Exploring the Zenana: Ismat Chughtai and the Vision of Feminist Utopia

Abstract

The conventional interpretation of a zenana often symbolizes male dominance over women. However, Ismat Chughtai's work, particularly her story "Lihaaf," challenges this prevailing notion and offers a different perspective. Chughtai seeks to disrupt the association of a zenana with male control and aims to provide it with a transformed meaning. While conventional views perceive a zenana as a space designed to isolate women from the outside world, Chughtai, in "Lihaaf," employs it as a microcosm that represents her own reality. This paper aims to demonstrate how Chughtai subverts the gendered nature of this space and establishes a feminist utopia within it. It explores the notion that patriarchy's inherent disparities unintentionally create opportunities for agency and generate spaces for a feminist utopia to emerge.