Who is Ismat Chughtai? today's Google doodle

New Delhi, Aug 21: Google Doodle, the search giant on Tuesday celebrated the 107th birth anniversary of Ismat Chughtai, one of the eminent Urdu writer. She was born in Badayun, Uttar Pradesh to Nusrat Khanam and Mirza Qaseem Baig Chughtai.

However, there is some confusion over when Ismat Chughtai was born. Some accounts state it as 15 August 1915, still others as 21 August of that same year. However, Google - which has issued a commemorative doodle for Ismat Chughtai's 107th birthday - attributes her family as stating her date of birth as 21 August 1911.

Ismat Chughtai is that fierce feminist voice of Indian Literature, who unapologetically wrote on the taboos close to the society in this part of the world, never seems to lose its relevance.

She wrote on themes like female sexuality and femininity, middle-class gentility, and class conflict, often from a Marxist perspective. With a style characterised by literary realism, Chughtai established herself as a significant voice in the Urdu literature of the twentieth century, and in 1976 was awarded the Padma Shri by the Government of India.

Ismat Chughtai was awarded Padma Shree in 1976, for her contribution in the field of literature. Some of her most notable works are Terhi Lakeer, Angarey, Lihaaf, and Chui Mui, all of which are collections of her short stories. This literary stalwart breathed her last on October 24th, 1991 in Mumbai, India.