Khushwant Singh

2.1. Birth and Background

Khushwant Singh was born Khushal Singh on February 2, 1915, in Hadali, Khushab District, Punjab, which is now part of Pakistan. He hailed from a Sikh family, being the younger son of Sir Sobha Singh, a prominent builder in Lutyens' Delhi, and Veeran Bai. Due to the lack of official birth records at the time, his father assigned February 2, 1915, for his school enrollment. However, his grandmother, Lakshmi Devi, asserted that he was born in August, leading Singh to later adopt August 15 as his personal birth date. His family had significant connections; his uncle, Sardar Ujjal Singh (1895-1983), served as a former Governor of Punjab and Tamil Nadu.

His birth name, Khushal Singh, meaning "Prosperous Lion," was given by his grandmother, and he was affectionately called "Shalee." This name, however, became a source of ridicule at school, with other boys mocking him with the phrase, "Shalee Shoolee, Bagh dee Moolee" (meaning, "This shalee or shoolee is the radish of some garden"). Consequently, he chose the name Khushwant, which rhymed with his elder brother's name, Bhagwant. He initially declared his new name as "self-manufactured and meaningless" but later discovered a Hindu physician sharing the same name, and the number of people named Khushwant subsequently increased.

2.2. Education

Singh's educational journey spanned prestigious institutions in India and England. He entered the Modern School, Delhi in 1920, where he studied until 1930 and met his future wife, Kanwal Malik, who was one year his junior. From 1930 to 1932, he pursued an Intermediate of Arts at St. Stephen's College, Delhi in Delhi. He then continued his higher education at Government College, Lahore, in 1932, where he earned his Bachelor of Arts degree in 1934 with a "third-class degree".

Following his studies in India, Singh traveled to England to pursue a legal education. He attended King's College London and was awarded an LL.B. from the University of London in 1938. He was subsequently called to the bar at the London Inner Temple.

2.3. Legal Career

Upon completing his legal studies, Khushwant Singh began his professional career as a practicing lawyer in 1939. He worked at the Lahore High Court for eight years within the chambers of Manzur Qadir and Ijaz Husain Batalvi. During this period, he collaborated with several notable colleagues, including Akhtar Aly Kureshy and Raja Muhammad Arif. His legal career in Lahore continued until 1947, when India achieved independence.

3.1. Diplomatic and Journalism Career

After India gained independence in 1947, Khushwant Singh transitioned from his legal career to public service, joining the Indian Foreign Service. His diplomatic postings included serving as an Information Officer for the Government of India in Toronto, Canada. He then moved to London and Ottawa, Canada, where he served for four years as the Press Attaché and Public Officer for the Indian High Commission.

In 1951, Singh shifted his focus to journalism, joining All India Radio as a journalist. From 1954 to 1956, he further expanded his international experience by working in the Department of Mass Communication of UNESCO in Paris. These experiences in diplomacy and journalism were pivotal, encouraging him to embark on a prolific literary career.

3.2. Editorial Career

Following his stint with UNESCO, Khushwant Singh dedicated himself to editorial services starting in 1956, making significant contributions to Indian print media. He founded and edited Yojana, an Indian government journal, from 1951 to 1953. He also edited The Illustrated Weekly of India, a prominent newsweekly, and The National Herald. His reputation grew to the extent that he was personally recommended by Indira Gandhi to serve as the editor of the Hindustan Times.

During his nine-year tenure at The Illustrated Weekly of India, Singh transformed it into India's pre-eminent newsweekly. He dramatically increased its circulation from 65,000 to 400,000. However, on July 25, 1978, just a week before his scheduled retirement, the management abruptly asked him to leave with immediate effect. A new editor was appointed on the same day. Following his departure, the weekly experienced a substantial decline in readership, underscoring his impact. In 2016, the Limca Book of Records paid tribute to Khushwant Singh for his remarkable contributions to journalism.

4.1. Parliamentary Service

From 1980 to 1986, Khushwant Singh served as a Member of Parliament in the Rajya Sabha, the upper house of the Parliament of India. This period allowed him to actively engage in national legislative affairs and public policy.

4.2. Political Stances and Actions

Khushwant Singh's political views and actions frequently sparked public debate. In 1974, he was awarded the Padma Bhushan by the Government of India for his service to the nation. However, in an act of profound protest against state violence, he returned the award in 1984 following Operation Blue Star, the Indian Army's controversial siege of the Golden Temple in Amritsar. Despite this, he later accepted the Padma Vibhushan, India's second-highest civilian award, in 2007.

As a prominent public figure, Singh faced accusations of favoring the ruling Congress party, particularly during the tenure of Indira Gandhi. When Prime Minister Gandhi declared a nationwide Emergency, Singh openly supported it, which led to him being derisively labeled an 'establishment liberal' by critics who viewed his support as undermining democratic principles.

His faith in the Indian political system was profoundly shaken by the anti-Sikh riots that erupted in the aftermath of Indira Gandhi's assassination, events in which several major Congress politicians were alleged to be involved. Nevertheless, he maintained a resolute belief in the promise of Indian democracy and actively contributed to the Citizen's Justice Committee, a body initiated by senior advocate H. S. Phoolka of the Delhi High Court, which sought justice for the victims of the riots.

Singh was also a vocal advocate for strengthening India's diplomatic relations with Israel at a time when India was hesitant to displease Arab nations, where many Indians were employed. He visited Israel in the 1970s and expressed deep admiration for the country's progress.

5.1. Major Publications

Khushwant Singh authored numerous books across various genres, including novels, short story collections, historical works, and non-fiction essays. His experience during the 1947 Partition of India inspired his most celebrated novel, Train to Pakistan, published in 1956.

Some of his notable works include:

• The Mark of Vishnu and Other Stories (short story collection), 1950
• The History of Sikhs (historical work), 1953
• The Voice of God and Other Stories (short story collection), 1957
• I Shall Not Hear the Nightingale (novel), 1959
• The Sikhs Today (non-fiction), 1959
• The Fall of the Kingdom of the Punjab (historical work), 1962
• A History of the Sikhs (historical work), 1963 (with a second edition in 1966, and later editions in 2004 and 2005)
• Ranjit Singh: The Maharaja of the Punjab (historical work), 1963
• Ghadar 1915: India's first armed revolution (historical work), 1966
• A Bride for the Sahib and Other Stories (short story collection), 1967
• Black Jasmine (short story collection), 1971
• Tragedy of Punjab (non-fiction, co-authored with Kuldip Nayar), 1984
• The Sikhs (non-fiction), 1984
• The Collected Stories of Khushwant Singh (short story collection), 1989
• More Malicious Gossip (collection of essays), 1989
• Delhi: A Novel (novel), 1990
• Sex, Scotch & Scholarship (collection of essays), 1992
• Not a Nice Man to Know: The Best of Khushwant Singh (collection), 1993
• We Indians (non-fiction), 1993
• Women and Men in My Life (non-fiction), 1995
• Uncertain Liaisons; Sex, Strife and Togetherness in Urban India (non-fiction), 1995
• Declaring Love in Four Languages (co-authored with Sharda Kaushik), 1997
• The Company of Women (novel), 1999
• Big Book of Malice (collection of essays), 2000
• Truth, Love and a Little Malice: An Autobiography (autobiography), 2002
• India: An Introduction (non-fiction), 2003
• With Malice towards One and All (columns collection)
• The End of India (non-fiction), 2003
• Burial at the Sea (non-fiction), 2004
• Paradise and Other Stories (short story collection), 2004
• Death at My Doorstep (non-fiction), 2004
• The Illustrated History of the Sikhs (historical work), 2006
• Land of Five Rivers (non-fiction), 2006
• Why I Supported the Emergency: Essays and Profiles (collection of essays), 2009
• The Sunset Club (novel), 2010
• Gods and Godmen of India (non-fiction), 2012
• Agnostic Khushwant: There is no God (non-fiction), 2012
• The Freethinker's Prayer Book and Some Words to Live By (non-fiction), 2012
• The Good, the Bad and the Ridiculous (non-fiction, co-authored with Humra Qureshi), 2013, which was his last published work before retirement.
• Khushwantnama, The Lessons of My Life (non-fiction), 2013
• Punjab, Punjabis & Punjabiyat: Reflections on a Land and its People (posthumously compiled by his daughter Mala Dayal), 2018

His short stories also include The Portrait of a Lady, The Strain, Success Mantra, A Love Affair in London, and The Wog. He was also involved in television, presenting the documentary Third World-Free Press in the UK in 1983 as part of the Third Eye series.

5.2. Literary Style and Themes

Khushwant Singh was renowned for his distinctive literary style, characterized by his trenchant secularism, sharp humor, and often biting sarcasm. He displayed an abiding love for poetry, which frequently infused his prose. His writing often featured candid comparisons of the social and behavioral characteristics of Westerners and Indians, delivered with a keen and "acid wit."

A recurring theme in his works was his exploration of human nature, societal hypocrisy, and the complexities of Indian identity, particularly in the context of the Partition of India. He was a master of narrative, capable of weaving detailed historical accounts with fictional storytelling, as seen in his acclaimed novel Delhi: A Novel. His works consistently reflected his critical and often provocative perspective on religion, politics, and social issues, making him a unique and enduring voice in contemporary Indian English literature.

7.1. Views on Religion

Khushwant Singh was a self-proclaimed agnostic, a conviction he explicitly stated in the title of his 2011 book, Agnostic Khushwant: There is no God. He was particularly outspoken against organised religion, believing it often fostered division and hypocrisy. He frequently expressed views that leaned towards atheism, asserting, "One can be a saintly person without believing in God and a detestable villain believing in him. In my personalised religion, There Is No God!"

He rejected traditional concepts of the afterlife, stating, "I don't believe in rebirth or in reincarnation, in the day of judgement or in heaven or hell. I accept the finality of death." His last book, The Good, The Bad and The Ridiculous, published in October 2013, continued his sharp critique of religion and its practices in India, including the clergy and priests. This work received significant acclaim in India for its candidness. Singh once controversially claimed that Sikhism was a "warrior branch of Hinduism", a statement that generated considerable discussion among religious scholars and the public.

8.1. Death and Funeral

Khushwant Singh passed away from natural causes on March 20, 2014, at his Delhi residence, at the age of 99. Tributes poured in from across the nation, with the President of India, Vice-President, and Prime Minister of India all issuing messages honoring his contributions. He was cremated at the Lodhi Crematorium in Delhi on the afternoon of the same day.

Singh had previously expressed a desire for burial, believing it to be a way of returning to the earth what one has taken. He had even approached the management of the Baháʼí Faith about being buried in their cemetery. However, after initial discussions, the conditions proposed by the Baha'i Faith were unacceptable to Singh, and the idea was abandoned. In accordance with his wishes, some of his ashes were transported back to Hadali, his birthplace in the Punjab province of modern Pakistan, and scattered there. A plaque at the Hadali school, where his ashes are buried, bears an inscription acknowledging his roots: "IN MEMORY OF SARDAR KHUSHWANT SINGH (1915-2014) A SIKH, A SCHOLAR AND A SON OF HADALI (Punjab) 'This is where my roots are. I have nourished them with tears of nostalgia ...'"

8.2. Self-Written Obituary and Epitaph

In a testament to his characteristic wit and foresight, Khushwant Singh had prepared his own obituary as early as 1943, which was included in his collection of short stories titled Posthumous. Under the headline "Sardar Khushwant Singh Dead", the obituary read:
"We regret to announce the sudden death of Sardar Khushwant Singh at 6 pm last evening. He leaves behind a young widow, two infant children and a large number of friends and admirers. Amongst those who called at the late sardar's residence were the PA to the chief justice, several ministers, and judges of the high court."

He also penned a self-deprecating epitaph for himself, which famously stated:
"Here lies one who spared neither man nor God;
Waste not your tears on him, he was a sod;
Writing nasty things he regarded as great fun;
Thank the Lord he is dead, this son of a gun."

8.3. Honours and Awards

Khushwant Singh received numerous accolades throughout his distinguished career, recognizing his contributions to literature, journalism, and public life.

• Rockefeller Grant, 1966
• Padma Bhushan, Government of India, 1974 (Returned in 1984 in protest against the Union government's siege of the Golden Temple, Amritsar)
• Honest Man of the Year, Sulabh International, 2000
• Punjab Rattan Award, The Government of Punjab, 2006
• Padma Vibhushan, Government of India, 2007
• Sahitya Akademi Fellowship by Sahitya Akademi of India, 2010
• 'All-India Minorities Forum Annual Fellowship Award' by Uttar Pradesh Chief Minister Akhilesh Yadav, 2012
• Lifetime achievement award by Tata Literature Live! The Mumbai Litfest, 2013
• Fellow of King's College London, January 2014
• 'The Grove Press Award' for the best fiction.

8.4. Criticism and Controversy

Despite his accolades and influence, Khushwant Singh's public life was not without its share of criticism and controversy, particularly regarding his political alignments and views on sensitive topics. He was accused by some of favoring the ruling Congress party, especially during the tenure of Indira Gandhi. His open support for the nationwide Emergency declared by Indira Gandhi, a period seen by many as a suppression of democratic freedoms, earned him the derisive label of an 'establishment liberal'. This stance led to significant public and intellectual debate, with critics questioning his commitment to liberal ideals in the face of authoritarian measures.

Furthermore, Singh generated controversy with his remarks on religion, notably his claim that Sikhism was a "warrior branch of Hinduism." This statement sparked discussions and drew criticism from various religious and academic circles, highlighting his willingness to challenge conventional narratives, even on deeply sensitive subjects. His readiness to express unpopular opinions, while central to his persona as a "not a nice man to know," also made him a target for detractors who disagreed with his political or social commentary.

8.5. Influence and Impact

Khushwant Singh left an indelible mark on Indian literature, journalism, and public discourse, influencing generations with his distinctive voice and fearless commentary. As an author, his depiction of the 1947 Partition in Train to Pakistan became a seminal work, offering a poignant and realistic portrayal of one of India's most traumatic historical events. His extensive historical writings, particularly A History of the Sikhs, provided valuable insights into Sikh identity and history, solidifying his reputation as a meticulous scholar.

In journalism, his transformative leadership at The Illustrated Weekly of India, where he dramatically increased its circulation and public prominence, showcased his editorial acumen and ability to connect with a mass audience. He championed secularism and intellectual freedom, using his columns to provoke thought, challenge hypocrisy, and comment on social issues with a blend of humor, sarcasm, and profound observation. His literary style, characterized by its accessibility and wit, made complex subjects digestible and engaging for a wide readership.

Beyond his professional roles, Singh's candid personal life, his self-proclaimed agnosticism, and his willingness to critique organized religion contributed to a more open dialogue about spirituality and societal norms in India. His legacy is that of a fearless intellectual who used his pen to advocate for tolerance, democracy, and rational thought, even when it meant standing against popular opinion or established power. He remains one of India's most widely read and debated authors, a testament to his lasting impact on the nation's cultural and intellectual landscape.