Let’s Talk About Literature Over a Plate of Chinese Food

It is the year 1934, and the air is filled with the determination for freedom. Plans were being articulated all over the Indian subcontinent, decisions are being made, and non-violent processions were being led. There is only one demand- poorna swaraj, or complete independence. While the freedom fighters burned the midnight oil, a group of progressive writers discussed the fate of Urdu literature in unfree India.

The Writers’ Meet at the Nanking Hotel. Illustration by Tarun Kumar

On a chilly evening in November, various literary leaders and writers met at London’s Nanking Hotel to discuss the condition of academia in the subcontinent. In 1932, a collection of nine short stories and a one-act play called Angarey was published by Ahmed Ali, Sajjad Zaheer, Rashid Jahan, and Mahmud-un-Zafar. The compilation talked about the prevailing familial and sexual traditions, throwing light on the hypocrisy of society and religion. The collection received harsh criticism and brutal suppression from civil and religious authorities for the portrayal of life without any filter. This eventually led to the ban of Angarey for being obscene.

Urdu writers and the literary group had had it enough. They were against the idealized portrayal of life in literature and fiction that wasn’t grounded in reality. They wanted to weave their stories around the society they lived in, and connect with the masses by providing them with support through written texts that were absent till then. This was the turning point in the course of literature in the subcontinent.

The Nanking meet in London marked the inception point of the Progressive Writers’ Movement after the banning of Angarey. Sajjad Zaheer, one of the writers of Angarey, created a draft that would soon become the manifesto of the progressive movement. At the table were Jyotirmaya Ghosh, a prominent leader of the Bengali Progressive Movement, Mulk Raj Anand, a global English novelist from India, and Mohammad Din Tasir, the founder of the magazine Nairang-i-Khayaal. They shared the bowl of noodles while discussing the future of Indian literature with the manifesto between them.

The meeting concluded with the creation of an All-India Progressive Writers’ Association, which brought a significant change in the course of Urdu literature in the subcontinent. After discussing the manifesto for PWA, the final document was ready in 1935. This version was sent to various other writers who wrote in a variety of vernacular languages, receiving approval from a wide variety of them. Premchand immediately became the spokesperson for the PWA in Hindi literature and also translated the document.

The founding committee of the PWA travelled from city to city, talking to various writers and spreading their ideology, forming different branches of the movement in various cities. They met writers like Firaq Gorakhpuri, Narendra Sharma, Amarnath Jha, and Tara Chand. Various conferences were organised and attended by these writers.

Ali Sardar Jafri, Sibte Hasan, and Israr-ul-Haq Majaz claimed, ‘Progressive literature does not break off relations with old literature; it embodies the best traditions of the old and constructs new edifices on the foundations of these traditions. Progressive literature is the most trustworthy guardian and heir of ancient literature.’

The movement received a tremendous amount of positive response due to the persistent struggles of the common masses, including the anti-imperialist struggle, failed promises by the new nation, world war, and communal hostility. The Progressive writings became the voice of the people, resonating with their troubles and aspirations.

The first All-India Progressive Writers’ Conference was held in Lucknow in 1936. Its aim was to establish the basic guiding rules of the movement. Zaheer became the Secretary-General of the movement, and Premchand delivered the inaugural address, “Sahitya ka Uddeshya” (The Purpose of Literature). The conference demanded freedom of speech and created an inclusive document that considered the political situation of the country.

Subsequent conferences led to the creation of a parallel Progressive Movement in other vernacular languages, turning the All-India Progressive Writers into an umbrella organisation that influenced and shaped the course of literature in the Indian subcontinent.