Literature and Politics in the Age of Nationalism: The Progressive Writers’ Movement in South Asia, 1932-1956. Talat Ahmed Thesis submitted for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy School of Oriental and African Studies University of London July 2006 ProQuest Number: 11010508 All rights reserved INFORMATION TO ALL USERS The quality of this reproduction is dependent upon the quality of the copy submitted. In the unlikely event that the author did not send a com plete manuscript and there are missing pages, these will be noted. Also, if material had to be removed, a note will indicate the deletion. uest ProQuest 11010508 Published by ProQuest LLC(2018). Copyright of the Dissertation is held by the Author. All rights reserved. This work is protected against unauthorized copying under Title 17, United States C ode Microform Edition © ProQuest LLC. ProQuest LLC. 789 East Eisenhower Parkway P.O. Box 1346 Ann Arbor, Ml 48106- 1346 Abstract ABSTRACT This thesis provides an account of the development of the Progressive Writers’ Association (PWA) in South Asia. This body set itself the ambitious goal of mobilising South Asian writers and advancing the movement for independence by infusing it with social content. As such it was inspired by movements in Europe but was also inextricably linked to social and literary traditions that had already been developing in India. In this sense the PWA was embarking on a project for cultural hegemony that was as much a political and social movement as a literary one. Consequently, the movement was not solely concerned with questions of literature in a narrow sense but also with the public and political role of writers in society, with which language the nationalist movement should foster and the popularisation of its cultural and political aims through theatre and film. Previous studies of the movement have treated it far too narrowly as a simple front for communist aims. This was an important dimension of the movement that I account for but I see it as an attempt by some of the foremost intellectuals in the India of my period to shape the freedom movement and to project its vision for a wider society post-independence. This thesis argues that the PWA embarked upon a project for cultural and political hegemony whose aim was to transform the literary and wider cultural landscape of South Asia. It aims to demonstrate that the trajectory of this literary project can only be understood as part of a wider process of the global politics that were impacting on the intelligentsia. This thesis is an effort to understand the specific motivations and factors that influenced writers in one of the most turbulent periods of South Asian history. In investigating the interplay between literature and politics there is an assessment of the success and limitations of a cultural movement that aspired to hegemony. A cknowledgements ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS For a project that has taken less than four years the debt I have accumulated is quite astonishing. The first and most obvious is to my supervisor, Avril Powell who has combined the most judicious level of support and patience with constructive feedback and critical comments. This has proved invaluable in enabling me to focus my thoughts and construct my arguments. I am grateful to Daud Ali for his consistent support and in particular his suggestion for a title. Ralph Russell has proved to be a mentor and friend. His willingness to read and correct draft chapters has provided coherency to my own thoughts on this topic. I am grateful to his generosity in sharing sources and recollections of the period and I have benefited enormously from our frank but fraternal discussions. I am grateful to the Central Research Fund, the Society for South Asian Studies and the SO AS scholarship committee for providing funding for my fieldwork in India and Pakistan. I thank the staff at the India Office Library, SOAS library, the National Archives of India, Nehru Memorial Museum Library, the Pakistan Studies Centre, National Film Archives of India and Ajay Bhavan for their patience and willingness to help locate obscure sources. I owe an enormous debt of gratitude to many individuals in India and Pakistan, (far too numerous to list) for their time, guidance, hospitality and friendship. Without them this thesis would not have been possible. Finally to Chris, I am as ever grateful for his super-human patience, advice, understanding, and affection throughout. 3 Table o f Contents TABLE OF CONTENTS T IT L E P A G E .....................................................................................................................................................................1 ABSTRACT .......................................................................................................................................................................2 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ......................................................................................................................................... 3 TABLE OF CONTENTS ..............................................................................................................................................4 ABBREVIATIONS ..........................................................................................................................................................5 INTRODUCTION ...........................................................................................................................................................6 W hat is progressive ? ............................................................................................................................................9 M iddle class intellectuals playing at politics? .................................................................................12 L iterature vs visual a r t s ................................................................................................................................ 16 H istoricising the P W A ....................................................................................................................................... 18 A NOTE ON CHAPTERS..............................................................................................................................................25 So u rces ......................................................................................................................................................................29 CHAPTER 1 LITERATURE AND POLITICS ................................................................................................ 33 Introduction ..........................................................................................................................................................33 T he Intellectual and So c iety ....................................................................................................................... 36 Intellectuals w ithin the PW A ...................................................................................................................... 44 T he European In flu en c e ................................................................................................................................... 60 Co n c l u sio n ..............................................................................................................................................................74 CHAPTER 2 THE PWA IN INDIA ....................................................................................................................... 76 Introduction .......................................................................................................................................................... 76 B irth of the P W A ..................................................................................................................................................77 Organisational structures of the M o v e m e n t ....................................................................................101 Co n c l u sio n ............................................................................................................................................................112 CHAPTER 3 THE POLITICS OF INDEPENDENCE ................................................................................ 114 Introduction ........................................................................................................................................................ 114 W riters and the Freedom Str u g g le ..........................................................................................................116 N ationalism T urns Ra d ic a l .........................................................................................................................124 U nity fractured in the freedom stru g g le ............................................................................................ 139 N ationalism and the W a r ..............................................................................................................................145 Co n c l u sio n ............................................................................................................................................................156 CHAPTER 4 THE PWA DURING THE WAR .............................................................................................. 159 Introduction .......................................................................................................................................................