CRITICAL REALISM, MIMICRY OR DISCURSIVE COLONIALISM: ANALYSIS OF ISMAT CHUGHTAI’S DEALING OF QUEER THEMES

Abstract

Queer studies have monolithically been considered as a taboo in most parts of South Asia, mainly because of the overall culture prevailing in these societies. Yet, writers such as Ismat Chughtai, following the footsteps of the global north challenges these myths contribute to the field of Queer Studies under the banner of Progressive Writers Movement of India, ending up in getting summoned by, and finding herself defending her literary texts at, the court of law in Lahore. This study examines Chughtai’s oft-quoted critical-cum-realistic stance that makes her go against the prevailing culture and writes so boldly about queer issues. The study uses the Postcolonial scholarship, with special focus on the issue of mimicry, as the theoretical underpinning for this study.