Today’s Doodle celebrates Ismat Chughtai, the Indian author who championed free speech, social liberation, and gender equality through her writing. The grande dame of Urdu fiction would have been 107 today.

According to Chughtai’s family, she was born August 21, 1911(contrary to most published reports, which cite her birthdate being four years later, in 1915). The ninth of ten children, Chughtai grew up in the north Indian state of Uttar Pradesh. She began writing at an early age, inspired by her elder brother Mirza Azim Beg Chughtai, a novelist known for his playful humorous works.

In the 1930s, Chughtai attended a meeting of the Progressive Writers Association and became interested in using her talents to advocate for human rights. Raised in a Muslim household, Chughtai’s best-known works questioned double standards and encouraged liberation.Her short story “Lihaf” (The Quilt), narrated in the voice of a young girl, was viewed as controversial given its portrayal of a relationship between an upper class woman and her servant. This was also the case for another of her famous stories, “Gainda” (Marigold), which told the tale of a domestic worker who falls in love outside the caste system. Chughtai’s character violated the rules prohibiting different castes from associating with one another, as well as the social custom forbidding widows from pursuing a second love.

Chughtai was awarded the prestigious Padma Shri by the Government of India in 1976 In recognition of her literary accomplishments and her fearless dedication to her beliefs.In 1980s and 1990s, a new generation of Indian writers picked up where Chughtai left off. Today, she continues to be regarded as a national feminist icon.

Happy Birthday, Ismat Chughtai!