other girls were raised to gain perfection at sewing, cooking and other homely chores, Ismat was more than happy to embrace books, much to the dislike of her mother. "She hurled her shoe at me but missed me," she writes, and as a reader we cannot help but be amazed at her adamant defiance towards her mother's countless taunts. Perhaps the only rebel in the pack of ten brothers and sisters, her only two pillars of familial support were her …show more content…
But Abba Mian offers a supportive conclusion, completely in her favour. Elder brother Munne Bhai is no less encouraging. He is aware how much Ismat detests the burqa. During their visit to Agra where all women were required to veil their faces, he devises a plan that hides her burqa away inside a pile of mattresses. Munne Bhai is therefore her companion in all mischief.
Ismat Chughtai died on 24 October in 1991 at the age of 67. There is no denying the fact about her literary greatness. She was really a great short story writer.An extract from the letter written by film actor Janki Das which he had written immediately after her death. The letter said, ‘Ismat Chughtai had the habit of saying or doing something startling in her life. She had once said that she should be thrown into the sea where fishes would swallow her and when the people would eat the fishes, she would come back to