Background
Gurdial Singh was born on 10 January 1933 to father Jagat Singh and mother Nihal Kaur, in the village of Bhaini Fateh (near Jaitu) in British Punjab.
Gurdial Singh was born on 10 January 1933 to father Jagat Singh and mother Nihal Kaur, in the village of Bhaini Fateh (near Jaitu) in British Punjab.
He started his literary career in 1957 with a short-story, Bhaganwale. He became known as a novelist when he published the novel Marhi Da Deeva in 1964. Two of his novels have been made into films including Marhi Da Deeva directed by Surinder Singh and Anhe Ghore Da lavad directed by Gurvinder Singh.
He started his literary career in 1957 with a short story, Bhaganwale, which was published in Panj Darya, a magazine edited by Mohan Singh.
His later stories were published in Preetlari, edited by Gurbaksh Singh. In 1964, his major work, Marhi Da Deeva, established him as a novelist.
He has written ten novels, including Anhoe (1966), Addh Chanani Raat (1972), Anhe Ghore Da Daan (1976) and Parsa (1991). 12 collections of short stories, including Saggi Phull (1962), Kutta Te Aadmi (1971), Begana Pind (1985) and Kareer Di Dhingri (1991).
And translated more than 30 books
His novels Marhi Da Deeva and Addh Chanani Raat have been translated into English as The Last Flicker (by Sahitya Akademi) and Night of the Half Moon (by Macmillan) respectively. The National Book Trust has also published an English translation of his novel Parsa. Apart from novels and short stories he has also written three plays, two prose works and nine books for children.
Singh is a former college professor
(1962) Saggi Phull (1964) Chan Da Boota (1966) Upra Ghar (1971) Kutta Te Aadmi (1982) Masti Bota (1984) Rukhe Misse Bande (1985) Begana Pindh (1988) Chonvian Kahanian (1990) Pakka Tikana (1991) Kareer Di Dhingri (1992) Meri Pratinidhi Rachna.
He has received approximately 17 awards including the Jnanpith Award (in 1999), the Padma Shri (1998), the Shiromani Sahitkar Award, the Punjab Sahitya Akademi Award (1979), the Soviet Land Nehru Award (1986), the Bhai Veer Singh Fiction Award (1992), and others Best Fiction Book Award (Four times, in 1966, 1967, 1968, 1972) Nanak Singh Novelist Award, 1975 Sahitya Akademi Award, 1975 Punjab Sahitya Akademy Award, 1979 Soviet Land Nehru Award, 1986 Punjabi Sahitya Akademy Award, 1989 Shiromani Sahitkar Award, 1992 Bhai Veer Singh Galap Puraskar, 1992 Pash Award, 1995 Uttar Pradesh Hindi Sahitya Samellan Samman, 1997 Padam Shri, 1998 Jnanpith Literary Award 2000.
