The Complete Short Stories
Page 91
gopis maidens of Vrindavan in love with Krishna
griha pravesh house-warming
gurumata wife of a teacher, treated like a mother
halvai sweet vendor; confectioner
Hanuman Chalisa forty verses in praise of Lord Hanuman
harira concoction made from several ingredients such as ghee, jaggery, cumin, nuts, turmeric powder and dry ginger powder. It is part of the postnatal diet of a woman which provides her wholesome nutrition
havan kund sacred pit where sacrificial fires are lit
Ibn-e-Sina Avicenna, a Persian polymath
idgah prayer ground where Muslims gather for the Eid congregation
ilaka region; estate
imarti sweetmeat
Ism-e Aazam Muslim prayer to ward off evil
jagir feudal land grant under the jagirdari system to officials during the Mughal period. Tenants were supposed to be under the servitude of the jagirdar
jagirdar holder of a jagir
janaab sir
janeyu sacred thread worn from adolescence by Hindu males of the upper three community groups
Janmashtami festival that celebrates the birth of Krishna
janwasa temporary dwelling for a marriage party
Jauhar custom of collective self-immolation by Rajput women to save themselves from dishonour
Jeth, Jaishta second month of the Hindu calendar corresponding to May–June
Kaachhi community of market gardeners, a member of the Kaachhi community
kaans Saccharum spontaneum, a perennial grass growing up to three metres in height with spreading rhizomatous roots
kachcha raw
kachnar a tree, also known as orchid tree, camel’s foot tree and mountain ebony
Kahar member of Hindu sub-caste whose duties include carrying palanquins and drawing water
kaharin woman Kahar
kaka uncle; near-and-dear acquaintance
Kaala Paani lit. black water; Cellular Jail
kamandal an oblong water pot made of a dry gourd, metal, wood or clay, usually with a handle and sometimes with a spout. Hindu ascetics often use it for storing drinking water
kanthi ornament like choker
kanyadaan ritual of giving away a daughter in marriage
karha bangle
karhai pan
Kayastha members of the scribe caste, traditionally known as keepers of public records and accounts, writers, and administrators of the state
kesar saffron plant
khaddar homespun cloth, popularized by Mahatma Gandhi
khangar member of a semi-tribal community who earned livelihood by carpentry
kharau clogs; wooden footwear
khasdaan portmanteau, betel dish or box with cover
khudkasht land cultivated by owner
khus fragrant grass; khus coolers made of sweet-smelling herbs and hung like a screen or mat over windows and doors for the natural cooling of air used in India
kolhu oil press drawn by bullocks
kos length of approximately three miles
Kshatriya warrior caste
kulvadhu housewife
kundan fine gold
Kunwar honorary title traditionally associated with feudal Rajputs, such as the son of a rana or thakur
Kunwar month of Kartik in the Hindu calendar roughly corresponding to October–November
Kurmi Hindu agricultural caste in India
lagaan rent payable or accruing on land
lagan auspicious moment for performing a sacred task; horoscope
lambardar village headman who collects revenue and acts as a link between the government and the people
leela inscrutable ways of God
lota small round metal pot
Maagh tenth month of the Hindu calendar roughly corresponding to January–February
maata mother; goddess
mahtab special kind of firecrackers
makoh Solanum nigrrum
maktab school
malida sweets
malin gardener’s wife
malkin mistress
mamu maternal uncle (mother’s brother)
mandap temporary pavilion erected to conduct the marriage ceremony
mansabdar member of the imperial bureaucracy of the Mughal empire in India. The mansabdars governed the empire and commanded its armies in the emperor’s name
marsiya an elegy
maryada honour
mauza site, place or village
Meghdoot variation of Meghadutam, a play by Kalidasa
mehfil lively assembly of people, get-together; musical soirée
mirzai jacket of coarse cloth
mem white woman
mistri worker, generally a fitter
moha longing for worldly attachments
mujra nautch performance
mukhtar pleader
mukhtar-e aam representative who holds a general power of attorney of the zamindar
mundan tonsure
munim accountant
munna little darling, children are commonly addressed as ‘munna’ (for a boy) or ‘munni’ (for a girl)
munn precious gem found inside a snake. According to popular belief, a snake possessing the gem takes it out and goes sniffing around for food. On returning, it swallows the gem. Picking up the gem, which is a risky endeavour that might cost a person his life, will lead to being blessed with untold wealth
nagin female cobra
nainsukh fine muslin
na-mehram a stranger before whom a Muslim woman is forbidden to appear unveiled
nazrana offering
neochchawar ward off evil
ojha sorcerer
ood aloe wood; emits fragrance when it burns
paanigrahan marriage
pakwaan special kind of fried sweets prepared on festivals
Panch Parameshwar ki jai long live the panchayat
panditayin female counterpart of a pandit; wife of a pandit
papiha brain fever bird
pativrata wife who attains spiritual status through devotion to her husband
pattal leaf plate
Parvez emperor of Persia
pasi toddy extractors
patwari village recorder
payis measure of land
peshkaar officer in the court
Phagun eleventh month in the Hindu calendar roughly corresponding to February–March
phulka plain roti
pind daan religious ritual performed to bring salvation to the departed soul. Offering the ashes of the deceased into the Ganges and feeding the poor constitute essential components of this ceremony
pitambar lit., yellow garment; used as another name of the Hindu gods Krishna and Vishnu because of their yellow clothing
pitra-paksha when rites are performed in honour of ancestors
pooranmasi full moon
Poos winter month in the Hindu calendar corresponding to December–January
prakriti raw nature
purohit Hindu priest
purush man
qurbani ritual sacrifice of animals during Eid
Raghubansa a variation of Raghubansam, a play by Kalidasa
Rathyatra Hindu festival celebrating the life of Lord Rama
rukhsati send-off of the bride from her parents’ house to her husband’s; bringing a wife to her husband’s house when she hits puberty
Safeda variety of mango
samdhi father of a son-in-law or daughter-in-law; fem: samdhan
sandhya ritual of worship and meditation performed three times a day by Hindus of the higher castes
sanjivani lit. life-giving; the herb used to revive Lakshman when he fell unconscious in the Ramayana
sankranti the day when the sun enters a new zodiac sign
sanyas renunciation
sanskar good upbringing
sarai inn
Saraswati the goddess of learning
sattu gram powder
Satyanarayan katha religiou
s ritual recounting the story of the acts of kindness of a particular deity, Satyanarayan, representing a form of Lord Vishnu
satyug the era of justice
saubhagyawati status of being married and having a husband
saut co-wife
sejgarhi wagon often used for carrying small children
sendh break-in
ser measure of weight, approximately one kilogram
sethani wife of a seth
sewaiyaan sweets; Indian vermicelli
shaligram sacred stone representing Lord Vishnu
shastras Hindu holy books
shehnai musical instrument played during weddings and other occasions
shodashi(n) a girl of sixteen years, funeral ritual
shradh in Hinduism, it is the ritual one performs to pay homage to ancestors, especially to dead parents
shuddhi purification; part of worship in Hinduism; also refers to conversion to Hinduism
sipahi soldier; constable
somwari amavas night of the new moon that falls on a Monday
suhaag auspicious state of being married
surma kohl
swang dramatic performance; jest, farce
taat sackcloth
tehsildar administrative officer in charge of a tehsil, i.e., subdivision.
talukdar holder of a taluk, i.e., land estate; zamindar
tam-tam one-horse carriage, meant to seat two people in front and two in the rear
tanzeb muslin
tapasvini female ascetic
tapasya asceticism
tasmai roasted vermicelli cooked in milk
Teej festival where married women keep fasts for the long lives of their husbands
thakurain wife of a thakur
tibbi Greek system of medicine
Tiwari sub-caste of Brahmins in north India
udan khatola flying saucer
vakula Mimusops elengi; tree with rich foliage
var raksha engagement
vilayat the West; Europe
wah-wah bravo!
yagyopobit ritual pertaining to sacred thread
Acknowledgements
An extensive project that has gone on for more than a dozen years owes its completion to many. I thank all my colleagues and students in the Department of English, Jamia Millia Islamia, who participated enthusiastically in the project and were co-travellers with me in this long journey. Thanks are also due to Professor Sabiha A. Zaidi, director, Jamia’s Premchand Archives and Literary Centre, who placed the entire holding of the archives at my disposal and lent me some very valuable books. Shazia Alvi and Umaima at Zakir Husain library, Jamia Millia Islamia, were particularly helpful in tracking rare journals, newspapers and manuscripts. I would also like to place on record my thanks to the staff members of the Sahitya Akademi library and the Nehru Memorial Museum library for their help. Moazzam Sheikh, librarian at San Francisco public library, gave me important information about the holdings of Urdu journals in Pakistan and the USA.
Among the experts associated with the project, I recall with gratitude the advice given me by Professor Alok Bhalla and Professor Malasri Lal. Several writers-in-residence at Jamia interacted with the translators and advised them. Some of them also translated a couple of Premchand stories at my request. I would like to specially mention Anjum Hasan, Robert Rosenberg, Farzana Doctor, Annie Zaidi, Lakshmi Holmström and Mini Krishnan. The editorial team at Penguin led by Ambar Sahil Chatterjee and consisting of Arpita, Paloma, Shreya and Shanuj is thanked for its patience, rigour and painstaking attention to detail. And finally, a big ‘thank you’ to my ardent foot soldiers—Shailendra, Sarfaraz, Kalyanee, Sarah and Naseeb—who helped me in reading the proofs most diligently and meeting the punishing deadline that Penguin Books had set for me.
Note on Translators
A. Naseeb Khan holds an MPhil and a PhD in translation studies. His publications include Rip Not the Sore, a collection of poetry. The Evolution of Ghalib includes his translation of Ghalib’s Urdu poetry. He teaches at Jamia Millia Islamia, New Delhi.
Abbasuddin Tapadar is associate professor of English at Shyam Lal College, Delhi University.
Adeel Mehdi teaches English at Jamia Millia Islamia.
Afroz Taj is professor of South Asian studies at the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, USA. His published works include The Court of Indar and the Rebirth of Indian Drama (2007).
Alpana Neogy is former assistant professor of English at Ram Lal Anand College. She has worked on the effects of Partition and the notions of identity in regional and Indian English literature.
Anand Prakash was associate professor of English at Hansraj College, Delhi University.
Anindya Das has done his MPhil from Jamia Millia Islamia.
Anirudh Karnick is a doctoral candidate in comparative literature at the University of Pennsylvania, USA. At present, he is translating Prashant Bagad’s short fiction into Hindi and English.
Anjum Hasan is the author of the novels The Cosmopolitans, Neti, Neti and Lunatic in My Head. She has also published a collection of stories, Difficult Pleasures, and a book of poems, Street on the Hill. Her books have been nominated for various awards.
Annie Zaidi is the author of Known Turf: Bantering with Bandits and Other True Tales, and several novels and collections of short stories. She has also edited Unbound: 2,000 Years of Indian Women’s Writing, and Equal Halves. She is also a film-maker.
Anuradha Ghosh teaches in the Department of English at Jamia Millia Islamia, New Delhi. Her specialization is in the area of literature, cinema and culture studies. Presently, she is working on an Indian Council of Social Science Research project on the Muslim question in Bengali and Malayalam cinema.
Asmat Jahan teaches in the Department of English at Jamia Millia Islamia, New Delhi. She translates from Hindi and Urdu into English. Her papers have appeared in Prison Writing in India (2014), and Looking Back: The 1947 Partition of India, 70 Years On (2017).
Ayesha Abrar is an MPhil student in English at Jamia Millia Islamia.
Baran Farooqi is a critic and a translator. She is a professor of English at Jamia Millia Islamia, New Delhi. Her latest publication is a collection of Faiz Ahmad Faiz’s poetry in English titled The Colours of My Heart (2017).
Bharti Arora has completed her PhD from the Department of English at Jamia Millia Islamia, New Delhi. She teaches at Janki Devi Memorial College, Delhi University.
Binish Aqil has done her MPhil in English from Jamia Millia Islamia, New Delhi.
Chandana Dutta is an editor and translator based in Delhi. She translates from Hindi and Bangla into English and was the recipient of the Katha Award for Translation for Bangla in 1999. She holds a PhD from Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi.
Christina Oesterheld is a specialist in Urdu literature in the University of Heidelberg, Germany.
Deeba Zafir teaches in the Department of English at Lakshmibai College, Delhi University. She has translated essays on literary criticism and fiction from Urdu and Hindi into English. She has also written on and reviewed works of Urdu and Hindi literature. Her other research interests include Partition, Dalit studies and disability studies.
Diamond Oberoi is associate professor of English at Ambedkar University, New Delhi.
Faizullah Khan is associate professor of French at Jamia Millia Islamia, New Delhi.
Fatima Rizvi is associate professor in the Department of English and Modern European Languages at the University of Lucknow. Her areas of interest include postcolonial literature and literature in translation. She is the recipient of the Ali Jawwad Zaidi Award for translation.
G.J.V. Prasad is a poet and novelist. He is professor of English at Jawaharlal Nehru University, New Delhi.
Ghazala Siddiqui is a poet and teacher-trainer. She works at Jamia Millia Islamia.
Gillian Wright is a well-known translator and reviewer based in Delhi. She has translated Srilal Shukla’s classic novel Raag Darbari from Hindi to English.
H
arish Trivedi is India’s foremost critic and commentator on literary studies. He was professor of English at Delhi University.
Ivy Imogene Hansdak is a poet. She works in the department of English, Jamia Millia Islamia.
John Caldwell is assistant professor at the University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, USA.
Kalyanee Rajan teaches English at Shaheed Bhagat Singh Evening College, New Delhi. Her areas of interest are Indian writing in English and translation.
Madhu Singh is professor in the Department of English and Modern European Languages at the University of Lucknow. Her areas of interest include South Asian literature and culture, contemporary women’s writing in India, literature for social change and archival history.
Meenakshi F. Paul is a faculty member in the Department of English at Himachal Pradesh University. She is a translator and poet. She has published several articles and books, including a volume on bilingual poetry, Kindling from the Terraced Fields, and a book of translation, Short Stories of Himachal Pradesh.
Mini Krishnan edits literary translations for Oxford University Press and has a column on translation in The Hindu. She is consulting editor of the Malayalam University translation programme (Malayalam into English) and works with multiple publishers like Orient Blackswan, Yoda Books, Navayana, Juggernaut, Women Unlimited, Niyogi and Oxford University Press.
Moyna Mazumdar has worked with several publishing houses as editor. She also translates from Hindi and Bengali into English.
Nandini Chandra teaches English in Delhi University.
Neerja M. Chand is reader of English at Ram Lal Anand College, Delhi University. She completed her MA in English from the University of Wisconsin, USA, and has a PhD in African literature.
Nibir K. Ghosh is University Grants Commission emeritus professor in the Department of English Studies and Research at Agra College, Agra. He was senior Fulbright fellow 2003–04 at the University of Washington, Seattle, USA. An author and editor of fourteen acclaimed books and over 170 research essays and articles, he is the founder-chief editor of Re-Markings, an international biannual journal of research in English.
Nishat Zaidi is professor in the Department of English at Jamia Millia Islamia, New Delhi. Her research interests include postcolonial writing, Indian literature in English translation, comparative literature and feminist studies. Her publications include Between Worlds: The Travels of Yusuf Kambalposh (2014; with Mushirul Hasan) and A Voyage to Modernism: Syed Ahmed Khan (2011; with Mushirul Hasan).