The Madness of Waiting

Book excerpt: Published in March of 1899, Muhammad Hadi Ruswa’s famous novel, Umrao Jaan Ada created a sensation when it came out, with its candid account of the life of Umrao Jaan, a semi-fictional, possibly real, Lucknow courtesan. Subsequent translations and films based on the book have further extended its fame. What is less known, however, is that a month after he wrote Umrao Jaan Ada, Ruswa penned a short text, a novella entitled Junun-e-Intezar (‘The Madness of Waiting,’ April 1899) in which Umrao avenges herself on her creator, Ruswa, by narrating the story of his life. Blurring the lines between truth and fiction, narrator and character, this clever narrative strategy gives the courtesan a speaking voice. Although there has been much interest in the original novel, this paratext has been completely forgotten; something this volume attempts to redress through a critical introduction which rethinks Umrao Jaan Ada and the Urdu literary milieu of late-nineteenth century Lucknow. This book contains both the Urdu text and its translation for the bilingual reader. Published by Zubaan.