Naseeb Ullah Achakzai
Thanda Goshth (Cool Meat) is a 128 pages collection of short stories which has written by Sadath Hassan Manto. Manto has been controversial for his writing yet. He was one of the proponents of erotic writing in Subcontinent and had deeply written on women and psychology of the people. He is blamed for writing nude literature. Manto was put behind the bars because of writing this short story soon after his migration to Pakistan. This collection on one side sheds light on societal decay where he pinpoints the ills in a satirical manner, at the same times it has many lessons that despite indulging in immortal activities one can still work for humanity.
Sadat Hassan Manto starts the book with Muqadama (preface) in which he has talked about his life after his migration to Pakistan in January, 1948. He says that when he came to Pakistan what money he had ended after some times. On one end, he was with no money while at the same time he was jobless. The Film industry which could be a source of income for him had ruined. He asserts that after the partition poverty had engulfed people and there was looting in markets all around but he abstained from looting.
Sadat Hassan Manto being a literate citizen and literary figure had deep insight of past and future. After the partition when he came to Pakistan, and witnessing the miserable situation he thought about the people of both states who had been lagging behind every sphere. He thinks of literature and asks himself what will be its future and that what will be the status of Urdu. He asks himself will Pakistan be a religious state? Will criticism on government be tolerated in Pakistan? He assesses that Radio programs were irrelevant that times. Migrants camp were established all around with less facilities and he assumes that sadness was spread all around. He also talks of Qaid_i_Azam fund that was established after the establishment of Pakistan.
He writes that his first short story that he wrote in Pakistan was Thanda Gosht and no one was ready to publish including Ahmad Nadeem Qasimi. Another short story Open it (Khool Do) was published by Ahmad Nadeem Qasimi in his montly Naqoosh. Naqoosh was banned by government for 6 months due to publishing that short story. He says that he sent Thanda Gosht to many magzines but no one dared to publish. Later, it was published by Arif Abdul Mateen in Javed magazine in 1949. After its publication Police raided the main office of Javed magzine. After some days the owner of Javed magazine Naseer Anwar, editor Arif Abdul Mateen and i was arrested. He talks of the case in details which was launched against him by writing Thands Gosht which was banned on the pretext of nudity. In that case he was sentenced for 3 months and a fine of 3 hundreds rupees. In the end of his preface he has pasted the whole decision of his case.
Thanda Gosht (Cool meat) is a story that sheds light on the brutality of a person, his depression who suffers due to his barbarasness, and suspicion of a wife about her husband. Aisher Sing who comes to home after 8 days encounters the thirst of intercourse from his wife Klonat Kor. But Aisher Sing fails to do so resultantly his wife becomes angry and emotional and asks him angrily with which prostitute have you spent the past eight days.
But Aisher Sing tells her that it is not like so what you are thinking. He tells a story in details that he robbed a house, where he killed 6 people there but let one girl alive. He took that girl on his shoulders but after sometime he saw the girl had died owing to fear and when he put her down from his shoulders she had become a cool meat. That brutality made Asier depressed.
Another short story having the title of Babu Gopi Nath is a class example of immoral life, love, care, lust, friendship, sacrifice, greed, and respect. Babu Gopi Nath in his young age was fond of prostitutes and lived an immoral life. He tells Manto that he had visited all brothels in Lahore. They are two women Zainab and Sardara, and 5 men Babu Gopi Nath, Sendo, Ghafar Sain, Ghulam Ali including Manto, who were sitting in Babu Gopi Nath,s flat in Lahore_ who were drinking Wine and smoking cigarettes.
Manto discusses with Gopi Nath about the people who live with him. Gopi Nath tells him that he knew all these men who are with me are opportunistic but despite it he continued to help and support them. One of the main characters of the story is Zenath who was a prostitute and was living with Gopi Nath. Gopi who was now an aged man and wanted Zenath to get marry with a person, or become an actress to live a prosperous life. At the same time, Zenath who calls Manto a brother gets close to Manto. Manto also wishes that Zanath should have a future and should marry. At last a feudal of Hyderabad Ghulam Hussain meets her and they get marry. Gopi Nath gives around 10 thousend rupees and other things to Zenath as her Dowry.
Short story four having the name of Marriage is a living example of a drink addicted person who lives an immoral life and used to go to brothels. Drinking wine makes him unconsciousness becuse of which he has no care of his fiance and his money which he spends lavishly. Jameel who is a song writer is unmarried and is involved in nefarious evils. One day he goes to his friend Pir Saheb who was a Showroom owner. Both sit together and started drinking wine and smoking cigarette along with Pir Sahab,s friend Natwar lal who is a gamesstone seller. After drinking wine, both Jameel and Natwar Lal go to a Brothel house and a bar in Mumbay.
This story tells that how one loses his senses after drinking wine and how one spends money mercilessly and how he goes to prostitute such as Jameel who had got engaged but had not married yet. His mother in law had written him to marry but Jameel ignores that.
The fifth short story having the title of Balwant Singh Maltgia is a story about love of an Indian with an Afghani girl in Kabul, Afghanistan. Shah Sahab,s real name was Syed Muzafer Ali who was a merchant in Kabul. Many women of Kabul used to come to buy from his grocery shop.
Shah sahab tells Manto that he is a good salemean and has good selling tricks to impress women to purchase things. He told Manto that he did not smoke and drink wine. That he was fond of Indian foods and had his own cook in Kabul who used to prepare Kashmiri food for him. He gives details of the than Afghan society that though Afghan women used to Veil but their dress was European.
Balwant Sing was an employee in an engineering firm in Kabul and was a good friend of Shah Sahab. Shah Sahab told him about his love story with an Afghan girl who used to come to his shop and that she used to wear Veil. That was one sided love as the girl did not know that Shah Sahab loved her.
Balwant told Shah Sahab to do incantation so that the girl may start love with him. Shah Sahab told it was haram (forbidden) in our religion. But despite saying it he did incantation on that Afghan girl. After incantation, one day the girl Kokojan came to Shah Sahab,s shope and took her veil out for the first time. She told him that she was going to marry in some days. During the day of her marriage she died having 7 flowers in hand. Hence, this short story ends with a tragedy.
