Khushwant Singh facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Khushwant Singh
Khushwant Singh at a reading in New Delhi
Born	Khushal Singh (1915-02-02)2 February 1915 Hadali, Punjab Province, British India (now in Punjab, Pakistan)
Died	20 March 2014(2014-03-20) (aged 99) New Delhi, India
Occupation	Lawyer, journalist, diplomat, writer, politician
Nationality	Indian
Alma mater	Government College, Lahore (B.A.) University of London (LL.B.)
Relatives	Sir Sobha Singh (father)

Khushwant Singh (born Khushal Singh, 2 February 1915 – 20 March 2014) was a famous Indian writer, lawyer, and journalist. He also worked as a diplomat and politician. His most famous book is Train to Pakistan, written in 1956. This book was inspired by his experiences during the Partition of India in 1947.

Khushwant Singh was born in Punjab. He studied at Modern School and St. Stephen's College in Delhi. He later earned a degree from Government College, Lahore. He also studied law at King's College London and the University of London. After working as a lawyer, he joined the Indian Foreign Service when India became independent in 1947.

He worked as a journalist for All India Radio and later for UNESCO in Paris. These jobs encouraged him to become a writer. Khushwant Singh was known for his clear writing, humor, and love for poetry. He often compared people from Western countries and India in a witty way. He was also the editor of several magazines and newspapers. From 1980 to 1986, he was a Member of Parliament in the Parliament of India.

Khushwant Singh received the Padma Bhushan award in 1974. However, he returned this award in 1984. This was to protest against Operation Blue Star, an event where the Indian Army entered a holy place in Amritsar. In 2007, he received the Padma Vibhushan, which is India's second-highest civilian award.

Early Life and Education

Khushwant Singh was born in Hadali, a place now in Pakistan. He came from a Sikh family. His father, Sir Sobha Singh, was a well-known builder in Delhi. Khushwant Singh's birth date was recorded as 2 February 1915 for school. However, his grandmother believed he was born in August. He later chose 15 August as his birthday.

His birth name was Khushal Singh, which means "Prosperous Lion." But he was called "Shalee" by his family. At school, other boys made fun of his name. So, he changed it to Khushwant, to sound like his older brother's name, Bhagwant. He said his new name was "self-made and meaningless."

He went to Delhi Modern School from 1920 to 1930. There, he met Kanwal Malik, who would later become his wife. He then studied at St. Stephen's College in Delhi. In 1932, he went to Government College, Lahore, where he earned his BA degree in 1934. After that, he studied law at King's College London and the University of London. He became a lawyer in London in 1938.

Career Highlights

Khushwant Singh began his career as a lawyer in Lahore in 1939. He worked there for eight years. In 1947, after India became independent, he joined the Indian Foreign Service. He worked as an Information Officer in Canada and later as a Press Attaché in London and Ottawa.

In 1951, he became a journalist for All India Radio. From 1954 to 1956, he worked for UNESCO in Paris, focusing on mass communication. After 1956, he became an editor. He started and edited Yojana, an Indian government journal. He also edited The Illustrated Weekly of India and The National Herald. He was even appointed editor of Hindustan Times.

During his time at The Illustrated Weekly, the magazine became very popular. Its readership grew from 65,000 to 400,000. After nine years, he left the weekly in 1978. After he left, the magazine's readership dropped a lot. In 2016, Khushwant Singh was honored in the Limca Book of Records.

Political Involvement

From 1980 to 1986, Khushwant Singh was a member of the Rajya Sabha, which is the upper house of India's parliament. He received the Padma Bhushan award in 1974 for his service to the country. However, he returned this award in 1984 to protest against the Indian Army's actions at the Golden Temple. In 2007, he was given the Padma Vibhushan, another high honor from the Indian government.

As a public figure, some people felt that Khushwant Singh supported the ruling Congress party. He openly supported the nation-wide emergency announced by Indira Gandhi. This led some to call him an 'establishment liberal'.

Later, events that followed Indira Gandhi's assassination made him question the Indian political system. However, he always believed in India's democracy. He worked with the Citizen's Justice Committee to help people. Singh also supported better relations with Israel when India was not yet close to that country.

Personal Life

Khushwant Singh married Kanwal Malik, a childhood friend he met again in London. They got married in Delhi. They had a son, Rahul Singh, and a daughter, Mala. His wife passed away in 2001. Actress Amrita Singh is his grandniece. He lived in "Sujan Singh Park" in New Delhi, an apartment complex built by his father. His grandniece Tisca Chopra is also a famous actress.

Views on Religion

Khushwant Singh called himself an agnostic. This means he was not sure if God exists. His book Agnostic Khushwant: There is no God shows this view. He did not like organized religion. He believed that a person could be good without believing in God. He also said, "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, was published in 2013. It talked about his views on religion in India.

His Passing

Khushwant Singh passed away peacefully on 20 March 2014, at his home in Delhi. He was 99 years old. The President, Vice-President, and Prime Minister of India all honored him. He was cremated in Delhi. He had wanted to be buried because he believed in returning to the earth what we take from it. He even asked the Baháʼí Faith if he could be buried in their cemetery, but it did not work out. Some of his ashes were scattered in his birthplace, Hadali, in Pakistan.

He had written his own obituary in 1943, which was part of his short story collection Posthumous.

Awards and Recognitions

Khushwant Singh received many honors during his life:

• Rockefeller Grant, 1966
• Padma Bhushan, Government of India (1974) (He returned this award in 1984)
• 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 (2010)
• 'All-India Minorities Forum Annual Fellowship Award' (2012)
• Lifetime achievement award by Tata Literature Live! The Mumbai Litfest (2013)
• Fellow of King's College London (2014)
• 'The Grove Press Award' for the best fiction.

Literary Works

Khushwant Singh wrote many books, including novels, short stories, and essays.

Books

• The Mark of Vishnu and Other Stories, (short story) 1950
• The History of Sikhs, 1953
• Train to Pakistan, (novel) 1956
• The Voice of God and Other Stories, (short story) 1957
• I Shall Not Hear the Nightingale, (novel) 1959
• The Sikhs Today, 1959
• The Fall of the Kingdom of the Punjab, 1962
• A History of the Sikhs, 1963
• Ranjit Singh: The Maharaja of the Punjab, 1963
• Ghadar 1915: India's first armed revolution, 1966
• A Bride for the Sahib and Other Stories, (short story) 1967
• Black Jasmine, (short story) 1971
• Tragedy of Punjab, 1984 (with Kuldip Nayar)
• The Sikhs, 1984
• The Collected Stories of Khushwant Singh, 1989
• More Malicious Gossip, 1989 (collection of essays)
• Delhi: A Novel, (Novel) 1990
• ..., Scotch & Scholarship, 1992 (collection of essays)
• Not a Nice Man to Know: The Best of Khushwant Singh, 1993
• We Indians, 1993
• Women and Men in My Life, 1995
• Declaring Love in Four Languages, by Khushwant Singh and Sharda Kaushik, 1997
• The Company of Women, (novel) 1999
• Big Book of Malice, 2000, (collection of essays)
• India: An Introduction, 2003
• Truth, Love and a Little Malice: An Autobiography, 2002
• With Malice towards One and All
• The End of India, 2003
• Burial at the Sea, 2004
• A History of the Sikhs, 2004 (2nd edition)
• Paradise and Other Stories, 2004
• A History of the Sikhs: 1469–1838, 2004
• Death at My Doorstep, 2005
• A History of the Sikhs: 1839–2004, 2005
• The Illustrated History of the Sikhs, 2006
• Land of Five Rivers, 2006
• Why I Supported the Emergency: Essays and Profiles, 2009
• The Sunset Club, (novel) 2010
• Gods and Godmen of India, 2012
• Agnostic Khushwant: There is no God, 2012
• The Freethinker's Prayer Book and Some Words to Live By, 2012
• The Good, the Bad and the Ridiculous, 2013 (co-authored with Humra Qureshi)
• Khushwantnama, The Lessons of My Life, 2013
• Punjab, Punjabis & Punjabiyat: Reflections on a Land and its People, 2018 (published after his death)

Short Stories

• The Portrait of a Lady
• The Strain
• Success Mantra
• A Love Affair in London
• The Wog
• The Portrait of a Lady: Collected Stories (2013)

Plays

• Television Documentary: Third World—Free Press (also presenter; Third Eye series), 1983 (UK).

See also

In Spanish: Khushwant Singh para niños