The Partition of the subcontinent in 1947, which resulted in the creation of Pakistan and India, forced millions to leave their homes and head towards an unknown destination. It is the largest mass migration recorded in history with billions crossing the line that divided the two states, while more than half a million lost their lives in the aftermath of hostilities. Tales of Two Cities is a reflection on those torturous times. Two leading journalists, Kuldip Nayar from India and Asif Noorani from Pakistan, attempt to give a personal perspective on the tragedy.
Both men and their families were uprooted from their homes in the events that followed Partition. Kuldip Nayar, who was 24 at the time, was forced to flee his native Sialkot suddenly "leaving the food on the table untouched." Being politically conscious, Nayar's recollections present a detailed picture of not only the leaders and politics of the day but also personal vignettes that elucidate the fear felt by an entire people.
Asif Noorani, on the other hand, was only eight when Partition affected his family. His family moved from Mumbai (Bombay then), three years after Partition, and was shielded from the communal carnage that broke out during those times. He retains his sense of humour throughout the narrative and manages to find a tune from Bollywood – his true vocation being a film and music journalist – to add to his unique description of events.
Nayar, a verteran journalist, was separated from his family while fleeing to the Indian Punjab and vividly describes the pangs of uncertainty separation and felt by him, as if "crushing beneath one's shoes the embers of memory." He experienced the cold brutality of the times first-hand as trains turned into abattoirs and a "story of brutal murder or gang rape did not move me any more."
Noorani had a comparatively safe passage aboard a steamer that docked off Bombay, while he looked forward to the new land with a child's excitement. His essay dwells more on his revisits to India after Partition; the problems faced by Pakistanis traveling to India and vice versa and the reception that he received.
An interesting snippet from one of his visits was during the 1965 war, when the young Bollywood aficionado enjoys the cinema in Bombay while his family back home fears that he might be a prisoner of war. During the visit, he befriends an Indian intelligence officer, Takle (roughly translated into Baldie), and the episode establishes further the latent goodwill that still exists between the two people.
The writers also talk about the metamorphosis of their adopted cities. Both Delhi and Karachi have turned into megacities – a far cry from half a century ago when they were small cities with limited opportunities; however, as both writers point out, the cities were clean back then and did not face so many environmental problems.
The Delhi that Nayar migrated to was inundated by Punjabis, and saw a pre-dominance of the "crudeness and indiscipline" of Punjabi culture over the "dainty, decent culture of Delhi". With population growth, Delhi has experienced infrastructural problems as it grows without any planning; the malls and skyscrapers, in Nayar's words, are destroying the soul of Delhi.
Noorani also fondly remembers the Karachi of yore and its people, especially the rousing reception given to Indian Premier Jawaharlal Nehru when he visited the then capital to sign the Indus Water Treaty.
He celebrates Karachi's cosmopolitanism and pays tributes to the various people and organisations working for its betterment. He acknowledges Karachi's multi-faceted problems, but makes a frank confession through Milton's quote, "With all they faults, I love thee still", a sentiment shared by many other Karachiites.
The two writers – both life-long campaigners for better relations between the two countries and its people – also point out the problems faced by Pakistanis and Indians alike to travel to the other country and make suggestions for the same. Nayar could only visit Sialkot after being elected to the Indian Parliament.
Also included in the book is Nayar's revealing interview with Sir Cyril Radcliffe, the man in-charge of drawing the boundary between the two countries. The resources at Radcliffe's disposal and the time-frame in which he delivered are a telling indictment of Britain's attitude in deciding the fate of the subcontinent.
In most Indo-Pak collaborations, one comes across divergent views. While this book also highlights different points of views, the authors are joined together by similar concerns. Both lament with equal measure the state of Urdu. Nayar contends that Urdu lost its case with Partition, and has been its biggest victim.
He bemoans the fact that chaste Urdu is no longer heard in Delhi. Noorani's concern has more to do with the new breed that tries to flaunt its English at the expense of Urdu.
Both the essays, part of a single book edited by David Page, is the fourth in a series that attempts to establish cross-border dialogue. Other titles include Diplomatic Divide, Divided by Democracy and Fault Lines of Nationhood.
The two stories, which unravel in essay form, flow like gentle tales narrated by two wise old men; and serve as an apt reminder of the pain and agony suffered by our forefathers for the deliverance of the Promised Land.
Book : Tales of Two Cities
Author : Kuldip Nayar & Asif Noorani
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