Silent Agonies: Understanding the Depth of Puro’s Pain in Pinjar
https://doi.org /10.5281/zen od o.14973650
Author(s): Nirmal & Dr. Renu Sharma
DOI: https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.14973650
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Volume 16 | Issue 1 | Feb 2025
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The Criterion: An International Journal in English Vol. 16, Issue-I, February 2025 ISSN: 0976-8165
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https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.10448030
Silent Agonies: Understanding the Depth of Puro’s Pain in Pinjar
Nirmal
Research Scholar,
Dept. of English,
Desh Bhagat Uni.
Mandi Gobindgarh (Punjab).
&
Dr. Renu Sharma
Associate Professor,
Dept. of English,
Desh Bhagat Uni.
Mandi Gobindgarh (Punjab).
Article History: Submitted‐21/12/2024, Revised‐10/01/2025, Accepted‐09/02/2025, Published‐28/02/2025.
Abstract:
Amrita Pritam, the famous poet and writer of Punjabi Literature, penned the
famous novel Pinjar in Punjabi. She was the most prolific writer of her age who
contributed a lot of writings to Punjabi literature and won several awards. The proposed
study attempts to investigate the insights into the personal costs of partition and the long –
lasting trauma it inflicted upon generations. The paper also attempts to portray the injured
body and soul of the women who suffered during partition. Amrita Pritam’s novel Pinjar.
revolves around Puro, a young girl from a Hindu family. She has been living happily with
her family when suddenly she is kidnapped by Rashid, a Muslim boy. Here starts her
tragic journey. The present research paper aims at describing pains experienced by Puro at
Physical, Emotional, mental and psychological level. In Pinjar, Amrita Pritam portrays
the profound pain and sufferings of Puro, against the backdrop of the partition of India in
1947. Puro’s anguish is both personal and collective as she endures the trauma of
displacement, the loss of identity and the betrayal of those closest to her. Her pain is
emotional, physical and Psychological as she is abducted forcibly and married to a man
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https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.14973650
Silent Agonies: Understanding the Depth of Puro’s Pain in Pinjar
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https://doi.org/10.5281/zenodo.10448030
whom she does not like. Puro’s journey throughout is full of pain which she bears. She,
like so many other women, remains silent and keeps on bearing all the wounds inflicted
by life upon her.
Keywords: Pain, Suffering, Partition, Women, Culture, Emotional, Trauma,
Conflict, Personal, Upheaval.
Introduction:
Amrita Pritam, the first female writer of India was born in Pakistan in 1919. She has
been a landmark in the Indian Literary scene. Since she is a worldwide recognized writer,
her writings are available in various languages. A versatile genius, Amrita Pritam was
equally at home in Poetry, prose and fiction. She started writing at an early age which
resulted in her abundant contribution to Punjabi literature in the form of poems, Novels,
Works in Prose, Short-stories and Autobiographies. She was the first woman to receive
the Sahitya Akademi Award in 1956, ‘Padma shri’ in 1969 and ‘Padma Vibhushan’ in
2004. She was also awarded the Prestigious Bhartiya Jnanpith Award in 1982 for her book
‘Lamia wattan and Kasthuri, Pinjar, Ahlana , Chakk No. Chhatti, Rasidi Ticket. The
range of her literary career is quite vast. Amongst her outstanding works, her famous
novel Pinjar can be specially mentioned which deals with the social background of a
woman’s suffering heightened by the partition and the dehumanized consequences it has.
The novel first published in 1950, presents the picture of partition of India in 1947. It
was a time of profound political and social upheaval. The central theme of the novel is the
impact of partition on women. The novel revolves around the life of its protagonist, Puro,
a young girl , caught between the violent turmoil caused by the partition and the complex
emotional and cultural landscapes that define her identity. Pinjar is not only a story of
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Puro but rather many women like her who were the victims of displacement, violence and
marginalization during the traumatic period of partition. The novel delves into the
complexities of relationships formed under such circumstances. It examines both
victimhood and the resilience of human spirit in the face of overwhelming societal forces.
Pritam’s Pinjar captures the horror & trauma of individuals in the aftermath of partition.
At the same time it addresses the broader human experience of survival, love and loss.
Pinjar translated as The Skeleton in English is one of Amrita Pritam’s highly acclaimed
works. It is the novel that holds great significance in post partition literature. The central
character of the novel, Puro is a young woman from a Hindu family in Punjab. Her life is
going on smoothly when suddenly she is abducted by Rashid, a Muslim man, in the wake
of communal riots and mass displacements that accompanied the partition. She endures
intense physical, emotional, mental and psychological pain. Her experiences of abduction
and survival reflect the multifaceted nature of human suffering. Below is an exploration
of the various layers of pain Puro experiences throughout the novel:-
Physical Pain:
In Pinjar; Puro experiences a significant amount of physical pain that symbolizes the
broader anguish and trauma faced by individuals during the partition of India in 1947.
Puro’s physical pain reflects the brutal realities of displacement, violence and loss. The
key aspect of Puro’s physical pain is the result of her abduction and forced marriage to
Rashid, a Muslim man, during the chaos of partition. Her body becomes a site of violence
and suffering as she is torn away from her family and subjected to a life of forced
submission. As the novel progresses, Puro experiences the physical discomfort of being in
an unfamiliar environment, particularly at Rashid’s home. It is not easy for her to bear
physical relations with a man who has abducted her. Even though Rashid marries her, she
never feels like a wife. The constant fear, harsh treatment and the emotional strain also
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manifest in her physical pain. Although her physical pain is not always overtly described
in the narrative, the suffering of being displaced, being treated as an outsider and
physically vulnerable to the whims of others adds to the depth of her experience.
Her physical pain is also symbolic of more extensive disintegration of communities,
identities and relationships due to the partition. The pain and trauma she endures make
her body a silent witness to more immense historical and personal upheavals. Her
suffering becomes a physical manifestation of more significant political and religious
conflicts of partition. Her pain is also tied to the loss of her agency as she is removed
forcibly from her family and her previous life. The physical injuries she sustains reflect
the emotional scars she carries.As the novel progresses, her physical pain is a reminder
of the violence and exploitation that she and many others experience as a result of the
partition of India. In this way, Puro’s physical pain symbolizes the broader suffering of
women during partition, who became victims of sexual violence, abduction and forced
marriages.
Emotional Pain:
Puro’s emotional trauma stems from the violence she witnesses and experiences. Her
emotional pain is perhaps the most profound aspect of her suffering. She is torn from her
family, her home and her community, causing a deep sense of loss and dislocation. Her
emotional distress begins with the loss of her family, total disconnection from society and
the forced adaptation to a new life. She has been separated from her family which makes
her feel disconnected from her past life, her culture and the people she once loved. She
has been forced to live in a new, unfamiliar environment where she struggles to maintain
a sense of dignity and identity. Her emotional pain intensifies as she is stuck between
conflicting loyalties— her loyalty towards the Hindu family and her growing sense of
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responsibility towards Rashid and his family. One of the most profound aspects of her
suffering is the loss of agency and identity. She is forced into a new life, where her past is
erased. She feels as if she were a tool in political game. Moreover, Puro’s internal
conflict reveals the emotional toll of being uprooted as she is enforced to adapt to a new
reality and face the horror of what has happened to her. This
work shows that Amrita Pritam was herself one of the onlookers of the partition of India.
She has attempted to portray the falling standard of the human soul during partition
through this novel. The novel presents the nerve-racking condition of women during
partition. It is a narrative highlighting the passionate battles fought by women for their
survival. The tale draws out the vast number of setbacks that a woman undergoes.
Although Puro does not have a fault of hers but ,because of family enmity, she has to
bear the pain throughout her life. She is considered a vessel that the society can discard
accordingly. That’s why Puro gets rejection from her family, the people for whom she
wept endlessly just on the ground that she had spent so many days with a stranger . She
cannot be accepted socially. This rejection is also one of the causes of the emotional
trauma of Puro. It is challenging for her to accept this rejection because she had thought
that her family would understand her pain. But they were unable to see her pain, her
struggle , instead they just consider their social position. The political and societal
upheavals shatter Puro emotionally. She is wholly shaken when she comes back to Rashid
the night she runs to meet her family. They send her back saying that they have no place
for her. There is no kindness, love, or sympathy in the hardened social framework. There
is no desire for recovery for the loss that Puro has faced.
she struggles with a sense of betrayal by her family as well as society Her internal
conflict has been marked by the guilt of being unable to reconcile the part of her that
wants to survive with the part of her that longs for a sense of normalcy and belonging.
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The emotional isolation she experiences as a result of her abduction intensifies her mental
agony as she has been caught in a situation where she can neither return to her past nor
fully accept her present. Her emotional pain has been compounded by the constant grief
of losing her family, her community and her former life. The violent separation from her
loved ones and the loss of a peaceful, predictable life lead to an ongoing emotional ache.
This grief, which she cannot express or share, accumulates in her mind, leaving her in a
perpetual state of mourning for the life that has been lost.
Moreover, Puro is tormented emotionally by the societal judgment she faces as an
abducted woman during partition. Her emotional turmoil has been compounded by the
indifference of the world around her which sees her more as a criminal and not as a
victim. Even her family sends her back because their social compulsions do not allow
them to keep her. Their denial to accept her makes her feel as if she were a defiled woman
and this stigmatization intensifies her emotional suffering. She has been caught in an
unforgiving social environment that views her as a symbol of dishonour and
disintegration. This rejection and her feeling of not being accepted by either community-
Hindu or Muslim, further deepen her emotional suffering.
Mental Pain:
One of the most harrowing aspects of Puro’s mental pain is the complete loss of her
identity. After the abduction, she has been stripped of her selfhood. She can not fit into
either world; the past and the present. Puro’s pain is visible in her internal conflict. She
undergoes a battle with her inner thoughts and doubts. As she spends time with Rashid,
she begins to grapple with a sense of guilt and emotional division. Her mind is in turmoil
as she tries to understand what has happened to her and how she can regain a semblance
of control over her life. She constantly questions her place in the world and struggles with
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the guilt and shame of her situation. The cultural and societal barriers do not allow her to
rejoin her family. She has been caught in a web of emotions, including guilt, shame and a
longing for her family and her past life. In essence, Puro’s mental pain is a combination of
identity loss, constant fear, isolation, inner conflict and the overwhelming weight of
survival. Her feeling of helplessness and powerlessness is the most painful aspect of her
mental anguish. She can neither change her present nor join her past. The feeling of being
at the mercy of forces beyond her control is a source of deep emotional torment. Living in
constant fear of further violence and abuse adds to Puro’s mental suffering. The trauma of
being abducted, combined with the ongoing threat to her safety, creates a constant state of
anxiety and dread. She becomes a metaphor for the thousands of women who had been
caught in similar circumstances during the partition.
Psychological Pain:
Puro’s suffering also stems from intense psychological trauma of losing everything she
once had–her home, her family, her community and above all her identity. Her loss is not
only physical but existential. Her pain is not just about the physical violence but the
existential crisis of losing her place in the world and reconciling her pre-partition self
with the one that emerges from it.
The novel highlights the psychological toll that Puro’s abduction takes on her.
While she has been forcibly dragged into a life of captivity, her mind is constantly
battling against the trauma of the violence she witnesses, the pain of loss and a sense of
alienation. The experience of being kidnapped and forced into an unfamiliar world takes a
profound toll on her sense of security and identity. The psychological scars of partition are
evident in her constant struggle with fear, confusion and helplessness.
Puro encounters identity crisis when she has been named as Hamida. During
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the day, she is Hamida but as the night falls, she goes back to her past where she was
known as Puro. She has been reminded of her childhood. She misses the love and care of
her parents and family. She thinks about Ram Chand. She has been lost in the memories
of the past. While in the morning, she is again Hamida..This split in identity causes great
pain in her. She is unable to get out of this crisis of identity loss. She questions herself
about her identity and thus feels that she is neither Hamida nor Puro. She is just a Skelton
— a lifeless skeleton without any identity and even without life, only a frame of flesh and
blood.
Ultimately, Puro’s pain is about the search for identity and belonging in a
world that has been violently dividing .Her journey is not just about physical survival but
about finding her identity in a fractured world. The deep sense of dislocation traps her
between her past life and the new life. She can no longer relate to the world she once
knew and yet cannot fully embrace the world enforced upon her.
The psychological impact of this internal conflict is so powerful that Puro can not
reconcile with her two selves. Her psychological pain has been linked with the societal
expectations placed on her as a woman. She faces a dehumanizing stigma. The loss of
agency and autonomy deeply affects her psyche. Furthermore, Puro’s fluctuating
relationship with Rashid adds to her psychological turmoil. She is torn between hatred
and (initial feeling) affection (a later feeling) for Rashid, leading to a psychological
struggle over her emotions.
As Puro has been caught between the worlds of her old life and her new one, she
experiences profound existential isolation. She feels alienated from both her community
which views her as tainted and from her captors who see her as an object. This sense of
non belongingness, leads to an overwhelming state of loneliness and despair. Before her
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abduction, she was a young woman with a family and community and a sense of
belonging. However after being forcibly taken and thrust into a completely new
environment, her sense of self is obliterated. She is no longer a daughter or a sister; she
becomes an object of someone else’s will. This loss of identity creates a deep internal
crisis as she fights a battle to reconcile between the person she was and the person she has
been forced to become. She has been torn between two worlds– the one which has been
shattered and the other which has been filled with loss and alienation. She is unable to fill
the void and feels completely isolated, both physically and emotionally.. Her survival
becomes a burden for her ;while others might see her as simply ‘alive’, the emotional and
mental cost of her survival is enormous.
The psychological pain that Puro experiences is a reflection of the enduring
psychological pain faced by countless women during the time of partition. Her struggle
symbolizes the broader emotional and psychological trauma experienced by a million
individuals during the partition who had their identities and lives violently uprooted.
Ultimately, her psychological pain is a poignant portrayal of the deep scars left by
communal violence and the loss of personal and cultural identity in the face of political
and historical upheaval.
Conclusion:
Puro’s pain in Pinjar is multifaceted, encompassing physical, emotional, mental and
psychological suffering. Her journey from a young, hopeful woman to someone marked
by the trauma of partition reflects the broader experience of millions who endured similar
fates during this period of History. Amrita Pritam’s presentation of Puro’s pain extends
beyond her personal experiences. It aims at giving a larger feminist message. Through
Puro, she highlights how women had been double victimized- first by violence of
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partition and second by patriarchal structures that sought to silence them. Her suffering
speaks of the deep injustices faced by women who had been caught in the crossfire of
political conflict. Nevertheless within this pain lies a message of hope. Puro’s eventual
understanding of her worth and ability to survive again conveys a message of
hopefulness amid unimaginable sorrow. Through Puro, Pritam captures both the personal
and collective dimensions of pain, creating a poignant and powerful narrative about loss,
identity, trauma, survival and search for meaning in a world broken by political and
religious conflict. Through Puro’s journey, Pritam highlights the deep emotional scars left
by political and social violence.Her journey is a testimony to the pain of Partition,
offering a humanized perspective on the historical tragedy..
Works Cited:
Bhardwaj, Ayushi, A gender study and Rereading of Amrita Pritam’s Pinjar. An online
Interdisciplinary Research Journal , vol.10 Jan.2020 special issue.
Deogade, Amarpali.S & Akshay V. Dhote , Amrita Pritam’s Pinjar:The tragic saga of
partition Shodh Samagam, Jan-March 2023 issue, pp54-57.
Gull, Ifham, Partition Literature: Reading Amrita Pritam’s Pinjar as saga of Anguish
and Resilience IJR,,vol.5, no 8, August, 2024 pp716-718.
Pritam, Amrita , Pinjar: The skeleton and other stories, translated by Khushwant Singh,
New Delhi: Tara Press, 2009.
Thenmozhi ,M & Tyagi, S.G., Portrayal of women in the works of Amrita Pritam-A
Review. IJR, PARIPEX Vol.2,Dec,2016 pp 399.
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Vishawakarma, Sanjeev Kumar From imposition to subversion of patriarchy in Amrita
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