Pakistani English novelists

Ahmed Ali is famous for his novel” twilight in Dehli”. It is his famous works apart from
two of his other novels. It is a kind of dialogues between old values and new emergent
values under the influence of English culture. The character of Mr. Nehal stands for
traditional values and his son asgher represents the new generation. Thus the conflict
between traditionalism modernisms is an important theme of the novel. Ahmed nicely
portrayed his spirit of traditional ages. The old order represented by British is departing
and order is now still in process of formation. Change that is only the permanent thing in
life is portrayed in the character of Mr. Nehal and Asgher. Another important theme of
this novel is the impact of British rule on the life and culture of Muslims.
“the heart divided” deals with the theme of partition of sub-continent into Pakistan and
India. This novel is not focused on the bloodshed that followed the partition. It narrates
the interaction and dialogues among Muslims, Hindus and britishes. “ the heart divided ”
can be compared with Bepsi Sidhva’s “Cracking india”. All these novels give Pakistani
writers point of view on the issues of partition of sub-continent. Indian and british writers
have also given their respective point of views. E.M. Foster’s “A passage to India” and
Paul Scot’s “raj Quartet” that consists of four novels. Similarly khuswant singh gives
Indian point of view on the issues of partition in his famous novel “train of pakistan”. A
very usefull creative dialogue is going on in their works. These writers are trying to
rewrite the history according to their point of views.
How ever their novels have very nicely portrayed interaction and relation between the
british colonizers and the Indian colonized ones(that consist of mislims and hindus)
Zulfqar Ghos’s “the murder of aziz khan” is a social novel. It deals with the problems
arising from industrialization and capitalism in Pakistan. The change in the relaton and
nature of human beings under the impact of industrialization is the main theme of the
novel. It can be said that it is the first English novel by a Pakistani writer that deals with
society and its problems. Sara Suleri also written two autobiological novles “meetless
days” narrates the events that took place during the first 25 years of Pakistan. The
hanging of Z.A Bhutto, the partition og Bangladesh has been narrated. The nvel olso
narraed the personal life of suleri’s family. The language and structure of the novel is
highly metaphorical. It appears that Sara Suleri deliberately uses stream of conscious and
memories technique to avoid the rath of these who were in power. The scond novel “boys
will be boys” is also autobiographical one.

The abuse of religion by so called the religious saints is the central theme of tehmina
duroni’s “Blasphemy”. The language of the novel is very simple and lucid.
Tehmina has also written her autobiographical work with the name of “My feudal Lord”.
It discuss her married life with Mustafa Khar. Tehmina duroni’s “Blasphemy” can be
compared with Qaisra Sheraz’s two novels i.e. “tycoon” and “the holy woman”. All these
three novels deal with tyranny of the feudal, social and religious lords in Pakistani
society. Bepsi Sidhva’s novels are also social novels dealing with the lives of people in
society.
Most of contemporary Pakistani English novelists are writing about political issues that
have gained importance after the Russian invasion on Afghanistan, its defeat and then the
9/11 events. All the issues are originally interconnected. The lives of the millions of
muslims and non-musliams in and across the countries have been affected by the war
between America and Russia. This war was fought in Afghanistan but it had found its
echo in 9/11 events. Mohsin Hamid’s “reluctant Fundamentalists” M.H Naqvi’s “Home
Boy” and Kamila Shamsi’s “burnt shadows” are the major novels that relate the impact of
9/11 events on the lives of Pakistani people living in New York at the time of this
incident.

Tariq Ali is british Pakistani writer. He has written his novels in reply to the western
propaganda that muslim world has no culture and civilization. This theory says, that
muslim culture is inherently dark as compared to the western culture and therefore, it is
merely right for the west to dominate the world and during this process a conflict with the
muslim world is inevitable. These people gives examples of crusades and the muslim
spain to prove that the Muslim and the western culture have always been hostile to one
another. Samuel P Huntington sums up this idea in his clash of civilization.