LARKANA: Sindhi short story has showed great resilience against all odds and not only managed to survive but also created a niche for itself in Asian literature, said speakers at a literary gathering.

Writers Mukhtiar Samo, Adil Abbasi, Akhlaq Ansari, Mumtaz Lohar, Amina Soomro, Sultan Khoso and secretary general of Sindh Adabi Sangat Dr Mushtaque Phull read papers at the gathering titled ‘Sindhi short story — a century 1914 to 2014’ at the circuit house on Friday and stressed the need for reprinting Sindhi short story collections written through the century.

Mukhtiar Samo shed light on different phases of short story and said the genre had firmed up its place in literature by the turn of 2014 by preserving key ingredients of diction, plot, treatment, nomenclature and construction.

He said that Sindhi short story had kept itself linked to world literature and progressed from folk tales to the modern form of short story. Its subjects were acutely influenced by the great upheavals of the 19th and the 20th centuries of science and technology, he said.

He said the first period of short story started from 1914 to 1924, the second from 1925 to 1940 and the third from 1940 to 1947. The partition of the subcontinent spawned a host of new ideas, trends and subjects in short story writing when element of history with all its traumas crept into literature, he said, adding the fourth phase started from 1947 to 1960 and from 1960 to date.

Amina Soomro said that Sindhi short story had not only accepted new trends and techniques throughout its century-long progress but also tactfully absorbed and propagated new thoughts influencing the region and the world.

She said that through the hundred-year journey, writers were sometimes influenced by events and portrayed political turmoil in their stories. The issues of the downtrodden, feudalism, tribalism and emerging ideologies had left deep imprints on the minds of writers who artistically shaped them into short stories, she said.

As of today, Sindhi short story had turned its focus on politics, religion, morality and economy and used different techniques of presentation to make its point, she said.

Mumtaz Lohar dilated on Comrade Sobho Gianchandani’s short story book and said the comrade’s stories were written in English which were later translated into Urdu and Sindhi because of their powerful subjects and bigger canvas.

Sobho being a committed political worker depicted the problems of the poor, role of feudal lords in emerging economy of Sindh and their political hold on the masses, he said.

His anthology ‘when spring will come’ had covered the subjects from 1940 to 1946 when he was a strong supporter of peace, secularism, Sufism and revolution and he had successfully portrayed the agonies of the poor and the working class, he said.

Adil Abbasi focused on short story book of famous writer Jamal Abro and said the author had very deftly dealt with issues of the time and his masterpiece ‘Pisho Pasha’ had claimed wide respect in the field of literature.

The speakers said short story writers Jamal Abro, Ayaz Qadri, Lal Pishap and Anis Ansari had not only chosen the subjects which really mattered in life but also used strong techniques and captivating style of storytelling to convey their message.

The prevalent socio-religious imbalance, hypocrisy, political turmoil and changing social trends had been addressed deftly in their stories and while doing so they had remained faithful to the original and indigenous subjects, they said.

Dr Mushtaque Phull, secretary general of the Sindhi Adabi Sangat, emphasised the need for frequently holding such gatherings to keep alive and cultivate interest in literature. Besides, these gatherings were a source of inspiration for budding writers and greatly helped to nurture creativity, he said.

He said that his organisation would reprint the short story books of well known writers and also publish a book covering short stories written through the past century.

The gathering was organised by the Anis Ansari Academy.

Published in Dawn, October 12th, 2014