Sameena’s stories probe domestic truths

Sameena Syed’s collection of short stories ‘Rada-e-Mohabbat’ is a slice of life and not a traditional storytelling form. Her short stories paint a picture of a moment in time in a character’s life, but may not have much of a plot. Short stories are written in many types, Sameena Syed’s short stories fall into a romantic domestic tales category.
For Sameena Syed personal experiences become inspiration for her short stories. Tucked away neatly inside her bosom are her innermost feelings — the truths that gave her the inspiration to produce this collection.
The reason this thought is so powerful is simply how it relates to the reader. The short stories become more effective if they come from the writer’s life experiences. The audience can identify with the situation and many times suddenly realize that they too have had such an experience. A similar emotion swells up inside the readers and fuels their fire.
Sameena Syed writes about women in transition, women whose conventional lives are disoriented by time, and who sometimes dare to make changes —changes only fate will define as good or bad. These stories are full of partial glimpses into women’s lives. In a society where men call the shots, some of the stories open touching vents for women. They reveal the helplessness of the weak at the hands of the strong. This anthology of short stories grows from the writer’s personal and social associations and from the present-day conditions, which shape them.
While the details in her short stories are drawn from everyday life, occurring in instantaneously identifiable places, they are able to let loose surprises even for those familiar with our societal life and culture. In most of the stories, characters are not unusual or incredible. Common themes run through the stories giving a sense of continuity. Nevertheless, each story stands on its own in its own merit.
Sameena Syed’s stories are lessons, but her lessons must be discerned by the reader, for she gives no answers. Life’s lessons are often as uncertain as life. Her short stories like ‘Dharti baanjh naheen hoti’, ‘Rada-e-Mohabbat’, ‘Binte Havva’, ‘Wafa raas kub hay’, ‘Dard gar aadmi hota’, ‘Zehr ragoun mein utaar kar’, ‘Paarsaae’, and ‘Insurance’ prove this reality.
Set in complex environment of homes, her stories are silent tales of ordinary people in ordinary circumstances. Some are painful. Some probe the anguish of young women. Some of the stories are tinged with sadness or desperation, as in the story of the young girl Kashf, narrated in ‘Zehr ragoun mein utaar kar’. Sameena Syed’s skill is in making each story a success is as satisfying as she dreams.
At times seemingly flippant, but always honest and insightful, Sameena Syed chronicles the ordinary absurdities women face in life. Is there a way to balance passion and obligation for women? How do they know they are living the lives they are meant to live? How do they know they are happy? In these stories we see: a woman agonising over choosing a life partner; she grieves as she tries to adjust and make sense of her love for someone; a daughter finally decides what to do with the marriage offer; the irony of racing from fate to fate.