A collection of classic, yet shockingly contemporary, short stories set in the vibrant world of mid-century Bombay, from one of Indias greatest writers. Arriving in 1930s Bombay, Saadat Hasan Manto discovered a city like no other. A metropolis for all, and an exhilarating hub of license and liberty, bursting with both creative energy and helpless despondency. A journalist, screenwriter, and editor, Manto is best known as a master of the short story, and Bombay was his lifelong muse. Vividly bringing to life the citys seedy underbelly--the prostitutes, pimps, and gangsters that filled its streets--as well as the aspiring writers and actors who arrived looking for fame, here are all of Mantos Bombay-based stories, together in English for the very first time. By turns humorous and fantastical, Mantos tales are the provocative and unflinching lives of those forgotten by humanity.About the Author:Saadat Hasan Manto was born in what is now Punjab in 1912. An acclaimed Urdu-language short story writer, he also worked as a journalist and wrote extensively for film and radio throughout Indian and Pakistan. He died in 1955.