You might have read many
famous novels of Umera Ahmed like Peer-e-Kamil, Aab-e-Hayat, Haasil, meri zaat
zarra e benishan, and the list goes on. But I wonder have you read “Hum Kahan K
Sachay Thay” by Umera Ahmed? This book was published in 2007 and it is one of
those books of hers that consist of short exemplary stories that one can relate
to and learn from that.
The book consists of 3 short stories and each of them has a particular lesson that leaves a great impact on the reader.
The first story is titled as “Hum kahan k sachay thy”
ہم کہاں کے سچے تھے
This story relates to the idea “Jo khubsoorat hai wahi sach bolta
hai” portraying the relationship of three cousins Mashal, Mehreen, and Aswad.
In the story, Mashal is shown as a rich and beautiful girl who is popular and cherished among
the whole family because of her friendly nature and jolly personality. Then
Mehreen is an orphan poor girl who is the daughter of Mashal’s phopho and lives
in their house after the death of Mehreen's because of drug addiction and her
mother was married to someone else. Lastly, Aswad is the cousin to both of them
and he is a kindhearted person who hates lies and always stands in support of
the truth.
The story starts where Mashal is shown to be
achieving her dreams in every field of life and always speaks the truth. Mashal
and Aswad become friends and after some time Aswad falls in love with her. What
about Mehreen? She is shown to be an average feature girl with a rude nature
and no one in the family likes her. Mehreen also doesn’t like living in
Mashal’s house but she doesn’t have any choice. In her whole life in that
house, she was labeled as the daughter of a drug addict and she might also have
become like her father if he was alive. She would trade-off anything to get rid
of that taboo. The story then continues showing that the one who is beautiful
from outside is also beautiful from inside. While Mehreen who is not pretty so
how can she say anything good or beautiful? So no one trusts and likes her at
all.
But do you think that “KHUBSOORAT LOG KHUBSEERAT
BHI HOTY HAIN?”
Curious? Then here’s a twist for ya’ll that
Aswad, who used to be the best friend of Mehreen in childhood but what happened
that he started hating her? Eventually, Aswad and Mehreen get married. Oh yes!
Aswad gets married to Mehreen, but what about Mashal then?
My
favorite lines from this story were when Aswad's mother said that “Tum jaza or saza ka ikhtiyar apny haath
main leny ki koshish mat karo. Tumhy kia pta kon gunahgar hai or kon be-gunnah?
Ye ilm to Allah k pass hai”
تم جزا اور سزا کا اختیار اپنے ہاتھ میں لینے کی کوشش مت کرو۔ تمھیں کیا پتا کون گناہگار ہے اور کون بے گناہ؟ یہ علم تو صرف اللہ کے پاس ہے
The
second story was titled as “halal e jurat”
This story was based on the struggles and hardships of soldiers
who fight till the last drop of their blood for the protection of their
country. It was about a Pakistani soldier named Waheed who is fighting for the safety of his country in the cold
weather of Siachin and struggles with his life. Whilst listening to a show of
Defense day on 6th September, it makes his heart bleed and wrench that the show
was started as a tribute to the soldiers of Pakistan. But, it was just
entertainment for people to enjoy the songs and don't even bother to listen to
the struggles of soldiers who fight day and night for the safety of these
people.
The last
story was titled as “Band kuwadon k aagay”
this story was a lesson for the youth that nothing in this world can be
attained through fame and without any struggles.
It was the story of a 17-year-old boy named
Ahsan who was a fresher in his college when he sees a girl named Rabail for the
first time in a college function. Rabail was 3 years senior to Ahsan but
eventually, he starts liking her. Rabail doesn't give importance to Ahsan's
feelings but he keeps on trying to reach out to her. In the meantime, Ahsan
gets selected for junior cricket league and starts gaining popularity and in
the trance of his fame he again tries to impress Rabail through expensive gifts
but she doesn't get moved by any of it. Over time, Ahsan gets selected into the
Pakistan cricket team and starts playing international cricket. Meanwhile, he
also gets indulged in all the false activities that make him the highlight of
the news for having relationships and gambling. But guess what? He meets Rabail
again where she has become an Assistant commissioner and he falls for her
again. Now, what happens? Had Rabail accepted his proposal this time or had
Ahsan learned the hardest lesson of his life?
Give the book a read, if you haven't read it yet. And if you have read it already, what are your views about this book?