Press Release

A selection of the finest contemporary Urdu fiction translated by Dr Rakhshanda Jalil

is proud to announce the release of

URDU

The Best Stories of Our Times

edited and translated by Rakhshanda Jalil

Releasing 3 December 2023| Fiction/Short Stories | 200 pp | Rs 399

 

ABOUT THE BOOK

Urdu: The Best Stories of Our Times, edited and translated by Rakhshanda Jalil, presents a kaleidoscopic vision of the current literary landscape by bringing together some of the finest contemporary writers of fiction. In these pages, we encounter the land and its people in wide-ranging tones: compassionate, questioning, philosophical, whimsical, tragic, but always thrilling and enchanting in equal measure. The stories highlight the numerous histories, identities and themes that have been celebrated or challenged in the last few decades.

This landmark volume dismantles many stereotypes and offers an exhilarating glimpse into Urdu literature today.

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Rakhshanda Jalil, editor and translator, says ‘This is a selection of the finest modern writings from India. When I began work on this book, I was clear that we mustn’t go by what has been most anthologized assuming that it is, necessarily, the finest – either among the genre of the Urdu short story itself or the oeuvre of a particular writer. No, instead the criteria for a collection such as this is good prose, a range of concerns, divergent points of view that, taken together, reflect the currents that ripple through modern India. And just as Urdu is not the language of India’s Muslims alone, these stories are not about Muslims only; instead, they reflect a mood, an outlook, a catholicity of concerns among Urdu writers.’

Rahul Soni, Associate Publisher – Literary, HarperCollins India, adds ‘We’re delighted to present the second volume (we began with Telugu, edited by Volga, in 2022) in our ongoing series of the best modern stories from the various Indian languages. Urdu – edited and translated by the incomparable Rakhshanda Jalil – brings together an often surprising and always wonderful range of short stories by some of the finest practitioners of the form – from Surendra Prakash to Qurratulain Hyder, from Gulzar to Khalid Jawed – a selection that demonstrates the vitality and continued relevance of Urdu literature for all Indians, and indeed for lovers of the written word anywhere in the world.’

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ABOUT THE TRANSLATOR

Dr Rakhshanda Jalil is an award-winning translator, writer and literary historian. She has published over thirty books and written over fifty academic papers and essays. Her book on the lesser-known monuments of Delhi, Invisible City, continues to be a bestseller. Other titles she has published include But You Don’t Look Like a Muslim, Shahryar: A Life in Poetry, and translations of Intizar Husain’s The Sea Lies Ahead and Gulzar’s Footprints on Zero Line: Writings on the Partition. She runs an organization called Hindustani Awaaz, devoted to the popularization of Hindi–Urdu literature and culture.

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For reviews, excerpts, author interviews and more information, please contact Nandini Tripathi at nandini.tripathi@harpercollins.co.in

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