Madness, Violence and Marginalized Identities in Partition Literature: A Study of Manto’s Toba Tek Singh and Antharjanam’s A Leaf in the Storm

Abstract

Partition literature foregrounds the lived experience of violence in contrast to detached historical accounts of 1947. The trauma of dislocation, nostalgia and rehabilitation found authentic representation in literary narratives which emphasized human suffering rather than political rhetoric. This paper undertakes a comparative study of Saadat Hasan Manto’s Toba Tek Singh (1953) and Lalithambika Antharjanam’s A Leaf in the Storm (1953, trans. 1997). While Manto uses madness and satire as tropes to highlight the absurdity of Partition politics, Antharjanam captures the layered experience of gendered violence and the resilience of women. Both texts foreground marginalized identities—a madman and a rape victim—and critique political and patriarchal structures through objective yet deeply human narratives.