WHICH is the first novel ever written in Urdu? Which are the best and/or important Urdu novels written during the last one-and-a-half century? By the way, the best and important may not always be the same.

The latest issue (Jan-Dec. 2020) of Lauh, an Urdu literary magazine published from Rawalpindi, has offered some food for thought on Urdu novel and its history. Its thick, special issue on novel not only tries to find answers but also raises some questions.

There is a renewed interest in Urdu novel and understandably so: Urdu novel itself has made a roaring come back and many believe that Urdu novel has been going through a revival since the onset of 21st century. In the 1980s and 1990s, some critics used to bemoan that Urdu novel was going through a lean patch. But since the late 1990s, we have seen rising waves of new and good Urdu novels and some ripples are still hitting the shores. Over 160 Urdu novels have appeared both from India and Pakistan in the last 20 years or so — some of them quite remarkable.

But Lauh has done it quite differently and instead of publishing a pile of new and old articles on Urdu novels and novelists, as is the trend among the literary magazines, its new issue offers selected chapters from over 50 selected Urdu novels — right from the first novel published in 1862 to the latest one published in 2020. Aside from these excerpts from novels, it includes just six articles on Urdu novel and an editorial and that is it. It makes it so different.

The debate on which is Urdu’s first novel has been raging since long. Moulvi Nazeer Ahmed’s Urdu novel Miraat-ul-Aroos (1869) is often seen as the work that marked the beginning of Urdu novel. Some researchers and critics, however, are of the view that Moulvi Kareemuddin’s novel Khat-i-Taqdeer (1862) is the first novel ever written in Urdu. But Mirza Hamid Baig has taken exception to it in his article included in this issue of Lauh. Interestingly, he thinks neither of the two novels cited as Urdu’s first novel qualifies for it since both are semi-allegorical tales, not novels in true sense of the word. But he admits these allegorical works were a step towards novel. Baig has also mentioned some other Urdu novels written until 1899, the year Umrao Jaan Ada appeared, which is acknowledged as Urdu’s first true novel.

The other article, written by Rasheed Amjad, takes the history of Urdu novel further back as Amjad says Urdu novel began in 1855, albeit it was a translation. Aside from translations, Khat-i-Taqdeer was Urdu’s first novel, adds Amjad. Mumtaz Ahmed Sheikh, the editor, in his editorial, says that Khat-i-Taqdeer is Urdu’s first novel and it changed the course of Urdu fiction. He believes that Khat-i-Taqdeer served as a bridge between novel and ‘daastaan’, or old-styled tales. But he does not insist on his list of best Urdu novels.

Here is a list of Urdu novels, in chronological order, from which selected chapters have been reproduced in Lauh (the year of publication mentioned against some works may need recheck):

Khat-i-Taqdeer, Kareemuddin, 1862. Mirat-ul-Aroos, Nazeer Ahmed, 1869. Fasana-i-Azad, Sarshaar, 1878. Umrao Jaan Ada, Ruswa, 1899. Firdous-i-Bareen, Sharar, 1899. Gaodaan, Premchamd, 1936. Guraiz, Aziz Ahmed, 1943. Skikast, Krishan Chandr, 1943. Terhi Lakeer, Ismat, 1943. London Ki Aik Raat, Sajjad Zaheer, 1945. Sham-i-Awadh, Ahsan Farooqi, 1948. Nagri Nagri Phira Musafir, Nisar Aziz Butt, 1955. Aag Ka Darya, Q.A. Hyder, 1959. Khuda Ki Basti, Shaukat Siddiqi, 1959. Aik Ma’mooli Larki, Balvant Singh, 1959. Alipur Ka Aili, Mumtaz Mufti, 1961. Angan, Mastoor, 1962. Ik Chaadar Maili Si, R.Singh Bedi, 1962. Aafat Ka Tukra, Fazl-ur-Rahman Khan, 1962. Udas Naslen, Abdullah Hussain, 1963. Cakiwara Mein Vissal, M.K. Akhter, 1965 Gurg-i-Shab, Ikramullah, 1978. Basti, Intizar Hussain, 1980.

Raja Gidh, Bano Qidsiya, 1980. Khushiyon Ka Baagh, Anwer Sajjad, 1981. Dasht-i-Soos, Jameela Hashmi, 1983. Dastak Na Do, Altaf Fatima, 1986. Sadiyon Ki Zanjeer, Razia F. Ahmed, 1988. Teen Bati Ke Rama, Ali Imam Naqvi, 1991. Bahao, M.H. Tarar, 1992. Deevaar Ke Peechhe, Anees Nagi, 1992. Fire Area, Ilyas Guddi, 1994. Kaghzai Ghaat, Khalida Hussain, 2000. Dhamak, Abdus Samad, 2004. Ghulam Baagh, M.A. Baig, 2006. Kai Chand The Sar-e-Asman, S. R. Farooqi, 2005. Mitti Adam Khati Hai, M.H. Shahid, 2007. Le Saans Bhi Ahista, M.A. Zauqi, 2011. Maut Ki Kitab, Khalid Javed, 2011. Kanjri Ka Pul, Younus Javed, 2011. Khwab Saraab, Anees Ashfaq, 2011. Al-Asifa, Hasan Manzar, 2012. Baalon Ka Guchcha, Khalid Toor, 2013. Jaage Hain Khwab Mein, A.R. Saleemi, 2015. Aakhri Sawariyan, S.M. Ashraf, 2016. Anar Kali, M.H. Baig, 2017. Habs, M. Ilyas, 2018. Banaras Vali Gali, Fayyaz Rifat, 2018. Sasha, M.S. Dasti, 2018. Gul Meena, Zaif Syed, 2019. Sood-o-Ziyan Ke Darmiyan, K.F. Muhammad, 2020. Kark Nath, Hafeez Khan, 2020.

drraufparekh@yahoo.com

Published in Dawn, January 11th, 2021