Born in 1937 I am a graduate from
Panjab University (1956), postgraduate in English from Punjabi University
(1970) and M.Litt in Comparative Indian Literature from Delhi University
(1978). Served with the Government of India from 1956 to1970 in a job that took
me to different parts of the country including Ladakh where I served for more
than two years traveling extensively along the Indo-Tibetan border. Resigned
from Government service in 1970 and took up teaching English language and
literature at Deshbandhu Evening College, now Ramanujan College (University of
Delhi) New Delhi from where I retired as Associate professor in 2002. Have
published fiction, poetry, translated Punjabi poetry into English, produced
English language teaching course books for schools.
Work
My long study of R.K. Narayan’s
novels, Pattern and Significance in
the Novels of R.k.Narayan was published in Indian Literature,
Sahitya Akademi in 1975.
My M.Litt. dissertation was on The Partition Theme in Hindi and
Indo-Anglian Fiction (1978), a study of six Hindi and English novels
including Yash Pal’s Joota Sach,
Bhisham Sahni’s Tamas,
Khuswant Singh’s Train to Pakistan
and Chaman Nahal’s Azadi. (Unpublished)
Published two short novels, The Stricken Moth (1984) and Alone in the Wilderness (2000), both
from Writers’ Workshop, Kolkata.
Published a few poems in The Journal of the Poetry Society (India)
and Poetry India: Voices for the Future (1993) and
done poetry reviews for the poetry society journal between1991-94.
Translated Punjabi poet, Puran
Singh Kanwar (1942-96), into English (A Season of Nights, National Bookshop, Delhi, 2006).
Translated Pash (Avtar Singh
Sandhu 1950-88), one of the most dominant, influential and discussed modern
Punjabi poets. The translation titled ‘Pash: A Poet of Impossible Dreams’
has been published by Pash Memorial International Trust together with Shilalekh,
Delhi, 2010.
Translated another Punjabi revolutionary poet, Lal Singh Dil (1943-2007). A collection of about 100 poems, titled ‘Exclusion Deprivation Nothingness: Selected Poems of Lal Singh Dil’ has been published by LG Publishers Distributors Delhi, 2017. Five of Dil's poems translated by me were published in the Transitions issue of the magazine Modern Poetry in Translation (MPT) 2012, published from Oxford, UK. Two of Dil’s poems translated by me for MPT were published in their fiftieth anniversary collection of translated poetry titled Centres of Cataclysm (2016).
Translated another Punjabi revolutionary poet, Lal Singh Dil (1943-2007). A collection of about 100 poems, titled ‘Exclusion Deprivation Nothingness: Selected Poems of Lal Singh Dil’ has been published by LG Publishers Distributors Delhi, 2017. Five of Dil's poems translated by me were published in the Transitions issue of the magazine Modern Poetry in Translation (MPT) 2012, published from Oxford, UK. Two of Dil’s poems translated by me for MPT were published in their fiftieth anniversary collection of translated poetry titled Centres of Cataclysm (2016).
Translated Punjabi poet, autobiographer, fiction writer Balbir Madhopuri's selected poems titled My Caste My Shadow (2020)
Translated Punjabi poet Baba Farid's couplets titled 'Farid Couplets' (2023) together with the original text in Gurmukhi, Devanagri and Shahmukhi scripts
Translated Punjabi poet Madan Veera's selected poems titled 'Narratives of the Excluded' (2024)
Translated 28 short stories of Hindi writer Premchand, all of which are available on this blog. These stories have been published in book form under the title :Premchand : God's Share in Stale Rice and Other Stories (2019).
Translated 28 short stories of Hindi writer Premchand, all of which are available on this blog. These stories have been published in book form under the title :Premchand : God's Share in Stale Rice and Other Stories (2019).
Published a sequel to Jonathan Swift's Gulliver's Travels, titled A Voyage to the Land Beloved of Gods (Gulliver's Fifth Voyage) (2021)
Published my own collection of short stories titled 'Divine Benevolence & Other Stories' (2024)
I have also published the following articles on
English language teaching:
‘Learning a Foreign Language: Gulliver’s
Way’ in ‘FORTELL’ (Journal of Teaching English Language and Literature),
published by Forum of Teachers of English Language and Literature, New Delhi,
January 2012.
‘Reflections
on having been a Learner before becoming a Teacher of English’
in ‘Language and Language Teaching’ (Azim ji Premji University), Volume 4 Number
4 Issue 7, January 2015
Translating
Punjabi Poetry: An Approach, in ‘Language and
Language Teaching’ (Azimji Premji University), Volume 6 Number 2 Issue 12, July
2017
In addition, I have done extensive work on
production of course book materials for English language teaching in schools.
I have been co-author and co-general editor with Dr Amrit Khanna Retired Associate Professor, an ELT consultant, for
three course book series (Open Windows, Looking Ahead and Wings
by Pencraft Publications, Delhi) and two series of Grammar (Graded
English Grammar and English in Use by Kohinoor
Publications, Delhi) meant for classes 1 to 8 for Indian schools and widely
prescribed in schools all over India. Also jointly authored: A Book of English Grammar and Composition published by Kohinoor Publications.
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