Short stories that are windows into life’s truths

‘Ratti Gali ki Laki’ is a book of short stories written by Wasim Jibran depicting variations of romance and love -- transitory, warm, happy, and tear-jerking. The contents of the stories appear to slowly grow along with the writer.

A piece of literature supposedly makes its most direct claim upon our sensibilities. In any event, our sensibilities do not exist in isolation but are integrated with the personality as whole.

The overall thrust of Wasim Jibran’s work is connected with women’s problems. The idealistic and practical love epitomized in his short stories is a brand of humanity that is not dead. His female characters are presented with extraordinary compassion, their vulnerabilities achingly apparent.

When I read his stories they seem quite breathing on the page, not airless. His stories are not guarded but gloriously open, and best of all, written for readers.

He is a writer who focuses on the strengths and weaknesses of the people and their often unconventional choices in life. His book is a collection of short stories about people struggling to find their individualities, despite the barriers imposed by the society.

His short stories are a meaningful comment on some aspect of human experience creating a world with all the paradoxes that one faces in real life. They begin by setting a scene; then that is developed -- that is, comment is made upon it until a meaningful understanding of it is at last arrived at.

His stories like “Feroza ka jadoo”, “Ratti Gali ki Laki”, Maani Baba”, “Woh aik din”, “Mehman”, “Beti”, “Film Star”, “Noshi Baji”, “Zarina aur Zoya”, “Ajnabi”, “Rakhshi” etc. are no middle class romantic pleasure, but show how vital short stories can be when they are written with heart, mind and soul.

The writing pattern is simple yet elegant. Wasim Jibran’s love for the hills of Murree and town, where he lives and teaches, has been overly mentioned in the stories.

The characters of Wasim Jibran’s stories are both emotionally and psychologically rich. They are so human and so genuinely flawed that they are believable and readers can easily connect to them. The kind of sweetness that the writer puts into the relationships in the characters is pleasing.

These characters begin a light-hearted but emotive journey about getting to know others from different walks of life. Different souls learn to co-exist and get to know one another, and though it’s not all rainbows throughout the stories, the overall vibe is highly pleasant.

Wasim Jibran’s stories present a realistic and emotive drama where the romance is anything but perfect, yet it still leaves you with all those dramatic and intensely uplifting feelings that all good romance stories do.