Common Creative Motifs in Akhtar Raza Saleemi’s Novels

Abstract

This study explores the underlying creative impulses that bind together Akhtar Raza Saleemi’s novels “Jagay Hain Khawab Mein”, “Jandar”, and “Lavakh”. While differing in themw, plot, and technique, these works share profound thematic and stylistic resonances. Set against the backdrop of the Hazara Division (Haripur, Abbottabad, Mansehra),the narratives foreground characters belonging to the same heroic lineage, carrying a shared historical and cultural legacy. Across the novels, recurring patterns emerge : existential anguish, the consciousness of death, and the stigma of madness imposed by society. Significantly, each protagonist is guided by a mentor figure who mediates their inner conflicts. The novels also converge through postcolonial perspectives, ecological concerns, stream of consciousness, and magical realism. Taken together, these elements reveal a remarkable intellectual continuity and creative cohesion in Saleemi’s fiction, where regional, historical, and existential dimensions intersect to form a unified artistic vision.