Fida-e-Lucknow Tales of the City and its People

Author: Parveen Talha
Publisher: Niyogi Books, New Delhi
(Pp 197, ISBN 978-93-81523-70-4, Rs 250)

One look at the cover of the book and you are bound to pick it up for its very-Urdu like English font and its very Lucknawi-style design. This book is a collection of 22 short stories, each set in the city of Lucknow in the post-independence period. The stories recall the plight of Nawabs and other ordinary people of Lucknow who were affected by the India-Pakistan partition in 1947.

Each story has a hero who is a typical Lucknow-wala, whose affection and loyalty are not restricted to relationships between equals, and religion never comes in the way. The book is also about Lucknow’s women who were liberated in the truest sense of the world.

In all, it is a beautiful blend of history, relationships and vignettes of city life.

– Varsha Verma