Jaswant Singh Rahi ( pa, ਜਸਵੰਤ ਸਿੰਘ ਰਾਹੀ; 16 March 1913 – 11 April 1996) was a Punjabi poet, writer,

communist Communism (from Latin la, communis, lit=common, universal, label=none) is a far-left sociopolitical, philosophical, and economic ideology and current within the socialist movement whose goal is the establishment of a communist society, a s ...

and

freedom fighter A resistance movement is an organized effort by some portion of the civil population of a country to withstand the legally established government or an occupying power and to disrupt civil order and stability. It may seek to achieve its objectives ...

. He was born in and lived his whole life in

Dera Baba Nanak Dera Baba Nanak is a town and a municipal council in Gurdaspur district, in the state of Punjab, India. It is 36km away from Gurdaspur city, the capital of the district. Since November 2019, a corridor between India and Pakistan has been establ ...

town of

Gurdaspur Gurdaspur is a city in the India, Indian state of Punjab, India, Punjab, between the rivers Beas River, Beas and Ravi River, Ravi. It houses the administrative headquarters of Gurdaspur District and is in the geographical centre of the distr ...

district of

Punjab, India Punjab (; ) is a States and union territories of India, state in northern India. Forming part of the larger Punjab region of the Indian subcontinent, the state is bordered by the States and union territories of India, Indian states of Himachal ...

. Columnist Joginder Singh Bedi stated, "Born in the holy town of Dera Baba Nanak in Gurdaspur district, the Sahit Shiromani Poet Jaswant Singh Rahi's contribution to Punjabi world of letters is no less than that of

Dhani Ram Chatrik Dhani Ram Chatrik (4 October 1876 – 18 December 1954) was an Indian poet and typographer. He is considered one of the pioneers of modern Punjabi language, Punjabi poetry. He promoted Punjabi culture, language and publications through his life ...

, Prof

Mohan Singh (poet) Mohan Singh (1905–1978) was a noted Indian poet in the Punjabi language and an academic, and one of the early pioneers of modern Punjabi poetry. Biography Born in 1905 at Lyallpur (now in Pakistan), Mohan Singh spent the early years of h ...

and Prof

Puran Singh Professor Puran Singh ( pa, ਪ੍ਰੋ. ਪੂਰਨ ਸਿੰਘ; 17 February 1881 – 31 March 1931) was a List of Punjabi language poets, Punjabi poet, scientist and mystic. Born in Abbottabad, now in Pakistan, in a Sikh family, he is acclaim ...

. Rahi is popularly known for his slogan Jai Mitarta."

Early life

Rahi was born in a Rajput (Jaswal) family. His family had devoted itself to India's struggle for independence from British

colonial rule Colonialism is a practice or policy of control by one people or power over other people or areas, often by establishing colonies and generally with the aim of economic dominance. In the process of colonisation, colonisers may impose their relig ...

. He was very close to Baba Pyare Lal Bedi, a Punjabi

Sikh Sikhs ( or ; pa, ਸਿੱਖ, ' ) are people who adhere to Sikhism, Sikhism (Sikhi), a Monotheism, monotheistic religion that originated in the late 15th century in the Punjab region of the Indian subcontinent, based on the revelation of Gu ...

, an author and a philosopher. He married Satwant Kaur, a

from Fatehgarh Churian of Gurdaspur district in Punjab. They had eight children, including three sons – Rajwant Singh Rahi, Inderjeet Singh Rahi and Sarbjeet Singh Rahi; and five daughters – Late Ms Sukhbir Kaur (social activist and Punjabi writer), Santosh, Raj Kumari, Mohanjeet and Kanwaljeet. His daughters-in-law are Charanjeet Kaur, Ravinder Rahi and Kulwinder Kaur. His grandchildren include Dr. Baninder Rahi (journalist and media educator who has worked with the ''

Indian Express ''The Indian Express'' is an English-language Indian daily newspaper founded in 1932. It is published in Mumbai by the Indian Express Group. In 1999, eight years after the group's founder Ramnath Goenka's death in 1991, the group was split betw ...

, The Pioneer'' and '' Daily Post India)''. Other grandchildren are Kavita Rahi, Bikramjeet Singh Rahi, Natasha Rahi, Navkiran Rahi, Prateek Rahi and Sarvnoor Singh Rahi. He mentored writers including Rajwant Kaur Nagi and

Shiv Kumar Batalvi Shiv Kumar Batalvi (23 July 1936 - 6 May 1973) was an Indian poet, writer and playwright of the Punjabi language. He was most known for his romantic poetry, noted for its heightened passion, pathos, separation and lover's agony, due to that he ...

during his early years. Batalvi spent weeks at Rahi's house in Dera Baba Nanak.

Works and recognition

Jaswant Singh Rahi was inspired by the freedom struggle. He joined the Communist movement and at that time changed his name to Rahi. He wrote novels, poetry, and three-part autobiography entitled 'Main Kiven Jivia'. He was awarded by the Punjabi Lekhari Sabha and was also conferred with the Punjabi Sahit Shiromani Award.

Writing style

Jaswant Singh Rahi is considered among the most honest and bold writers by his contemporaries and critics. Kulbir Singh Kang mentioned that Rahi has his own unique style of writing which is not influenced by any other prominent or popular author. While referring to Rahi's autobiography 'Main Kiven Jivia' Kang further mentioned that he did not make any attempt to hide or manipulate any incident irrespective of the consequences. Joginder Singh Bedi in his 1992 column entitled "Jai Mitarta – Living up to his slogan" in

The Tribune (Chandigarh) ''The Tribune'' is an Indian English-language daily newspaper published from Amritsar, Jalandhar, Ludhiana, Bathinda, Chandigarh and New Delhi. It was founded on 2 February 1881, in Lahore, Punjab (now in Pakistan), by Sardar Dyal Singh Majit ...

has written, "In the galaxy of progressive Punjabi bards of North India, Jaswant Singh Rahi excels in composing quatrains in an unparalleled style." He further mentioned, "he has endeavoured to preach unity of godhead, brotherhood of man, secularism and above all international friendship in the context of his cherished slogan of Jai Mitarta." As mentioned by Manpreet Kaur in her thesis, "Jaswant Singh Rahi is a writer with traditional proverbs and modern enlightenment. His poems do not represent opposition, rather revolution. (Noor, Navin Punjabi 67). He does not want replacement; he wants transformation so that the individuals may be made free from communalism, slavery and inhuman behaviour. Rahi begins his poems with the repugnancy existing between imagination and realism. The background of this repugnancy is based on the religion as corollary of social values and facing the capitalist who converts the production into capital."

Books

The following are among the prominent works by Jaswant Singh Rahi: * ''Lishkan'' (1952) * ''Dojakh Di Agg'' (1966) * ''Aades Tise Aades'' (1983) * ''Noor Upaiya'' (1969) * ''Jassa Singh Ramgarhia'' (Poetic narrative)(1970) * ''Kaudian Khurmaniyan'' (1972) * ''Sachha Jhutha-Kahani Sangrah'' (1975) * ''Tutde Jurde Jism'' (1978) * ''Lahoo Bhiji Chanani'' (1981) * ''Pauna De Tarihaey'' (1981) * ''Kabran Da Gulab'' (1982) * ''Parchhavian da sach'' (1988) * ''Moye phulan da mandar'' (1990) * ''Adhoora Safar'' (1991) * ''Main Kiven Jeeveya I, II, III'' (Autobiography) (1991–95) * ''Dohre Rahi De'' (1996) * ''Lahoo De Timakane'' (1996)

Political influence

Throughout his active life, Rahi was considered among the most influential figures of the region. Prominent political personalities including Santokh Singh Randhawa, the then MLA of the constituency sought his advise on social and personal matters frequently. His correspondences regarding concerns over contemporary issues were also acknowledged by the then President of India, Giani Jail Singh. These correspondences are still preserved by the Rahi family.

Recognition

Contribution of Jaswant Singh Rahi to

Punjabi literature Punjabi literature, specifically literary works written in the Punjabi language, is characteristic of the historical Punjab region of India and Pakistan and the Punjabi diaspora. The Punjabi language is written in several scripts, of which the Sha ...

was duly recognized by contemporaries, critics and literary agencies. He has been conferred with several awards for his works, and his contributions for the freedom struggle of India. Besides various honors, he was conferred with the following prestigious awards: * Rashtriya Kavi (

National Poet A national poet or national bard is a poet held by tradition and popular acclaim to represent the identity, beliefs and principles of a particular national culture. The national poet as culture hero is a long-standing symbo ...

) by the Government of India on 26 January 1972 for his immense contribution to

. * Tamra Patra by Prime Minister

Indira Gandhi Indira Priyadarshini Gandhi (; Given name, ''née'' Nehru; 19 November 1917 – 31 October 1984) was an Indian politician and a central figure of the Indian National Congress. She was elected as third prime minister of India in 1966 ...

. * Tamra Patra by Prime Minister

Rajiv Gandhi Rajiv Gandhi (; 20 August 1944 – 21 May 1991) was an Indian politician who served as the sixth prime minister of India from 1984 to 1989. He took office after the 1984 assassination of his mother, then Prime Minister Indira Gandhi, to beco ...

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Rahi, Jaswant Singh 1913 births 1996 deaths Indian independence activists from Punjab (British India) Indian male poets Punjabi-language poets Punjabi-language writers 20th-century Indian poets Indian Communist writers Poets from Punjab, India People from Gurdaspur district