Essays: from The other side of silence / Urvashi Butalia -- On writing sleepwalkers / Joginder Paul -- Fiction: The train has reached Amritsar / Bhisham Sahni ; translation from Hindi by Alok Bhalla -- Toba Tek Singh / Saadat Hasan Manto ; translation from Urdu by Tahira Naqvi -- Lajwanti / Rajinder Singh Bedi ; translation from Urdu by Alok Bhalla -- Incognita / Rashid Haider ; translation from Bengali by Radha Chakravarty -- Pali / Bhisham Sahni ; translation from Hindi by the author -- The claim / Mohan Rakesh ; translation from Hindi by Richard Williams -- The dog of tetwal / Saadat Hasan Manto ; translation from Urdu by Ravikant and Tarun K. Saint -- Whose story? / Gulzar ; translated from the Hindi by Alok Bhalla -- The owner of rubble / Mohan Rakesh ; translation from Hindi by Alok Bhalla -- Father / Prafulla Roy ; translation from Bengali by John W. Hood -- Mozel / Saadat Hasan Manto ; translation from Urdu by Tahira Naqvi -- Farewell / Samaresh Basu ; translation from Bengali by Krishna Dutta and Andrew Robinson -- from Sleepwalkers / Joginder Paul ; translation from Urdu by Sunil Trivedi and Sukrita Paul Kumar -- Where there is no frontier / Prafulla Roy ; translation from Bengali by John W. Hood -- from Basti / Intizar Husain translation from Urdu by Frances W. Pritchett -- Rebirth / Abul Bashar ; translation from Bengali by Krishna Dutta and Andrew Robinson -- How many Pakistans? / Kamleshwar ; translation from Hindi by Vishwamitter Adil and Alok Bhalla -- Cool, sweet water / Khadija Mastur ; translation from Urdu by Tahira Naqvi.
Summary:
In their rich diversity of languages, religions, traditions, and ethnicities, the two billion people in India, Pakistan, and Bangladesh are unmatched in the world. For nearly a century, Britain directly ruled the region as a colony. But when the British hastily departed in 1947, giving India and Pakistan independence, communities that had lived side by side in relative peace were torn apart by unfathomable sectarian violence. The stories in "Crossing Over" depict the responses and emotions of ordinary people caught in a tragic turning point in history, when tolerance, respect, and compassion broke down. Written by some of the region's finest writers, these works make us aware that such responses are not exclusive to South Asia. They are possible everywhere.
This resource is supported by the Institute of Museum and Library Services under the provisions of the Library Services and Technology Act as administered by State Library of Iowa.