ALIF (Umera Ahmed)- Novel Analysis by Shoby

ALIF (Umera Ahmed)-Novel Analysis by Shahbaz Ali Naqvi (Shoby)

I am a 90's kid and many of us have grown reading Umera Ahmed. The name that is synonymous to some unforgettable stories with almost immortal characters. Well right from Haasil to La'Haasil, from Main Ne Khawabon Ka Sheher to Sehar Ik Ista'ara Hai, from Meri Zaat Zara e benishaan to Shehr e Zaat, from Mann o Salwa to Iman Umeed or Muhabbat and from the exceptional saga PEER e KAAMIL (saww) to relatively new epic Aks. I shall continue with mentioning the names of those epic write ups that we have been cherishing for so long and the list may not be concluded. So, let us summarize our discussion and focus on our primary object today. The latest offering by one of the legendary writers of our time Ms. Umera Ahmed, which she has tentatively titled as ALIF.

Do you know the meaning of ALIF. No, not that meaning which everyone "else" is telling us. I am talking about the Real meaning of Alphabet ALIF. ALIF, the very first ALPHABET of ISM of the CREATOR of everything (ALLAH). Get ready for the goosebumps now. While teaching the meaning of Bismillah al-Rahman alRahim, IMAM JAFER SADIQ (asws) said,  “ALIF is the Blessings [ala] of ALLAH over His Creatures from the bounty of our Guardianship [wilayah]. (Reference Book: KITAB AL TOWHID by Sheikh Sadooq, Page Number 237). So, all the BLESSINGS of our CREATOR ALLAH PAK are hidden in the meanings of LETTER "ALIF". Let me pause this discussion here and will resume the same somewhere in the middle of the review to give more insight about its relation with the novel ALIF.

ALIF (novel) is a combination of a plethora of  larger than life stories (and we know that it is the signature of Umera Ahmed to present larger than life tales). At one side, we get to see a maverick film director's journey from spiritual to materialistic and then reverting to his very own shade of nature (being spiritual). On the other side, we confront with a very common (read basic) story of an actress who went on to gain the triumph. Then there is a journey of a veteran actress who chooses ONE from the lot. And then there are two calligraphers both have a different dimension of love (ISHQ) to explore.

Now let us analyze the pertinent protagonists of the story. Qalb e Momin, being the talk of the town as the hit machine of Lollywood has been portrayed, just the way he was supposed to. Starting off with the grey side of his character, someone who knows the worth of being the only film maker with all commercially successful films under his banner, the hallmarks of his character from being rude & straight forward to arrogant and then his coming of age to sensible and noble person, he is undoubtedly, another gem of a character, penned by Umera. I found visible impact of different shades from Umera's earlier characters including Salaar Sikander (PEER e KAAMIL saww) and Sherdil (Aks) in this character. Character of Momina is crystal clearly written by the author. Various aspects of the character depict her struggle and continuous battle with the life. From an unsure struggling actress (Not A Wanna-Be but struck by luck), to an Academy award winner, her personality has been shaped by all the downs of the life with not even a hint of success negatively impacting her persona.

If we talk about the characters of Abdul ALI, Sultan, TAHA Abdul ALI and Husn e Jahan, I must say that the author has penned one of the most solid author backed characters this time. ABDUL ALI, heir of one of most cherished genre of calligraphy. His ancestors were considered the legends of this art form and they have painted/ calligraphed nothing but ALLAH (HIS ASMAA and Ayaat e Mubarka). His only dream was, to see his only Son (Taha) a true successor of his family heritage. Then comes Sultan, a make-up artist and a die-hard lover of Husn e Jahan, who can do anything for the love. Talking about Husn e Jahan, once a diva, a cherished actress who decides to marry a calligrapher cum dancer just in the love of SUPREME. Let us not forget probably the most pertinent character of Qalb e Momin in his childhood. A 10 years old kid, who has the strongest bonding with ALLAH. He loves to interact with ALLAH through postal medium. Innocence brought with the rock solid belief on ALLAH has been his biggest trait.

To be honest, it was quite difficult to give all these sub-plots an equal opportunity to blossom but hats off to Umera for handling the subject matter so delicately that you never miss a beat. You have no time to get distracted and bored as the proceedings operate so smooth, they do not allow you to derange and divert your thought process. At the heart of the mega plot, all these sub-plots are built, arranged and managed so evenly that you always look for what’s coming next. (Not after the ecstasy but in the plot :-) )

I am in no doubt to say that Umera has written ALIF in her very own signature style. The same sort of writing technique, for which she is famous. The treatment of Qalb e Momin childhood's part resembles to that of Chirya's in Aks. I love the way she expressed his relationship with ALLAH and steps to further strengthen this relationship (making a handmade postal box and writing letters). Somewhere I feel, I would have loved it even more, if he was shown writing a letter after his character’s make-over turn around, may be just to show his innocence shade of his character.

Dialogues in ALIF are pitch perfect. "Jo Tum Chor Ke Ai Ho woh dunya hai... Jo main chor betha hoon WOH ALLAH Hai..." Goose Bumps… hai na??? You always get to read a stunner in every paragraph. It was an amazing feel to see the magic sprinkling out from the same real Umera Ahmed's monologues. “Is ke kaantey hata diye hain main ne ta ke aap ki ungliyan zakhmi na hon... reminded me of “Aap ke paon bohat haseen hain... Inhain zameen per na utaiye ga, meley ho jaey ge” from Kamal Amrohi’s 20th Film-Fare winner Pakeezah. Similarly “aaj tumhain gaey 423 din ho gaey hain” made me recall another classic, theek kehtey ho tum dev… sirf dus saal from Sir Sanjay Leela Bhansali’s epic Devdas.

Now let me try to bridge the gap and create a sync between the real meaning of ALIF and the proceedings of this novel. As I mentioned earlier, according to the saying of IMAM JAFER SADIQ (asws), ALIF (ALPHABET) represents the BLESSINGS of ALLAH, which HE bestowed upon us (and every creation) due to the Wilayat of MUHAMMAD (saww) o AAL e MUHAMMAD (saww). In novel ALIF, we get to see several personalities, where everyone is dealing with this BLESSING in a diverse manner. At one hand Qalb e Momin becomes proud & arrogant, whereas on the other hand, Momina absorbs all the fame with utmost grace. Same goes for Husn e Jahan and Taha but ABDUL ALI is a bit affected negatively, which he later on realizes and tries to rectify.

Coming towards the scene creation, once again, she has proved her mettle here. There are many scenes in the novel, where you are spell bound by her masterstrokes. My picks are Death Scene of Jahangir, Scene where Momin discusses film on spirituality with screenplay writers and the scene, where Sultan comes to meet Husn e Jahan in Turkey.

Sultan: Main Pakistan se Turkey aa gaya aap ke liye… Aap ne chaey ka aik cup tak na piaya…

Husn e Jahan: Chaey ke liye aik cup doodh hai… Us se chaey baney gi to Momin raat ko kiya piye ga … Doodh piye bagher neend nahi ati usey…

Above all my most favorite scene of the novel is the dance sequence featuring Taha performing Rumi Dance on the stage and Husn e Jahan dancing at the back of the stage.

“This, my friends, is called the Sama—the dance of the whirling dervishes. From this day on, dervishes of every age will dance the Sama. One hand pointed up to the sky, the other hand pointing down to earth, every speck of love we receive from God, we pledge to distribute to the people.” (40 Rules of Love by Elif Shafaq). I felt like Taha and Husn e Jahan were doing the very same thing. Spreading love all around, the love they have gained from the CREATOR.

We all know that Umera Ahmed is best at imagery. From scenic locales of a Turkish sub-urb village to glitz & glamour filled life of a city with celebrities involved in the narration, from calm & content place of ABDUL ALI and Master Ibrahim to the house of struggling Momina in a mediocre place, everything is penned so authentically. Thank you Umera for not concluding the whole story in a mediocre way. If you would have made Qalb e Momin and Momina a happily everafter living lovey dovey couple at the curtains, it would have dented the story especially the primary theme of the novel. Leave everything for ONE and then you will be BLESSED with a need for Nothingness, something much above than Self Actualization (in the Maslow’s Needs Hierarchy).

Final words, let me confess that before ALIF, last novel of Umera Ahmed (Aab e Hayat) was not up to the mark, considering two primary things. First thing first, it was projected as a sequel to cult classic PEER e KAMIL (saw) but it miserably failed to have the same impact as of its predecessor. Secondly, considering Umera is at the prime of her writing carrier and Aks was a mind boggling read, Aab e Hayat fell short of my expectations in many ways (Read my review on Aab e Hayat at my blog Shobywood for reasons and details). But looks like in ALIF, Umera Ahmed has made a gigantic come back with all the success already written on the wall. Obviously, till date, PEER e KAAMIL (saw), Mann o Salwa, Aks and Haasil are my favorites and ALIF has not beaten their fan following as far as my views are concerned but yes, ALIF is a winner in every domain, if it is not compared with Umera’s earlier classics. As a matter of fact, I have not watched a single episode of dramatized version of ALIF and I really don’t want to watch it. Don’t want to spoil my mood if drama version couldn’t do justice with its written piece. Yes, I am not at all a fan of Pakistan’s current drama/ film industry. Leaving you guys with this from my one of the favorite seasons Penny Dreadful (Season One).

I have never seen, so much nothing…

Look closer… Recognize the pattern of nature

…THE END…

PS: This review is the property of Shahbaz Ali Naqvi and blog Shobywood. No part of this review is allowed to be reproduced without consent of Shahbaz Ali Naqvi, however blog link can be shared anywhere.