While the world continues to raise a toast to contemporary Pakistani authors, the latest author to enter the literary marathon is a genius of sorts who translates Urdu tomes and works on his own tales of fiction with equal ease.
Here is an extract from his latest book 'Between Clay and Dust'.
In an old ruined city, emptied of most of its inhabitants, Ustad Ramzi, a famous wrestler past his prime, and Gohar Jan, a well-known courtesan whose kotha once attracted the wealthy and the eminent, contemplate the former splendour of their lives and the ruthless currents of time and history that have swept them into oblivion.
Ustad Ramzi was the head of a pahalwan clan and the custodian of a wrestlers akhara. He was a man of frugal speech and austere habits, and appeared to some a stern man. His imposing stature, a heavyset jaw, and upturned whiskers only reinforced this impression. He was one of those men who do not accept the futility and emptiness of life, but who try continuously to give it meaning"a reflection of their own life's purpose. ...
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04:12 PM, Apr 24, 2012
New Delhi: Pakistani author Musharraf Ali Farooqi's latest novel Between Clay and Dust opens inside the grimy walls of an akhara which clan leader and head pahalwan Ustad Ramzi protects with fierce pride. In another part of the unnamed city's shaded alleyways is the 'kotha' of courtesan Gohar Jan renowned for her art and courted by the rich and famous. The destiny of the two artistes lies intertwined with each... 
