Author(s): Dr. Fatima Ashana

Abstract: Ismat Chughtai remains one of the most influential literary voices of twentieth-century India. A pioneer of feminist Urdu literature, she explored themes such as gender discrimination, female sexuality, class hierarchy, and social oppression with remarkable boldness and realism. Her writings challenged patriarchal structures and gave voice to women whose experiences had long remained suppressed within conservative society. This paper examines the relationship between Chughtai’s life experiences and her literary vision through a study of her autobiography A Life in Words: Memoirs and major fictional works such as Lihaaf. It further analyses her contribution to feminist discourse, her association with the Progressive Writers’ Association, and her portrayal of women’s resistance against social and cultural restrictions. Chughtai’s realism, sharp social observation, and fearless narrative style enabled her to expose the hypocrisies of a male-dominated society and redefine women’s representation in South Asian literature. The paper argues that Chughtai not only transformed Urdu fiction but also emerged as a revolutionary literary figure whose works continue to remain relevant in contemporary feminist studies.

Keywords: feminism, female sexuality, Ismat Chughtai, patriarchy, realism, Urdu literature.

Article Info: Received: 19 Apr 2026; Received in revised form: 14 May 2026; Accepted: 18 May 2026; Available online: 22 May 2026

DOI: 10.22161/ijels.113.30