Vol. 8, Issue 11, Part E (2022)

The short stories of Manto emerged between the colonial and post-colonial eras. He was much ahead of his time as he wrote stories that symbolize today's world as well. Manto not only acquaints his readers with the ugly truths of society but also pins down the balloon of conventional literature which favors patriarchy and considers women as a secondary gender. Manto attempts to strengthen the female voice by portraying strong women characters who fight for their love, struggle with conservative society and take a stand against deceit. However, it is always a perilous task for them because of the fear of repercussions that might follow. This paper will depict the relevance of Manto’s stories in contemporary times through a review of four selected short stories; Hattak (Insult), Thanda Gosht (Colder Than Ice), Khol Do (Open it), and Mozel. Overall, the writings are the depiction of an orthodox mindset, topics which are being tabooed by society like talk of sex and sexuality that has crowned Manto as an obscene and controversial writer of his times. The findings further suggest that concepts in Manto’s stories are quite relevant in present times as the perpetrations and abuses against women are still prevalent in different forms and different spheres than earlier. Moreover, these atrocities and stereotypes have evolved differently within the same space and have not vanished. The instances of discrimination, allegations, violence, and atrocities have been metamorphosed. Partition did not just bring us communal violence but also escalated sexual violence which can be related to modern times in the context of war where women are more marginalized than men in terms of security. During partition women in particular were targeted for dismantling the honor of the community to which they belonged and the same is being experienced by women in modern times in the forms of honor killings, early marriages in case of rape and even abandoning women by their families.