India is just a few years away from Independence; cries of 'Inqilab Zindabad' have been reverberating in Amritsar, the Swadeshi movement is in full swing and that is when we first meet 'Shahzada' Ghulam Ali, caught in the fervour of the fight for freedom. His legendary speeches are the talk of the town and it is just a matter of time before he is imprisoned – quite the badge of honour when you are going to jail for your country. But before he goes to jail, he and Nigar must marry, and they will only marry in the presence of Babaji, who insists on their spending time at the ashram, where they just might learn a new definition of freedom and what it means to them.Subtly brilliant and typically Manto, 'For Freedom's Sake' is a surprisingly insightful take on something we usually take for granted: the right to freedom.

People take pleasure in winning. But it was losing that gave him a greater thrill, especially when it came in the wake of winning.' Bombay has always been a land of opportunities—to earn money, fame and whatever else one desires. And while Seth knows how to grab each opportunity, he has always revelled in the pleasure of losing it all. In fact, he would seize opportunities only for the pleasure of squandering all that he earned. Strange as it was, it was a pattern that he was happily living by. Until one day, on his way to his favourite gambling den, he meets Gangu Bai, an old prostitute. Striking unusual deals was his habit but who would have known that a harmless little deal with Gangu Bai would prove to be the biggest decision he ever took. Manto's speciality lies in his characters that defy the norm in almost every way possible. Pleasure in Losing is an example of precisely this.

Meet Babu Gopinath: world's number one gullible fool, a home-wrecker known for wrecking his own home, and a recent immigrant to Bombay. He's brought along with him a Kashmiri 'kabutri'—a weak-looking young woman—Zeenat Begum, who is as uninterested as she is unambitious. While this kind introduction was given by his friend Abdur Rahim Sando, Manto soon realized that not everything was actually as it seemed. We handle things in our lives based on our past experiences and our assumptions about how things will work out, but it's almost like the laws of reason and the world never seem to apply to Manto's characters. As Manto gets to know Babu Gopinath and his world a little better, he takes us along this journey of discovery, to reach a destination neither of us are prepared for. It is generally the women in Manto's stories who are enchanting and intriguing, but Manto's Babu Gopinath is equally, if not more, fascinating. Read on.

It was a day just like today—the leaves of the peepul tree outside his window were drenched in the rain—and yet Randheer knew, today was nowhere close to the day he was desperately trying to hold on to. What is it about memories and the way our bodies remember things? Why is it that just the absence of one thing—her smell—can change everything about a day that seems exactly how he remembers it? Do we shape our memories or do our memories shape us? Every bit as evocative as it is lyrical, Smell is what happens when excellent prose tells the story of intriguing characters. Read on to experience a masterpiece by the master of short fiction, Manto.

Shahbaz Khan had only one problem with Hamzah Khan, the new employee at the restaurant: his looks. Hamzah was dedicated, knew how to get the coal at the best prices, treated the customers right, but that didn't take away from the fact that he was ugly. But Hamzah Khan—or Gilgit Khan as everyone had come to call him—didn't mind this much because he had found a companion in a puppy outside the restaurant. While Shahbaz Khan thought that the dog was even more unsightly than Gilgit Khan, the latter had never been happier. The thing about love—even it is for an animal—is that you don't realize its intensity until you venture too deep. Once you are aware of it, it is too late to do anything. Will it be too late by the time Gilgit Khan experiences his moment of realization? Many of Manto's characters display logical, but entirely human, contradictions. Whether it's Shahbaz Khan's piousness against his bigotry or Gilgit Khan's kindness in the shadow of his...

I don't think I can put up with you any more. Please divorce me.' With this begins yet another argument between a woman and her husband. As is the case with most disputes, it starts off with one thing but soon ends up focusing on something entirely different. One can always make out the relationship two people share from the arguments they have. As a fly on the wall, observing this heated exchange between a man and his wife is as fascinating as it is revealing. A story told entirely through dialogue, Green Sandals has Manto's genius shining through every insult—and affectation—that the couple throws at one another. Read on.

When the riots first broke out, everyone in Amritsar, including retired sub-judge Mian Abdul Hayy, thought they wouldn't last long. They were expected to die down soon. But Sughra, Mian Sahib's daughter, was worried, and rightly so because the situation only seemed to be getting worse. In fact, it got so bad that when Mian Sahib suffered a stroke and was critical, the family couldn't call a doctor to see him. But Mian Sahib didn't lose hope. Even as he heard loud, insistent knocks on his door on Chhoti Eid, Mian Sahib didn't let his faith waver. Surely no harm could befall his family on Chhoti Eid? If there's anyone who can narrate a Partition story that is as tender as it is powerful, it is Manto. Sometimes the smallest arm packs the mightiest punch and The Testament of Gurmukh Singh is a fine example of this.

Ever since the Hindi-Urdu debate has been raging, Manto has tried to understand what the fuss is about. And while Maulvi Abdul Haq Sahib, Dr Tara Singh and Mahatma Gandhi seem to know all there is to know, the matter remains as elusive as ever to Manto. As Manto struggles to understand a seemingly pointless debate, what follows is an imagined conversation between Munshi Narain Parshad and Mirza Muhammad Iqbal who are arguing about the merits of lemon water over soda water. If anyone knows how to pack a punch and be tongue-in-cheek at the same time, it's Manto. Hilarious and brilliant, Hindi-Urdu is a fine example of the shape short fiction can take in the hands of a prolific writer like him.

For the first time ever, it had dawned on him that women who sold their bodies could have such shapely figures.' Kanta and Khushia were part of the same profession. He was her pimp, and, in a way, one of her own. All of twenty-eight, Khushia was quite a businessman. While he knew all the girls in his circuit through and through, what he didn't know was that one day Kanta Kumari would stand naked before him and throw him into the greatest turmoil of his life. Manto's characters are known to vehemently resist categorization, and this is especially true in the case of Khushia and Kanta who don't behave as they are expected to. Read on to revisit one of Manto's most fascinating takes on human behaviour.

"The undisputed master of the modern Indian short story." — Salman Rushdie Stories encircling the marginalized, forgotten lives of Bombay, set against the backdrop of the India-Pakistan Partition. Fresh translations and by far the most comprehensive collection of stories by this 20th Century master available in English. Manto vividly conjures life on the streets of Bombay — its prostitutes, pimps, gangsters, artists, writers, and those caught in the fore of the India-Pakistan partition. (For his gritty, unflinching accounts of street life, Manto was tried for obscenity six times.) Deeply opposed to partition, Manto is best known for his portrayals of its violence and absurdities. From an ownerless dog caught in the firing squad at the border of the two countries, to neighbors turned enemy soldiers pausing for tea together in a short cease fire — Manto challenges the edges of geographic, cultural, and social boundaries with an...

The difference between a good dhobi and a bad dhobi is that the latter definitely makes his presence felt. However, Manto was lucky that Ram Khilawan was of the former kind. Because not only was he good at his job but he'd seen Manto through his impoverished days and his days of prosperity with equal enthusiasm; never insisting on getting paid as he really didn't know "what account is". However, when you're faced with circumstances that are out of your control, the strongest relationships sometimes crumble in the face of it. But is there anything that can threaten Manto and Ram Khilawan's bond? Incredibly moving and innately Manto, Ram Khilawan is everything you expect from a Manto story, and some more. Read on.

If anyone can hold a mirror up to a society that has lived through Partition, it is Manto. Whether he's narrating the story of a worried father searching for his missing daughter or a Sikh man struggling to live with himself after a particularly horrific round of looting during riots, he has the masterful skill of making a point with the deepest impact. Manto was arguably the most prolific writer of the Independence era. Read on, as he proves it yet again through two of his most heart-wrenching stories in The Horrors of Partition.

They were all mujahids, God's valiant soldiers who didn't know anything about fighting but were ready to jump into the battlefield at the first opportunity. The issue at hand was grabbing Kashmir at any cost. As the discussion continued, Haneef showed great enthusiasm for the cause but Manto could tell that something was bothering his friend. Perhaps there was something wrong at home? But when Haneef reveals the truth, Manto realizes that it is a weight that now belongs to him too. Only Manto's writing has the power to make a political statement using an incredibly personal story. Beautifully layered and heart-wrenchingly poignant, I'm No Good for You! is a masterpiece.

Ever since Sultana had moved to Delhi, business had slowed down. Unlike her time in Ambala, not a single gora had visited her so far. Even Khuda Bakhsh, her lucky charm wasn't bringing her any luck. Times were so bad that she didn't even have any money to buy black mourning clothes for Muharram. Lonely and idle, Sultana felt as if she was wasting her days away. Until she met Shankar. Confusing, intriguing and unlike any other man she'd ever met—and she'd met more than her share of men—Shankar was just like her and yet nothing like her. What she didn't realize though was that with a curious exchange and the promise of a black salwar, hers and Shankar's lives were about to be entangled in ways she could never have imagined. Written in Manto's typically engaging style, The Black Shalwarand its surprising twist at the end is as bewitching as Sultana and as unexpected as Shankar.