Laila Ke Khutoot: The Letters of Laila

Laila ke Khutoot has been hailed as the ‘first specimen of a truly psychoanalytical fiction in Urdu*’. Set in early twentieth century, the Letters of Laila are not only a courtesan’s search for identity but also an exposition of the exploitation of women by a complacent and hypocritical society. The letters are by turn witty, philosophical and deeply moving. Majnun Ki Diary presents the other side of the story, it portrays the cynicism and confusion of the young men of the time who scorned established values and drifted into hedonistic sensuality as an answer to their problems.(*Abida Samiuddin in the Encyclopaedic Dictionary of Urdu Literature).