Fasana-e-Azad (Urdu: فسانۂ آزاد; transl.The Adventures of Azad, also romanized as Fasana-i-Azad) is an Urdu novel by Ratan Nath Dhar Sarshar. It was serialized in Avadh Akhbar between 1878 and 1883 before it was published in four large volumes by the Nawal Kishore Press. The story follows a wandering character named Azad and his companion, Khoji, from the streets of late-nineteenth-century Lucknow to the battlefields of the Russo-Turkish War (1877–1878) in Constantinople and Russia. The work's status as a novel has been debated, but it is thought by most scholars to be one of the first novels (or a proto-novel) in Urdu.
Sarshar conceived of writing Fasana-e-Azad after the success of the articles he contributed to Avadh Akhbar under the title "Zarafat" ("Wit and Humour"). Perennially popular, Fasana-e-Azad has been a subject of study by literary critics as the first Urdu novel and for its influence on the literary form's later development. It is noted for its colourful descriptions of Lucknow, its people, and its culture.
On 8 August 1878, Sarshar was appointed editor of Avadh Akhbar.[2] His first entry in a series called "Zarafat" was published in the 13 August 1878 issue, and the column appeared regularly thereafter.[3] These columns, which eventually made up the first 500 pages of the book, satirize urban life, usually centering on a wandering figure such as Azad or a minor character.[4] This was in keeping with the influence of Charles Dickens's The Pickwick Papers and Miguel de Cervantes' Don Quixote on Sarshar.[5] The popularity of Zarafat led Sarsharr to continue the stories and develop them into a narrative called Fasana-e-Azad.[3]
In one piece, published on 23 September, Sarshar explained his reasons for writing the series.[6] He said that their intention was to use humour to allow Avadh Akhbar's readers to familiarize themselves with a social culture, characterized by proper conversational style and idiomatic fluency suited to a variety of social occasions, which could be used in a variety of social gatherings. Sarshar believed that such an education would improve the country and its people; pleasure in reading humorous articles would encourage refinement and higher thought.[6][lower-alpha 1]
Azad–the protagonist. He wanders around Lucknow, meets people from all classes with a variety of ideas, and attends the festivals of Eid, Shab Barart, Maharram and Basant.
Husn Ara–a beautiful girl, from an aristocratic family, whom Azad loves
Azad, with no family history, wanders around the city; he encounters all kinds of people and observes Lucknow's changing urban milieu. He has a keen eye for female beauty. Azad meets two sisters and falls in love with Husna Ara, the older sister. Although she loves him too, she sets a condition for their marriage: Azad must go to Turkey and fight with the Turks in their war with the Russians. Azad leaves for Turkey with Khoji, his sidekick, a dwarf with a fondness for opium and delusions about his handsomeness and martial prowess. They have a number of adventures in Turkey and Russia; several noblewomen fall love with Azad, who remains more-or-less true to Husn Ara.[7]
Azad, Khoji, and two female European admirers return to India in triumph. Azad marries Husna Ara, and the two European women become social workers.[7] He becomes the father of twins and is well-known and respected, devoting a great deal of time to the propagation of new ideas, education, commerce and industry. When war breaks out against Afghanistan, Azad is asked by the government to aid the war effort. He goes to war, again proving himself a valiant soldier. Azad then returns home and lives a happy, useful life devoted to the advancement of his country.[9]Fasana-e-Azad has a number of sub-plots, including the story of Husna Ara's sister, Sipahr Ara; her lover, prince Humayun Far; and the Shahsawar, his mysterious rival.[7]
Publication history
Fasana-e-Azad consists of four volumes, with a total of about 3,000 pages (roughly 2.25 million words).[3] The novel has been published in a number of formats.[10] Volume One was serialized in Avadh Akhbar from August 1878 to 5 January 1880 under the title, "Zarafat". It was published in book form in January 1881 by the Nawal Kishore Press, which also published the remaining three volumes. The first instalment of Volume Two appeared in the magazine on 1 July 1880, when the title Fasana-e-Azad was first used. Further instalments, sold by subscription and separately priced, were published after 30 July as monthly supplements to Avadh Akhbar. It was published in book form in July 1882. The third volume was serialized monthly from February 1882 to January 1883 and was published in book form, with an initial print run of 200 copies and a cost of three rupees, in June 1883. Although it is unknown if the final volume was serialized, it was published in book form in 1883.[11][12]
Later editions
A chapter of Fasana-e-Azad, over 15 pages long, was published by Nawal Kishore Press in 1906 as "Range Siyar". A new edition of the novel was published in 1934.[1] Saraswati Press of Banaras published an abridged 550-page Hindi edition in 1947. The character of Khoji became so popular that Muhammad Ahsan Farooqi collected excerpts about Khoji from the novel and compiled them into a book entitled Khoji, which was published in 1952 by Raja Ram Kumar Press (a successor of Nawal Kishore Press). The New Delhi-based Jamia Book Department published an abridged edition, Fasana-e-Azad (Talkhis), in 1970.[1]
Reception
Fasana-e-Azad was the first serializedUrdu fiction published in an Urdu newspaper. A landmark of modern Urdu fiction, it sparked unprecedented public interest[13] and helped Avadh Akhbar solidify its reputation as one of South Asia's first commercially viable Urdu dailies.[4] During and after publication of the novel, Sarshar became one of the Urdu community's most popular figures.[14]
The novel is regarded as one of the first modern Urdu novels,[15] or an immediate precursor to the novel form.[16] According to Firoz Hissain, Fasana-e-Azad's success was unprecedented in the history of Urdu literature; it was read and enjoyed by every segment of society.[17] The novel has been described as an encyclopedia of contemporary Lucknow culture.[1]
Reviewers praised Fasana-e-Azad for its portrayals of Lucknow's marketplaces, fairs and diverse social classes, presented with a liveliness and accuracy considered unprecedented in Urdu literature.[18] Historian Ram Babu Saksena cites the novel's realistic depiction of Lucknow's life, the "faithful and vivid portrayal of life and manners of Lucknow society" and Sarshar's "brilliants humour" as outstanding features of Fasana-e-Azad.[19] Saksena calls Sarshar's humour "full-blooded, healthy and unrestrained", and none of his contemporaries approach his "fund of humour".[20]
Shaista Suhrawardy Ikramullah calls Khoji Sarshar's greatest achievement and an immortal character in Urdu fiction.[21] Saksena describes Khoji as a "unique character in the whole range of Urdu literature" and as "the most original and wonderful creation of humorous art".[22]Wah Janaab, a television series based on Fasana-e-Azad, aired on DD National in 1984.[23]
Status as a novel
Study of Fasana-e-Azad began after Sarshar's death with the publication of articles by Brij Narayan Chakbast and Bishan Narayan Dar, two of his contemporaries.[24] Much scholarship has focused on its relationship to the history of the novel. Asaduddin describes the general consensus that "Critics and writers call Fasana-e Azad a novel but with some reservations."[25]
Sarshar himself was the first to call Fasana-e-Azad a novel, in 1879. Ralph Russell calls it "a work which brought permanently into Urdu literature some of the major elements of the modern novel."[26] Vaqār ʿAz̤īm's textbook on Urdu prose describes it as important in the history of the novel, saying it has had "a profound impact on our novels’ development, for which all future novelists owe Sarshar a debt of gratitude."[27] Dubrow argues that inconsistencies the work's plot and characterization are actually common features of serialized works, which Sarshar intentionally improved to be more novelistic when he revised his columns for book publication.[28] Mohammad Asaduddin highlights the way that Sarshar depicts ordinary life with unembellished language as an important novelistic trait.[5] He also highlights the lack of supernatural elements which would have aligned Fasana-e-Azad more strongly with the genre of dāstān or romance.[29]
Ultimately, however, Asaduddin concludes that Fasana-e-Azad is not a "novel proper" because its plot is too unfocused and its characters too unrealistic.[25] Plot and characters, and especially their failure to conform to Victorian standards of literary realism, are common grounds for the assessment that Fasana-e-Azad is not quite a novel.[30] Muhammad Ahsan Farooqi attributed the many uncohesive subplots to Sarshar's "carelessness": "Sarshar had no plan and stuffed in any story wherever he wanted and ended it whenever the mood struck."[31] According to Farooqi, the love between Azad and Husn Ara is the only thread running through the work from beginning to end.[32] Bishan Narayan Dar wrote, "Fasana-e-Azad is not a proper novel, since its plot was not conceived according to any plan. It has neither beginning, nor middle, nor end; rather, it is a collection of unconnected snapshots of the society and culture in which Sarshar lived."[33] Chakbast questioned how Azad's character (which he described as a "uncontrollable, carefree, itinerant, and sometimes even sinful man") could abruptly become "so chaste and refined," finding the character's development "against the law of nature."[34] Author Shaista Suhrawardy Ikramullah also called the characters' development inconsistent.[35]
See also
Hamzanama, Indian folktale, considered an influence on the novel
Notes
↑ This is an English paraphrase of the original statement in Urdu: اس سے اصلی مقصد ہمارا یہ ہے ناظرین اودھ اخبار بہ پیرایۂ ظرافت تعلیم مذاق و بول چال اور موقع مناسب کے محاورات اور ہر قسم کی صحبتوں کی کیفیت و طرز معاشرت کلیہ واقفیت تامہ حاصل کریں ..... کہ مجامع انسان کی جو حالتیں ہیں اور جس قدر اثر صحبت زمانہ کا ہے اس سے ہمارے ملک کو فائدہ عظیم پہنچے تاکہ نیک خیالات اخلاق حسنہ سے لوگوں کے دل منور اور خیالات فاسدہ اور خصائل رزیلہ کی تاریکی سے پاک ہوں اور ٰٰکامل فیض ایک معقول تربیت سے راستی پسند طبیعیتوں کو ہو۔ ان کو پڑھ کر بلحاظ زباندانی اور بخیال عمدہ مقاصد لطف و مذاق زندہ دلی حاصل کریں۔
Dubrow, Jennifer (2017). "Serial fictions: Urdu print culture and the novel in colonial South Asia". The Indian Economic & Social History Review. 54 (4): 408. doi:10.1177/0019464617728224. S2CID149068497– via SAGE Publishing.
The Hamzanama or Dastan-e-Amir Hamza narrates the legendary exploits of Hamza ibn Abdul-Muttalib, an uncle of Muhammad. Most of the stories are extremely fanciful, "a continuous series of romantic interludes, threatening events, narrow escapes, and violent acts". The Hamzanama chronicles the fantastic adventures of Hamza as he and his band of heroes fight the enemies.
Urdu literature comprises the literary works, written in the Urdu language. While, It tends to be dominated by poetry, especially the verse forms of the ghazal and nazm, it has expanded into other styles of writing, including that of the short story, or afsana. Urdu literature is popular mostly in Pakistan, where Urdu is the national language, and in India, where it is an Eighth Schedule language.
Aslam Farrukhi was an Urdu author, literary critic, linguist, scholar, and radio scriptwriter from Pakistan. He is also known for writing children's books. He remained associated as a professor and chairman with the Department of Urdu, University of Karachi, for many years.
Ratan Nath Dhar Sarshar was an Indian Urdu novelist, columnist and editor from British India. Born into a Kashmiri Brahmin family which settled in Lucknow, he received his education at Canning College and later took up employment as a schoolteacher. In August 1878, he was appointed editor of the Lucknow-based newspaper Avadh Akhbar, in which his most famous work Fasana-e-Azad was published serially.
Amritlal Nagar was one of the prominent Hindi writers of the twentieth century.
Abdul Halim Sharar was an Indian author, playwright, essayist and historian from Lucknow. He left behind, in all, hundred and two books. He often wrote about the Islamic past and extolled virtues like courage, bravery, magnanimity and religious fervour. Malikul Azia Vārjina (1889), Firdaus-e-Bareen (1899), Zawāl-e-Baghdad (1912), Husn kā Daku (1913–1914), Darbar-e-Harampur (1914) and Fateh Maftūh (1916) are some of his famous novels.
Muhammad Husain Azad was a scholar and an Urdu writer who wrote both prose and poetry, but he is mostly remembered for his prose. His best known work is Aab-e-Hayat.
Munshi Nawal Kishore was a book publisher from India. He has been called Caxton of India. In 1858, at the age of 22, he founded the Nawal Kishore Press at Lucknow. This institution today is the oldest printing and publishing concern in Asia.
Insha Allah Khan, known as Insha, was an Urdu poet in the courts of Lucknow and Delhi in the late eighteenth and early nineteenth century. A multi-talented polyglot, he was the author of the first grammar of the Urdu language, Darya-e-Latafat.
Dastangoi is a 13th century Urdu oral storytelling art form. The Persian style of dastan evolved in 16th century. One of the earliest references in print to dastangoi is a 19th-century text containing 46 volumes of the adventures of Amir Hamza titled Dastan e Amir Hamza.
The Awadh Punch was an Urdu satirical weekly published from Lucknow, India from 1877 to 1937, It was launched on Jan 16, 1877 and was founded and edited by Munshi Sajjad Husain. It was modeled on Punch, a London-based weekly magazine from which it also derived its name. Some of its notable contributors were Ratan Nath Dhar Sarshar, Syed Mohammad Azad, Tribhavan Nath Hijr, Machchu Baig Sitam Zareef, Javala Prashad Barq, Ahmed Ali Shauq Qidvai and Akbar Allahabadi. The paper was one of the first to publish political satire, especially protesting British rule, in India. It had to be closed down in 1912 but was revived in 1916 and it continued till, at least, Dec 1937. The third and last attempt to revive it was published by Ahmad Jamal Pasha in 1959 and closed in 1962.
Avadh Akhbar was an Urdu-language newspaper founded by Munshi Nawal Kishore, and published by Nawal Kishore Press from Lucknow, British India. It was launched in 1858 and lasted for almost a century. It was the most popular newspaper of its time, specialising in politics, social reform and literature. In 1877, it became the first Urdu daily in Northern India.
The Nawal Kishore Press was a publishing house founded by Munshi Nawal Kishore in Lucknow, British India, in 1858. It grew rapidly between 1865 and 1872 from its modest beginnings as a small printing press, adopting modern technology and improved marketing, and engaging in innovative print ventures. The Press began to decline after 1890, when Nawal Kishore's successor was unable to keep up his legacy.
Abu Salmān Shahjahānpūri was a Pakistani scholar, researcher and historian. He was regarded as an authority in the historical and political movements of the Indian subcontinent. He was an alumnus of Jamia Qasmia Madrasa Shahi, University of Karachi and the University of Sindh. He wrote more than 150 books including Ifādat-e-Azād and Maulānā ʻUbaidullāh Sindhī ke inqilābī manṣūbe.
Zameen, alternatively spelled Zamin, is an Urdu novel by Pakistani novelist and short story writer Khadija Mastoor. The novel was published posthumously by Idara-e-Farogh-e-Urdu in 1983. Daisy Rockwell, PhD, translated it into English and released it in July 2019 under the title A Promised Land. Zameen depicts the economic and political upheaval that entailed the partition of British India. It begins at the final setting of Mastoor's first novel Aangan – the Walton refugee camp in Lahore. Consequently, it is sometimes considered an extension of Aangan, however, Rockwell has clarified that it is not a narrative sequel, rather a philosophical and thematic follow-up. It is considered a political allegory and a women-centric historical account of Pakistan's independence.
Mir Ghulam Hasan, known simply as Mīr Ḥasan or Mir Hasan Dehlavi, was an biographer, critic, and Urdu poet.
Munshi Durga Sahai Suroor (1873-1910) also known by the pen name of Suroor Jahanabadi was an Indian Urdu poet.
Karamat Ali Karamat (1936–2022) was an Indian Urdu poet, author, literary critic, and mathematician. Karamat is known for collecting and introducing Odisha's Urdu literature to the Urdu-speaking world. His works include Aab e Khizar (1963), Shu'aon Ki Salīb (1972), Izāfi Tanqīd (1977), Lafzon Kā Aasmān (1984), and Lafzon Kā Ākāsh (2000). Karamat received the 2004 Sahitya Akademi Translation Prize for his Urdu translation, Lafzon Kā Ākāsh.
Shaikh Nizamuddin Usmani Amethwi was an Indian Islamic scholar and spiritual Sufi saint of the Chishtiyya Sufi order. He was a descendant of the Sufi saint Shaikh Sirri as-Saqti of Baghdad.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply. Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.
