Saadat Hasan Manto facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
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Saadat Hasan Manto
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| Native name |
سعادت حسن منٹو
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| Born | 11 May 1912 Samrala, Punjab, British India |
| Died | 18 January 1955 (aged 42) Lahore, Punjab, Pakistan |
| Resting place | Miani Sahib Graveyard, Lahore |
| Occupation | Novelist, playwright, essayist, screenwriter, short story writer |
| Nationality | Indian (1912–1948) Pakistani (1948–1955) |
| Period | 1934–1955 |
| Genre | Drama, nonfiction, satire, screenplays, personal correspondence |
| Years active | 1933-1955 |
| Notable works | Toba Tek Singh; Thanda Gosht; Bu; Khol Do; Kaali Shalwar; Hattak |
| Notable awards | Nishan-e-Imtiaz Award (Order of Excellence) in 2012 (posthumous) |
| Spouse | Safia Manto |
| Children | Nighat Manto Nusrat Manto Nuzhat Manto |
| Relatives | Saifuddin Kichlu Masood Parvez Abid Hassan Minto Ayesha Jalal |
Saadat Hasan Manto (11 May 1912 – 18 January 1955) was a famous Pakistani writer. He was a playwright and author who first worked in British India. After the Partition of India in 1947, he moved to Pakistan.
He wrote mostly in Urdu language. Manto created 22 collections of short stories and one novel. He also wrote many radio plays, essays, and personal sketches. His short stories are highly respected by other writers and critics. He is especially known for his stories about the partition of India. He was against this partition, which happened right after India became independent in 1947.
Manto is seen as one of the best Urdu writers of the 20th century. Two movies have been made about his life. These are Manto (2015) and Manto (2018).
Contents
Biography
Early Life of Saadat Manto
Saadat Hassan Manto was born on May 11, 1912. His birthplace was Paproudi village in Samrala, Ludhiana district, Punjab, India. He came from a Muslim family of lawyers. His family were Kashmiri traders who had moved to Amritsar. Manto's father, Khwaja Ghulam Hasan, was a judge. His mother, Sardar Begum, was his father's second wife. Manto was proud of his Kashmiri background. He once joked that being 'Kashmiri' also meant being 'beautiful'.
Manto's Education and First Jobs
Manto went to a Muslim High School in Amritsar. He failed his final school exams twice there. In 1931, he joined Hindu Sabha College but left after the first year. This was because his grades were not good.
A big change happened in his life in 1933. He was 21 years old when he met Abdul Bari Alig. Bari was a scholar who encouraged Manto to find his writing talent. He told Manto to read famous Russian and French authors. Bari also asked Manto to translate a book by Victor Hugo into Urdu. This book was called Sarguzasht-e-Aseer (A Prisoner's Story). Later, Manto translated another book, Vera, in 1934. He wrote his first original Urdu story, Tamasha (Spectacle), under a different name. This story was about the Jallianwala Bagh massacre. During this time, he wrote for newspapers like Musawat and Ehsan. He also edited and translated stories for journals. These translated Russian stories were published as Rusi Afsanay (Russian Stories). This collection included stories by famous writers like Tolstoy and Chekhov. It also had two of Manto's own stories.
This new passion led Manto to Aligarh Muslim University in July 1934. He joined a group of writers who later formed the Indian Progressive Writers' Association. Here, he met writer Ali Sardar Jafri and felt more inspired to write. His second story, "Inqlaab Pasand", was published in March 1935. Manto's university studies ended early. After nine months, he was diagnosed with a lung illness. He spent three months resting in Kashmir to get better. Then he went back home to Amritsar.
After a short time in Amritsar, Manto moved to Lahore to find work. He joined a newspaper called Paras. In 1936, in Lahore, he published his first book of short stories. It was titled Atish Paray (Nuggets of Fire).
In late 1936, he moved to Bombay (now Mumbai). He was invited to edit a weekly magazine called Mussawir.
Working in Bombay (1937-1941)
In Bombay, Manto started working as an editor for Mussawir. He also edited another magazine called Samaj. He began writing movie scripts and dialogues for the Hindi film industry. He worked for Imperial Film Company and Saroj Movietone. One of his films from this time was Apni Nagariya (1940). He also wrote many radio plays. These included Ao Radio Sunen (Come, Let's Listen to Radio). In Bombay, he met other progressive writers. He became friends with people like Krishan Chander and Rajinder Singh Bedi.
In 1940, his second collection of short stories was published. It was called Manto Ke Afsanay (Stories of Manto).
In August 1940, he lost his job at Musawwir. He then worked for another magazine, Karwan, but for less pay. He was not happy with his work. So, he asked Krishan Chander for a job at All India Radio in Delhi. Manto moved to Delhi in January 1941. He took the job of writing for the Urdu Service of All India Radio.
Life in Delhi (1941-1942)
Manto joined All India Radio in early 1941. He met many writers there. This was a very busy time for him. In the next 18 months, he published four collections of radio plays. These included Aao (Come) and Manto ke Drame (Manto's Dramas). He kept writing short stories. His next short story collection, Dhuan (Smoke), came out soon. Then came his first collection of essays, Manto ke Mazamin. This period ended with his mixed collection Afsane aur Dramey in 1943. However, he had disagreements with his co-workers. He left his job and went back to Bombay in July 1942. He started working in the film industry again.
Back in Bombay (1942-1948)
Manto returned to Bombay in July 1942. He rejoined Musawwir as an editor. During this time, he spent time with his friend Shaheed Latif and his wife Ismat Chughtai. In 1932, he joined the Filmistan studio. He became friends with actor Ashok Kumar. This was his best time for writing movie scripts. He wrote films like Aatth Din and Chal Chal Re Naujawan. He also wrote Mirza Ghalib, which came out in 1954. Some of his short stories also came from this period. These included Kaali Shalwar (1941) and Bu (1945). Another important event was the publication of his story collection, Chugad. This book included the story 'Babu Gopinath'. Manto was not happy with the people at Filmistan. So, he joined the Bombay Talkies in 1947, after the partition of India.
Moving to Pakistan
Manto lived in Bombay and planned to stay in India after the Partition of India. In 1948, his wife and children went to Lahore to visit family. During this time, he heard terrible stories about the partition riots. There were also some riots in Bombay. He decided to move to Pakistan and left by ship. He stayed a few days in Karachi. Finally, he settled in Lahore with his family. Manto and his family became "muhajirs" (refugees from India). They were among millions of Muslims who moved from India to the new country of Pakistan.
Life in Lahore
When Manto arrived in Lahore, he met many thinkers at Lahore's Pak Tea House. People there could share their ideas freely. In Lahore, Manto lived with his family in an apartment. This apartment was in Lakshmi Building in Lakshmi Chowk. Later, when he faced money problems, he and his family moved in with his wife's relatives. This included his relatives Film Director Masud Pervaiz and Cricket Commentator Hamid Jalal. Manto, his wife Safia, and their three daughters lived in a large apartment. This was in the fancy LAKSHMI MANSION. This building still exists in Lahore.
Manto's Passing
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In his later years, Manto faced challenges due to his writing. He was asked to explain his stories in court. Many famous writers spoke in his favor. After these events, Manto faced a difficult time. He passed away on January 18, 1955, in Lahore.
Manto is buried in Miani Saheb graveyard in Lahore. In 1954, he wrote his own grave message:
Here lies Saadat Hasan Manto. With him lie buried all the arts and mysteries of short story writing . . . Under tons of earth he lies, wondering who of the two is the greater short story writer: God or he.
However, his family chose a different message for his grave. This message was also written by him:
This is the grave of Saadat Hasan Manto, who still thinks his name was not the repeated word on the tablet of time.”
Personal Life
On April 26, 1939, Manto married Safia Begum. Their first child, Arif, passed away young in April 1941. Later, they had three daughters: Nighat Manto, Nuzhat Manto, and Nusrat Manto. His daughter Nighat Bashir still lives in the same place where Manto passed away.
Manto's Writings
Manto wrote about the confusion and changes that happened during and after the Partition of India in 1947. He was strongly against the partition. He saw it as a very sad and meaningless event. He started his writing career by translating books. He translated works by Victor Hugo, Oscar Wilde, and Russian writers like Chekhov. His first story was "Tamasha," which was about the Jallianwala Bagh massacre. His early works showed ideas of fairness and equality. But his later writings showed the darker side of human nature. This happened as human values seemed to decline around the time of Partition.
"A writer picks up his pen only when his sensibility is hurt."
-- Manto to a court judge
His last works showed the helplessness of people against darkness. They often had a dark humor, like his final work, Toba Tek Singh. This story showed his own struggles and the widespread confusion he saw. His many court cases and public criticism made him feel alone.
Many women writers of his time felt his language showed reality. They felt he gave them the respect they deserved. He is still known for his sharp understanding of human behavior. He also showed the wild, animal-like side of angry people. His writing is short and powerful.
"We’ve been hearing this for some time now — Save India from this, save it from that. The fact is that India needs to be saved from the people who say it should be saved.
-- Manto
Some people compare Saadat Hasan Manto to D. H. Lawrence. This is partly because he wrote about topics that were not usually discussed in society. His thoughts on social and political issues are seen in his "Letters to Uncle Sam" and "Letters to Pandit Nehru." About his writing, he often said, "If you find my stories dirty, the society you are living in is dirty. With my stories, I only expose the truth."
Manto's Legacy
Manto was a writer whose life story became a topic of much discussion. In recent years, many plays have been made about him. These plays show his struggles with the difficult times after the partition. A play called Ek Kutte Ki Kahani showed Manto in a new way for his 100th birthday.
On January 18, 2005, 50 years after his death, Manto was honored on a Pakistani postage stamp. On August 14, 2012, Pakistan's Independence Day, Saadat Hasan Manto received a special award. He was given the Nishan-e-Imtiaz award (Distinguished Service to Pakistan Award) by the Government of Pakistan. This award was given after his death.
In 2015, Pakistani actor and director Sarmad Khoosat made a movie about Manto's life. It was called Manto. In 2018, the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) named his work Toba Tek Singh among the 100 stories that shaped the world. This put his work alongside authors like Homer.
The 2018 film Manto was made by Nandita Das. It starred Nawazuddin Siddiqui and was a Bollywood film about Manto's life.
On May 11, 2020, Google celebrated his 108th birthday with a Google Doodle.
