Above and below: Gurdial Singh at different stages in his life. Images: Courtesy - Amarjit Singh Chandan, Subhash Parihar
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Gurdial Singh,
Man Of Letters
RANA NAYAR, et al
GURDIAL SINGH
January 10, 1933 - August 16, 2016
Gurdial Singh, who has died aged 83, is known for giving impressive messages in his story and novel writings with high simplicity.
“A Spartan who has taken it all in his stride,” is how he was known in the literary world.
From a carpenter to a novelist of substance, Gurdial Singh had relied on the ingenuity of a craftsman to whom building blocks to create an organic whole come naturally.
He started his literary career in 1957 with a short story ‘Bhaaga(n)wale’ which was published in ‘Punj Darya’ edited by Mohan Singh. He rose to popularity with the publication of his novel ‘Marhi Da Deeva’ in 1964 and later in 1989 a film based on the novel was released.
After receiving the Sahitya Akademi award, he was the first living Punjabi writer who was given the Jnanpith Award, a top Indian literary award. In 1998, in recognition of his service to Punjabi literature and culture, he was awarded Padma Shri, India's highest civilian award.
Hindi critic Vishnu Khare, in an appraisal of Gurdial Singh’s work when he won the Jnanpith honour, said: “His essential sensibility and locale are rural and his medium is not the urban, middle-class Punjabi but a language liberally, even belligerently, laced with his native Malwi (Malwai) vernacular. In this he resembles Phanishwar Nath ‘Renu’, who shook sophisticated Hindi out of its urbane narcissism with his melange of dialects from northern Bihar.”
Internationally aaclaimed Punjabi film ‘Annhey Ghorey Da Daan (Alms of the Blind Horse) was also based on Gurdial Singh’s Punjabi novel with the same title written in 1976.
Earlier this year, Indian Sahitya Akademi gave him its highest honour by awarding him a fellowship.
His novels ‘Marhi Da Deeva’ and ‘Addh Chanani Raat’ have been translated into English as ‘The Last Flicker’ (translated by Ajmer Singh Rode, Sahitya Akademi) and ‘Night of the Half Moon’ (translated by Rana Nayar, Macmillan) respectively. The National Book Trust has also published an English translation of his novel ‘Parsa‘.
Apart from novels and short stories, he also wrote three plays, two prose works and nine books for children.
‘Marhi Da Diva’ and ‘Addh Chanani Raat’ are published in Lahore by Suchet.
Paying him a tribute, Sukhdev Singh Sirsa, president of the Punjabi Sahit Akademi, said: “He was one of the last ones in the Munshi Prem Chand tradition of writing about the downtrodden. He brought alive the struggle of the working classes of rural Punjab. He leaves behind a rich collection of work. He was writing to the very last."
Gurvinder Singh, filmmaker, who adapted ‘Annhey Ghorey Da Daan’ into a movie said: “I was amazed by the structure of ‘Annhey Ghorey’ in which events take place in less than 24 hours and a Dalit family is pushed from the village to the city. I found Gurdial Singh a very gentle person and was thrilled when he saw the film on DVD in Jaitu and liked it.”
Former Chief Minister Sardar Amarinder Singh today condoled the sad demise of Gurdial Singh.
He said: "His death is a great loss to the contemporary world of literature and the vacuum created by his death will be difficult to be filled."
"Gurdial Singh chronicled the contemporary times in his writings narrating through fiction the harsh realities of life. He was a great story teller and the master of narrative who won millions of hearts through his gripping stories," he added.
[Courtesy: Kitab Trinjan. Edited for sikhchic.com]
August 19, 2016