''Pahal'' (meaning ''A beginning'' in Hindi) is a literary magazine in the

Hindi Modern Standard Hindi (, ), commonly referred to as Hindi, is the Standard language, standardised variety of the Hindustani language written in the Devanagari script. It is an official language of India, official language of the Government ...

language published since 1973. Created by Gyanranjan, the noted Hindi novelist and short-story writer, from

Jabalpur Jabalpur, formerly Jubbulpore, is a city situated on the banks of Narmada River in the state of Madhya Pradesh, India. It is the 3rd-largest urban agglomeration of the state and the 38th-largest of the country. Jabalpur is the administrative h ...

, the magazine publishes poetry, fiction, non-fiction, critique and essays on issues of contemporary interest in three to four issues a year.

Ideology

''Pahal'' has held a distinct

leftist Left-wing politics describes the range of political ideologies that support and seek to achieve social equality and egalitarianism, often in opposition to social hierarchy either as a whole or of certain social hierarchies. Left-wing politi ...

leaning right since its inception, partly as founding editor Gyanranjan is a noted leftist intellectual. ''Pahal'' has always emphasized depicting the complexities of modern Indian society and its problems, such as the issues of

Dalit Dalit ( from meaning "broken/scattered") is a term used for untouchables and outcasts, who represented the lowest stratum of the castes in the Indian subcontinent. They are also called Harijans. Dalits were excluded from the fourfold var ...

and

women's emancipation A woman is an adult female human. Before adulthood, a female child or adolescent is referred to as a girl. Typically, women are of the female sex and inherit a pair of X chromosomes, one from each parent, and women with functional uteruses ...

Pahal booklets

''Pahal'' also occasionally publishes booklets, often featuring the works of prominent foreign authors, long poems and debates on topics of socio-political significance. Past booklets have introduced readers, often for the first time, to the works of such stalwarts of world literature as

Miroslav Holub Miroslav Holub (; 13 September 1923 – 14 July 1998) was a Czech poet and immunologist. Holub's work was heavily influenced by his experiences as an immunologist, writing many poems using his scientific knowledge to poetic effect. His work i ...

, Afzal Ahmed Sayyed and

Edward Said Edward Wadie Said (1 November 1935 – 24 September 2003) was a Palestinian-American academic, literary critic, and political activist. As a professor of literature at Columbia University, he was among the founders of Postcolonialism, post-co ...

. A recent booklet focused on poetry from the North-eastern states of India, often referred to as the Seven Sisters.

Pahal Sammaan

Every year, ''Pahal'' chooses an outstanding author writing in Indian languages for the ''Pahal Samman'', its annual literary award. As a rule, the award-ceremony is held in the home-town of the author.

References

External links

http://pahalpatrika.com/ Hindi-language magazines Literary magazines published in India Magazines established in 1973 Triannual magazines 1973 establishments in Madhya Pradesh {{italic title