Tu Man Talbat by Isha Gill

About this novel

Tu Man Talbat (Urdu: تو من طلبت) by Isha Gill is a long Urdu romance that opens with a classic clash between two strangers in a shopping mall. A spilled cold drink ruins an expensive dress, and the proud heroine refuses to accept the stranger’s apology.

The novel begins with Areesha squeezing her feet into new black high heels and finding her friend in a shopping mall. “Harmain, where are you? I’ve been searching the whole mall for you!” Harmain, sitting comfortably on a sofa, tells her she should have just called. Areesha’s new heels are pinching her feet, and Harmain teases her about them before the two get back to shopping. Areesha grumbles that Harmain is so fussy and takes forever – it feels as if it’s Harmain’s engagement rather than her own. Harmain laughs: how could she not shop properly for her only best friend’s engagement? Finally they head to a restaurant for lunch.

That’s when it happens. “Are you blind? Can’t you see someone’s coming in front of you? Ugh, what a disaster – my clothes are ruined!” As Harmain walks toward a table, someone bumps into her and the cold drink in his hand spills all over her. In fact, it was Harmain who wasn’t watching where she was going, but she is too angry to see it.

ایک ٹکر، گرا ہوا کولڈ ڈرنک، اور غصے سے لال ہوتا خوبصورت چہرہ۔

“I’m sorry, I didn’t see you,” the man says, even though it wasn’t his fault. That only makes Harmain angrier. “Sorry? Will your sorry make my eight-thousand-rupee dress like new again?” she mimics. Now he looks at her properly: a simple white shirt, blue jeans and a dupatta, fair skin and full cheeks that puff up even more when she’s angry, a sharp nose and brown eyes, and a stylish cut that makes her look even more proud. Zia Khan decides there’s no point arguing. “Okay, then here – take your full eight thousand. No need to be polite about it,” he says, pressing the money into her hand and turning away. Harmain, furious, marches after him and pushes the money back into his hand.

Isha Gill opens with sparks and attitude, and the title – a phrase of longing – suggests these two are fated to keep meeting.

You can read Tu Man Talbat online here or download the complete PDF for free. More by Isha Gill: Qabool Hai, Heer and Agar Tum Saath Ho, or see all Isha Gill novels.