The trailer of the most-awaited Nandita Das directorial 'Manto' was released on Tuesday. In a glance, the trailer shows the popular Urdu writer Saadat Hasan Manto amidst the time of partition.
The writer had his own struggles in court, as he was tried for obscenity, for the harsh truths that he addressed in his writing.
Manto is played by 'Sacred Games' fame Nawazuddin Siddiqui. Tahir Raj Bhasin, who plays 40's Bollywood actor Shyam Chadda, is said to have a prominent role in the film. Shyam Chadda was a close friend of Manto's and an inspiration for his work.
The poster for the film was released in the 2017 Cannes Film Festival, and will be featured in the Un Certain Regard selection in the 2018 Cannes Festival.
The shooting for the film was completed in July 2017.
In an interview with Indian Express, Nandita explains why she chose to tell the story of Manto: "Manto’s free spirit and the compulsion to tell the truth have inspired me to want to share his story."
Manto, the revolutionary writer
Manto's short story writing was part of an anti-fascist movement, that rose during British India and Hitler's Fascism. Many Urdu works at the time were being translated and read internationally, encouraging other Urdu writers to join in.
Studies about Manto's writing show that his writing is still relevant today. Manto wrote about protagonists who emerged heroic even as they disregarded rules of society. He wrote about "fallen women", outsiders of society and sex-workers weaving stories around them.
Ayesha Jalal in her book 'The Pity of Partition: Manto's Life, Times, and Work across the India-Pakistan Divide' talks about how Manto described the partition, without "glorifying or demonising any community": "Manto excelled in this genre with the searching power of his observation, the pace of his storytelling, and the facility and directness of his language."
She also says, "Manto used his literary talent to reflect the consequences of partition for the lives of common people."