Manto Ke Afsanay
Manto Ke Afsanay () is a collection of short stories in Urdu by Saadat Hasan Manto . It was first published in 1940. Background. Manto Ke Afsanay was first published in 1940 from Lahore. This is the author Manto’s second collection of original short stories. His first publication was titled "Atish Paray". Included in this second collection are new stories and also some reprints of stories such as "Tamasha" (Spectacle), "Taqat ka imtahan" and "Inqilabi" (Revolutionary). The reprints are necessary as these stories were excluded in the later editions of the first publication. Content. The stories in this  collection include: Themes. The themes of Manto’s stories show considerable variation. Stories such as "Inqilabi" (Revolutionary), "Sharabi" (Drunkard) and "Istudant yubyan kaimp" (Student union camp) deal with political issues with characters who identify as revolutionaries or activists. "Naya Qanun" (New Law) explores the character of Ustaad Mongu, a tonga-driver and the political atmosphere in India in the backdrop of the commencement of Government of India Act 1935. "Tamasha" (Spectacle), first published in "Rusi Afsare" (Russian Stories) and later in "Atish Paray" dealt with the Jallianwala Bagh massacre. Manto explores the theme of social realism in stories such as  Shaghl (Amusement), "Na’rah" (The Slogan) and "Das rupaye" (Ten Rupees). Influenced from Maxim Gorky’s "Twenty-six Men and a Girl", "Shaghl" deals with the abduction of a girl by some rich men. In "Das rupaye" (Ten Rupees), he depicts the life of Sarita, an innocent young girl who works as a part time prostitute. Manto also depicted romance in some of his stories such as "Shushu" (Shushu) and "Mera aur uska intiqam" (My revenge and hers), both of which dealt with teenage love.