The Progressive Writers' Association or the Progressive Writers' Movement of India or Anjuman Tarraqi Pasand Mussanafin-e-Hind () or Akhil Bhartiya Pragatishil Lekhak Sangh (Hindi: अखिल भारतीय प्रगतिशील लेखक संघ) was a progressive literary movement in pre-partition British India. Some branches of this writers' group existed around the world besides in India and Pakistan.
These groups were anti-imperialistic and left-oriented, and sought to inspire people through their writings advocating equality among all humans and attacking social injustice and backwardness in the society.
According to the Dawn newspaper, "Progressive Writers Movement in Urdu literature was the strongest movement after Sir Syed's education movement. The progressives contributed to Urdu literature some of the finest pieces of fiction and poetry. Undoubtedly, they were the trend-setters for the coming generation of writers."
Organizations
The Indian Progressive Writers' Association was set up in London in 1935. The Progressive Writers' Association was set up in Kolkata in July 1936. The All India Writers' Association was set up in Lucknow on 9 April 1936 under the leadership of Syed Sajjad Zahir and Ahmed Ali at the Rifa-e-Aam Club in Lucknow. Both of them invited Syed Fakhruddin Balley (known as Balley Alig)to join. Syed Fakhruddin Balley then initiated work to promote the Association. Many writers and poets like Hameed Akhtar, Faiz Ahmad Faiz, Ahmad Nadeem Qasmi, Saadat Hasan Manto and Ismat Chughtai joined the Association. The All Pakistan Progressive Writers' Association was set up in Pakistan in December 1947 after the Independence of Pakistan in 1947.
History
Origin
The origin of the Progressive Writers' Movement can be traced to the publication of Angarey (Embers or Burning Coals), a collection of nine short stories and a one-act play by Ahmed Ali, Sajjad Zaheer, Rashid Jahan and Mahmud-uz-Zafar in 1932. The publication was met with outrage from civil and religious authorities and was banned by the government of United Provinces. On 5 April 1933, Mahmud-uz-Zafar published a statement titled In Defence of Angare: Shall We Submit to Gagging? in The Leader:
The authors of this book do not wish to make any apology for it. They leave it to float or sink of itself. They are not afraid of the consequences of having launched it. They only wish to defend 'the right of launching it and all other vessels like it' ... they stand for the right of free criticism and free expression in all matters of the highest importance to the human race in general and the Indian people in particular... Whatever happen to the book or to the authors, we hope that others will not be discouraged. Our practical proposal is the formation immediately of a League of Progressive Authors, which should bring forth similar collections from time to time both in English and the various vernaculars of our country. We appeal to all those who are interested in this idea to get in touch with us.
The idea of forming a League of Progressive Authors was presented for the first time in this statement which later expanded itself and became 'Indian Progressive Writers' Association'.
Indian Progressive Writers' Association, London
After the publication of Angarey and the furor that followed, Zaheer was sent to London by his father in March 1933 to study law. In London he came in contact with the members of the Indian student community including Muhammad Din Taseer, Mulk Raj Anand, Jyotirmoy Ghosh, Pramod Ranjan Sengupta and formed a literary circle of friends. The group also included progressive women like Hajra Begum. He also came into the contact of Communist revolutionary Ralph Winston Fox who encouraged him and Anand to form the Indian Progressive Writers’ Association in London. The association, composed mostly of Indian university students from Oxford, Cambridge and London, met for the first time on 24 November 1934 in a back room at the Nanking Restaurant, a Chinese restaurant in Denmark Street. Anand was elected as the president while Sengupta acted as the secretary of the association.
In 1935, he and Mulk Raj Anand went to Paris to attend the International Congress for Defense of Culture organised by André Gide, Henri Barbusse and André Malraux. Influenced by the conference the group decided to solidify the association and draft a manifesto to formulate the aims and objectives of the association.