Raja Gidh Review

When I arrived at Punjab University Lahore as a student in the nineties, there was talk of two books. We used to preach the 'vision of false form' of the perverted Raja Anwar. This beautiful book is based on the love letters of Raja Anwar which he wrote to his girlfriend during his student days. ۔ The romantic new campus of Punjab University in the seventies, which was mapped out by Raja Anwar, was very different from the suffocated Punjab University in which we were living. I would have liked Ahmed Faraz's poem 'Why should we sell our dreams' if I had read 'Darshan of false form'. Ironically, the authors of 'Jhoote Roop Ke Darshan' have denied their own beautiful love names.

Well, the subject of this article is of course Bano Qudsia's novel Raja Gidh which was read and appreciated more than text books in those days. A few years ago, while waiting for a train bound for Karachi, he was reviewing books at a book stall at Lahore railway station when he saw 'Raja Gidh'. Out of curiosity, I picked up the book and turned the pages. This was the thirtieth edition of the book, published in 2012, named after the well-known 'Sufi bureaucrat' Qudratullah Shehab, a leading figure in the service of military dictatorships. The first edition was published in 1981. Apparently, on average, a new edition is coming to market every year, which is a testament to the book's continued popularity. I bought a copy of this novel from Lahore Railway Station and read it all the way.

To be honest, when I first read this novel in my university days, I was left speechless. This time, of course, I was left grinding my teeth. The reason for my frustration was not the reactionary ideas expressed in the novel (which I now understand better). What else can be expected from the followers of Qudratullah Shehab. The real problem was that the anti-people and anti-woman rhetoric in the guise of religion was gaining the status of an Urdu classic.

But this is not a surprising thing. In the heyday of reaction, there is a strong possibility that reactionary literature will gain the status of general acceptance or maintain its popularity after gaining popularity. If reactionary literature gains popularity in the reactionary era, then on the other hand the popular reactionary literature perpetuates the reactionary era. Why did the writers join the Muslim League after being shocked by the true vision of capital? For those readers who have not read 'Raja Gidh', the story of this novel is briefly presented.

Raja Gidh has four main characters: Professor Sohail, a professor of Imranat at Government College Lahore, and his three students, Sami Shah, Aftab Butt and Qayyum. Professor Sohail is only six years older than his students. ”But somewhere he had a hunter used by tigers. He never came to teach any course. But he knew how to play the judo of the minds. Boating was his favorite pastime. He loved to open the skulls of his disciples and to find them empty and close them. The art of freeing sewn tongues to talk like a parrot and the silence of the radio's constant language speakers also came from him. He used to be very free and gave all kinds of freedom. Nothing could shock him. Along with sociology, he knew every subject. Therefore, in his presence, the atmosphere was always free from educational fabrication ”(p. 5).

Sami Shah "Gulbergi was a product of society". Westernized in clothing, trimming! Qayyum came to Lahore from a village in Sheikhupura. It has the right shape and is a bookworm. Aftab, on the other hand, is of Kashmiri descent from Lahore. This beacon of a wealthy family in the inner city is the embodiment of Chande Aftab Chande Mahtab. The three students are tied in a love triangle while Professor Sohail is the Euclid expert behind this triangle. As is the case in Indian films, "Gulberg, who was taking a bath with a back brush and a shower, was unaware that she had been beaten by a Kashmiri child and also by a resident of the inner city." Earlier, Sami Shah and Aftab used to look at each other with wide eyes. At the time of filing the admission fee, they used to come to the verandah, but in this third period [Professor Sohail K.] in the eyes of both of them first amazement arose then excitement arose and in one session everything turned into confession. They both got up after class. They walked together under an unknown force. Reaching outside, Sami Shah sat on Aftab's motorbike without saying anything ”(p. 1).

Meanwhile, Qayyum had also gone mad in love with Sami Shah. Sami, who was sitting on Aftab's motorbike, said:

Once again, as in the movies: Qayyum and Aftab live in the same room in the hostel. Both are roommates, not friends. Both of them do not forget about Sami Shah Kazkar. One day a faint glimmer of hope burns for jealousy. Aftab's engagement was arranged with his cousin in his childhood. He marries his cousin without caring for Sami Shah. Shortly after his marriage, without completing his education, he moved to London. On the other hand, the heartbroken Sami Shah also leaves her studies and goes to Rawalpindi but cannot forget Qayyum. She comes to Lahore again and again to find Qayyum here