Saadat Hasan Mantoo

50 years ago, on the 15th August, 1947, the union jack came down and India’s tri-color took its place to adorn the ramparts of the Red Fort in Delhi.
Independence brought with it the trauma of the country’s partition which made millions homeless and brought incalculable misery in its wake.
As a result got born, among others, Khushwant Singh’s “Train to Pakistan”, Bhisham Sahani’s “Tamas”, Mohan Rakesh’s “Malbe ka Malik” and Amrita Pritam’s “Lament to Waris Shah”.
Sadaat Hasan Manto added to this list of immortals like Toba Tek Singh, Mozel, Kholdo.
Besides depicting deep pangs of partition, Manto brought to the forefront the world’s oldest profession-prostitution. Be it Shanti or Sharifan or Sugandhi, the life of the prostitutes portrayed by Manto leaves one shocked and shattered.
Not even the Indo-Pak conflict on Kashmir escaped the master’s attention. ‘The Last Salute’ is his tribute to the comradeship between the Indian and the Pak armed forces of those days.
No wonder that Manto considered himself as good a story-teller as God.