Rajinder Singh Bedi: Selected Short Stories - Paperback

by Gopi Chand Narang (Author), Rajinder Singh Bedi (Author), Gopi Chand Narang (Translator)

Rajinder Singh Bedi: Selected Short Stories curates some of the best work by the Urdu writer, whose contribution to Urdu fiction makes him a pivotal force within modern Indian literature. Born in Sialkot, Punjab, Rajinder Singh Bedi (1915-1984) lived many lives-as a student and postmaster in Lahore, a venerated screenwriter for popular Hindi films and a winner of both the Sahitya Akademi as well as the Filmfare awards. Considered one of the prominent progressive writers of modern Urdu fiction, Bedi was an architect of contemporary Urdu writing along with leading lights such as Munshi Premchand and Saadat Hasan Manto.

Written between 1940 and 1975, the fifteen short stories included in this collection comprise favorites like 'Garam Coat' (Woollen Coat), 'Lajwanti', 'Apne Dukh Mujhe De Do' (Give Me Your Sorrows), 'Rahman ke Joote' (Rahman's Shoes) and others. Bedi's stories dissect human emotions with grim precision as he navigates the everyday lives of men and women, exposing social inequities and economic problems.

Author Biography

Gopi Chand Narang (1931-2022) has won recognition all around the world for his outstanding contribution to literature. Among the many awards he has received, the most notable ones are the Sitara-e Imtiaz (2012) and the President's Gold Medal (1977) from Pakistan; and the Padma Shri (1990), Sahitya Akademi Award (1995), and the Padma Bhushan (2004) from India.