KUSHWANT SINGH
 |
| Khuswant Singh |
 |
| Khuswant singh |
 |
| khuswant singh |
Khushwant Singh, the grand old man of contemporary Indo-Anglian literature has returned in a new avatar with an updated edition of his signature anthology, "Not a Nice Man to Know: The Best of Khushwant Singh".The anthology, first published 20 years ago with 30 of Singh's selected works, has been revised to include 18 more of his essays, short stories and opinions. The revised edition was launched by Penguin India at the Le Meridien in the capital here Saturday. It was accompanied with a dramatized reading of his postcolonial play which features in the book - "Tyger Tyger, Burning Bright" - by adman and stage personality Suhel Seth.
The 96-year-old writer could not join the gathering because of ill-health. Releasing the anthology, editor Nandini Mehta, who edited the first edition of the collection 20 years ago, said, "When I edited the first volume of the best of Khushwant Singh 20 years ago, the writer had said it was perhaps the last book on him and he would not be able to write any more.""But he had to eat his words. We have added new essays to bring out the nature lover, storyteller and historian in Singh," she said. "Khushwant Singh still remains the bestseller on Penguin India's list of top writers," said Andrew Phillips, the chief executive officer of Penguin India."A lot of people still want to see his work and Khushwant can always find new audiences. When you keep his book in front of the bookstore, it attracts public eye. I think from the commercial point of view, Khushwant sells widely. There is an aura about him and a lot of strange stories," Phillips told IANS.
Born in 1915, Singh is known for his witty, secular and candid writing that carried him through the 1960s, 1970s. Thereafter he carved a niche for himself in the world of post-Independent India. His seminal work "Train to Pakistan" (1956), a tale of the trauma of partition, still remains on the bestseller lists. Singh has nearly 40 books to his credit, which include more than half a dozen short story collections.The writer, who once edited the Illustrated Weekly magazine, became a household name in northern India with his weekly newspaper column, "With Malice Towards One and All". Khushwant Singh, one of the best -known Indian writers of all times, was born in 1915 in Hadali (now in Pakistan). He was educated at the Government College, Lahore and at King's College, Cambridge University, and the Inner Temple in London. He practiced law at the Lahore High Court for several years before joining the Indian Ministry of External Affairs in 1947. He began a distinguished career as a journalist with the All India Radio in 1951. Since then he has been founder-editor of Yojana (1951-1953), editor of the Illustrated weekly of India (1979-1980), chief editor of New Delhi (1979-1980), and editor of the Hindustan times (1980-1983). His Saturday column "With Malice Towards One and All" in the Hindustan times is by far one of the most popular columns of the day.
Khushwant Singh's name is bound to go down in Indian literary history as one of the finest historians and novelists, a forthright political commentator, and an outstanding observer and social critic. In July 2000, he was conferred the "Honest Man of the Year Award" by the Sulabh International Social Service Organization for his courage and honesty in his "brilliant incisive writing." At the award ceremony, the chief minister of Andhra Pradesh described him as a "humourous writer and incorrigible believer in human goodness with a devil-may-care attitude and a courageous mind." The Indian external affairs minister said that the secret of Khushwant Singh's success lay in his learning and discipline behind the "veneer of superficiality." Among the several works he published are a classic two-volume history of the Sikhs, several novels (the best known of which are Delhi, Train to Pakistan, and The company of women), and a number of translations and non-fiction books on Delhi, nature and current affairs. The Library of Congress has ninety-nine works on and by Khushwant Singh. Khushwant Singh was a member of the Rajya Sabha (upper house of the Indian Parliament) from 1980 to 1986. Among other honors, he was awarded the Padma Bhushan in 1974 by the President of India (he returned the decoration in 1984 in protest against the Union Government's siege of the Golden Temple in Amritsar).The 96-year-old writer could not join the gathering because of ill-health. Releasing the anthology, editor Nandini Mehta, who edited the first edition of the collection 20 years ago, said, "When I edited the first volume of the best of Khushwant Singh 20 years ago, the writer had said it was perhaps the last book on him and he would not be able to write any more.""But he had to eat his words. We have added new essays to bring out the nature lover, storyteller and historian in Singh," she said. "Khushwant Singh still remains the bestseller on Penguin India's list of top writers," said Andrew Phillips, the chief executive officer of Penguin India."A lot of people still want to see his work and Khushwant can always find new audiences. When you keep his book in front of the bookstore, it attracts public eye. I think from the commercial point of view, Khushwant sells widely. There is an aura about him and a lot of strange stories," Phillips told IANS.
Born in 1915, Singh is known for his witty, secular and candid writing that carried him through the 1960s, 1970s. Thereafter he carved a niche for himself in the world of post-Independent India. His seminal work "Train to Pakistan" (1956), a tale of the trauma of partition, still remains on the bestseller lists. Singh has nearly 40 books to his credit, which include more than half a dozen short story collections.The writer, who once edited the Illustrated Weekly magazine, became a household name in northern India with his weekly newspaper column, "With Malice Towards One and All". Khushwant Singh, one of the best -known Indian writers of all times, was born in 1915 in Hadali (now in Pakistan). He was educated at the Government College, Lahore and at King's College, Cambridge University, and the Inner Temple in London. He practiced law at the Lahore High Court for several years before joining the Indian Ministry of External Affairs in 1947. He began a distinguished career as a journalist with the All India Radio in 1951. Since then he has been founder-editor of Yojana (1951-1953), editor of the Illustrated weekly of India (1979-1980), chief editor of New Delhi (1979-1980), and editor of the Hindustan times (1980-1983). His Saturday column "With Malice Towards One and All" in the Hindustan times is by far one of the most popular columns of the day.
Achievements - A significant post-colonial writer in the English language, Khushwant Singh is known for his clear-cut secularism, wit and a deep passion for poetry. A regular contributor to various national dailies, Singh is also famous for his novel 'Train to Pakistan penned in the year 1956. Khushwant Singh is a senior prominent Indian novelist cum journalist. He was born on 2 February 1915 at Hadali in British India that is now a part of Punjab in Pakistan. A significant post-colonial writer in the English language, Khushwant Singh is known for his clear-cut secularism, humor and a deep passion for poetry. His assessment and comparison of social and behavioral traits of people from India and the West is full of outstanding wit. Here's more information on the biography of Khushwant Singh. Infact, Khuswant Singh's writing is so popular that his weekly newspaper column, "With Malice towards One and All", published in many Indian national dailies is among the most widely-read commentaries in the country. Singh completed his bachelor's from the Government College at Lahore and thereafter, pursued further studies in law at King's College in London, UK. Sir Sobha Singh, Khushwant Singh's father, then used to work at a reputed builder in Lutyens' Delhi. Read on about life history of Khuswant Singh.
Once while still practicing as a lawyer in the High Court of Lahore, Khushwant Singh was on his way to his family's summer residence at Kasauli at the foothills of the Himalayas. It was just days prior to the partition of India and Pakistan in August 1947. Singh was driving his car when he came across a jeep full of Sikhs on an unusually vacant road that day. The Sikh men pridefully narrated to him how they had just butchered away all residents of a Muslim village. All these instances found vivid description in the book 'Train to Pakistan' Khushwant Singh later wrote in 1956. In the time to come, Singh was appointed to edit Yojana, a journal published by the Indian government. Other publications whose editing Singh was encharged with were the Illustrated Weekly of India, a newsweekly and two other major Indian dailies - The National Herald and the Hindustan Times. Under his leadership, The Illustrated Weekly came to be hailed as India's pre-eminent newsweekly. There's many other kudos bagged by Khushwant Singh. For instance, Singh was a Rajya Sabha member of the Indian parliament from 1980 to 1986. He was also honored with the Padma Bhushan award in the year 1974 for service to his country, but he returned the award in protest against the siege of the Golden Temple by the Indian Army in 1984. Undeterred, the Indian government awarded Singh an even more prestigious honor, the Padma Vibhushan in the year 2007.
Prof. John Kurakar
No comments:
Post a Comment