A message from Thanawi spawned from Umrao Jan found in Manto.

“He stood there wondering what had turned the once fashionable Qaiser Gardens into a slum. Where had all the life and excitement gone? It reminded him of a woman who had been scrubbed clean of all her make-up.” This quote from Manto’s The room with the Bright Light reminds me of a quote in Umrao Jan where she discusses that what happens when a girl comes out of purdah is she loses her appeal, her enticing aspect. Here however, instead of the veil of purdah it is the veil of make-up which is an interesting comparison.