Gendered Oppression in Sajida Zaidi’s “Mitti Ke Haram”

Abstract

Urdu novels always feel incomplete without strong women characters, and Matti Ke Haram by Sajida Zaidi really brings that out. She writes every detail of women’s struggles and helplessness so honestly. One of the main characters, Saeeda, goes through so much from a difficult childhood to the challenges of being a grown woman. Sajida Zaidi describes everything so visually that it feels like you’re seeing it with your own eyes. Whether it’s the setting, clothes, or language like in the parts set in Lucknow you can tell she’s done justice to the culture. Even characters like Pertar Singh speak the way someone from their background actually would he speaks Punjabi and it feels natural.You feel for every single one of them. What stood out the most was how she shows the difference between how men and women love. Men can separate love from desire, but for women, love and longing come together. This novel really makes you feel things.