This selection from Ismat Chughtai's prose writing, comprising essays, commentaries and pen-portraits of her contemporaries, gives the reader a good idea of the artistic, political and social mores of her times. It also serves as a background to her own work and furnishes insights into the art and lives of her contemporaries. Chughtai's involvement with the Progressive Writers' Association and her friendship with writers like Sa'dat Hasan Manto, Patras Bokhari, Krishan Chander, Rajinder Singh Bedi, and others have resulted in a treasure-trove of writing, marked by her characteristic irreverence and wit. ISMAT CHUGHTAI is the author of several collections of short stories, four novellas, three novels, a collection of reminiscences and essays and a memoir, Kaghazi hai Perahan (The Paper-thin Garment). With her husband, Shahid Latif, a film director, she produced and co-directed six films, and produced a further six independently.