‘Bhatkan’, Noor Zaheer’s compelling new story, takes us to Sweden, where we meet Azar, an innocent-looking young Afghan man, and his warm, affectionate foster mother, Ingrid.  Filled with unexpected twists and turns, this gripping tale will hold your attention right until the very end.

The Cineink podcast series Britain: Hindi Kahani is presented by renowned Hindi broadcaster Achala Sharma. Based in London, Noor Zaheer is a highly acclaimed short story writer, novelist, playwright and translator who writes with equal mastery in Hindi, English and Urdu.  In this episode, Noor Zaheer reads her latest Hindi short story, ‘Bhatkan’. A widely published and award-winning author, her major works include the memoir Mere Hisse Ki Roshnai(winner of the Delhi Hindi Akademi Kritii Samman), the short story collections Ret Par Khoon and Khamosh Pahad, Sulagte Jungle, the novels Barh Uriyye, My God is a Woman and An Indian Fantasy, as well as the powerful non-fiction book Denied by Allah, which examines the Muslim community’s struggle with triple talaq, halala, mutah and khula.

Her other notable titles include the travelogues Surkh Karwan Ke Hamsafar and At Home in Enemy Land, the research work The Dancing Lama on Buddhist performing arts, and several plays — including four full-length dramas and twenty-four plays for children. She has also written a biography of Faiz Ahmed Faiz titled Aaj Ke Naam, and has compiled and translated early women’s writing from Urdu into English.  Noor Zaheer’s research explores Buddhist, tribal and oral traditions of the north-western Himalayas. Her recent collection Sayani Diwani brings together her latest short stories in Hindi.  

The series is produced by Pervai8z Alam.

With a PhD degree in Sanskrit from Punjab University in Chandigarh, Toshi Amrita came to Britain via Dar es Salaam, Tanzania, where she had taught for a decade.
She records her Hindi story 'Sard Raat Ka Sannata' for the Cine Ink Podcast series 'Britain: Hindi Kahani'.

Toshi Amrita's stories and poems have been published in publications such as Kshitij Ke Is Paar, Deshantar Ki Kavitayein, Watan Ki Khushbu and Desi Girls.

Music by Chanakya Shukla. You can share your feedback at: [email protected]

A post graduate from Birmingham University, Aruna Sabharwal began writing Hindi short stories a decade ago. Her first story 'Ve Chaar Paranthe' was published in a Hindi literary magazine, Naya Gyanodaya, and received positive reviews. Within a few years, she published three collections of short stories- Kaha Ankaha, Ve Chaar Paranthe and Udari.

Aruna has been teaching for the last 25 years in various schools of England. Presently, she devotes her time to writing and painting.

Music by Chanakya Shukla.

Born in Lucknow and a graduate from the Banaras Hindu University, Zakia Zuberi is an elected councillor of the Labour Party from Barnet in London. She reads her Hindi story 'Maria' from her collection of short stories, Saankal, published by Rajkamal Prakashan.

Zakia Zuberi has been in the fore front, promoting Indian and Pakistani culture in Britain for more than 40 years. Music courtesy: 'Dark Procession' by Darren Curtis Music. Cine Ink Podcast series 'Britain: Hindi Kahani' showcases the literary work of Hindi/Urdu writers based in the UK.

Shail Agarwal records her Hindi story 'Basera' in her own voice. Born in Varanasi, UP, Shail Agarwal, a masters in English Literature, has been living in Britain since 1968. She has published two short story collections 'Basera' and 'Dhruv Tara', along with a collection of her poems 'Samidha'. Two of her novels have been serialised in various Hindi magazines. Music by Chanakya Shukla.

In Cine Ink Podcast series 'Britain: Hindi Kahani', Jai Verma presents her story 'Gulmohar' in her own voice. A resident of Nottingham, UK, Jai Verma was born in Meerut, UP. She has worked with the National Health Service of the UK for about 14 years. Her published work includes a collection of Hindi stories 'Saat Qadam' and a poetry collection 'Seh Yatri'. Music by Chanakya Shukla.

In Cine Ink Podcast series 'Britain: Hindi Kahani', Usha Verma records her story 'Cost Effective' in her own voice. Born in the district of Barabanki, UP, Usha Verma did her masters in Philosophy from the Lucknow University, and later, taught at York and Leeds universities. She has published two short story collections, Karavas and Sim Card, along with two collections of poetry, Kshitij Adhura and Koi to Sunega. Music by Chanakya Shukla.

Kadambari Mehra presents her short story 'Talash' in her own voice, under the Cine Ink podcast series, Britain: Hindi Kahani.

Having studied at Varanasi, Lucknow and Agra, she finally settled down in London, working as a teacher in Mathematics. She has published 5 short story collections, including: Rangon Ke Paar, Kuchh Jag Ki, Path Ke Phool, Dephne and Chir Parayi. Music by Chanakya Shukla.

Usha Raje Saxena, a prominent Hindi poet and short story writer in the UK, records her story "Ruke Qadam Yun Aage Badhe' in her own voice.
An author and editor of several books, Usha Raje Saxena is famous for her story collections such as Pravas Mein, Walking Partner, Veh Raat and Mitti Ki Sugandh.

She has been promoting Hindi as a literary language in the UK for more than 40 years.

Founder of Vatayan, an established literary and cultural group in the UK, Divya Mathur is a prolific writer of short stories in Hindi, including acclaimed Aakrosh, Panga, Made in India, Hindi Swarg Dot Com and Zehr Mohra. She has edited two books of fame, Desi Girls and Ek Safar Saath Saath. For a long time, Divya Mathur was associated with the Nehru Centre in London.

Mamta Gupta, former BBC broadcaster and a graduate of the National School of Drama, presents Divya's story Sandeh. Music by Chanakya Shukla.