Original subtitles

Love just means means sex.

Gone are the days when love was pure .

Now beauty is in its impurity!

Boys in one cage,

and girls caged in another one.

And social caretakers in the middle …

Girls stay single and miserable...

And boys became beasts...

And result is the degeneration of humanity …

And then comes a time when old wounds burst open...

Tea is ready

What’s wrong, baby!

Neeru!

Her milk, quickly

It’s too hot

Do this ... Get me a bowl of water

Good girl!

What happened – who’s there?

Yes inspector, what’s the matter?

Summons ... from the Court

Let me see it

I can’t give it to you

Then, who is the Summons for?

Ismat Chughtai ... call her, please

I’m her husband, you can show it to me

Please, just call her. The Summons is from Lahore

Ismat!

What is it? - Come down, please

He has Summons from Lahore.

Lahore?

Summons, on what grounds?

See for yourself

What have I done that ...

His Majesty issues a court case on me?

This is a charge of obscenity!

I will not sign the Summons. Take it back

See, this is a Government order. You have to accept it

Please take it back

You have to accept it!

Mohsin, look at this

What’s going on here?

A charge of obscenity!

Forcing Summons on me!

Please reason with them

He’s a lawyer

Then he will understand

Obscenity - for which story?

Just read it

Lihaaf (The Quilt)

Listen to me ... This story will ruin you

You really have to accept this

why?

Must you be so obstinate?

I told you before marriage that I am not easy to live with

I won’t accept this Summons

But they can arrest you for refusing

Let them!

You can be jailed

Really?

Yes!

Then what could be better?

I have never seen a jail

And my heart longs to see one!

Inspector, haven’t you brought handcuffs?

Explain it to her!

Listen ...

I will not sign

Ismat!

Trust me, just sign them

Do it!

Pen?

Ismat, you are a mother now

If not for yourself, at least be responsible for your daughter’s sake

Mohsin, it is best you stay quiet

Ismat ...

think coolly

I’ll leave now

What will my brothers think ...

Are you trying to bring disgrace to the family?

You were well aware of my views

I don’t think like other women

I hate that a woman is expected to be shy and coy all the time

It’s suffocating!

I don’t believe that men and women have different expectations

Why did you marry me if you were so worried about your family’s honour?

Look Ismat ...

I know you are a free-thinking woman ...

and I support that

But there is a limit to everything

If somebody is willing to publish my “obscene” stories and waste their ink ...

Ismat!

If you are going to be irresponsible and stubborn like this ...

I’m afraid this marriage won’t last long!

Here ... you are now making headlines

A letter from your father

Tell your wife to write about God if she must

Girls from respectable families aren’t tried in courts

And that too for obscenity

This is all very upsetting

I cooked

Hello

How are you, Manto?

Our stories were published together so far

Now we’re together in court too

Don’t worry

We’ll go together

I’m not worried ...

Shahid, it is the authorities job to hide society’s truths

And if someone shows them a mirror... prosecution

But Ismat won’t be jailed?

Nothing will happen ... they can’t hang a person for this

But Lahore is very cold this time of year, so carry warm clothes

I’ll carry all the warm clothes I own

I think we should thank's His Majesty

We can now vacation together in Lahore

Name?

Pardon?

Name?

Ismat Chughtai

Are you the author of ‘Lihaaf’?

Yes

‘Lihaaf’ is a woman’s revolt against a repressive society

I first saw Begum Jaan at her wedding

She was the world’s most beautiful woman to me

I accept

One wonders where her life began?

When she made the mistake of being born...

or when she married the Nawab to blend with his ornamental furniture

The Nawab?

You start ... he’ll take some time

How are your studies?

Have you finished your readings?

Who are these boys?

Some Nawabs breed pigeons or watch cock-fights

He invests his time looking after young boys

Some needy boys even stay here at the mansion

He also funds their education

God bless his kind heart

Quran recitals

I believed your promises

I waited all night for you...

I trusted a heartless man,

I am ashamed of my feelings

You filled my night with laughter and tears...

and left me restless

Who was it that came to my tomb...

and left me suffering even in my grave!

Where are you going?

I feel suffocated cooped up all day

I could do with some fresh air

The maids will get you what you need

Fresh air doesn’t suit everyone

Beggum was caged, like a bird with no wings...

It was a beautiful prison.

There used to be several guests at palace everyday...

But the Isolation and emptiness of Begum jaan, was killing her slowly...

Why doesn't Nawab divorce me?

Please wear this

The Nawab is hosting some important people for lunch

Burn all those nice clothes

A woman dresses well to please somebody

The Nawab is busy playing with his ‘toys’

He has no time for me

He wouldn’t even notice if I didn’t attend

A verse by the esteemed Mirza Galib

Begum withered away reading romantic novels and emotional stories

There’s no fever

Even her pulse is normal

Nawab Sahib...

If she gets some fresh air, she’ll feel better

Begum keeps complaining about body ache and joints pain

She is too young to get joint pains

You should get her a masseuse

It may make a difference

Sure

Begum Jaan!

Begum Jaan!

I have been asked to rejuvenate you

You won’t find a masseuse like me in this entire town

What happened, Begum Jaan?

Did I do something wrong?

No ... It’s not you ...

No-one has touched in a long time

Your skin is like porcelain

Lord, protect it from the evil eye!

Your fingers are exquisite, Begum!

Greetings

You look much better now

Why do they call these books dirty?

Which books?

These romantic novels ...

Why do they call them dirty?

The ignorant fools!

Seek God with love, not worship

Mom, can’t I just stay here?

No ... all you’ll do is fights with the boys here

I’ll drop you at Begum Jaan’s mansion

She’ll take good care of you

Don’t worry

I’ll be back soon from Agra

Come on

Let’s go, we're late

Come on!

Get up!

Hello Ulfat, how are you?

I’m fine. How about you?

All good

Come, have a seat

I’m going to Agra for a few days

I thought of leaving Ismat with you

Sure!

Come, Ismat

Hello, Begum Jaan

I get lonely in this mansion

Having Ismat around will be fun

Right, Rabbo?

Ulfat, please stay for lunch

I’m in a hurry

Ismat, don't trouble the Begum, understand?

'Bye - Bye

Ismat, you look so good

What class are you in?

8th grade

Good

Begum Jaan! What’s this?

Careful - it’s made of glass

It's Beautiful

You'll get hurt

This crystal bowl

It isn’t a toy

Why did you marry me?

What?

I often wonder...

you have no room for me in your life

You don’t need me

You’re not well

Go to your room

Please ...

You like collecting beautiful things

Some haven’t been touched

They are gathering dust

I won

No, How did you win?

A Jack of Spades and 5 of Spades

It should be 5 and 5

Ismat Jaan, is that how you have been winning?

Since we are not paying attention

Let’s go again

Come on!

Begum Jaan ...

I won!

You keep winning

Let’s deal again

Good night, Ismat

Good night

That night when I opened my eyes...

The shadow of the quilt of Begum became an elephant on the wall.

I got scared!

Begum Jaan!

Ismat is awake

Suddenly the elephant collapsed!

Begum Jaan, I’m scared

No need to be scared

Go back to sleep

But I’m scared

Ismat, recite your prayers

Begum Jaan, may I sleep in your bed?

No, dear, go to your own bed

I think there’s a thief

There’s no thief

Now silence! And go back to sleep

Even today when I use a quilt in winters

Next date is 5th November!

Your obscene stories taint the minds of people

Burn in hell!

Whores like you should rot in a brothel

Many writers are obsessed with women

From the time of Adam, men have women on their minds

And why not?

Men can’t be fantasizing about horses and elephants!

If male pigeons sing for female pigeons ...

then men will also sing in praise of women

In any case, women are more beautiful than pigeons!

More interesting and caring as well

Do you think I am lying?

When in Agra, I noticed how girls looked at boys

But always on the sly

I would openly say, ‘look at that beautiful man!’

They would scold me saying that that good girls shouldn’t talk so

But my answer was, why not?

I don’t have impure intentions

If I find a man handsome, I will say so

For them, only one kind of relationship was possible with a man

But growing up with brothers, I believed otherwise

A man could be a good friend, a confidante or a well-wisher

What about me?

What category do I fall in?

You are where we both have obscenity cases against us

Are you coming to Lahore?

Do I have a choice?

Shahid is busy with his film

I am staying with my brother’s friend M. Aslam

What do you think?

Will we lose the case?

I haven’t read the story

But, Katib Sahib, you calligraphed it

I only checked the spelling ...

not the meaning

You did not read it even in print?

I did ...

but only to spot printing errors

Each word individually?

Yes

You won’t take offense if I say something?

I’m immune to offence now

Speak!

You make a lot of spelling mistakes

That’s true

Did you take dictation classes in school?

I did and was often punished for my mistakes

I get so absorbed in writing that I forgot about spelling

Scold me but I will say what I feel

If my story is vulgar, then what about yours?

‘Night of Sin’, where sex is described in explicit detail

That's obscene too then!

I am a man, it is different!

That’s not my fault

What do you mean?

It is not my fault that God made you a man and me a woman

You should not have any problem

You can write what you like

And you have no right to stop me

Remember, you are an educated girl from a Muslim family

You too are an educated man from a Muslim family!

You want equality with men?

Not at all

I was ahead of them in school, always getting better marks

Can I have some water, please?

Altaf!

Water for everybody

Why don’t you rest?

Show them to the guest rooms

Besides, no one told me that writing about a subject like ‘Lihaaf’ is taboo

Nor that writing on same-sex love is a sin

I don’t concoct my stories

They are based on my own insights and experience

Whenever it sees something, it releases the shutter on its own

As a child, when I read romantic novels, I found them obscene

But after college, the same books made a lot of sense

Everyone should be aware of them

Your smile is my victory

Is that so?

There you go. Checkmate!

I’ll go take a bath

I’ll make the bed

He came up naked from behind me and grabbed my breasts ...

First, gently, then passionately

I was going crazy

My bones were crushed but I felt happy as if my thirst ...

Please read on

Who writes this? I feel shy reading it

Then he planted a wet kiss on my lips

My life’s first kiss ... I almost fainted

I went limp and swayed in his arms like a swing

Then he held me close, and made sweet love to me

A fire enveloped my heart, I was in heaven

Begum, have you ever been to the cinema?

What is ‘cinema’?

They say moving pictures... that walk and talk on the screen

And even dance at times

Whose pictures?

People’s pictures

They are called actors ... like in theatre

Rabbo, you concoct such preposterous stories

But they are fascinating

They hold my attention

Does this feel good? Begum

Greetings

Begum

You knew we have guests for lunch

And you’re still not dressed?

This mansion is always full of guests

Why, do I have to attend to now?

My aunt from Lahore, who I respect a lot

Please get dressed and join us

Everybody is waiting for you

Come, Rabbo, make me presentable

I’m going to be on exhibit today

Finally the Nawab needs me

I’ll get your clothes

Begum sahiba, we’ve been waiting for you

I hear you are not well

Is there some good news?

Yes, she hasn't been feeling too good

But she's better now

I’ve got her a masseuse

Last year, I slipped on steps, injuring my back...

and was confined to a room for six months

I was depressed

And I was at your service for six months

You’ve forgotten?

Begum is engrossed in reading poetry

That’s great, Nawab sahib

Really?

Let’s hear something

(Urdu poet) understood my emotions...

This one is for you, Nawab sahib

Let’s hear it

How can you ever be my lover?

When you are unable even to give me a decent burial

Beautiful! Beautifully written

Begum...

now you are exceeding your limits

Begum, you were out of control

Insulting the Nawab in front of the guests

You will apologise to him

I’ve come to apologise

My behaviour in front of your guests was not correct

Rabbo made me realize my mistake

Rabbo!

These days Rabbo’s words carry more weight than mine?

The heart listens to the one who is close to it

Have you ever had a heart-to-heart with me?

Your rudeness is not without reason ...

something goes on behind those close doors

Begum Jaan

Rabbo, have you seen my book of Ghalib’s poety?

Begum Jaan

Are you going out?

Yes

I’ve run out of my jasmine perfume

Get it from the market

Begum Jaan, I need to go home

Home? Why?

My son is giving my aunt a hard time

I should check on him

Do you really need to go?

Yes

For how long?

Two days

You will be back tomorrow evening?

I will try

May I go?

Thanks

Rabbo, wait

I’ll speak to the Nawab

He will see to the problems

I’ll be back tomorrow evening

Please, let me go

Rabbo, no one but you cares about me

Only till tomorrow evening. I’ll be back soon

She settles all the expenses of Rabbo’s son

Really?

How many children does Rabbo have?

One son

And he is a nuisance

Don’t know what he has done that Rabbo had to go!

They tried to keep the boy with the Nawab but he ran away

What are you doing?

Who asked you to touch this?

Leave me alone

I don’t need anyone!

So what if my body hurts?

Who cares about me?

Nobody needs me?

I am not loved by anyone

I am but a useless body, rotting away alone

Brgum Jaan, if your body hurts too much, should I give you a massage?

You?

You think you will be able to?

Ismat! You are tickling me

Here... massage here

I’ll send you to the toy shop with the servant tomorrow

What do you want?

The doll that opens and closes her eyes?

Begum Jaan, I’m over playing with dolls

My apologies, big girl!

What do you want then?

If you want to give me a gift, then get me clothes

I’ll get you lots of new dresses

You also need some new pants

Your mother left some cloth with me

I will ask the tailor to stitch them for you

I could not describe that event in words I became silent

But when I found my voice Thousands of questions arose...

Is this story obscene?

Yes

Which word?

Chest

My Lord! The word chest is not obscene.

That’s right

The word chest is not obscene

Anything else?

The author has used it to describe a woman’s breasts

How else to describe a woman’s chest? Peanuts?

If the accused cracks a joke again, he will be charged

If “chest” is obscene, then what about knees, elbows ...

they are also body parts.

What about ribs?

If you and Manto apologise, the case can be dismissed

Meaning, respectable people here have instigated the authorities against us

What nonsense

Did His Majesty read my stories himself and then thought of prosecuting me?

But, Aslam Sahib, isn’t it true that responsible people have asked for these books to be banned

Do you mean that obscene stories should be praised instead?

In that case we definitely deserve punishment

There you go again

If our crime is proven, we should not get away with a mere apology

Don’t be a fool. Just apologise

What will the punishment be? A fine?

And disgrace too!

There’s been plenty of disgrace already

How much will the fine be?

About 200 or 300 rupees, I should think

That’s all?

It could be as high as 500

That’s it?

You have a lot of money, it seems

With your blessing

And even if I didn’t have the money would you not lend me 500 rupees?

You are a rich man

And my brother’s friend

You talk too much

Your mother said you either argue or eat

Now you are doing both

Tell me

Even after all this, will you continue writing?

I’ll have to think about it

All this will go on and so should you

There is still time

I will be back

You are Ismat Chugtai, right?

Yes

Women like you should be punished

What filthy stories you write!

You should be ashamed of yourself!

You have a daughter, right?

Ever thought of what would happen to her after you are jailed?

Even today when I remember Begum’s face,

I get terrified ...

This is the same Begum Jaan, whose quilt is burnished in my memory

How many ribs are there in a human body?

Nine on one side, ten on the other

Let’s count...one...two...three...

Ismat Jaan, I won’t bite you!

Let’s get the tailor to stitch you lots of clothes

What happened?

Do you need something?

No

Tea perhaps?

No

Why are you so scared?

What happened?

I want to go home

You are homesick

Your mother will be here soon

You can go with her

Okay

Ismat, have you eaten?

No I'll eat later

Come, eat with me Sit next to me ... here

Get her food

What do you like to eat?

Anything

Rice pudding?

Make pudding for her tonight. They cook it well here

Should I feed you? No!

I will eat it myself

Here you are!

The Begum is calling you

I’ll come after my prayers

Okay

Come soon

Ismat!

Ismat, why are you walking in the cold?

If you fall ill, what will I tell your mother?

Come inside

You are finally back

I must take care of Begum Jaan

Right!

Go

Take care of the Begum

I’ll take your leave

You said you’d be away for two days and are back after three

I came as quickly as I could because I care about you

If you did, you’d have been back yesterday

Matters remain unresolved back home with my son

But I came back for you

You haven’t obliged me by coming back

Why are you so upset?

How do I trust you?

Next time you go, you might never return

I won’t go, I promise

Begum Jaan

What can I do now?

I do not wish to speak to you

I am feeling very sad

Go away

Please don’t say that

I wish to be alone

Did you call me, Begum Jaan?

Yes

Sit here and prepare my tea

Begum Jaan, I want to go home

Why?

Your brothers always fight with you

I want to go home

Look at this

I got this gold chain made specially for you

Young mangoes are sour, Begum Jaan!

What happened, Begum Jaan?

Don’t touch me!

You will also run away

I won’t

Everyone runs away from me

Everyone gets disgusted with me

I am here

Today I was feeling pity for the begum...

She was loveless...

I used my words to write a story out of reality...

But people, got confused with the words on the surface...

They could not understand the depth of reality of life...

That night the quilt became an elephant again

The quilt was making many faces on the wall...

At times huge elephant or like a lamb...

And then collapsed to a tiny mouse ...

I was scared

But I was determined to find the secret of the quilt!

The elephant collapsed again But a corner of the quilt slipped

I can never forget in my life, what I saw...

Author writes ‘When they were gathering lovers ...’

This is obscene

Which word is obscene

‘Gathering’ or ‘Lovers’?

The word ‘Lovers’

My Lord, Urdu poets use the word Lover in praise of God!

How can this word be obscene?

It's definitely not obscene

Because it is improper for girls to gather ‘Lovers’

Why?

Girls from respectable families don’t do these things

And girls not from respectable families ...

Can they?

Maybe

Then maybe the girls in my stories are not from respectable families

So it is not obscene for them to collect lovers

In that case, my story is not obscene

Yes. It’s not obscene to mention them

for a respectable woman to write this

will create an uproar in society

You can say anything against my client, but is there a legal case here?

If you apologise we will pay all your expenses

Well, Manto Sahib, what do you say?

We can shop in Lahore with their money

Stop talking nonsense

Sir, Manto does not agree

Then you can apologise

Sir, Manto is a stubborn man

He will be mad at me and not let me live in Bombay

I rather go to jail than face his anger

Was that ok, Manto Sahib?

I have read all your stories

You can’t be charged with obscenity

I have also read ‘Lihaaf’ and found nothing objectionable in it

But Manto’s writings are disgusting

Sir, he only holds a mirror up to society

Freedom of thought and expression is as important as political independence

Send her to jail ...

She is an enemy of Islam ...

Go to hell, Ismat!