Mamla Dil Da Ay By Malisha Rana

About this novel

Maamla Dil Da Ay (Urdu: معاملہ دل دا اے) by Malisha Rana is a long Urdu romance that opens in a hospital with a young woman praying for her husband. He is badly injured, and the story then steps back in time to a group of chatty, funny girlfriends.

The novel begins in panic. “Khan… Khan, please open your eyes! Someone call an ambulance, please!” Blood is flowing fast, and only one exchange keeps echoing in her ears. He once told her, “You want to be free of me – that’s not in my control, but if I die, it will be possible,” and she had snapped back, “Then die, and leave me alone.” Now the thought terrifies her: will he really die? “No, it can’t be. My Khan won’t do this to me – he promised he’d always stay with me. Please, Khan, don’t punish me like this.”

She doesn’t remember when the ambulance came or when he was taken into the operation theatre. When a nurse asks her relationship to the patient and tells her to fill in the form before the operation, she signs with trembling hands just as the Maghrib azaan begins. She asks where she can pray, does wuzu, and stands on the prayer mat with tears pouring down. “Ya Allah ji, give Khan life. Give me one chance to tell him how much I love him, to ask forgiveness for every mistake. I can’t live without him. If his life is only this long, give me death with him.” She is still in sajda when the nurse touches her shoulder: “Come with me.”

آپریشن تھیٹر کے باہر کی دعائیں، اور ایک ادھوری معافی۔

Then the tone changes completely. Three friends – Mahi, Haya and Fari – are debating the hardest job in the world. Mahi says it’s studying; Haya insists that’s only number two, teasing Mahi that she never passes anyway. When Haya asks Fari’s opinion, Fari jokes about a Star Plus drama, and the three dissolve into teasing and laughter. Fari finally says that the hardest job is making children understand anything – and Mahi jokes that Fari’s husband will have to handle her kids.

Malisha Rana mixes heartbreak with humour, and the Punjabi title – “it’s a matter of the heart” – promises an emotional love story.

You can read Maamla Dil Da Ay online here or download the complete PDF for free. More by Malisha Rana: Tu Meri Zindagi Hai, Wajah Tum Ho and Humein Tum Se Pyar Kitna, or see all Malisha Rana novels.